Coach Chesswick
Quick recap of the three recent wins
Nice streak — you converted two technical endgames and one sharp middlegame where a passed pawn did the work. Strengths to keep using: creating passed pawns, activating the king in rook endings, and simplifying into favorable endings.
- Win vs highnessvictory — you transitioned into a rook endgame and used an active king plus a passed c‑pawn to force resignation.
- Win vs grischka_perelman — good tactical awareness: you traded into a line that let the b‑pawn run and created immediate queening threats.
- Win vs bach12345_lfay — steady pressure and pawn breakthroughs; opponent flagged but the position showed concrete winning chances earlier.
What you’re doing well
- Passed‑pawn creation: you consistently turn small advantages into outside passed pawns and push them confidently.
- Endgame technique: your king activity and rook coordination are strong — you find plans like penetration, cutting off the enemy king, and simplification to winning pawn endings.
- Timely simplification: you trade into endgames when they favor you instead of clinging to complication.
- Tactical sense in the middlegame: you spot forks, pins and discovery checks and exploit them quickly.
Key areas to improve
- Don’t rely on time wins. The Reti game ended on the clock — solid practical result, but aim to force the win before time pressure by converting earlier or eliminating counterplay.
- Prevent back‑rank and file invasions. In one game your opponent got dangerous rook activity; tighten prophylaxis (luft for the king, consider timely rook exchanges).
- Work on weak openings. Your tracker shows some lines with lower winrates (for example QGD 3.Nc3 Bb4 and Closed Sicilian). Study model plans so you’re comfortable from move 8 onward.
- Time management in sharp positions: when pawn races or multi‑move conversions appear, spend an extra 3–5 seconds to count tempi and checks precisely.
Concrete drills (30‑minute blitz coach)
Do this 3× per week to sharpen conversion and reduce blunders:
- 10 minutes — Rook endgame ladder: Lucena/Philidor setups (practice building the bridge, cutting the king, keeping the rook active).
- 10 minutes — Tactics sprint: 20 puzzles focusing on pawn breaks, discovered checks, and rook tactics (30s per puzzle).
- 10 minutes — Opening + plan review: choose one weak line (e.g., QGD 3.Nc3 Bb4) and study 2–3 model games, focusing on plans, not move memorization.
Practical in‑game checklist for blitz
- In endgames ask every move: “Is my king active? Can I create a passed pawn in 1–2 moves?”
- If the opponent’s rooks are active on open files, consider exchanging rooks if the resulting pawn ending is winning; otherwise create counterplay to chase the rooks off.
- Count pawn‑race tempi: who queening first and which checks exist? Prefer forcing lines that simplify to known wins.
- If you lead on time and position, take a few extra seconds to calculate the conversion — small time investments prevent missed wins.
Opening focus — short plan
- Keep reinforcing systems you win with (your Dutch Defense results are solid). Study typical pawn breaks and common tactical shots against ...f5 lines — see Dutch Defense.
- Pick one low‑winrate opening (e.g., QGD 3.Nc3 Bb4) and learn the standard piece placements and break ideas from two model games.
Example final idea (in words)
In your long win you forced the opponent to keep checking with rooks while your king and passed pawn marched. The lesson: when you have an outside passed pawn, centralize your king and use rooks to shield the pawn — then calculate a short forcing path to queening.
Next steps
- Follow the 30‑minute drill 3× this week. After each session, review one real game where you hesitated and write a single plan for similar positions.
- Study one model game per week from an opening you want to improve; focus on plans and pawn breaks rather than move lists.
- Keep practicing endgames until conversion becomes automatic — this reduces dependence on opponent time trouble.
If you want, I can create a 7‑day training plan (tactics + endgames + one opening) tailored to your most played lines and recent games.