# How to avoid blundering in chess: what 91 blunders in one week taught me

> Week 22: 975 → 956 in 29 rapid games (11 wins, 17 losses, 1 draw), 91 blunders and a stalemate from mate in 3. What I'd do to avoid them.

- URL: https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/journey/week-2024-w23/
- Updated: 2026-10-22
- Author: Ignacio Soler

June 3 to June 8, 2024 was my busiest week so far in this stretch: **29 rapid games**, 11 wins, 17 losses
and 1 draw, and the rating went from 975 to 956. The number that defines it, though, is **91**. That is
how many blunders Stockfish found in my moves, a bit over three per game. This page is my attempt to
learn how to avoid blundering in chess from my own worst week of blundering, starting with the most
painful draw I've had: a stalemate with a queen up.

## The week in numbers

| | |
|---|---|
| Games | 29 (24 at 15 min + 10 s, 5 at 10 min) |
| Wins / losses / draws | 11 / 17 / 1 |
| Rating | 975 → 956 (−19) |
| Average accuracy | 76.4 % |
| Blunders (Stockfish) | 91 (my opponents: 81) |
| Most played openings | Horwitz Defense (3), Indian Game (3), Zukertort Chigorin (3), Queen's Pawn (3), Accelerated London (3) |

My opponents were on average rated 996, so this was not a week of strong opposition. With White I went
6–9, with Black 5–8–1. Monday, June 3 alone was ten games (4 wins, 5 losses, 1 draw). Of my 134 mistakes
and blunders, 75 came in the middlegame, 31 in the opening and 28 in the endgame, my worst endgame count
in weeks. And there were nine games (#495, #496, #498, #499, #502, #505, #506, #509 and #513) where I had
at least an 80 % chance of winning and didn't win.

Two of those deserve a sentence each. In #513 against 90stx I was +8.71 at move 44 and played 44.Qf4,
attacking a rook; the queen could simply be taken, and two moves later another blunder turned it into a
lost position. And in #495 against Rugbyyyy92 I reached a queen against a bare king. Stockfish saw mate
in three, starting with 68...Qb4. I played 68...Kc6 instead, and White's king on a6 had no legal move
while not being in check. That is stalemate, and stalemate is a draw.

## Three blunders, three kinds

### The double attack I didn't look for

The same game #495, much earlier. I was Black in the Center Game and already winning, -6.31, with my
bishop on c5 aimed at f2.

> **Move 8: my queen can hit two undefended targets at once**
> Position (FEN): `r2qk1nr/p1pp1ppp/1pb5/2b5/4P3/1P1Q4/P1P2PPP/RNB1K1NR b KQkq - 0 8`
> Played: d5 — Pawn from d7 to d5
> Better: Qf6 — Queen from d8 to f6, attacking the rook on a1 and the pawn on f2, neither defended

8...d5 opens the centre and isn't terrible: the evaluation stayed clearly in my favour at -2.02. But the
engine's 8...Qf6 would have kept the whole advantage. From f6 the queen attacks the rook on a1
along the long diagonal and the f2 pawn next to White's king, and nothing defends either. That's a double
attack: one move, two threats, and the opponent can only answer one. I didn't look for it because I
didn't ask what my queen could attack. The game ended in that stalemate, 60 moves later
([game on Chess.com](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107574743758)).

### The mate threat with a hole in it

Game #496, White against StrawHat_Mike47 (1004), a 10-minute game. I was clearly better, +2.18.

> **Move 13: my queen on g4 is already eyeing g7**
> Position (FEN): `r1bq1rk1/pp1n1ppp/2p1p3/2P5/1P1PpBQ1/P3P3/5PPP/R3KB1R w KQ - 3 13`
> Played: Bh6 — Bishop from f4 to h6, threatening mate on g7 and attacking the rook on f8 behind the pawn
> Better: Bd6 — Bishop from f4 to d6, attacking the rook on f8

13.Bh6 looks wonderful. It threatens Qxg7 checkmate, and it also attacks the g7 pawn with the rook on f8
behind it. The problem is that Black has one quiet defence: 13...Qf6 covers g7 and attacks my bishop on
h6, which has no defender. After that, Stockfish rates the game about equal (+2.18 became +0.14). The
calmer 13.Bd6 attacks the rook on f8 and keeps my edge. A threat of mate is only as good as the
opponent's worst defence; I didn't check their best one
([game on Chess.com](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107575225998)).

### Grabbing a pawn while a knight hangs

Game #497, Black against marivet88 (997), a 15+10 game. White was a little better, +0.93, and my knight
on h5 was attacked by the bishop on e2 along the open diagonal.

> **Move 13: White's bishop on e2 is looking at my knight on h5**
> Position (FEN): `rn1q1rk1/pp3pp1/2pbp2p/3p1bPn/3P1P1P/2N1P3/PPPBB2R/R2QK1N1 b Q - 0 13`
> Played: Qb6 — Queen from d8 to b6, attacking the pawn on b2
> Better: Ng3 — Knight from h5 to g3, attacking the bishop on e2

13...Qb6 goes after the b2 pawn, which has no defender. Meanwhile White just takes my knight: 14.Bxh5,
and the evaluation jumps from +0.93 to +6.46. Stockfish's 13...Ng3 saves the knight and attacks the
bishop that was attacking it. This kind of blunder is the easiest one to prevent: I was
counting my opponent's loose pawns and forgot to count my own loose pieces
([game on Chess.com](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111157259413)).

