EP 501: Leah Brown: How an Adult Improver Went From Beginner to 1600+ in Under 2 Years

The Adult Improver series returns to spotlight another guest who has benefited from chess and improved significantly at the game. Chess was recommended to Leah Brown as a healthier outlet for a mind that, in Leah’s words, tends to “torture itself.” Leah began playing tournaments less than two years ago and already has a peak rating of over 1600 USCF. In our conversation, Leah shares the training approach that has helped propel these gains, including: A lot of OTB chess with comprehensive review A heavy reliance on books, particularly those by IM Jeremy Silman A painful adjustment to 1. e4 openings that will hopefully provide long-term benefits Leah also highlights the importance of finding a friendly chess community in Massachusetts and shares the story of beating a GM in a simul. Tune in to hear the rest of this inspiring story. 0:00- Intro Links Mentioned:  Perpetual Chess Patreon Spotify Adult Improver Playlist Website Form to be considered as an adult improver guest 1:45 Meet Leah Brown 2:39 How chess became a healthy outlet Mentioned: BIllerica Chess Club https://billericachess.42web.io/?i=3 FM Sandro Safar https://lichess.org/coach/Sandro970 The Real Paul Morphy by FM Charles Hertan 5:08 Finding a welcoming OTB chess community 7:11 Getting serious about improvement 10:28 Jeremy Silman and learning through chess books 15:28 What fueled Leah’s rapid rating gains? 20:42 Lessons learned the hard way and switching to 1. e4 31:38 Rating goals and the ambition to earn a title 35:34 Advice for adult improvers 37:09 The role chess plays in Leah’s life 40:31 Beating a GM in a six-hour simul game  Mentioned: GM Nadia Kosintseva 45:25 Closing Advice for Navigating the Chess Community Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Jan Henric Buettner is a German entrepreneur, co-founder of Freestyle Chess alongside Magnus Carlsen, and a candidate for FIDE President. In his business career he has worked in technology, venture capital and hospitality.  In our interview, we discuss: The logistical problems some participants encountered at the Olympiad and Jan’s own experience in Samarkand Why Jan believes chess still has vast untapped potential Whether Freestyle Chess can appeal to a wide audience Whether an outsider can defeat FIDE’s establishment candidate What Jan considers chess’s most undervalued commercial asset We also touch on lessons Jan has learned from his varied business career, the potential threats posed by AI, and why he believes chess is a great game to introduce to the next generation. 🕒 Timestamps 0:00 Intro and Episode 500 housekeeping This podcast is brought to you in part by Claude AI. You can try it out via the link below:  claude.ai/chess3:53 Jan Henric Buettner joins the show4:40 Early logistical problems at the Chess Olympiad9:00 Jan’s business background and what drew him to chess13:40 Building Freestyle Chess and attracting sponsors16:34 Is Freestyle Chess accessible to traditional chess fans?20:25 Jan’s own chess experience22:01 FIDE elections, corruption allegations, and Jan’s chances24:06 Jan’s platform and plans for making FIDE financially independent28:55 Women in chess, cheating, and rating reform34:00 Chess.com’s dominance and the possibility of new competitors35:30 Turning chess players into chess spectators38:00 Why Jan believes the FIDE brand is undervalued39:47 Wadim Rosenstein, Timur Turlov, and the possibility of a split vote40:41 What Jan would do if he loses the election42:09 Could FIDE postpone the election?43:53 Jan’s concerns about AI, venture capital, and the future49:42 Why chess offers an antidote to technology overload Thanks to Jan for joining me! You can learn more about his campaign here: https://janhenricbuettner.com/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

IM Thomas Willemze is a popular author, Chessable creator, and trainer who has worked with the Dutch National Youth Team, among countless other students. A data analyst by day, Thomas brings an analytical approach to thinking about the core components of chess improvement. In our conversation, we draw on Thomas's experiences as both a player and coach to tease out practical lessons for improving players. We discuss everything from game review and opening preparation to how to improve your focus while studying and playing. Thomas also shares some book recommendations, reflects on learning chess from the creators of the Steps Method while they were still developing it, and recounts what happened when, at age 40, he gave himself a year to seriously pursue his GM ambitions. Timestamps of topics discussed can be found below. Free perpetual Chess Discord: https://discord.gg/UpRTQfjQB Free Newsletter: https://benjohnson.substack.com/ 00:00 Introduction to the Interview with Thomas Willems Thanks to our sponsors, Claude AI, check them out at: Claude.AI/chess 02:01 Introduction to IM Thomas Willemze 04:07 The Intersection of Data Science and Chess 07:09 Thomas’ Training and Coaching Philosophy 09:55 The Chess Steps Method and Early Chess Education mentioned : Rob Brunia and IM Cor van Wijgerden 15:36 Addressing Weaknesses and Improving Skills Mentioned: Fundamental Chess Endings, Dvoretsky’s books, GM Yury Averbakh’s books 18:08 Common Pitfalls for Adult Players 20:51 Patreon mailbag question: How can we improve our focus when playing games and studying?  