Puzzle Rush Prowess: Looking at the best of the best
I have always admired skill in any skill-based sport or activity. No doubt I am not alone in my appreciation of aesthetics. There's something alluring about watching a highly skilled freestyle footballer, a proficient pianist, an illustration artist, etc. In fact beauty became highly studied among ancient philosophers in its own right. Sometimes beauty is not something that we can rationally and logically explain and articulate. Beauty is something we appreciate unconsciously.
On the subject of beauty, there are no doubt speed puzzle solvers. I followed a few puzzle rush championships and the ability to solve puzzles with such speed and accuracy always baffled me. It left me in a state of wonder, of awe, of admiration. How is it that some players are able to solve a puzzle, that would take me at least a minute to solve, in less than 2 seconds? Such exhibitions in competitive puzzle-solving epitomizes and captures one aspect of chess beauty.
All of this got me wondering if there might be some correlation between the ability to spot tactics quickly and overall playing strength.
I could, of course, manually collect this data and present it in descriptive form, but I tend to be a bit lazy sometimes. Suffice it to say, I did collect a small sample analyzing a few of the top players and some of their puzzle rush scores to notice any correlation, even if it lacks proper, rigorous scientific standards. It's important to note that I won't count scores under 30. I will assume abandonment of the attempt or not caring much for scores under 30.
When we sort the average scores from the highest to the lowest:
1. Maxime Vachier-Lagrave : 51.3
2. Hikaru Nakamura : 49.7
3. Ediz Gürel : 49.2
4. Javokhir Sindarov : 47.5
5. Ray Robson : 46.7
6. Fabiano Caruana : 44.6
7. Praggnanandhaa : 44.2
8. Ian Nepomniachtchi : 42.1
Maxime seems to be consistent. Ray Robson’s scores fluctuate wildly from as high as 60 to as low as 31.
Interesting numbers, but do they mean anything to us improving players? I believe they do. I believe they set a bar for proficiency in the tactical department. Would it not be elating to know that your tactical ability is no worse than Ian Nepomniachtchi, the two-time world chess champion contender? Absolutely! So, what would be the concrete goal to reach this level? A puzzle rush score that is consistently above 43 or averages at 43 after every 10 puzzle rush sessions.
But the goal isn’t to reach world class speed solving as such but the love of the art. To become a maestro. To become a grand architect of beauty. To arouse and stimulate our deep, innate, human sense and feel for aesthetics that requires no language to articulate.
