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In Episode 203, I converse with Grandmaster Mackenzie Molner, a long-term friend and colleague and the Founder of Grandmaster Mac.  Molner won the Denker Tournament of High School Champions as a sophomore in 2004. He completed his final grandmaster norm in 2013, tying for first in the U.S. Open Chess Championship, held near Madison, Wisconsin that year. He co-founded the Montclair Sopranos PRO Chess League team. He was taught by our 132nd podcast guest Michael Khodarkovsky. 

We speak about his road to grandmaster, tips for chess improvement, the founding of the Montclair Sopranos,  paralells between chesss and poker, sharp openings like the English Attack, New Jersey prodigies and more. 

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In Episode 202, I converse with Grandmaster James Plaskett, Former British Chess Champion, a strong player, author and  Who Wants to be a Millioniare? winner, live from the 2022 National After-School Association Convention in Las Vegas. He recently published a new book Bread and The Circus about his experience playing on the show.

We speak about his development as a chess player with fellow British top players Nigel Short, Michael Adams and Nigel Davies, the Plaskett's Puzzle, coincidences versus divine providence, chess players in game shows, the giant octopus, and more. 

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In Episode 201, I converse with Davina Chebin, CEO of Divine Healing by D, Certified Reiki Master, Medical Intuitive & Spiritual Coach, and CMO at Almaz Investments. Davina has her BA in English Literature from Pace University.

We speak about the real estate hustle, time management, the importance of self-care, delegation, an introduction to reiki, mindfulness' effect on critical thinking , the development of peak performance and more.

For some more words of wisdom from Davina, see this guest blog post. 

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In our Milestone 200th Episode, I have the honor and privilege of conversing with the "Chess Gladiator" FIDE Master Asa Hoffmann. He is known as "the sparring partner of champions, with a peak regular rating of 2471. He was portrayed in the movie Searching for Bobby Fischer by actor Austin Pendleton.  He recently published his autobiography The Last Gamesman: My Sixty Years of Hustling Games in the Clubs, Parks and Streets of New York.

We speak about playing chess with Marcel Duchamp,  computers' effect on the rising number of prodigies, playing Bobby Fischer for $3/game, Fischer's individualist legacy, his recollection of the 1972- Fischer-Spassky match, his potrayal in Searching for Bobby Fischer, his interview in  Bobby Fischer Against the World, meeting Henry Kissinger, his friendly rivalry with our 112th Podcast Guest "Iron Man" International Master Jay Bonin, questions from our special guest International Master Yaacov Norowitz, Trompowsky Attack theory, ways to deal with intimidation, the ideal opponent, playing an assortment of games at the Fleahouse, poker, and more. 

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In Episode 199, I converse with National Expert Chris Johnson, Founder of Project Pawn, Instructor at Success Academy and Real Estate Broker at Coldwell Banker Realty. Project Pawn LLC is an organization that uses chess as a tool to sharpen minds. He has taught chess since 2000 and has taught hundreds of kids. He does sales and rentals in Manhattan and the Bronx.

We speak up the IS 229 chess club, the benefits of learning chess, consequences, a tribute to Charu Robinson, the famous Raging Rooks team, curriclum chess classes, top improvement tips, real estate trends in Harlem and the Bronx, the grind in chess and real estate, resources for prodigies and more. 

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In Episode 198, I converse with FIDE Master Carsten Hansen, Columnist at Chess Life Magazine,  Seafreight Route Development Manager, UK & Ireland at Kuehne + Nagel, Columnist/Book Reviewer at American Chess Magazine. Learn more about his 37 books and career here.

We speak about curiosity as a motivation, brainstorming for boooks, a preview of his upcoming Norwegian Rat book with Intermational Master Cyrus Lakdawala,  opening books, misconceptions about Dvoretsky's Endgame Manual, the importance of endgame fundamentals, ways to transition from online chess to over-the board chess, chess applications in the business world, searching for low hanging fruit in sales and chess, fun and more. 

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In Episode 197, I have the pleasure of conversing with Grandmaster Joel Benjamin and Expert Harold Scott, authors of Winning the World Open.

Joel Benjamin won the US Championship three times and happens to be the player with the most World Open first places: six! He is a very successful author of books on chess. His Liquidation on the Chess Board won the Best Book Award of the Chess Journalists of America (CJA), his Better Thinking, Better Chess is a world-wide bestseller, and World Champion Chess for Juniors was published in 2020 to wide acclaim.

Harold Scott is a FIDE Instructor, a chess columnist and a chess teacher and coach in the New York City area.

We speak about suburban dad life, Joel and Harold's mutual passion for The Mets , their favorite classic rock bands, the Memphis chess scene, top chess improvement tips, The Yale University Chess Team, the importance of tactical training, walking around during tournaments, active dfense in the endgame, cheating at the World Open,  ways to deal with the pressure of last round situations, the art of opening preparation, the importance of preparation, diet at chess tournaments and more. 

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In Episode 196, I converse with David Lazarus, Chess Coach at Millburn Short Hills School District, live from the United States Amateur Team East in Parsippany. Prior to teaching chess, David worked as a programmer at Toys R Us, Union County College and elsewhere. 

We speak about annual fun at the Amatuer Team East, his friendship with our 180th podcast guest Dr. Richard Lewis, teaching online, using www.lichess.org, benefits of chess as a programmmer,  success in the French Defense, coaching at the Maccabiah Games in Israel, the importance of networking and social media, directing at the Westfield Chess Club, differences of in-person and remote teaching, the importance of game analysis for chess improvement and more. 

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In Episode 195, I converse with National Master Dan Heisman, who is an award-winning chess author and  full-time chess instructor in Wynnewood PA. He is also a FIDE Candidate Master.

We discuss teaching chess to 1000+ students globally, virtually, his tutelage of Howard Stern, transferable skills from chess to engineering, studying with International Master Donald Byrne, chess terminology, chess pedagogy insights, capturing sequences, common areas in each rating class, his lucky analog chess clock, his assortment of 12 chess improvement books, the future of chess and more.  

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In Episode 194, I converse with Dmitri Shneider, Chief  Financial Officer at Play Magnus Group , which is a leader in the chess industry  and a publicly traded company.

PMG is the  parent company of Chessable, chess24, New In Chess, iChess, AimChess, Everyman Chess, CoChess, and the Play Magnus suite of apps. It is also the organizer of the widely followed  Meltwater Champions Chess Tour, a series of chess tournaments attracting the world's top players with a $1.6 million prize fund.

He became a National Master at age 12 and International Master at 17. His peak FIDE rating was 2502.

We speak about his decision to  either make grandmaster or go to college, growing up with brother FIDE Master Igor Shneider, lessons learned about founding school programs, applications of chess in wealth management, the arts of planning and objectivity, the early days of Chessable, Play Magnus' acquisition of Chessable, Play Magnus' current initiatives, the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour 2022, the rise of Chess PR and more.