Jem Gurner - Candidate Master Extraordinaire
Meet Jem Gurner, a wizard of the chessboard and proud bearer of the esteemed FIDE title Candidate Master. Jem isn’t just another player; they are a strategic force known for their resilient comebacks and a relentless passion for the game. Their tactical spirit is so lively that even after losing a piece, they still come back with nearly 49% win rate—talk about turning lemons into chessboard lemonade!
Rating Rollercoaster
Starting from humble beginnings with blitz ratings near 950 in 2013, Jem has steadily soared to dazzling heights, peaking at an impressive Blitz rating of 2279 in late 2024. Similarly, their bullet skills are sharp as a knight’s fork with a peak rating crescendo of 2291. Rapid and daily games haven’t been left out either, with peaks flirting around the 2200 mark, proving Jem’s versatility at all time controls. From an average game lasting about 67 moves when they win, to enduring longer battles of 80 moves when they lose, Jem embodies both endurance and precision.
Playing Style & Psychological Flair
Jem has a peculiar fondness for the Modern Defense, often sprinkling their play with variations like the Averbakh and Standard lines with notable win rates topping 55% in blitz, and even scoring a brilliant 60%+ in bullet. Not one to resign easily, Jem’s early resignation rate hovers around a modest 2.5%, and with a tilt factor of 10 (whatever that means), they keep their cool more than a queen on ice.
Their best hour to play? Hands down, 9 PM, when the stars align, the pieces dance, and the opponents tremble. This timing magic may explain how Jem manages a win rate north of 52% across the week, peaking on Wednesdays.
Record & Rivalries
With over 5,300 blitz wins and more than 2,000 victors in bullet, Jem's scoreboard is definitely one for the books. They're no stranger to drawing swords with regular rivals like aerialsgalore (884 clashes!) and joe_beddoe12 (663 battles), often pushing each other to their limits. Fun fact: Jem boasts a 100% win rate against several opponents—clearly a nightmare on the board for those unfortunates.
Memorable Victories
One of Jem’s recent standout wins was a gripping encounter in the CI Championship 2024 – Round 4, where deploying the Modern Defense, Jem outmaneuvered opponent Jerseypheonix in a prolonged and complex game that ended in a masterful resignation victory. For those who love the gritty details, they can savor the intricacies of the game via the game [link](https://www.chess.com/game/daily/774682985).
In Summary
Whether it’s bullet or daily correspondence, Jem Gurner’s chess journey is marked by steady improvement, fearless resilience, and a touch of brilliance in opening theory. They remind us all that the game of chess is not just about pawns and knights, but the art of patience, psychology, and sometimes a little bit of cheeky fun.
Ready to challenge the Candidate Master? Don’t say we didn’t warn you.
Positives in Your Recent Rapid Games
Great job on securing wins through strong tactical awareness and strategic positioning. Here are some specific strengths noticed:
- Active Piece Play: You frequently move your knights and bishops to aggressive squares, putting pressure on your opponent and creating threats. For example, your knight maneuvers in the game against blueberry_avocado were impressive, applying consistent pressure.
- Effective Use of Checks and Pins: You utilize checks to disrupt your opponent’s development and to gain material advantages, as seen in your interaction with your opponent's weaknesses.
- Opening Preparation: Your results show solid performance with openings like the Petrov’s Defense (100% win rate) and Amazon Attack variations (above 60% win rate), indicating good familiarity and preparation.
- Endgame Technique: You convert advantages well, using passed pawns and coordinated attacks to press your advantage and force opponent resignations or deliver checkmate.
Areas to Improve
To continue climbing and sharpen your play further, consider focusing on these areas:
- Time Management: Some wins came from opponents losing on time. Ensuring you manage your own clock effectively even when ahead will help secure wins more reliably.
- Defending Against Counterattacks: Although your aggressive style creates threats, be cautious about potential counterattacks. Improving your defensive construction can avoid sudden turnaround tactics by opponents.
- Expand Opening Repertoire: While you perform well with select openings, incorporating more diversity could give you an edge. Study and practice other defenses and gambits to be comfortable in multiple game types.
- Positional Planning: Work on deeper long-term planning beyond immediate tactics. Strengthening your understanding of pawn structures and strategic objectives will improve consistency across different opponents.
General Advice and Next Steps
Given your stable rating around 2170 and positive trends in your stats, focus on continuous learning and practicing on various opening lines and strategic concepts:
- Review your games regularly, especially losses, to identify recurring mistakes or missed opportunities.
- Study classic games in openings you use to learn common themes and plans.
- Use puzzles and tactical training to maintain sharp calculation skills — your ability to spot forcing moves contributes to winning play.
- Maintain balanced time usage during games to avoid time-pressure errors, a common challenge in rapid chess.
- Consider playing longer time controls occasionally to deepen your understanding of complex positions.
