Lars Stark - International Master
Known online as goldihouse, Lars Stark is not your average chess player. Awarded the prestigious title of International Master by FIDE, Lars has steadily climbed the rating ladder with a mix of strategic brilliance and unyielding determination.
Chess Journey and Playing Style
Starting with a modest daily rating under 1000 in early 2024, Lars quickly catapulted to over 2000 within a year, showcasing an insane winning streak of 25 games at one point—impressive enough to make grandmasters raise an eyebrow (or two). Their style is that of a fearless tactician, boasting a comeback rate of 85% and a knack for winning even after losing a piece.
Lars prefers drawn-out battles, with an average game length over 79 moves for wins, proving that endurance and patience are key weapons alongside tactical fireworks. White pieces bring out their aggressive side, winning nearly 62% of those games, while Black is played with consistent resilience, winning over 52%.
Performance Highlights
- Peak Daily Rating: 2072 (March 2025)
- Peak Blitz Rating: A blistering 2823 (April 2025)
- Unblemished Daily record in October 2024 with a 27-0 winning streak
- Over 800 official wins combined across Daily and Blitz formats
Favorite Openings and Strategies
Lars favors a secret weapon known simply as the "Top Secret" opening — as mysterious as their ability to leave opponents in checkmate confusion. They've also shown finesse with the Semi Slav Defense and Petrovs Defense Classical Attack, winning all games recorded in those lines.
On and Off the Board
Lars’ best time to play? The witching hour of 4 AM — stealthy games played while the rest of the world sleeps, perhaps catching unsuspecting opponents off-guard. Despite some occasional rough patches (they admit a tilt factor of 9), Lars bounces back quickly, always ready for the next round with an eye on the trophy.
Memorable Recent Games
In a recent encounter against Playagainsam007, Lars brilliantly executed the Semi Slav Defense, resigning the opponent after relentless pressure. Another dazzling win featured a perfect dissertation of the Torre Attack Fianchetto Defense, showcasing deep positional understanding.
Final Thoughts
With a blend of tactical precision, psychological resilience, and a pinch of midnight madness, Lars Stark is a formidable presence on the chessboard. Long live the legend of goldihouse, the International Master who’s just getting started!
Positives in Your Blitz Play
Your recent games demonstrate several strong aspects of your blitz chess play:
- Consistent use of the English Opening and its variations shows you are confident in these lines and have built good opening knowledge.
- You hold a solid edge in many English Opening variations, especially the Anglo-Indian Defense and Agincourt Defense, with win rates around 58-68%.
- Your sharp tactical awareness allowed you to capitalize on opponent mistakes, as seen in your mix of exchange and piece sacrifices to gain material and positional advantages.
- Good time management is evident in your games, with thoughtful use of the clock — critical in blitz formats.
- Steady rating increase and positive slopes in rating suggest your training and practice are effective and yield consistent long-term improvement.
Areas for Improvement
To further elevate your blitz performance, consider focusing on these key areas:
- Expand your Opening Repertoire: While you excel in English Opening lines, incorporating additional reliable openings could improve flexibility and adaptability during games.
- Reduce Losses in Complex Positions: Some losses occur in tense middle or endgame positions; sharpen your calculation and defensive skills to better navigate these phases.
- Conversion in Winning Positions: Practice technique in converting winning or advantageous positions especially in tight endgames to reduce missed opportunities.
- Endgame Mastery: Study key endgame principles and patterns to secure points in close matches—this can increase your win rate even at higher levels.
- Handling Pressure: With several losses despite strong positions, work on maintaining composure and avoiding time trouble mistakes in blitz.
Suggested Next Steps
- Analyze your recent losses deeply to find common pitfalls and develop concrete plans to avoid them.
- Practice blitz puzzles daily to improve your instinct for tactical opportunities and defensive resources under time pressure.
- Play training games focusing on new openings or less familiar lines to broaden your strategic toolkit.
