Coach Chesswick
Quick summary
Nice run — your recent blitz shows strong practical play: you create activity, trade into favorable endgames, and you convert advantages even when the clock is low. Your strength-adjusted win rate (~0.528) confirms you’re doing better than expected against similar opposition. Below are focused observations and a short plan to keep improving.
Example win (review)
Here’s a recent clean conversion where you built pressure, exchanged into a winning rook endgame and finished with an incisive knight check. Study it to see the flow from activity → simplification → conversion.
Opponent: tflhza
Playable replay:
What you’re doing well
- Active piece play — you consistently seek piece activity (rook lifts, rooks on open files and the 7th rank) rather than passivity.
- Endgame conversions — in several wins you simplified at the right time and converted material/positional edges cleanly.
- Practical decision-making — you punish opponent inaccuracies and finish when the opponent shows weakness (good use of initiative).
- Opening variety — your overall database shows strong results in Caro‑Kann, Scotch and Benko lines; you have good weapons to steer games into comfortable structures.
Key areas to improve
- Time management: you frequently reach very low increments (many games won on time or with seconds left). Practice simple plans to avoid calculation panic in the last minute.
- Opening consistency: some popular lines (Sicilian Accelerated Dragon, Closed Sicilian) show a lower win rate. Decide whether to study those lines more deeply or avoid them in blitz.
- Tactical oversights under pressure: a few losses stem from missed tactics or hanging material in sharp moments. Faster tactical pattern recognition will reduce those blunders.
- Transition planning: occasionally you trade into an endgame without the clearest route to convert (you still win often, but conversion would be more reliable if you previewed a plan one move earlier).
Concrete drills & practice plan (next 2–4 weeks)
- Tactics: 15–25 short puzzles per day (focus on forks, pins, skewers and discovered checks). Time each puzzle: 1–2 minutes to simulate blitz rhythm.
- 1-minute decision drills: play 10 rapid mini-games (3+2) where your goal is to make a “good, quick” move (not perfect). This trains piece activity and reduces time trouble.
- Endgames: do 10 rook endgame exercises (basic Lucena, Philidor, and simple pawn rook endings). Most of your wins come after simplification — make those wins automatic.
- Opening consolidation: pick 2 openings you want as White and 2 as Black (lean into Caro‑Kann / Scotch / Benko styles you already score well with). Drill common plans and 1–2 move orders where you often get uncomfortable.
- Review losses: after each session, pick the one loss that felt avoidable and write down the single key moment you missed. Fixing one recurring mistake is better than reading 20 general posts.
Practical blitz tips for game moments
- When below 10 seconds: switch to "safe plan" — simplify or make improving moves that avoid immediate tactical skirmishes. Avoid speculative sacrifices unless you see mate or decisive tactics.
- In equal positions: trade pieces when your opponent struggles in endgames; keep pieces when you thrive on tactics or initiative.
- Flagging vs accuracy: winning on time is fine, but try to build positions where you can win without needing the clock — this improves rating reliability.
- Use premoves sparingly — they’re great when you’re up material but dangerous in complicated positions (mouse slips and Fingerfehler happen!).
Short-term targets (this week)
- Complete 100 tactics (mixed motifs) and track accuracy.
- Play 20 blitz games with the goal: keep >30s on the clock when entering move 20 in at least 12 of them.
- Review three lost games, annotate the key mistake and the alternative move you should have played.
Long-term goals (1–3 months)
- Make your endgame technique automatic — be able to win basic rook vs rook+pawn or hold difficult defenses under time pressure.
- Raise your opening win rates by narrowing the repertoire; reduce low-percentage lines like the Accelerated Dragon unless you prepare them thoroughly.
- Turn strength-adjusted win rate >0.55 by reducing blunders and improving time management.
Quick checklist before each blitz session
- Warm up with 5–10 tactics.
- Pick 1 opening idea to practice — don’t switch your whole repertoire mid-session.
- Decide a clock-management rule (e.g., stay above 20s by move 20).
Closing — small adjustments, big gains
You already have many of the ingredients of a strong blitz player: activity, endgame sense and practical finishing. Focus on reducing time trouble and shoring up a couple of shaky opening lines. Small, regular drills (tactics + rook endgames + timed decision practice) will turn your good results into consistent, repeatable performance.
If you'd like, I can:
- Annotate one of your losses move-by-move and show a better plan.
- Prepare a short 4-line opening packet for White or Black based on your best openings (Caro‑Kann / Scotch / Benko).
Which would you prefer next?