Biography
Samuel Malka, known online as Samatsa, is a FIDE Master and a popular chess streamer who has carved out a name in the fast-paced world of Bullet chess. His play blends tactical bravado with practical endgames, a combination that often leaves opponents scrambling in the clock’s final seconds.
Certified as a FIDE Master by FIDE, he has built a following for entertaining streams that mix sharp analysis with a friendly, coaching-minded style. Since 2021 he’s been a constant presence in online events, culminating in peak Bullet ratings around 2700 in mid-2025 and a formidable Blitz presence that helped him climb the ladder quickly.
Opening repertoire and playing style
Samatsa is renowned for navigating chaotic time scrambles with poise. His Blitz and Bullet performances show a preference for dynamic, counter-punch openings and strong endgame technique. Notable lines in his repertoire include:
- Kings Indian Defense: Accelerated Averbakh Variation — a robust, space-grabbing choice that fuels his aggressive play.
- Catalan Opening — long-form strategic battles where he converts small advantages in the endgame.
- DDG: 4...f5 — sharp, offbeat lines that test opponents’ preparation.
- Australian Defense — practical and flexible against a range of setups.
Beyond these, his rapid-play results in the Sicilian and Queen's Gambit Declined show a willingness to experiment while staying grounded in solid fundamentals.
Streaming and community
As a streamer, Samuel Malka brings insights, commentary, and a dash of humor to his audience. He explains ideas live, analyzes key moments, and engages with viewers who want to learn how to think under pressure. See his profile for more content: Samuel Malka.
Notable moments
His peak figures capture the speed of his rise: a Bullet peak around 2700 in July 2025 and a Blitz peak near 2656 in October 2025. A notable streak of 29 consecutive wins demonstrates his capacity to keep pressure on opponents when the clock tightens.
Feedback for Samuel Malka
Samuel, your recent games show a strong understanding of opening principles and a good grasp of dynamic play. Here are some constructive points to help you further refine your chess:
Strengths:
- Opening Preparation: Your choice of openings such as the Queen's Indian Defense and King's Indian setups indicates solid preparation. You maintain good control of the center and develop pieces actively.
- Attack and Pressure: You often generate strong attacking chances, as seen in your ability to create threats against the enemy king and capitalize on your opponent's inaccuracies.
- Endgame Awareness: You show good technique converting advantages and pressing opponent under pressure, including effective use of initiative and piece coordination.
Areas for Improvement:
- Time Management: In several games, critical moments occurred when your clock was low. Improving your clock management will allow you to spend the right amount of time on important moves while avoiding time trouble distractions.
- Calculate More Deeply in Complex Positions: A few losses involved tactical oversights or missed defensive resources. Spending extra seconds to double-check moves in unclear positions can reduce such errors.
- Avoid Premature Exchanges: Some games hint at exchanging key attacking pieces too early, which can reduce your offensive potential. Try to evaluate if exchanges help your position strategically before committing.
Suggested Focus for Training:
- Practice calculating forcing sequences and tactics under time constraints to improve both speed and accuracy.
- Study pawn structures typical of the Queen's Indian and King's Indian defenses to enhance your strategic plans.
- Analyze your losses in detail, especially at moments when the position became complex, to understand where the turning points happened.
Example Highlight:
Your victory against GP9isback23 demonstrates fighting spirit and ability to build pressure on the kingside. The final combination showing 30. Rexh6+ was a nice tactical finish delivering decisive material gain and checkmate threats.
Keep up the great work and remember that consistent review and practice will help push your skills even higher. Stay confident and continue challenging yourself with strong opponents!
