Michael Kleinman - International Master
Known in the chess world by the handle michaelk123, Michael Kleinman is an esteemed International Master who blends strategic finesse with a touch of bravado on the 64 squares.
Starting out with humble Blitz ratings around 1400 back in 2011, Michael quickly showed that patience was not exactly his style—improving his game rapidly and soaring past the 2600 range in Blitz by 2020. Bullet chess, his domain of lightning-fast decisions, reached an incredible peak rating of 2704, proving that he’s not just fast, but also dangerously accurate under fire.
His playing style can be summed up as a balanced cocktail: he embraces deep endgames (with an impressive EndgameFrequency of 83.44%) while not being afraid to resign early when the situation calls for it (because who wants to drag out a guaranteed loss?). If things go south, Michael rarely tilts—his tilt factor sits at a modest 16%, showing a level-headed approach amidst chaos.
Michael’s matches often feature a mysterious "Top Secret" opening, dominating his Blitz and Bullet games with nearly a 50% win rate—which sounds like a code name for "I know what I’m doing, but you don’t."
Statistics & Highlights
- Peak Blitz Rating: 2636 (October 2020)
- Peak Bullet Rating: 2704 (September 2020)
- Peak Rapid Rating: 2603 (August 2019)
- Longest Winning Streak: 16 games (because winning streaks are the best streaks)
- Comeback Rate: A stunning 86.4%, proving comebacks are his forte
Michael’s current form sees a mix of high peaks and gritty battles, reflecting his role as a tough competitor who’s always ready to dance with danger.
Most Recent Games
One of Michael’s latest masterpieces was a victory in an English Opening battle against fabi2005, where he confidently pressed with moves like c4 and Bg2, eventually forcing resignation after a swift and precise endgame (view game).
As for losses, even the best stumble. A recent defeat came against dynamokiev in a Sicilian Defense where Michael’s resilience was tested to the limit (view game).
Signature Strengths and Quirks
Known for Top Secret opening ideas, a strong attachment to the endgame, and a knack for winning after losing material, Michael is a player who thrives on complexity and mental fortitude. Fair warning to opponents: underestimating michaelk123’s tactical awareness might get you checkmated unexpectedly.
When not calculating knight forks or plotting pawn breakthroughs, Michael’s chess clock shows his best performance in the early morning hours around 8:00 AM — but don’t ask whether that’s his lucky breakfast affecting his play!
In conclusion, Michael Kleinman is a master not just in title but in tenacity, speed, and strategy — a true force on any chess platform, armed with both skill and a sense of humor about the rollercoaster ride that is competitive chess.
Feedback for Michael Kleinman
Positives:
- Opening Preparation: Your choice of openings like the English Opening and Nimzo-Indian Defense shows a solid understanding of mainstream chess theory, allowing you to reach playable middlegames.
- Endgame Technique: In several games, such as your win against fabi2005, you converted a strong material advantage skillfully, demonstrating good technique under pressure.
- Active Piece Play: You consistently look to improve your piece activity, as seen in games where you maneuver your knights and bishops effectively to challenge your opponents.
Areas for Improvement:
- Time Management: Some losses indicate a time pressure issue towards the end of games. Prioritize quicker decision-making in less critical positions to allocate more time for complex situations.
- Defensive Vigilance: In a few games, opponents managed to infiltrate or execute tactical strikes, often related to missed defensive resources. Strengthen your calculation of opponent threats, particularly in sharp positions.
- Middlegame Planning: While your openings are sound, improving the transition into middlegames with clearer strategic plans will help maintain your advantage or find active counterplay when behind.
Suggested Next Steps:
- Review critical moments from losses focusing on identifying missed tactics or strategic mistakes, especially in time pressure.
- Practice visualization and calculation exercises to enhance your defensive alertness and anticipate opponent threats better.
- Work on structured middlegame plans—consider books or strategic concepts in chess to deepen understanding.
- Experiment with incremental time controls to improve decision-making speed without sacrificing accuracy.
Highlighted Game Example
In your victory as White against fabi2005 ([link to the game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/136967783848)), you effectively leveraged pawn breaks to open lines and your pieces coordinate well for a tactical finish around move 40. This shows your strengths in calculating sharp sequences and executing an attack.
