Overview - Jakub Szostko, FIDE Master and Blitz Specialist
Jakub Szostko is a FIDE Master known for fast, razor sharp blitz play and a knack for dramatic comebacks. He favors quick decision making and long endgames that somehow end with an exhausted opponent resigning while their phone still vibrates. Preferred time control - Blitz. Peak performance highlight: 2701 (2021-02-03).
Playing Style and Strengths
Jakub combines tactical awareness with stamina. He prefers to steer chaotic middlegames into concrete endgames where technique and patience do the talking.
- Comeback ability - very high, comeback rate about 90 percent.
- Endgame frequency - plays long endings often, about 85 percent of games reach late phases.
- Average decisive game length - often 80-plus moves.
- Resilience - high win rate after material setbacks and a calm approach under time pressure.
- Balanced success with White and Black - White win rate near 48 percent, Black near 48 percent.
Favorite Openings and Repertoire
Jakub enjoys an eclectic mix of tricky sidelines and classical mainlines. He is equally comfortable springing cheap trick traps or navigating heavy theoretical duels.
- Blackburne Shilling Gambit - used often as a surprise weapon (29 games, win rate about 66) - Blackburne Shilling Gambit
- Sicilian Najdorf - serious theory work with mixed results (29 games) - Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation
- Caro-Kann - solid and practical (28 games, win rate about 54) - Caro-Kann Defense
- Ruy Lopez Closed - classical maneuvering with good results - Ruy Lopez: Closed
- QGD Ragozin - a reliable choice as Black with a strong conversion rate - QGD: Ragozin
Career Highlights and Records
Jakub has a track record of stringing together long winning runs and learning quickly from losses. He thrives against lower rated opponents and keeps his cool against equals and stronger opponents.
- Longest winning streak - 14 games.
- Longest losing streak - 7 games; current losing streak - 1.
- Overall Blitz record includes several hundred games with a positive win-loss balance.
- Strong situational play - high win rate when first to check and good performance late at night. Best time of day to play appears to be around 22:00.
- Performance chart over recent years -
Notable Games
Jakub has many instructive blitz finishes. Here is a short replayable example to study his conversion technique in an endgame.
One dramatic online victory versus a frequent rival - Daring Blitz Win.
Opponents and Rivalries
Jakub has faced a handful of recurring opponents enough times to form small rivalries and postmortem traditions.
- Most played opponents include kot60 and matveev_vladimir. See a friend profile - Mark Kotliar.
- Good head to head records against several regulars, and a few opponents who just refuse to resign early.
Fun Facts and Placeholders
- Nickname in the club chat: the blitz barber - he trims time on his opponent's clock.
- FIDE title: FIDE Master. Proud and slightly smug about it.
- Stat snapshot and interactive elements: 2701 (2021-02-03) and timeline .
- Want to study a typical opening choice - try this term page: Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
Summary
Jakub Szostko is a FIDE Master who loves blitz, loves long endgames, and loves surprising opponents with both tricks and technique. If you face him online, bring coffee, a good opening plan, and the patience to grind a long game to its conclusion.