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Ep. 285 Summer of Chess with Jay Garrison (1900 USCF)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with friend of the show Jay Garrison about our chess summers. Jay’s was full of interesting activities like the Naroditsky Memorial Tournament and the Charlotte Chess Center elite camp. He played a lot of blitz, did tactics, and worked on calculation. Jay played in two classical events that…
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Ep. 284 Bonus Episode: Happiness, Ratings, and Titles
In this bonus episode, I discuss ratings, their, role and how we deal with them. I suggested some proposals to adjust the current system. I also discussed titles, and my ideas for adding new titles. I’d love to hear what you all think about my ideas. Chessbook: chessbook.com/?ref=kevin Chessiverse Code: DrSCULL20 Check out my new…
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Ep. 283 Joel Returns (1800 USCF)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with Joel. He is a returning guest from episode 23 (4.5 years ago). We talked about where he was then, rated about 1600, and what he was doing to improve. We spent most of the episode talking about his current training program, running a chess club, and helping…
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Ep. 282 Mark (1796 USCF)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with Mark. We talked about the challenge of balancing family and chess improvement. We discussed his concise training plan. Mark talked about confidence and momentum, how it helped him to recent success. Mark uses Chesstempo for calculation and credits it for much of his improvement. We also discussed…
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Ep. 281 Diego (1700 USCF)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with Diego. He had a quick rise from 1200-1700 in two years of OTB play. However, lately his career is making chess improvement and playing OTB more challenging. We talked about resources that he used for his rise. Diego discussed solving his time trouble issues. We chatted about…
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Ep. 280 Bonus Episode: Pacific Southwest Open Tournament Recap
This week on Chess Journeys, I recap my time at the Pacific Southwest Open. I went 2/5 against tough competition. Good times were had. Calculations errors happened. Attacks were not well defended. Chessbook: chessbook.com/?ref=kevin Chessiverse Code: DrSCULL20 Check out my new Substack: https://substack.com/@drscull My Chessable Course! https://www.chessable.com/chess-journeys-tactics-workbook-turning-knowledge-into-skill/course/268850/ Chessnut Link/Code: Code – KEVINSCULL https://www.chessnutech.com?sca_ref=7643464.HueBIKWTYE Get 20%…
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Ep. 279 Luca Returns (2000 USCF)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with Luca. He is returning to the podcast after a successful year of improvement. Since we last spike, he has gained over 100 points and crossed 2000! We discussed the value of identifying your errors in games and correcting them. We talked about the importance of regular calculation…
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Ep. 278 Flashback: IM Tatev Abrahmamyan Ep. 41
I talked to Tatev Abrahmamyan back in April of 2022 episode 41. This conversation was fascinating as she was trying to juggle the realities of having a full time job and trying to be a chess professional. She expressed many doubts about she recent progress and trying to find time for chess improvement. In August…
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Ep. 277 Kirsten (1400 Chesscom)
This week on Chess Journeys, I spoke with Kirsten. We spoke about her love of chess and trying to find the time for improvement. Kirsten went from 400-1400 in two years, but recently has hit a plateau. She provided several resources suggestions including books and videos. We discussed finding OTB opportunities, and we spoke a…
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Ep. 276 Bonus Episode: Senior Open 2026 Tournament Recap
This week on Chess Journeys, I provide a tournament recap of my recent 2026 Senior Open in Chicago, Illinois. It was my best event in a while. This is a rare positive tournament recap. Chessbook: chessbook.com/?ref=kevin Chessiverse Code: DrSCULL20 Check out my new Substack: https://substack.com/@drscull My Chessable Course! https://www.chessable.com/chess-journeys-tactics-workbook-turning-knowledge-into-skill/course/268850/ Chessnut Link/Code: Code – KEVINSCULL https://www.chessnutech.com?sca_ref=7643464.HueBIKWTYE…