## The lesson of the week

Every blunder above comes from looking at only one side of the board. In #497 I saw what I could take,
not what I had left hanging. In #496 I saw my threat, not their defence. In #495 I didn't look for my
queen's attacks at all, and 60 moves later I didn't check whether my king move left the opponent any
legal moves. So my practical rule for how to avoid blundering in chess is a two-part blunder check before
every move: **what is attacked right now, on both sides?** And **after my move, what is their best
answer?** It costs a few seconds. This week, with 91 blunders, I clearly wasn't spending them.

## All games this week

| Game # | Date | Colour | Opponent (rating) | Result | Opening | Accuracy | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 494 | Jun 3 | White | Mick210869 (959) | Win | Queens Pawn Opening Horwitz Defense | 96.9 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107574674676) |
| 495 | Jun 3 | Black | Rugbyyyy92 (963) | Draw | Center Game Accepted Paulsen Attack | 69.0 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107574743758) |
| 496 | Jun 3 | White | StrawHat_Mike47 (1004) | Loss | Indian Game | 65.4 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107575225998) |
| 497 | Jun 3 | Black | marivet88 (997) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Chigorin Variation | 80.1 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111157259413) |
| 498 | Jun 3 | White | Victorlutte (1002) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Horwitz Defense | 67.2 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111161479099) |
| 499 | Jun 3 | Black | Bobthebuilder222333 (993) | Loss | Giuoco Piano Game | 59.2 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111163335811) |
| 500 | Jun 3 | White | 0yyyzu (1015) | Win | Indian Game | 93.4 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111182476831) |
| 501 | Jun 3 | White | alonsomorris (987) | Win | Queens Pawn Opening Zukertort Chigorin Variation | 80.0 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111183705271) |
| 502 | Jun 3 | Black | Paul197719 (1063) | Loss | Scotch Game Goring Double Pawn Sacrifice Variation | 63.2 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111187856509) |
| 503 | Jun 3 | Black | Nicololucidi97 (926) | Win | Vienna Game Max Lange Defense | 69.3 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111190301801) |
| 504 | Jun 4 | White | anishpilot (998) | Loss | Indian Game | 76.8 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111225678463) |
| 505 | Jun 4 | Black | the_mask0007 (955) | Loss | Scotch Game Scotch Gambit Haxo Sarratt Variation | 60.5 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111228060781) |
| 506 | Jun 4 | Black | ConfusedMatrix (1022) | Loss | Giuoco Piano Game | 51.0 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111250918813) |
| 507 | Jun 4 | White | thiago07dantas (1010) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Zukertort Chigorin Variation | 77.9 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111258099831) |
| 508 | Jun 5 | White | ACOL42 (1008) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening | 92.8 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111316833493) |
| 509 | Jun 5 | Black | kathmandu15 (938) | Loss | Van t Kruijs Opening | 67.0 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107606515244) |
| 510 | Jun 5 | White | majid443 (1041) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening | 96.4 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111337905631) |
| 511 | Jun 5 | Black | Ras-stafari (925) | Win | Queens Pawn Opening Pseudo Catalan Variation | 92.9 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111340931643) |
| 512 | Jun 5 | White | Ras-stafari (917) | Win | London System | 73.8 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111342042299) |
| 513 | Jun 6 | White | 90stx (1035) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Horwitz Defense | 71.9 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111403823685) |
| 514 | Jun 6 | White | Avazbek1999 (1093) | Win | London System | 72.7 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111415317503) |
| 515 | Jun 6 | Black | oceano929 (1087) | Loss | Grob Opening | 70.4 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111451844793) |
| 516 | Jun 7 | Black | Edo198426 (1011) | Win | Kings Fianchetto Opening | 80.5 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111525757447) |
| 517 | Jun 7 | Black | SulemanShani02 (972) | Win | Unclassified | — | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111529974287) |
| 518 | Jun 7 | White | mehdismh (987) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Accelerated London System | 81.2 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111529976801) |
| 519 | Jun 7 | Black | manumanu321 (1082) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Accelerated London System | 79.8 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111536545867) |
| 520 | Jun 8 | White | Sagar_Makhija_too (934) | Win | Queens Pawn Opening Accelerated London System | 95.7 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111575535765) |
| 521 | Jun 8 | White | mohamedAbadr (1030) | Loss | Queens Pawn Opening Zukertort Chigorin Variation | 91.3 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/111582203963) |
| 522 | Jun 8 | Black | kalleb307 (944) | Win | Queens Pawn Opening | 63.2 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/107658041612) |

Previous: [week 21](/journey/week-2024-w22/) · Next: [week 23](/journey/week-2024-w24/) · Hub:
[my chess journey](/journey/) · Have a week like this of your own?
[Review your own games like this](/features/ai-chess-analysis/).

## FAQ

### How do you avoid blundering in chess?

My week points to one check before each move: which of my pieces are attacked right now, and what does my move leave undefended? Many of my 91 blunders were pieces left where they could be taken, like the knight on h5 in game #497.

### How many blunders does a 1000-rated player make per game?

For me, about three. Stockfish counted 91 blunders in my 29 games this week, and 81 in my opponents' moves.

### What is stalemate in chess?

A position where the side to move has no legal move and is not in check. It is a draw. In game #495 I had a queen against a lone king, Stockfish saw mate in 3, and my 68...Kc6 left White's king with no legal move.

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- [Week 23 (Jun 2024): back to 10-minute games and back over 1000](https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/journey/week-2024-w24.md)
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