By Daniel Lona
The podcast currently has 111 episodes available.
103 Our guest is an inspiring adult improver, Dr. Ryan Thomas. Ryan is a surgeon, a cancer researcher, and a father of two. With all that, he’s still highly dedicated to chess improvement and his love of the game. Ryan regularly attends OTB classical tournaments, and his current USCF rating is 958 with a goal of 1200.
In this episode, we discuss:
Find Ryan on Twitter
Resources Referenced:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
102 Learning from a prolific chess author and course creator is always exciting.
Today we dive into various chess improvement topics from Serbian International Master, Boro Zlatanovic.
Boro has published over two dozen courses and books. And in just five years!
And his two most recent courses have been published with Chessable, including Masterpieces of Amateur Play and Conversion in the Endgame.
One thing that stands out about Boro, and that I find refreshing, is that while we’re in an era where most published works are focused on openings, Boro prefers to write and teach about strategy, endgames, and chess psychology.
In our discussion, we chat about:
More From Boro:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
101 Megan Lee is an inspiration to all of us adult improvers. Even with a busy work life running two businesses, Megan has had an incredible year: reaching her lifetime rating peak (2297 FIDE), earning the FM title, and competing in the US Women’s Championship.
In fact, this year will be her third invitation to that prestigious event.
Yet she does this all on the side while she juggles a typical but heavy load of adult responsibilities.
In this episode, we discuss:
More from Megan: Snippet Studios (her lifestyle brand business)
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
A quick update on why the show has been MIA for three weeks (spoiler: COVID.) And when I'll resume...
0100 She’s rated one of Italy’s top female players and has coached adult improvers for years. And she is this show’s first Italian guest! WIM Tea Guecci has had an impressive chess career. She broke records by age twelve, becoming the youngest ever to win the Italian Women’s Chess Championship.
She’s also played and represented her country in two Chess Olympiads.
Recently, she launched her first Chessable course called, “My Secret Sveshnikov: The Sicilian by a Sicilian.”
NOTE: To win the full video version of Tea’s course for free, follow me on Twitter for instructions on the giveaway Chessable & I will be doing between 8/14 and 8/19.
In this episode, we discuss:
More From Tea:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
099 She’s been awarded “Chess Coach of the Month” by Chess.com. Plus, she has a master’s degree in psychology. Meet WFM Fruzsina Szente-Varga! Hailing from Hungary, Fruzsina has spent the past several years coaching adult club players and beginners.
Additionally, she regularly creates excellent chess content through her Twitch & YouTube channels.
In this interview, we discuss:
More From Fruzsina:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
098 Adult club players are a fast-growing part of the chess community. But this growth is relatively new. And the community may not have fully caught up to our sizeable presence. So, in a first for this podcast, I’ve brought in two guests to help me discuss this subject and propose some ideas to make the community more engaging for us adult amateurs.
Kamryn Hellman is an adult improver who rose to 2000 Chess.com Rapid in less than a year. Since then, she’s launched a YouTube channel and created a Chessable course for beginners.
Omar Mills is a super-dedicated and inspiring club player who’s built a large chess Twitter following.
In this episode, we discuss:
Kamryn:
Omar:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
097 Playing against 1.d4 can be awkward. Many club players say they’re less sure of what to do positionally and have more difficulty finding tactical possibilities. Even the most popular, and arguably best, opening responses like the Slav or the Queen’s Gambit Declined can leave club players unsatisfied.
Why is that?
And are there any openings that can at least ease this challenge?
My guest, IM Mateusz Kolosowski, is here to help.
He brings a decade of coaching experience to bear on this subject. And, he’s recently created a course on an opening that works well to ease these problems: the Albin Countergambit.
But what we discuss is far more than the details of a single opening.
In our chat, we also cover why club players inherently struggle with 1.d4 positions and openings. Which reveals some interesting insights.
Hopefully, this episode is both therapeutic regarding 1.d4 woes...and helpful for you!
More From Mat:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
096 After a two-week break, we are back! For the first time, I explain what I have in store for the podcast for 2024…and beyond. (Hint: it’s all good news!) From new episode formats to a different category of guests, I share my ambitions for this show.
I also preview the upcoming launch of my community-themed membership for adult chess improvers, which will also have some connections to the podcast.
The final part of this brief episode updates my struggles with regaining my former chess skills.
Last, I’d love to hear from you directly! In this episode, I ask your thoughts on two different questions.
Please send me your thoughts to either of those questions at either of the links below.
Message me on my website contact page.
DM me on Twitter.
Not only will it help to get your feedback, but I’ll also respond to you within a couple of days. Thank you!
095 GM Alex Colovic is an exceptional course creator and an engaging writer on all things chess. He returns to the pod to discuss some intriguing subjects from his weekly newsletter. I hand-picked three topics Alex wrote about that I found fascinating. We dive deep into each one:
Finally, we discuss his latest opening courses for White that have been released on Chessable, and why it may be worth learning to play 1.e4 and 1.d4.
More From Alex:
>> Join my official FREE club for The Chess Experience on Chess.com<< (PROMOTION)
The podcast currently has 111 episodes available.