Marco Baldauf GM

Marco Baldauf: The Grandmaster with Regular Legs

Marco Baldauf, known online as regular_legs, is no ordinary chess player — they are a Grandmaster, a title awarded by FIDE that only the elite few earn. Think of it as the chess equivalent of being knighted, but with fewer medieval outfits and more intense calculation.

Marco’s journey through the ranks has been a rollercoaster worthy of a dramatic novel, filled with intense blitz battles, nail-biting bullet duels, and rapid-fire rapid games. Their peak blitz rating reached an astonishing 2669 in October 2019 — a rating that would make even some grandmasters blink twice.

With a playing style blending patience and tactical wizardry, Marco is known for a 66.1% endgame frequency, showing a preference for those tense, late-game scrambles where a single pawn push can mean victory or defeat. They exhibit an impressive 86.1% comeback rate, proving that giving up isn’t in their vocabulary — unless, of course, it’s a quick resignation to save battery life.

Although their win rates hover just above 50% overall, Marco’s ability shines especially when playing with the white pieces (~52.4% win rate) and during the mysterious witching hour at midnight, their best time to strike with brilliant moves and lethal checkmates.

They have a sense of humor in defeat too — sporting a modest tilt factor of 9 — which means even after a tough loss, don’t expect Marco to rage quit. Instead, they analyze, adapt, and leap back into the fray, probably humming a catchy tune while plotting their next tactical spree.

Marco’s recorded blitz games number in the thousands, with over 798 wins, 609 losses, and 171 draws. Their favorite battleground? The unpredictable battlefield of the Unknown Opening, where over 1350 games were played, highlighting a flexible and adaptive approach rather than a rigid opening repertoire.

Recent Highlights

On October 6th, 2023, Marco executed a splendid checkmate victory in a Chess960 game, demonstrating mastery over a variant where even the pawns seem to lurk in secret. Their prowess also extends into classical blitz, with recent wins including gritty battles against opponents rated over 2600 — a testament to Marco’s nerve and skill.

Off the Board

Outside the 64 squares? Marco likely enjoys witty banter and perhaps some light-hearted bragging about their “regular legs” that somehow manage to run so fast on the chessboards of the digital world. Whether friend or foe, anyone who faces Marco gets a challenge; and if you lose, you can be sure it was against a true Grandmaster — with style, grace, and occasional cheeky flair.