Matthew_Clarke — FIDE Master and Bullet Specialist
Matthew_Clarke is a FIDE Master with a predilection for fast, sharp chess. A tournament-hardened player who prefers Bullet time controls, Matthew mixes cheeky tactical ideas with a surprisingly patient endgame nose. Expect bold openings, quirky gambits, and the occasional dramatic resignation for comedic effect.
- Title: FIDE Master (FIDE)
- Preferred time control: Bullet
- Known for: tactical sharpness, comeback abilities, long decisive games
Career highlights and peaks
Matthew rose through online play and reached notable peaks across multiple time classes. Highlights include strong Blitz and Rapid runs and multiple streaks that kept opponents on their toes.
- Peak Blitz form and a string of high-performance months — view an overview:
- Peak Rapid surge late 2023 — a period of clinical practical play: 2164 (2023-11-13)
- Notable streaks: longest winning streak 49 games, longest losing streak 76 games. Current streaks fluctuate like any human on the internet.
Playing style and psychology
Matthew_Clarke blends tactical aggression with surprising resilience. He is comfortable in chaotic middlegames and shows above average comeback ability when material slips away.
- Strong comeback rate and win rate after losing a piece.
- Average decisive game length is long, indicating complex middlegame and endgame play.
- Psychology notes: a high tilt factor but also a clear best time of day to play around 15:00. Schedule your challenges accordingly at your own risk.
Top openings and signature lines
Matthew enjoys a broad opening palette and often surprises opponents with offbeat choices. He gets especially good results with certain systems as White and Black.
- White favorites: Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation, London System: Poisoned Pawn Variation, Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit
- Black favorites: Blackburne Shilling Gambit, Amazon Attack and sharp Sicilian lines including the Najdorf
- Daily play shows dominant results with the Australian Defense and many successful experimental sidelines
Notable opponents and matchups
Matthew has recurrent rivalries online. Some frequent opponents include:
- Most played opponent: Daniel Melamed (11 games)
- Undefeated streaks against: aimammt and mcknightyaqueenm8 — clean records in multiple encounters
- Regular opponents also include el_azulejo, chessteacherpalms, and nonames2
Sample position and a pick of a game
Want a taste of Matthew's style? Here is a representative short game that starts like a Spanish and turns spicy. Click to study the moves.
- Study the sample:
- For tactical themes and key moments view the sample moves above in the viewer.
Quick stats and fun facts
- Preferred time control displayed online: Bullet – look for quick, high-energy battles.
- High opening variety with multiple 100 percent win rate patterns in Rapid for small sample sizes.
- Most common checking piece: Rook, suggesting heavy rooks-on-open-files play.
- SEO tags to help you find this profile: Matthew Clarke chess, FIDE Master Matthew_Clarke, Bullet chess specialist, opening repertoire, tactical play
Want more?
Explore Matthew_Clarke's trends and games, and check peak forms over time. For opponents, openings, and deeper trends use the in-site explorer or click opponent profiles such as Daniel Melamed.