SCHOLAR definition (Merriam-Webster): a person who studies a subject in great detail. Chess, in my case.
My first 6 Months as a Chess Scholar.
I began my Chess journey on June 19, and officially committed to it on June 25, 2025, as a pure beginner starting from zero.
I’ve started my “Highway to Mastery” with 6 Classes and long-term goals.
P.S. (Oh, I’ve almost forgot to mention, I’m 50 years old. Which is supposed to be a death sentence in the Chess world??)
- Classical Chess. Aiming to get a Lichess Classical rating of 2000-2100.
- ICCF (Correspondence Chess). Becoming a 2000 rated-player and/or Titled player.
- Puzzle Rush Survival. Getting a Top Score of ≥ 50.
- Chess Book Collection. Collecting Chess books. I love Chess books. I’m a nerd.
- Blindfold Chess. Being able to play full Blindfold Chess games. No boards, no pieces, nothing.
- Chess Business. Turning ChessIsWar.com into a lucrative business to fund my Chess journey.
Hours of Deliberate Practice
4 hours of specialist study (for us, chess) a day — László Polgár, in his book Raise A Genius
Nothing to do with the 4-Hour Work-week fallacy. Mine would be The 4-Hour Work-day.
If I follow the analogy in the Rapid Chess Improvement by Michael de la Maza book.
A 2-year Degree Course is:
4 Classes x 10 hours/week x 15 weeks/semester x 4 semesters = 2400 Hours of study
Then you would need 2400 Hours of study to Become a Top 10% Chess player (expert-level of mastery).
My 4 classes are:
- Puzzle Rush Survival. About 1 hour a day with several reps of the missed problems.
- Classical Chess. Lichess 30+5 with rating filter to -50/+200 with review on Chess.com after each game. 4 Games a day if not longer than 2 hours.
- ICCF “Centaur” Correspondence Chess. Working on my ICCF Games almost daily.
- Blindfold Chess. 10-15 minutes a day or more.
- Daily annotated OTB Game vs Mom. Also, a nice family activity!!
The time I spend reading about Chess (Book Collection) and writing about Chess (Chess Business / ChessIsWar.com) is not counted as deliberate practice.
MY RESULTS (184 Days later)
Time and Financial Investment
- 747 Hours if you don’t include Chess reading, videos, and mental Chess drills.
- 800.55 CAD in books, membership, and ICCF Tournament fees. Mostly books, see below.
- 747 Hours/184 Days = 4 Hours a Day (Time spent reading, watching videos, thinking, mental drills, writing about Chess not included)
- 800.55 CAD/184 Days = $4.35 CAD a Day. No relevant since I was buying a lot of books in the early months.
- 19 Chess Books. Total Cost: 581.18 CAD. Average cost per book: 30.59 CAD per book. Costly.
CLASSICAL CHESS
- My long-term goal: 2000 Lichess Classical rating
Lichess Classical Rating: 1255 (-7); Highest rating: 1295; Percentile: 21.9%; Rank: 12,919; Total Games: 370.
With a less than stellar win-loss record, I’m currently on a losing slump. My excuse: I insist on facing stronger opposition to grow as a player.
ICCF (Correspondence Chess)
- My long-term goal: 2000 (75) and/or a Title
ICCF# 91096 My new rating is 2081 (186) on ICCF. The 186 number is the RD (Rating Deviation). We all begin with a default entry level rating 1800 (250 RD). The lesser the RD number is, the more reliable and established your rating is. An RD of around 75 or lower indicates that a player’s rating is reliable and trustworthy.
My greatest claim to fame is that I’ve scored two draw against Titled players, two CCE (Correspondence Chess Experts).
PUZZLE RUSH SURVIVAL
- My long-term goal: Puzzle Rush Survival: ≥ 50
New Record: 28. Highest Solved: 1603. Longest Streak: 25. Achieved on Wednesday, October 29, 2025.
I haven’t surpassed this record yet.
But I can say without a shadow of a doubt that Puzzle Rush Survival was and still is the most useful tool to learn and get better at Chess.
BOOK COLLECTION
I have 19 carefully hand-picked Chess books to cherish.
You need 1000 Books to be considered an official library.