23:55 Defensive Awareness and Identifying Threats 27:00 Patreon mailbag question: Does Thomas see parallels between chess and football/soccer strategy? 28:48 The Balance of Attack and Defense in Chess 30:28 Effective Study Strategies for Ambitious Players 32:07 Reviewing Games: Learning from Mistakes 33:34 The Competitive Landscape of Modern Chess 38:26 Preparing for Upcoming Tournaments 40:05 Choosing an Opening Repertoire 42:01 Current Projects and Future Endeavors 44:08 Chess Content Recommendations and Personal Interests Mentioned: 100 Endgames You Must Know  50:00- Thanks to IM Willemze for joining me. You can reach him via his Chessable author’s page: https://www.chessable.com/author/Willemze/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

IM David Vigorito is a three-time state champion, renowned opening theoretician and trainer, and the author of many highly regarded books and Chessable courses. His latest course, 1. e4: The Gold Standard, offers an ambitious, principled repertoire against all of Black’s major responses. In our conversation, we discuss: How David’s process for researching openings has changed as engines have grown increasingly powerful. What adult improvers can learn from David’s own unusual chess journey and the huge rating gains he made in his late teens, 20s, and 30s. Why players should sometimes deliberately play openings and positions that make them uncomfortable. The challenges of finding opportunities to compete while balancing chess with work and family obligations. David also shares a funny story about the unexpected chain of events that followed our first interview in 2019, explains some of the ambitious choices in his new 1. e4 repertoire, and shares his strong opinions on Chess960 and some recent trends in professional chess. It’s always fun to catch up with David, and there is lots of practical chess advice in this one. 0:00 Intro Thanks to our sponsor Claude.ai Check them out at Claude.ai/chess 2:30 David’s new 1. e4 course and how engine-era opening research has changed 6:55 Why David recommends ambitious, principled opening lines 15:15 How much opening theory do amateur players actually need? 20:40 Adult improvement: what helped David make huge rating gains 26:00 The New England chess scene and David’s tournament schedule 31:55 A funny story stemming from David’s first Perpetual Chess interview 38:20 Improving by working on your weaknesses 44:00 Following professional chess and David’s dislike of alternative scoring formats 45:40 Why David has no interest in Chess960 Vigorito-Aagaard 2025 https://www.chesshere.com/master-games/1822045?fen=r1bqk2r%2Fpppp1ppp%2F2n2n2%2F1B2p3%2F1b2P3%2F2N2N2%2FPPPP1PPP%2FR1BQK2R+w+KQkq+-+6+5 50:30 What’s next for David https://www.chessable.com/author/dvigorito/  52:00- Thanks to David for joining me! Be sure to check out his courses on Chessable: https://www.chessable.com/author/dvigorito/ If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via Patreon, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GM Valentin Dragnev is a two-time Austrian national champion and former chess Olympian who has had memorable OTB encounters with GM Magnus Carlsen, Vasyl Ivanchuk, and many other top players. After achieving so much over the board, he has increasingly focused his attention on chess training and a community-focused website he co-founded, Chessivity.com. We discuss: The story behind Valentin’s fast rise up the ranks after a relatively late start to tournament chess. The struggles he has observed that adult students have in developing consistent thought processes. The vision behind Chessivity, a website that aims to connect chess players and help them track and share their chess training. Stories from Valentin’s chess career, including nearly beating Magnus Carlsen and cycling from Austria to Budapest to compete in the Chess Olympiad. This was a very insightful conversation with lots of good stories and practical chess advice. 0:00- Ready to have an AI that can tackle real work? Try Claude Cowork today — Claude.ai/CHESS.  