The Adult Improver series returns to look at both the macro and the micro of adult chess improvement. My guest is NM Todd Bryant. Todd is a software engineer (for Chess.com) and an accomplished player, who has used his analytical skills to gather lots of data about the most accomplished adult improvers in recent US Chess History. Todd shares information about the standout improvement cases at different age ranges. What would be considered an exceptional rating gain for someone over the age of 30? What about age 50? What patterns does Todd notice in looking at the rating graphs of these accomplished amateur? In addition to sharing all of this data that Todd has dutifully gathered, he discusses his own improvement philosophy. Todd plays frequently OTB, and when at home he emphasizes opening study and frequent speed chess play. This approach has been working for Todd as he recently passed 2500 Blitz on Chess.com for the first time! This was a fascinating conversation, and I really appreciate Todd’s gathering and sharing all of this interesting data! Timestamps of the topics discussed are below.
Todd’s previous Perpetual Chess appearance:
https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/new-blog/2023/6/30/f82nnc8zc3crw6pxaprlkd5rgil5a7
If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via the Patreon community you can do so here:
https://www.patreon.com/perpetualchess
Chess.com’s First #Chesspunks tournament! More info here:
https://www.chess.com/news/view/chesspunks-champs
Thanks to our presenting chess education sponsors, Chessable.com. Here are a few of NM Todd Bryant’s favorite Chessable courses and authors:
GM Gawain Jones:
FM Kamil Plichta
You can check out some of my recommended courses here: https://go.chessable.com/perpetual-chess-podcast/
6:00- Todd shares his findings from his independent research into what type of rating gains are seen by the most accomplished adult improvers at different ages.
13:45- What were the outlier cases of improvement after the age of 25?
Mentioned: Michael Johnson, NM Philemon Thomas, NM Fred Wilson
19:30- What type of rating gains have improvers over the age of 50 achieved?
Mentioned: Tom Hickenlooper, James Altucher, Skip the Line
29:00- Does Todd think there is rating deflation in US Chess and FIDE?
Mentioned: Paul Iinuma
32:00- How does this data impact how Todd approaches chess?
36:00- Why does Todd choose to focus on speed chess and blitz with his chess time?
Mentioned: Pre-order My Book- Perpetual Chess Improvement, IM Greg Shahade’s Blog Post “Slow Chess is Dying”
44:00- Is there a rating below which playing speed chess does not result in an improvement in playing?
46:00- Why does Todd still play the King’s Gambit?
Mentioned: The King’s Gambit by GM John Shaw, IM Ryo Chen
52:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is Todd’s advice for improving thinking processes at the board?
Mentioned: The Amateur’s Mind by IM Jeremy Silman
57:00- Patreon mailbag question: “Should amateurs invest the time to learn antidotes to dodgy but popular amateur openings like The Stafford Gambit?”
1:01:00- What other chess books made a difference for Todd?
Mentioned: Attacking Chess with Josh Waitzkin, Best Lessons of a Chess Coach by FM Sunil Weerumantry
1:04:00- What has Todd learned from watching his son pursue chess?
1:07:00- Todd’s final chess improvement advice?
1:12:00- Thanks to Todd for joining!
Follow him on Twitter here:
https://twitter.com/thestrongchess?lang=en
Or chess.com here:
https://www.chess.com/member/toddbryant
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
EP 323- Ding-Nepo World Championship Match Preview Double Episode- GM Daniel King on the Players and Historical Context, NM Matt Jensen on the Match Analytics. Also Discussed: Rating Deflation, The S
EP 322- IM Willy Hendriks- The Groundbreaking Author and Trainer on Chess Improvement, Chess History, and The Books that Most Influenced Him
EP 321- GM Cristian Chirila on Past and Upcoming World Championship Matches, his OTB game, and the Growth of the C Squared Podcast
EP 320- Adult Improver Ben Hunt of “Chess Boot Camp" YouTube Channel on going from 0-1500, “The Goldfish Method” and Transitioning to OTB Chess
EP 319- Dr. Howard Burton- An Award Winning Documentary Filmmaker and Author on the Growth Opportunity for Chess, the Genius of Morphy, Fixing FIDE, and Whether Chess Skills Transfer to Other Domains
EP 318 - Trainer and Chessable Author IM Yaacov Norowitz on How he Became a Blitz Specialist, His Early Encounters with Hikaru and Gothamchess & His Unique Approach to Chess Learning
Book Recap #31- San Luis 2005- Dr. Christopher Chabris on a A Tournament Book featuring Sparkling Games and Annotations, A Mini Cheating Scandal, at a Crossroad Moment in World Championship Chess Hist
EP 317- GM Jorden van Foreest- The Dutch Chess Champ on Working with Magnus and Anish, How he Became Known as a “Creative Player” and What he is Doing to Work on His Own Game
EP 316- GM Mihail Marin: The Renowned Author and Trainer on Learning from Larsen, Tal, Polgar and other Legends
EP 315- Dr. Jon Edwards- The Correspondence Chess World Champion on what Top Engines think of Different Openings and his Road to the World Title
Bonus pod- Tata Steel in the Home Stretch- FM Michiel Abeln assesses the Tournament so Far
EP 314- Adult Improver Kamryn Hellman on How Discovering Chess via Queen's Gambit turned her into a Fast Improving Chess Obsessive
Bonus pod- Dispatch from the Tata Steel Chess tournament with Renowned Author, FM Michiel Abeln
EP 313- FM James Canty on Staying Motivated and His Grind Toward the IM Title and Beyond.
EP 312- GM Noel Studer- The Swiss National Champ Turned Trainer Shares Advice on Overcoming Plateaus, Calculating, Analyzing Games & More
EP 311- GM Jonathan Speelman- A British Chess Legend on His Time as a Top 10 Player and His Encounters with Anand, Korchnoi, Tal and many more!
EP 310- John Hartmann joins to Review the Year in Chess: A Carlsen/Niemann Update, A New Cheating Scandal, The Chess.Com/PM Merger, & lots more
EP 309- Dr. Joel Sneed- An Author and Psychology Professor on How to Regain One's Chess Motivation, Curbing "Blitz Tilt" and How he Made Unusual Rating Gains as an Adult
Book Recap #30- 10 Underrated Chess Books for Different Ratings Levels, with FM Carsten Hansen
EP 308- GM Srinath Narayanan- Lessons Learned from Training Some of the Chess World's Brightest Young Talents
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