# Week 107: stuck at 1200 elo again, three games and three different mistakes

> Week 107: three games, three losses, 1228 → 1204, my lowest rating since October 2025. What being stuck at 1200 looks like, one mistake per game.

- URL: https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/journey/week-2026-w09/
- Updated: 2026-10-22
- Author: Ignacio Soler

Three games in three days, February 23 to 25, 2026, and three losses. My rating went from **1228 to
1204** (−24), the lowest it had been since October 27, 2025, and 181 points below my peak of 1385. I
think "stuck at 1200 elo" describes it exactly: four weeks after October 27 I had climbed from 1204 to
my peak, and now I was back where that climb started. The engine review is useful precisely because
it doesn't care about that. It shows three games and three separate mistakes, each one small enough
to fix.

## The week in numbers

| | |
|---|---|
| Games | 3 |
| Wins / losses / draws | 0 / 3 / 0 |
| Rating | 1228 → 1204 (−24) |
| Average accuracy | 75.2 % |
| Blunders | 11 |
| Openings | Modern Defense with 1 e4 (1), Queen's Pawn Zukertort Chigorin (1), Pirc Geller System (1) |

Accuracy of 71.6 %, 74.8 % and 79.1 % — not disasters. Eight of the
eleven blunders came in the middlegame. Two games ended in checkmate against me, and in all three the
engine had me better at some point: −1.25 in the first, +2.59 in the second and −6.08, completely
winning, in the third.

## Mistake one: a knight too far forward (game 1986)

Monday, Black against **Shtondik0007 (1225)** in a Modern Defense. White had pushed a pawn to f5,
attacking my pawn on g6.

> **Move 12: White's pawn on f5 presses against my g6 pawn**
> Position (FEN): `r1bq1rk1/pp2ppbp/2np2p1/2p2P2/4P3/P1NP3P/BPP3P1/R1BQ1RK1 b - - 0 12`
> Played: Nd4 — Nd4 — knight jumps to the centre
> Better: e6 — e6 — pawn from e7 to e6, meeting the f5 pawn

12...Nd4 puts the knight on a beautiful square, but the engine shows White's reply 13.Nd5 and then
14.f6, a pawn that attacks my bishop on g7 (+2.18). With 12...e6 I challenge the f5 pawn directly and
the game is only slightly better for White (+0.53). Four moves later I made it worse: 16...Bxb2 took a
pawn with my dark-squared bishop and attacked the rook on a1, but the engine rated it +6.44, "white is
winning". It cost me two moves (17.Rb1 Bg7, back where the bishop started), and White used them:
18.Qh5, 19.Ng5 and 20.Qxh7 mate
([game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165108527766)).

## Mistake two: recapturing with the wrong pawn (game 1987)

Tuesday, White against **ajayanaji (1213)**. On move 19 I could take Black's pawn on b4 with either
the a-pawn or the c-pawn.

> **Move 19: two pawns can take on b4, and I have no b-pawn of my own**
> Position (FEN): `1r1r1k2/5ppp/3ppn2/3p1b2/1p1P4/P1P1PN2/4BPPP/R4RK1 w - - 0 19`
> Played: axb4 — axb4 — the a-pawn takes on b4
> Better: cxb4 — cxb4 — the c-pawn takes on b4

Both moves are described the same way: "pawn takes the pawn (b4)". The engine's numbers are not the
same at all: 19.cxb4 +2.07 (clearly better for White), 19.axb4 +0.44 (about equal). After axb4 my
pawn on c3 stands alone, and the engine's first reply, 19...Ne4, attacks it — it has no defender.
After cxb4 my pawn on a3 protects the one on b4. I stayed better for a long time anyway (+2.49 on
move 35), then two knight moves, 35.Ne7+ and 36.Nc6, turned it around, and Black mated me on move 40
([game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165153220658)).

## Mistake three: not cashing in (game 1988)

Wednesday, Black against **Abomalek23 (1217)** in a Pirc. My knight had already taken a pawn on g2
earlier and I was completely winning (−6.08).

> **Move 23: I'm winning; White's pawn on c2 and queen on d1 are close together**
> Position (FEN): `5r1k/2p2p1p/2qp2pb/4p3/1p1nP1B1/3P3P/1PP2PR1/3QBK2 b - - 0 23`
> Played: d5 — d5 — pawn from d6 to d5
> Better: Qxc2 — Qxc2 — queen takes a pawn and offers the queen trade

23...Qxc2 takes a pawn, attacks White's queen on d1 and the pawn on b2, and the engine's line trades
queens into an endgame where I stay winning (−5.91). I played 23...d5 instead, and the engine's first
answer is 24.Bxb4, White's bishop taking my b4 pawn (−1.72). The game slowly turned, and
two blunders on moves 38 and 39 (+7.34 after 39...c6) finished it; it was abandoned on move 40
([game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165199214362)).

## The lesson of the week

Being stuck at 1200 elo, at least for me, isn't about knowing too little. All three mistakes are
ideas I know: keep the fianchetto bishop near the king, recapture towards the pawns that can protect
each other, and when completely winning, trade queens and take the free pawn. What I lack is the
habit of stopping for ten seconds at the moment the game is good for me.

## All games this week

| Game # | Date | Colour | Opponent (rating) | Result | Opening | Accuracy | Link |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1986 | 2026-02-23 | Black | Shtondik0007 (1225) | Loss | Modern Defense with 1 e4 | 71.6 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165108527766) |
| 1987 | 2026-02-24 | White | ajayanaji (1213) | Loss | Queen's Pawn, Zukertort Chigorin | 74.8 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165153220658) |
| 1988 | 2026-02-25 | Black | Abomalek23 (1217) | Loss | Pirc, Geller System | 79.1 | [game](https://www.chess.com/game/live/165199214362) |

Previous: [week 106](/journey/week-2026-w08/) · Next: [week 108](/journey/week-2026-w10/) ·
[The journey so far](/journey/) · [Get your own games reviewed like this](/features/ai-chess-analysis/)

## FAQ

### Why am I stuck at 1200 elo?

In my case the losses weren't from bad openings. In all three games this week I had a good position at some point (−1.25, +2.59 and −6.08 in the engine's numbers) and gave it back with a single move.

### How far did my rating drop from the peak?

From 1385 on November 23, 2025 to 1204 on February 25, 2026: 181 points. The last time I had been at 1204 was October 27, 2025.

### Which pawn should recapture?

The one that keeps your pawns together. In game 1987 both 19.axb4 and 19.cxb4 take on b4, but cxb4 kept me clearly better (+2.07) and axb4 left my c3 pawn alone (+0.44).

## Related

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- [Week 106 (Feb 2026): when to castle queenside (not like this)](https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/journey/week-2026-w08.md)
- [Week 108 (Mar 2026): my queen could have been trapped, twice](https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/journey/week-2026-w10.md)
- [How many free game reviews on Chess.com? (2026 limits)](https://thechesscoach.netlify.app/answers/how-many-free-game-reviews-chess-com.md)