Kyle’s Chess Journey

Kyle’s Chess Journey

Kyle from Ireland joined my school 6 months ago as a beginner player. He was stuck at 1400 rapid on Chess.com, and at one point he was ready to give up. I remember him writing to me: “I can’t make any progress, this drives me crazy, I will quit.”

With some encouragement and structured work, we started training step by step. I explained to him that in chess we all hit “walls” — rating plateaus that feel impossible to overcome. But these walls are not the end; they are actually valuable. They remind us that we need to push harder, work smarter, and sometimes take a slightly different approach.

I’ve seen this before. For example, Nathan from the USA was stuck at 1500 for a month. Once he broke through, he quickly climbed to 1700. These “walls” are part of every chess journey, and that’s why having a coach is so important — to guide you through them.

Even top players go through this. I was recently watching Nakamura talk about how he used to play the Scotch as a young player, and I believe kids should start with openings like the Danish or the Scotch to build a strong foundation for the future.

Back to Kyle: today he is 1900 rapid on Chess.com, has reached a 3200 puzzle rating, and most importantly, is now a 1851 FIDE-rated player. At this very moment, he is the top seed at the Cork Major tournament.

His story shows what consistency and support can achieve. No titled player I know has reached their level entirely on their own — coaching is essential. With the right guidance, your progress will be faster and more efficient.

👉 If you want to improve your chess with daily tasks, structured training, and constant support, book your free trial class here:
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Thank you, and have a great weekend.

I might try the lessons out some time! I'll talk to my mom and dad about possibly getting lessons.

How much does it cost to get lessons? I can't view the link because it's blocked for me.

https://scheduler.zoom.us/darko-polimac/coaching-with-darko- can you see it now or contact me at dpolimac@gmail.com

Zoom is blocked, I can contact with email. I'm not 100% sure if I can get lessons or not. I'm going to ask my Dad when I can.

The best is to ask your dad to contact me

What did you work with him on to break through the rating plateau? An opening, tactics, analysis?

Don't support spammers. He spammed my messages and now he's spamming here.

how is a online rapid rating of 1900 and fide of 1850 even possible? Most 1850 players are like 2200 online at least

He is not playing much online, but he is playing on Chess Tempo and Lichess as well. His goal is to reach 2000 online.

nice