Jernej Skuhala (jerry_77)
Better known to the chess world as jerry_77, Jernej Skuhala is a FIDE Master who has turned online blitz into a second language. He arrived on the server in spring 2012 with a modest 1345 blitz start and spent the next decade climbing, grinding, and occasionally losing 12 games in a row just to prove he is human. Today, with more than 8,000 rated games logged, he is one of the most recognizable blitz regulars in his corner of the internet.
The Long Climb
Jernej's story is not about instant success. It is about volume, stubbornness, and a genuine love for fast chess. From his early 1345 days, he steadily pushed his blitz rating toward 2000 by the end of 2012, broke 2200 in 2015, and touched 2500 in 2019. The journey continued into the 2600s and beyond, with a peak of 2722 (2024-05-14) in blitz and 2848 (2026-02-17) in bullet. He made it look less like a sprint and more like a siege.
His rating curve tells the story better than any prose:
A Blitz Lover's Repertoire
Jernej is a loyal 1.e4 player and a devoted student of the Caro-Kann Defense. It appears more often than any other opening in his blitz games, and he plays it on both sides of the board with equal enthusiasm. His black repertoire also leans heavily on the Sicilian Defense, especially the Alapin and Najdorf lines, while his white stats shine in the Scandinavian Defense and the Czech Defense.
He almost never resigns. His endgame frequency is absurdly high, his average game stretches into the 80s of moves, and his comeback rate sits near 88%. Lose a piece to him? He still wins nearly half the time. Early resignation rate? Just over 1%. If you are looking for a quitter, jerry_77 is not your man.
Rivalries That Could Fill a Tournament Hall
No biography of jerry_77 is complete without the names he has pounded into the server logs. He has faced Bruno Makovec 112 times, which is more games than most players have against everyone. ZURAB AZMAIPARASHVILI has been his dance partner 102 times, and mattack9999 has appeared 97 times. Then there is Lara Janzelj, against whom Jernej holds a lopsided 46 to 18 record with 8 draws. Some rivalries are just love letters in another font.
- Against benkenobi1: 112 games, 65 wins, 43 losses, 4 draws
- Against zuraazmai: 102 games, 53 wins, 39 losses, 10 draws
- Against mattack9999: 97 games, 48 wins, 30 losses, 19 draws
- Against larajanzelj: 72 games, 46 wins, 18 losses, 8 draws
- Against knvb: 28 games, but just 9 wins and 18 losses, no rival is perfect
Numbers, Streaks, and Other Curiosities
Jernej has gone on a 10 game winning streak and a 12 game losing streak, which suggests he experiences chess at full volume. His best time of day is 8am, when the coffee is strong and the opponents are sleepy. His so called tilt factor sits at 12, a number that sounds scary but seems to just mean he cares deeply.
Above all, he is a blitz loyalist. While his bullet rating has climbed past 2800 and his rapid and daily games show real depth, blitz is where Jernej Skuhala feels most at home. The FIDE Master title is official. The 5,000 plus blitz games are the proof.