Keep up the great effort, and with focused training, you'll see further progress!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| chessmdb | 0W / 1L / 0D | View |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| aerialsgalore | 482W / 317L / 85D | View Games |
| joe_beddoe12 | 608W / 44L / 11D | View Games |
| eudo1 | 162W / 15L / 3D | View Games |
| lightweight009 | 77W / 51L / 10D | View Games |
| eudo1769 | 82W / 7L / 5D | View Games |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2228 | 2196 | 2172 | 1978 |
| 2024 | 2246 | 2234 | 2172 | 2008 |
| 2023 | 2136 | 2197 | 2184 | 1922 |
| 2022 | 2049 | 2170 | 2116 | 1998 |
| 2021 | 2173 | 2078 | 1926 | |
| 2020 | 1954 | 1980 | 1904 | 1764 |
| 2019 | 1880 | 1966 | 1435 | 1864 |
| 2018 | 1710 | 1719 | 1468 | 1758 |
| 2017 | 1698 | 1731 | 1319 | |
| 2016 | 1494 | 1548 | 1237 | 1555 |
| 2015 | 1307 | 1367 | 1478 | 1419 |
| 2014 | 1041 | 1213 | 1181 | 1322 |
| 2013 | 954 | 1187 | 1424 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 23W / 19L / 5D | 31W / 20L / 2D | 55.5 |
| 2024 | 175W / 147L / 15D | 150W / 166L / 17D | 76.5 |
| 2023 | 424W / 388L / 50D | 355W / 445L / 47D | 77.6 |
| 2022 | 376W / 326L / 47D | 372W / 336L / 56D | 77.2 |
| 2021 | 366W / 256L / 32D | 334W / 288L / 35D | 78.1 |
| 2020 | 937W / 510L / 83D | 879W / 560L / 86D | 73.3 |
| 2019 | 603W / 465L / 58D | 571W / 489L / 66D | 73.4 |
| 2018 | 280W / 209L / 25D | 299W / 193L / 29D | 70.9 |
| 2017 | 193W / 152L / 25D | 167W / 178L / 12D | 70.5 |
| 2016 | 187W / 106L / 12D | 184W / 126L / 11D | 68.3 |
| 2015 | 222W / 181L / 24D | 186W / 194L / 32D | 80.7 |
| 2014 | 170W / 166L / 13D | 138W / 187L / 14D | 75.7 |
| 2013 | 11W / 29L / 3D | 18W / 21L / 2D | 64.5 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modern | 1033 | 517 | 458 | 58 | 50.0% |
| Australian Defense | 511 | 244 | 233 | 34 | 47.8% |
| Modern Defense | 325 | 172 | 134 | 19 | 52.9% |
| Amazon Attack | 307 | 168 | 124 | 15 | 54.7% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 302 | 155 | 136 | 11 | 51.3% |
| Unknown | 274 | 153 | 120 | 1 | 55.8% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 254 | 115 | 124 | 15 | 45.3% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 251 | 106 | 133 | 12 | 42.2% |
| Czech Defense | 221 | 107 | 108 | 6 | 48.4% |
| Amar Gambit | 216 | 116 | 86 | 14 | 53.7% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modern | 452 | 259 | 168 | 25 | 57.3% |
| Australian Defense | 334 | 208 | 108 | 18 | 62.3% |
| Amar Gambit | 167 | 108 | 54 | 5 | 64.7% |
| Modern Defense | 124 | 66 | 49 | 9 | 53.2% |
| French Defense | 111 | 72 | 33 | 6 | 64.9% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 94 | 55 | 29 | 10 | 58.5% |
| Nimzo-Larsen Attack | 94 | 53 | 36 | 5 | 56.4% |
| Barnes Defense | 81 | 43 | 33 | 5 | 53.1% |
| Scandinavian Defense | 81 | 46 | 32 | 3 | 56.8% |
| Czech Defense | 75 | 44 | 28 | 3 | 58.7% |
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modern | 22 | 13 | 8 | 1 | 59.1% |
| Australian Defense | 11 | 11 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 10 | 5 | 4 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Modern Defense | 9 | 3 | 3 | 3 | 33.3% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 9 | 5 | 2 | 2 | 55.6% |
| Sicilian Defense | 7 | 6 | 0 | 1 | 85.7% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 85.7% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 6 | 6 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Amazon Attack | 6 | 3 | 2 | 1 | 50.0% |
| French Defense: Advance Variation | 6 | 5 | 1 | 0 | 83.3% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Modern | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50.0% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 8 | 5 | 3 | 0 | 62.5% |
| Amazon Attack | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 62.5% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 7 | 4 | 2 | 1 | 57.1% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 60.0% |
| Modern Defense | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 60.0% |
| Pirc Defense: Austrian Attack | 5 | 2 | 1 | 2 | 40.0% |
| Sicilian Defense | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Australian Defense | 4 | 2 | 1 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 33.3% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 28 | 0 |
| Losing | 10 | 2 |