03:05 GM Dragnev’s rise up the ranks Mentioned: The Art of Planning in Chess by GM Neal McDonald https://www.amazon.com/Art-Planning-Chess-Move/dp/071349025X 12:14 Transitioning to Chess as a Career 15:31 Advice for Parents and Young Players 18:29 Coaching Adults vs. Kids 21:52 The Importance of Thought Process in Chess 26:53 The Birth of Chessivity 30:32 Integrating Chessivity with User Accounts Follow Ben here: https://chessivity.com/profile/bennyficial1 31:05 Future Features and User Feedback 33:11 Valentin's Chess Career Highlights 35:05 Playing Against Magnus Carlsen Check out the Sicilian game here: https://lichess.org/broadcast/european-team-championship-open/round-2/kLFgyBxS/QCqXtaGu 38:39 Training and Preparation Strategies 42:10 Working with Top Players 44:46 Balancing Coaching and Competitive Play 47:07 Misconceptions in Chess Improvement 52:22 Valentin tells the story of cycling from Austria to Budapest before competing in the Olympiad 56:03 Thanks to Valentin for joining! Find him on Chessivity: https://chessivity.com/profile/valentin Lichess coaches: https://lichess.org/coach/DrAgnevstein Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

The Adult Improver Series returns to welcome back an accomplished guest. Kyle Boddy is the founder of Driveline Baseball, an influential company that provides training and performance guidance for professional and aspiring baseball players. Despite the demands of running a company and raising a family, Kyle values chess as a hobby and makes plenty of time for it. When I first interviewed Kyle in 2022, he was rated below 1000 USCF, but was working diligently and had a long-term hope of reaching USCF 2000. Four years later, he has stuck with it and made considerable progress, recently reaching a new peak of nearly 1550 USCF. In this follow-up, we discuss: Why he still loves openings, and how studying them deeply has given him a competitive advantage against many higher-rated opponents. How he combines old-school, analog training methods with sophisticated uses of AI and chess technology. The parallels he sees between improving at physical pursuits like baseball and improving at chess. The immense value he gains from being part of a vibrant chess community in the Pacific Northwest. It is inspiring to see Kyle’s continued dedication to chess, and I look forward to following his continued progress in the coming years. 0:00- Intro Join the Perpetual Chess Patreon community: https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess Join the free discord:  https://discord.gg/hN3CJsbGn More on the Adult Improver Series: Spotify Playlist: https://open.spotify.com/playlist/75Uoqz2BoRt2IiTCeOfuky?si=8fda103624514126 Website: https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/adultimprover Check out our sponsor,  Claude Co-work at Claude.ai/chess 04:22 Kyle Boddy joins 06:05 What keeps Kyle playing and improving? 07:36 Switching to 1.e4 and open games Mentioned: Anand-Nunn 1990 https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1018185 08:43 Why Kyle still loves studying openings 10:45 How Kyle actually studies openings 12:12 Studying games blindfolded 16:00 How Kyle uses AI for chess 18:19 Engines, Maia Chess and practical preparation 20:34 Kyle’s tournament routine 24:19 How he trains tactics 26:48 Building a new opening repertoire 29:42 Daily chess habits 30:49 The importance of a chess community 34:17 Tournament chess in Seattle and beyond 35:20 Aging and adult chess improvement 37:45 Kyle’s path toward 1800-2000 40:11 Improving at endgames 42:50 Understanding vs. memorizing openings 44:35 The Joey Votto chess bet 45:33 Chess’s popularity among pro athletes 47:05 How much Kyle studies chess Can Adults Improve at Chess by NM Todd Bryant https://www.chess.com/article/view/can-adults-improve-at-chess 50:22 Blogging, AI and hiding your prep 52:53 Baseball vs. chess improvement 55:46 Will Kyle still be playing at 50?  56:00- Thanks to Kyle for joining and sharing his inspiring progress- follow his blog here: https://www.kyleboddy.com/blog/ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

With the recent news of his passing, this week we look at the remarkable and wide-ranging chess legacy of FM Bill Goichberg. Among many other distinctions, Bill was the founder of the Continental Chess Association and the creator of the U.S. National Scholastic Championships, and he left an indelible mark on the U.S. chess scene. My guest is chess journalist FM Jon Jacobs, who is working on an independent biography of Bill. Jon grew up in New York and got to know Bill personally as a top young scholastic player, with a young Bill Goichberg directing some of his formative tournaments in Brooklyn. Decades later, Bill sat down for 15 hours’ worth of interviews with Jon, which Jon has been crafting into a book. In our interview, we discuss Bill’s business legacy, chess accomplishments, family life, and much more. Bill changed the course of American chess, and I am grateful to Jon for joining me and fleshing out his life story. 