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The throwaways caught up 2026-06-28 → 2026-07-05 chess.com/nucos

A 2–7 slide to 881: winning positions handed back, and no late recovery this time.

A rough week at the blitz board: nine games, 2–7, the rating sliding 29 points to 881 with no late recovery this time. The two wins came messy, one grind from the Black side, one gift from an opponent who walked away. The honest story is louder: a 37.7% throwaway rate, 2.52 blunders a game, winning positions handed straight back. Underneath sits a 200-game season, 91–101–8 at 45.5%, a 995 peak worn to 881. The 800s still fall (69%) but the 900s are now the battleground (41% over 162), and mornings (52%) beat evenings (37%). No collapse, no breakthrough, just a week the giveaways won.

Record
2–7–0
9 games
Rating
881
-29 · off a 910 start
Best streak
1
in a row
Accuracy
85.5
mean
Win rate
22%
this stretch
2 won 0 drawn 7 lost
Rating · the arc · hover to read it
start 910 peak 910 now 881

Nine games from a 910 start straight down to 881, no bounce this time. The dip that usually reverses in the late games just kept going, and the floor didn't hold.

Openings — what's working
London Systemwhite · 65g · 47.7%
The daily driver from White, 48% over 65. Unspectacular and a touch leaky, but the one line I always know how to steer. model game ↗
Caro-Kann Defenseblack · 60g · 48.3%
The Black workhorse, 48% over 60. It sings in rapid; at blitz speed it just holds even, no more. model game ↗
Queen's Pawnwhite · 11g · 54.5%
A rarer White outing that quietly outscores the London, 55% over 11. Small sample, but a welcome change of gears. model game ↗
Games worth seeing
Win rate by opponent strength
800–899 · 35g 69%
900–999 · 162g 41%
1000–1099 · 3g 0%
Tendencies the coach noticed
White is still the better half

White scores 48% over 100 games, Black 43% over 100. The Caro-Kann that sings in rapid is the same line that only holds even here, and the color split shows it.

The 900s are the battleground now

Below 900 the wins come easy (69% over 35); at 900–999 it is a coin flip (41% over 162). With the rating down, the old 1000s wall barely shows, just 3 games.

Morning hands, evening nerves

Mornings are the good hours (52% over 58), evenings the worst (37% over 54). The late games are still where the rating goes to die.

The games I give back

A 38% throwaway rate over the season, 2.52 blunders a game, winning positions handed back. The next mountain isn't openings, it's not flinging the won ones away.

Season to date
2026-05-06 → 2026-07-05 200 games 91–101–8 peak 995 streak 4 scalp 999

Two months, 200 games, 91–101–8, a 45.5% grind that has worn a 995 peak down to 881. The 800s still fall (69%) but the 900s are a coin flip (41% over 162), and a 38% throwaway rate is why. Fix the giveaways, resume the climb.

Past editions
Back off the 886 floor · "Slid to 886 over the weekend, then clawed it back to 902: a 3–3–1 that refused to end on the floor."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."