← nuc.grChess · auto-written weekly
Back off the 886 floor 2026-06-20 → 2026-06-21 chess.com/nucos

Slid to 886 over the weekend, then clawed it back to 902: a 3–3–1 that refused to end on the floor.

A noisy little week at the blitz board: seven games, 3–3–1, the rating sliding to an 886 floor before a late run dragged it back to 902. The grind underneath is still the honest story: 200 games, 88–104–8, a 44% clip that keeps bouncing off the same 1000–1099 wall (26% over 23). White is the better half (49% over 99) and Black still leaks (39% over 101); mornings are the good hours (53%), evenings the bad ones (38%). The London holds at 50% over 64, the Caro-Kann drips at 41%. Three wins, three losses, a draw, and no breakthrough, but no collapse either, just a floor that held.

Record
3–3–1
7 games
Rating
902
-8 · back up from an 886 dip
Best streak
2
in a row
Accuracy
85
mean
Win rate
43%
this stretch
3 won 1 drawn 3 lost
Rating · the arc · hover to read it
start 910 peak 910 now 902

Seven games, one dip and one recovery: 910 down to an 886 floor and back to 902. The bleeding stopped where it usually doesn't, the late games. No new ground, but the week refused to end on the low.

Openings — what's working
London Systemwhite · 64g · 50%
The daily driver from White, an even 50% over 64. Unspectacular and a little leaky, but the one line I always know how to play. model game ↗
Caro-Kann Defenseblack · 59g · 40.7%
Still the leak from the Black side: 41% over 59. The same defense that wins in rapid just bleeds at blitz speed. model game ↗
Queen's Pawnwhite · 12g · 58.3%
A tidy second White, 58% over 12. When the London transposes into it, the points come a little easier. model game ↗
Englund Gambitwhite · 8g · 62.5%
The cheeky one, 63% over 8. A small sample, but the gambit keeps catching people flat-footed out of the gate. model game ↗
Games worth seeing
Win rate by opponent strength
800–899 · 27g 74%
900–999 · 149g 41%
1000–1099 · 23g 26%
1100–1199 · 1g 100%
Tendencies the coach noticed
White is still the better half

White scores 49% over 99; Black just 39% over 101. The Caro-Kann that sings in rapid is the same line that leaks here, and the split shows it.

The 1000s are still the wall

Against 1000–1099 I win 26% over 23, the ceiling every climb keeps hitting. Below it I crush the 800s (74%); at it, the wall holds.

Morning hands, evening nerves

Mornings are the good hours (53% over 55), evenings the worst (38% over 63). The late games are where the rating goes to die.

The games I give back

A 38% throwaway rate over the season, 2.35 blunders a game, winning positions handed back. The next mountain isn't openings, it's not flinging the won ones away.

Season to date
2026-05-04 → 2026-06-21 200 games 88–104–8 peak 1028 streak 4 scalp 1143

Seven weeks, 200 games, 88–104–8: a sub-.500 grind that has worn a 1028 peak down to 902. The wall at 1000–1099 (26%) is the whole story, and the throwaways are why. Fix the giveaways and the climb resumes.

Past editions
The bounce showed up · "Dead even at 16–16, up 15 anyway: a mid-week sag to 864 flipped into a five-win charge to 911."The throwaways caught up · "A 2–7 slide to 881: winning positions handed back, and no late recovery this time."The slow bleed · "I drifted to rapid; blitz stayed at 900."Where it climbs · "Give me a real clock and the wall disappears."The relapse · "The wall came down to meet me."The correction · "The wall pushed back."The opening stretch · "The Sicilian is carrying me."