00:00 - Intro and remembering FM Bill Goichberg 0:02- Maurice Ashley tweet regarding Goichberg- https://x.com/MauriceAshley?lang=en06:13 - Jon’s first memories of Bill08:14 - How Bill got started organizing tournaments14:16 - Growing chess in the pre-Fischer era18:21 - Bill’s proudest contributions to US chess22:54 - Continental Chess and its competitors24:39 - How big a business did CCA become?29:50 - Bill’s wife Brenda and their life together35:35 - Bill’s beginnings as a chess player39:48 - How strong was Bill as a player?44:07 - Did Bill ever work outside of chess? Mentioned: CCA and Domainvision.com https://www.chesstour.com/aboutcca.htm47:38 - The Continental Chess business model51:54 - Why Jon is writing Bill’s biography57:01 - Where to follow Jon’s work 1:00:00- Thanks to Jon for coming on, you can follow his Facebook page here-  https://www.facebook.com/p/A-Pawn-Made-Flesh-61568668591626/ If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via Patreon, you can do so here: https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GM Jacob Aagaard is an award-winning author, a renowned trainer who has worked with GMs Sam Shankland, Nodirbek Abdusattorov and many others, and the co-founder of Quality Chess. Despite all of his accomplishments and the many demands on his time, Jacob retains his passion for chess books and chess improvement. He returns to the podcast to discuss: How to actually improve at calculation, including why many club players should spend more time solving simple tactics rather than difficult calculation exercises Some of the key concepts from his excellent new book, A Killer Guide to Attacking Chess How to categorize the mistakes in your games without overcomplicating the process Some of the forthcoming chess books he is most excited about Jacob also teases an exciting new project with GM Garry Kasparov and shares his thoughts on the Olympiad, the FIDE election, and the health of the chess publishing business, among many other topics. There is always so much to learn from Jacob, and I greatly appreciate his generosity with his time. This week’s podcast is brought to you by Chessiverse.com. Be sure to check out their many features, and use code “Perpetual30” to receive a 30% discount on premium offerings and IM John Bartholomew’s Scandinavian Course.  00:00 Introduction  0:02- GM Jacob Aagaard joins 0:08- The Upcoming  Chess books Jacob is most excited about Naroditsky Memorial Box Set Quality Chess Chess Metamorphoss by GM Nikita Vitiugov Grandmaster Training Camp with GM Sam Shankland Unlock Your Chess Creativity by IM Richard Palliser  Winning Chess Tactics by GM Yasser Seirawan The Evans Gambit by IM Andrew Martin 17:00 Jacob’s Writing Workflow and Challenges 21:30 The Role of AI in Chess Writing 30:00 Patreon mailbag question: How does Jacob’s new book compare to his Excelling at Chess Series?  33:00- Patreon mailbag question: How does Jacob recommend one improve at calculation? 41:00 Patreon mailbag question: What is Jacob’s advice for how to categorize the mistakes you make when reviewing and trying to learn from your games? 43:33 Categorizing Mistakes in Chess 45:00 Recommended Chess Books for Improvement Mentioned: Attack with Mikhail Tal Alekhine’s Best Games Books by GM Larry Christiansen Life and Games of Mikhail Tal 48:00 Working with GM Garry Kasparov on an updated The Great Predecessors Series  57:00  Patreon mailbag question: How is the chess publishing business doing? Does Jacob have any plans of streamlining the digital availability of the New in Chess Magazine archive?  01:10:00 Patreon mailbag question: Jacob’s thoughts on the Chess Olympiad, the FIDE election and Gukesh-Sindarov 1:16:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is Jacob’s motivation for continuing to compete occasionally  01:17:00- What Jacob learns from being an adult improver at guitar  Mentioned: Jake Workman is Jacob’s guitar teacher  01:24:00- Thanks to Jacob for joining the show again! Here is how to keep up his work: Killer Chess Training https://killerchesstraining.com/ Books https://www.newinchess.com/catalogsearch/result/index/?authors=Jacob+Aagaard+Madsen&q=%2A If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via Patreon, you can do so here: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GM Jacob Aagaard is an award-winning author, a renowned trainer who has worked with GMs Sam Shankland, Nodirbek Abdusattorov and many others, and the co-founder of Quality Chess. Despite all of his accomplishments and the many demands on his time, Jacob retains his passion for chess books and chess improvement. He returns to the podcast to discuss: How to actually improve at calculation, including why many club players should spend more time solving simple tactics rather than difficult calculation exercises Some of the key concepts from his excellent new book, A Killer Guide to Attacking Chess How to categorize the mistakes in your games without overcomplicating the process Some of the forthcoming chess books he is most excited about Jacob also teases an exciting new project with GM Garry Kasparov and shares his thoughts on the Olympiad, the FIDE election, and the health of the chess publishing business, among many other topics. There is always so much to learn from Jacob, and I greatly appreciate his generosity with his time. This week’s podcast is brought to you by Chessiverse.com. Be sure to check out their many features, and use code “Perpetual30” to receive a 30% discount on premium offerings and IM John Bartholomew’s Scandinavian Course.  