I have hundreds of books of all kind. But as far as Chess books are concerned…
Still 9981 to go. 📖
Now I have to “earn” the books I buy rather than compulsively buying books I won’t read just for the sake of hoarding them.
*I earn my books by beating my Puzzle Rush Survival top score, winning 4 Classical games (4 pts/4) in one session, and reaching a new grade in the rating ladder.
BLINDFOLD CHESS
I can go as far as 19th move on https://dontmoveuntilyousee.it/blindfold-trainer/ on a good day on easy mode. But it’s just straight opening Chess. Then after my easily predictable opening stuff, I got lost and can’t do anything.
I’m in the top players (#4) on the Chess.com Blindfold variant.
Not meaningful, since there is very few regular Blindfold Chess players, unfortunately. Nonetheless, it’s fun to see my name among a bunch of players with 1500-2000 Rapid rating and 40-50 Puzzle Rush Survival score.
On the flip side, I have an abysmal 100 Rapid rating on my Chess.com authorized Blindfold account. The noobs I’m facing see everything while I’m seeing an empty board.
CHESS BUSINESS
Not surprizingly, I haven’t made any Money yet off ChessIsWar.com. No donation too.
Starting a new website from ground zero is not an easy feat.
- 128 Posts (memes) published
- 16 Pages published
- 719 sessions in the last 30 Days | 552 (74.7%) direct and 120 (16.24%) from organic search, most likely Google.
- Nothing on social media. My house is here!
In all honesty, I prefer to dedicate my time to more lucrative opportunities, Print-On-Demand.
For full transparency:
- https://www.chess.com/member/pygod
- https://lichess.org/@/ThePYGOD
- https://www.iccf.com/player?id=91096
- https://www.chess.com/member/BlindfoldPYGOD
I’m I still obsessed with Chess? 🏴
I don’t think I’m obsessed with Chess. For sure, I was at the beginning.
I think it’s due to the fact that I seem to be always struggling have a Puzzle Rush session with a score of at least 20. Struggle to win my games… Nothing is fast and easy. I would love to squash hapless noobs daily but it isn’t the way to grow as a Chess player.
I’m not obsessed with Chess anymore because I hate losing so much!
My problem is that I love to win as much as I hate to lose. Just I fn’ hate to score below 20 in my daily Puzzle Rush Survival session. I’ve got to remember that’s for only six months than I’m into it. I’ve got to learn, study, and practice. Learn to lose and learn from my losses.
I see Chess as a mental workout. Extremely useful when you grow old, I’m 50. Just like any physical workout, I do my daily 3 hours session then it’s over no matter what. No burn out risk, no endless tilting, just Discipline. Nothing less.
Chess is fascinating.
I’m also highly attracted by its “smart/genius aura”. You will find the GOAT Chess players (Magnus Carlsen, Bobby Fischer, Garry Kasparov, Judit Polgar) among all those speculative Highest IQ Lists next to Albert Einstein and Stephen Hawking.
Things to work on.
1. SLOW DOWN
SLOWER in my Games
Sit on your hands.
SLOWER in my Puzzles
There is no Rush in Puzzle Rush.
Currently my biggest weakness and the “easiest” to fix.
Stop being fast and impulsive and play slooower.
Also, I would like to play longer time control. To do so, I must use about 80% of my current 30-5 time control. Which, in most case, I don’t.
2. Going to Bed Earlier
I’m a night owl by nature and by choice. I like to start my Chess training session late in the evening, after watching pro wrestling, when the house is quiet and there is little chance that I get interrupted. Then after my 3 hours training session, I like to close the computer and read a physical Chess book for up to one hour before going to bed. The “problem” is that getting up past 11 AM is a little late. Going to bed before 3 AM would be good.
3. Get “Obsessed” with one aspect of The Game
Right now, my Chess is more like a regimented training. Just like an athlete. I would like to get passionated about one of its aspect. Which could help me grow my game further and faster. Currently, I think Blindfold Chess has a good chance to fill that void.
To conclude, these first six months have been a very interesting experiment. And I can smell that the next six months will be even better!
PYGOD, Chess Scholar
Support the Journey
- CHESS MERCH
- Chess.com Unlimited Membership
- GM-DESIGNED TRAINING COURSE
- Improve your Chess (Blitz, Rapid, and Classical)
- Chess Books
- Support with a Donation