Overview
Halldor Gretar Einarsson, known online as halldorgretar, is a FIDE Master and a stalwart of fast chess. A natural at Rapid, Halldor combines deep endgame technique with a fondness for long, decisive battles. He is often described as a player who prefers to outlast opponents rather than outrun them.
Career highlights
- Title: FIDE Master. A solid international title that reflects consistent tournament success and mastery of middlegame complexity.
- Preferred time control: Rapid. Halldor’s Rapid play contains some of his sharpest results and has produced memorable victories.
- Peak performances: Achieved a Blitz peak of 2439 and a Rapid peak of 2355 during competitive stretches, underlining strong form across fast time controls. 2439 (2025-03-20) 2355 (2020-03-31)
- Endurance specialist: average decisive games run long, with average moves per win around the mid 60s. He is not afraid to grind.
Playing style and openings
Halldor is an attritional player who enjoys complex, strategic positions that often head into rich endgames. He checks the board often and is comfortable with long maneuvering battles. His tactics are reliable; his comeback rate shows a knack for turning the tide.
- Favorite White systems: Catalan Opening has yielded very good results, with one of his higher win rates among common systems.
- As Black: a diverse toolkit ranging from Sicilian Four Knights Cobra to the Czech Defense and Gruenfeld structures. He plays the Benko Gambit and Slav Bonet Gambit with real confidence.
- Notable opening strengths (Blitz): Catalan, Slav Bonet Gambit, Benko Gambit, King’s Indian Sämisch lines. These lines appear frequently in his repertoire and have strong win rates.
Notable streaks and psychology
- Longest winning streak: 13 games. Halldor can go on long runs when everything clicks.
- Resilience: exceptional comeback rate. He often bounces back after setbacks and plays well under pressure.
- Best time of day: statistically strongest around 01:00. For reasons unclear, midnight snacks and rook lifts work wonders.
Memorable games and sample
Here is a recent memorable online game you can view and one short PGN sample to explore his style.
- Sample game: A memorable win
- Quick PGN snippet to preview his opening feel:
Statistics snapshot
Halldor has thousands of fast games recorded, with strong win totals across Blitz and Rapid. He favors long endgames and is comfortable in complex, tactical-strategic positions.
- Overall fast-chess footprint: many hundreds of games across recent seasons and multiple long rating peaks.
- Notable openings performance placeholders: Catalan Opening, Slav Defense: Bonet Gambit, Benko Gambit are among the most productive. Catalan Opening Slav Defense Benko Gambit
- Rating trend snapshot (Rapid):
How to follow or study
To study Halldor’s games, review his Catalan and Slav encounters and look for long endgame technique. If you want to target him with an opening surprise, be ready for a slow, methodical fight rather than fireworks.
- Try these study hooks: look at his Catalan wins for strategic plans and his Benko games for queenside dynamics.
- Profile connections: Jorge A González Rodríguez for a frequent rival and useful comparison games.
Notes and placeholders
Placeholders below are included to enrich a viewer that supports internal widgets and stats.
- Peak quick stats: 2355 (2020-03-31)
- Blitz trend chart:
- Another sample game link: View Game