- Review classical endgame theory and practical studies to boost your confidence in critical closing moments.
- Maintain your strong opening repertoire by reviewing recent theory updates and adding novelties where appropriate.
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| hollywoodgwd | 1W / 0L / 0D | View |
| lgslg | 1W / 0L / 1D | View |
| aftrolle88 | 0W / 1L / 1D | View |
| joshing_around20 | 0W / 1L / 0D | View |
| pertinhez76 | 0W / 1L / 0D | View |
| roronoajojo_1982 | 1W / 1L / 0D | View |
| searchforbobby1 | 0W / 1L / 0D | View |
| drozdnv | 0W / 2L / 0D | View |
| artnors | 2W / 0L / 0D | View |
| carozo2021 | 2W / 0L / 0D | View |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| Nebojsa Djordjevic | 5W / 3L / 0D | View Games |
| avatarroku7 | 4W / 2L / 0D | View Games |
| drceltic | 1W / 3L / 2D | View Games |
| kolanomer | 5W / 1L / 0D | View Games |
| Sanjeev Mishra | 4W / 2L / 0D | View Games |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2823 | 2023 | ||
| 2024 | 2741 | 1991 | ||
| 2023 | 2601 | |||
| 2022 | 2578 | |||
| 2021 | 2610 | |||
| 2020 | 2485 | |||
| 2019 | 2115 | |||
| 2017 | 1825 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 92W / 56L / 29D | 79W / 79L / 21D | 81.9 |
| 2024 | 200W / 57L / 33D | 137W / 95L / 28D | 85.7 |
| 2023 | 65W / 32L / 7D | 48W / 43L / 7D | 94.4 |
| 2022 | 68W / 41L / 14D | 59W / 48L / 11D | 88.9 |
| 2021 | 28W / 26L / 5D | 41W / 17L / 4D | 98.1 |
| 2020 | 25W / 9L / 1D | 21W / 12L / 0D | 87.5 |
| 2019 | 2W / 0L / 0D | 2W / 0L / 0D | 76.5 |
| 2017 | 3W / 0L / 0D | 3W / 0L / 0D | 58.5 |
Openings: Most Played
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation | 17 | 5 | 12 | 0 | 29.4% |
| Sicilian Defense | 17 | 11 | 6 | 0 | 64.7% |
| London System: Poisoned Pawn Variation | 16 | 12 | 1 | 3 | 75.0% |
| Amazon Attack | 15 | 8 | 3 | 4 | 53.3% |
| East Indian Defense | 15 | 7 | 3 | 5 | 46.7% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 14 | 13 | 0 | 1 | 92.9% |
| Italian Game: Two Knights Defense | 13 | 7 | 3 | 3 | 53.9% |
| Döry Defense | 12 | 4 | 7 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 12 | 9 | 3 | 0 | 75.0% |
| Ruy Lopez: Schliemann Defense | 8 | 4 | 4 | 0 | 50.0% |
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Opening: Drill Variation | 118 | 68 | 40 | 10 | 57.6% |
| English Opening: Agincourt Defense | 97 | 57 | 32 | 8 | 58.8% |
| French Defense: Burn Variation | 87 | 46 | 35 | 6 | 52.9% |
| English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense | 68 | 46 | 17 | 5 | 67.7% |
| French Defense | 51 | 28 | 17 | 6 | 54.9% |
| English Opening | 50 | 33 | 12 | 5 | 66.0% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Botvinnik System | 49 | 25 | 19 | 5 | 51.0% |
| French Defense: Tarrasch Variation, Guimard Defense, Main Line | 46 | 29 | 14 | 3 | 63.0% |
| Döry Defense | 40 | 21 | 14 | 5 | 52.5% |
| English Opening: Caro-Kann Defensive System | 38 | 26 | 7 | 5 | 68.4% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 25 | 2 |
| Losing | 9 | 0 |