William Hernandez Gonzalez IM

Hi William (“Willychess95”) 👋

Congratulations on maintaining a 2889 (2023-09-21) above 2600! Your tactical alertness and willingness to seize the initiative make you a dangerous opponent in short time controls. Below you’ll find an objective snapshot of recurring strengths and improvement areas based on your most recent games.

What you already do well

• Fast tactical vision. Wins against strong players (e.g. Denis Trifonov and InterimTim) show clean exploitation of loose back-rank squares and overloaded pieces. The sequence 29…Neg4+!! in your Najdorf win illustrates this nicely.
• Pressure with the initiative. You’re comfortable sacrificing pawns (Wing Gambit, Alekhine Kmoch line) to keep the opponent on the back foot. This is perfect for 3-minute blitz.
• Resourceful rook activity in endgames. In the Alekhine win you converted a rook ending with only seconds left, constantly pushing the passed d-pawn while restricting Black’s king.

Key improvement themes

1. A sturdier defence vs 1.d4 systems

Three of your four latest losses came from d4 openings (Old Benoni, Catalan, E00 set-up). In each case an early pawn thrust (…h5, …f5, or …c5 without full development) left dark-square holes that White exploited.

• Instead of the Benoni set-up you tried against Denis Trifonov, consider adding a more solid option such as the Slav or Queen’s Gambit Declined while you study Benoni middlegame plans.
• Revisit typical exchange-sac ideas on c5 or e4 in the Catalan. You allowed g4–g5/f4-f5 without counterplay.

2. Pawn-structure discipline

Your aggressive style sometimes overextends kingside pawns. During the Pseudo-Catalan loss you pushed …h5–h4 with pieces undeveloped, creating permanent dark-square weaknesses (diagram after 20…Rfd8).

• Adopt the rule of thumb “push the rook pawn only when two pieces defend the square you leave.”
• When in doubt, develop one more piece before launching a pawn storm.

3. Conversion technique in favourable positions

You resigned in the Semi-Benoni after 37.g5 even though material was equal and Black’s pawns were healthier. Use engine analysis to verify whether the position was still drawable — it often is!

4. Clock management

The time-forfeit against Traktor666 and the frantic endings in several wins suggest a pattern: strong middlegame play followed by seconds-left conversion. Try:

• Spending at most 30 seconds on the opening phase — rely on prep.
• Setting a mental “time-checkpoint” around move 20 (≥45 s ideal).

Targeted training plan

1. Opening tune-up (d4 repertoire). Watch one model game daily on the solid line you choose and summarise the pawn-chain plans in a notebook.
2. Endgame mini-sessions. 15 minutes/day on rook-and-pawn endings. Start with the classic Lucena & Philidor then practise with the interactive drills in your preferred app.
3. Tactics under time-pressure. Three sets of 10 puzzles at 60 seconds each. This simulates blitz calculation and cements pattern recognition.
4. Self-review routine. After each session, tag three moments:
   • “Best move” (keep doing this)
   • “Unnecessary pawn push”
   • “Slow move” (took >15 s in blitz)
   Over a week you’ll see trends clearly.

Illustrative moment

The following fragment from your Semi-Benoni loss captures the double-edged nature of your style. Black is fine after 25…Rxd5, but 29…Rd4? lets White liquidate into a healthy passer:

Notice how the rook exchange fixes the pawn weakness on b4 and leaves you without counterplay. In similar positions keep major pieces to maintain dynamism.

Progress tracker

Monitor your improvement with the built-in dashboards:

Keep up the great work!

Your creativity and fighting spirit already set you apart. By tightening the positional screws and managing your clock just a bit better, you’ll break through the next rating ceiling. Good luck, and enjoy the journey!