00:00 Introduction  0:02- GM Jacob Aagaard joins 0:08- The Upcoming  Chess books Jacob is most excited about Naroditsky Memorial Box Set Quality Chess Chess Metamorphoss by GM Nikita Vitiugov Grandmaster Training Camp with GM Sam Shankland Unlock Your Chess Creativity by IM Richard Palliser  Winning Chess Tactics by GM Yasser Seirawan The Evans Gambit by IM Andrew Martin 17:00 Jacob’s Writing Workflow and Challenges 21:30 The Role of AI in Chess Writing 30:00 Patreon mailbag question: How does Jacob’s new book compare to his Excelling at Chess Series?  33:00- Patreon mailbag question: How does Jacob recommend one improve at calculation? 41:00 Patreon mailbag question: What is Jacob’s advice for how to categorize the mistakes you make when reviewing and trying to learn from your games? 43:33 Categorizing Mistakes in Chess 45:00 Recommended Chess Books for Improvement Mentioned: Attack with Mikhail Tal Alekhine’s Best Games Books by GM Larry Christiansen Life and Games of Mikhail Tal 48:00 Working with GM Garry Kasparov on an updated The Great Predecessors Series  57:00  Patreon mailbag question: How is the chess publishing business doing? Does Jacob have any plans of streamlining the digital availability of the New in Chess Magazine archive?  01:10:00 Patreon mailbag question: Jacob’s thoughts on the Chess Olympiad, the FIDE election and Gukesh-Sindarov 1:16:00- Patreon mailbag question: What is Jacob’s motivation for continuing to compete occasionally  01:17:00- What Jacob learns from being an adult improver at guitar  Mentioned: Jake Workman is Jacob’s guitar teacher  01:24:00- Thanks to Jacob for joining the show again! Here is how to keep up his work: Killer Chess Training https://killerchesstraining.com/ Books https://www.newinchess.com/catalogsearch/result/index/?authors=Jacob+Aagaard+Madsen&q=%2A If you would like to help support Perpetual Chess via Patreon, you can do so here: ⁠https://www.patreon.com/c/perpetualchess⁠ Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

GM Vasif Durarbayli is a former World Youth Champion and two-time champion of his native Azerbaijan. Now based in St. Louis after graduating from Webster University, Vasif has turned much of his attention to ChessEver, an app designed to make following live chess easier. In our conversation we discuss: •• Why he believes every serious chess player needs a coach, and how not hiring one nearly derailed his own career. • Vasif's outstanding performance at the Naroditsky Memorial blitz, including a near-upset of Hikaru Nakamura. • An unforgettable over-the-board encounter with legendary GM Viktor Korchnoi. • How chess broadcasting can be improved, and his ambitious long-term vision for ChessEver. This was a really enjoyable conversation, and I recommend ChessEver to anyone who enjoys following top-level tournaments. 00:00 - Intro 01:16 - Insights from a top 10 finish at the Naroditsky Memorial blitz tournament Check out Vasif’s Naroditsky Memorial games here: The Nakamura game is game 13, 35. Rxa7! Was mate in 12.  https://lichess.org/study/UoNAiYdm/TehrviPk 03:52 - Playing Korchnoi 05:02 - Playing style: aggressive opening choices and psychological play 06:45 - The influence of legendary players and their aura on Vasif 09:16 - Off-the-board aspects of chess improvement and coaching advice 12:37 - Strategies for handling lost positions and psychological tactics 15:08 - The significance of coaching and Vasif’s past mistakes in self-improvement Vasif’s thoughts on Gukesh’s slump here: https://x.com/durarbayli/status/2079565216413556923 24:52 - The power of strategic preparation stories from chess books Mentioned: The Random Book that Made me a Grandmaster https://durarbayli.com/a-random-book-made-me-a-grandmaster/ The Method in Chess by Josif Dorfman https://www.amazon.com/Method-Chess-Iossif-Dorfman/dp/2957289024 30:00- Why we should not emulate Sindarov’s study approach Mentioned: Fooled by Randomness 39:06 - The journey from competitive chess to creating Chess Ever 44:50 - The vision for Chess Ever: following games, broadcasting, and innovation 53:41 - Monetization plans and future features of Chess Ever 58:51 - How Chess Ever differs from other streaming and follow platforms 61:47 - The future of chess broadcasting, AI commentary, and competition 63:48 - Final thoughts and encouraging feedback from listenersResources: Chess Ever App Road to Mastery by Golovka Static and Dynamic by Dorfman Nasim Taleb - Fooled by Randomness Connect with Vasif Durabayi: LinkedIn Twitter Website Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices