Blitz session

Played 10 blitz games and went 6-4. Didn't get flagged or get in time trouble in any of them. Blew one won game. Swindled 2... one in a dead lost position kept threatening mate in 1 after the 3rd one he slipped on an offer of a rook for free. I need to learn to use my advantage more... I think I am too quick to take my won pawn... instead I should maximize the advantage and get something more decisive.

USCF membership renewed

Enough said... soon I will be playing live again...

Big Win in the bird

I am trying to get to 20 games in standard time controls (not blitz) so I can play in team league at fics. I posted my 30 30 game request and well was a bit unsure when Mr. 1800 showed up to play me at 1500. I figured... "just play you only need two more games to get to 20 and no longer be provisional."

I wasn't intimidated I didn't have time to be. I was black and faced with 1. f4

My reaction was oh boy here we go again. I recently played a guy Mark at the coffee house in this opening. I played Nf6 and d5 and was ok. So I went that route. As usual the pawns came at me. wasn't sure what to do my 10th move shows I was in a little trouble. Fortunate for me my opponent wasn't sure how to break in either... but O-O and his pawn storm was half way there and mine still on their home squares!

However I did correctly assess that I had to crack open the middle... on move 13 he was better keeping the center closed by just moving the white bishop. After that I had the advantage and didn't make any big mistakes... although my next few moves weren't the most accurate. I made a serious of accurate moves then gave back some of my advantage but he returned the favor. Then blundered... :-)

Missed tactic in a blitz game

I reached this position and without alot of time on the clock I played Bxh3 but there were plenty of much better moves...

tactical malaise

My tactical malaise continues. I am starting to identify what is wrong with my thinking. I am failing to look at positions for tactical ideas and am falling into looking for moves. When I was on I was seeing the idea of the problems immediately because I was picking up on the tactical weaknesses and ideas. This was also allowing me to spot what I call "almost there tactics" which just require one piece to be gone or a piece moved or distracted.

I got the zone back for a couple of problems so I remember what it is like. I think the Predator at the Chess Board lessons I was reading helped develop that and I think I will spend some time going back over the lessons I have already completed as a refresher.

CTS stats

rating:         1376
RD:             21
total problems: 6124
today:          107

Horrible missed tactics

I was tactically blind this morning. I missed some really easy tactics.... early in the game. I missed a hung rook as well. The game was horrible.... and then I totally blew the ending and in time trouble totally blundered swapping knights... and allowing his king to penetrate.

The sad thing is I knew it was loosing and did it anyways.

I said I was going to analyze this game but it is so poor I just can't bring myself to do it... after 6. Bd3 Qxd4 is winning. I normally would have seen that but as I mentioned before my tactical vision was off this morning... and on top of that my tactical "spidey sense" wasn't even ringing.

tactical blindness

I have a mild case of tactical blindness this morning. For some reason in doing 40 or so problems at cts I missed:

• a combination that ends in a capture and the recapture isn't possible because the pawn is pinned to the queen.
• A simple discovered attack on a loose queen with check by the piece that moved out of the way.
• A simple pawn pinned to the queen problem.

I also lost a game this morning that was probably a draw (which I should have had the better half of.... ) in the endgame but I made major mistakes and lost. Playing up more lately is making me work harder to convert my "WINS".

Also noticed I had gone probably 100 games and only had 2 draws by stalemate. But in my last 50 or so game I have had 3 or 4 draws by repetition or because of lack of material... or it was a drawn king and pawn ending... I think this is because I am playing better. Once upon a time I either won by a gross blunder or lost via one. I have played more games lately that were fairly even or at least neither side saw the others blunders... I'll post that game I played this morning with analysis later as it is haunting me!