🆚 Opponent Insights
| Recent Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| baptisteyannick | 1W / 1L / 2D | |
| ifanrj | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| Qi Pang | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| agbc298 | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| skrzypek1 | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| wayne_cramp | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| hajvanishkupit | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| ideen_des_maerz | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| hawkeye-1 | 1W / 0L / 0D | |
| vijiecarl99 | 0W / 1L / 0D | |
| Most Played Opponents | ||
|---|---|---|
| yoda1992 | 8W / 11L / 1D | |
| Leonardo Valdés | 4W / 8L / 3D | |
| Joseph Zeltsan | 7W / 7L / 0D | |
| rubix-time | 6W / 8L / 0D | |
| oldschool83 | 13W / 0L / 0D | |
Rating
| Year | Bullet | Blitz | Rapid | Daily |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 2700 | 2593 | 2452 | 1647 |
| 2024 | 2519 | 2452 | 1643 | |
| 2023 | 2552 | 2512 | 2452 | 1591 |
| 2022 | 2552 | 2464 | 2215 | 1591 |
| 2021 | 2523 | 2509 | 2243 | 1406 |
Stats by Year
| Year | White | Black | Moves |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2025 | 194W / 179L / 26D | 193W / 165L / 45D | 86.9 |
| 2024 | 6W / 2L / 0D | 3W / 1L / 0D | 73.8 |
| 2023 | 75W / 26L / 11D | 58W / 45L / 7D | 83.1 |
| 2022 | 188W / 142L / 34D | 152W / 184L / 28D | 83.3 |
| 2021 | 499W / 349L / 79D | 419W / 396L / 79D | 83.4 |
Openings: Most Played
| Blitz Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| King's Indian Defense: Accelerated Averbakh Variation | 141 | 68 | 62 | 11 | 48.2% |
| Catalan Opening | 84 | 47 | 30 | 7 | 56.0% |
| Diemer-Duhm Gambit (DDG): 4...f5 | 81 | 45 | 27 | 9 | 55.6% |
| Australian Defense | 74 | 38 | 30 | 6 | 51.4% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 72 | 29 | 33 | 10 | 40.3% |
| Sicilian Defense: Closed | 71 | 38 | 28 | 5 | 53.5% |
| Amazon Attack: Siberian Attack | 65 | 25 | 37 | 3 | 38.5% |
| Queen's Gambit Declined: Hastings Variation | 65 | 34 | 26 | 5 | 52.3% |
| Sicilian Defense: Dragon Variation, Yugoslav Attack | 65 | 31 | 29 | 5 | 47.7% |
| Sicilian Defense | 65 | 29 | 27 | 9 | 44.6% |
| Bullet Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 24 | 14 | 9 | 1 | 58.3% |
| Czech Defense | 16 | 10 | 6 | 0 | 62.5% |
| Nimzo-Larsen Attack | 14 | 6 | 8 | 0 | 42.9% |
| Australian Defense | 14 | 10 | 2 | 2 | 71.4% |
| East Indian Defense | 12 | 6 | 3 | 3 | 50.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 9 | 4 | 5 | 0 | 44.4% |
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 9 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 44.4% |
| Pirc Defense: Classical Variation | 9 | 5 | 3 | 1 | 55.6% |
| Amar Gambit | 8 | 5 | 2 | 1 | 62.5% |
| Scandinavian Defense | 8 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 50.0% |
| Rapid Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Giuoco Piano: Tarrasch Variation | 8 | 8 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Sicilian Defense: Alapin Variation | 8 | 5 | 1 | 2 | 62.5% |
| Amazon Attack | 7 | 6 | 1 | 0 | 85.7% |
| Italian Game: Two Knights Defense | 5 | 4 | 1 | 0 | 80.0% |
| Slav Defense: Alekhine Variation | 5 | 3 | 1 | 1 | 60.0% |
| Blackburne Shilling Gambit | 5 | 3 | 2 | 0 | 60.0% |
| Sicilian Defense | 5 | 2 | 3 | 0 | 40.0% |
| Slav Defense: Bonet Gambit | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| English Opening | 4 | 3 | 1 | 0 | 75.0% |
| Catalan Opening | 4 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Daily Opening | Games | Wins | Losses | Draws | Win Rate |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| English Opening: Caro-Kann Defensive System | 2 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Hungarian Opening: Wiedenhagen-Beta Gambit | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| French Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Caro-Kann Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| QGA: 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| East Indian Defense | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Slav Defense: Alekhine Variation | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Amazon Attack | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
| Gruenfeld: Russian, Smyslov, 8.Be2 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0.0% |
| English: Bled Variation | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 100.0% |
🔥 Streaks
| Streak | Longest | Current |
|---|---|---|
| Winning | 29 | 3 |
| Losing | 8 | 0 |