Keep up this fighting spirit and combine it with increased positional understanding and time management to boost your overall performance!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| Viktoriia Kubata | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| huapun | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| maetsnori | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| anubisgodofmummification | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| trevtrain | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| jeremysk | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| jameswu2 | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| MasterLeif | 31W / 57L / 13D | |
| Leo Bispo | 51W / 31L / 9D | |
| Carlos Andres Perdomo | 39W / 27L / 1D | |
| Christian Stevens | 19W / 29L / 2D | |
| Alan Stein | 17W / 26L / 5D | |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2307 | 2410 | ||
| 2024 | 2515 | |||
| 2023 | 2490 | 2556 | ||
| 2022 | 2415 | 2484 | ||
| 2021 | 2529 | 2521 | 2435 | |
| 2020 | 2454 | 2504 | 2435 | |
| 2019 | 2376 | 2452 | 2485 | |
| 2018 | 2415 | 2395 | 2540 | |
| 2017 | 2410 | 2277 | 2283 | |
| 2016 | 2255 | 2189 | ||
| 2015 | 2106 | 2082 | ||
| 2014 | 2025 | 1930 | 1891 | |
| 2013 | 2013 | 1856 | ||
| 2012 | 1194 | |||
| 2011 | 1400 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 8W / 17L / 1D | 10W / 15L / 1D | 79.4 |
| 2024 | 35W / 32L / 5D | 31W / 39L / 4D | 85.6 |
| 2023 | 87W / 89L / 13D | 78W / 99L / 13D | 81.9 |
| 2022 | 59W / 55L / 8D | 47W / 64L / 13D | 81.5 |
| 2021 | 86W / 66L / 9D | 78W / 69L / 13D | 84.6 |
| 2020 | 486W / 449L / 82D | 465W / 494L / 69D | 84.8 |
| 2019 | 42W / 29L / 4D | 25W / 38L / 8D | 84.0 |
| 2018 | 543W / 485L / 67D | 473W / 544L / 81D | 82.8 |
| 2017 | 540W / 417L / 53D | 521W / 438L / 57D | 80.6 |
| 2016 | 54W / 53L / 6D | 52W / 61L / 4D | 72.7 |
| 2015 | 110W / 102L / 10D | 103W / 105L / 10D | 71.5 |
| 2014 | 7W / 2L / 0D | 2W / 6L / 2D | 72.7 |
| 2013 | 17W / 17L / 1D | 17W / 15L / 1D | 73.0 |
| 2012 | 0W / 0L / 0D | 1W / 1L / 0D | 58.5 |
| 2011 | 0W / 1L / 1D | 0W / 1L / 0D | 72.0 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caro-Kann Defense | 367 | 171 | 177 | 19 | 46.6% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 128 | 52 | 64 | 12 | 40.6% |
| Caro-Kann Defense: Classical Variation | 128 | 55 | 60 | 13 | 43.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Chekhover Variation | 105 | 44 | 48 | 13 | 41.9% |
| Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation | 99 | 45 | 46 | 8 | 45.5% |
| Ruy Lopez: Closed | 80 | 40 | 32 | 8 | 50.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation, Sherzer Variation | 71 | 33 | 31 | 7 | 46.5% |
| Amazon Attack | 59 | 30 | 29 | 0 | 50.9% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 58 | 26 | 27 | 5 | 44.8% |
| English Opening: Agincourt Defense | 58 | 26 | 29 | 3 | 44.8% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Amar Gambit | 333 | 170 | 148 | 15 | 51.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 239 | 110 | 115 | 14 | 46.0% |
| Nimzo-Larsen Attack | 228 | 106 | 115 | 7 | 46.5% |
| Colle System: Rhamphorhynchus Variation | 201 | 107 | 86 | 8 | 53.2% |
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 181 | 97 | 74 | 10 | 53.6% |
| Australian Defense | 145 | 69 | 68 | 8 | 47.6% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 144 | 75 | 60 | 9 | 52.1% |
| London System: Poisoned Pawn Variation | 133 | 65 | 60 | 8 | 48.9% |
| East Indian Defense | 112 | 52 | 54 | 6 | 46.4% |
| King's Indian Attack | 105 | 41 | 53 | 11 | 39.0% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Caro-Kann Defense | 8 | 3 | 4 | 1 | 37.5% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation, Botvinnik System | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Caro-Kann Defense: Exchange Variation | 3 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 33.3% |
| Slav Defense: Bonet Gambit | 3 | 0 | 1 | 2 | 0.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Chekhover Variation | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 33.3% |
| Sicilian Defense: Nyezhmetdinov-Rossolimo Attack, Fianchetto Variation | 2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 50.0% |
| Ruy Lopez: Brix Variation | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| French Defense: Tarrasch Variation, Closed Variation, Main Line | 2 | 0 | 1 | 1 | 0.0% |
| English Opening: Symmetrical Variation | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Moscow Variation | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bird Opening: Dutch Variation, Batavo Gambit | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| English Opening | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| French Defense: Guimard Variation, Thunderbunny Variation | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Scotch Game | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 16 | 0 |
| Losing | 16 | 2 |