Blackmar-Diemer Gambit — Draw

Thursday, October 1, 2026 · vs Borz_Ali · View game on lichess ↗

Three of your worst moments — knight to c6, bishop to d6, rook takes on h3 — were all played in under ten seconds and all looked 'natural' but weren't. Build in a habit of pausing an extra few seconds on moves that feel automatic, especially captures, to check what the opponent gets to do next.

• ›Here you play knight to c6 when the engine just wanted the simple pawn to c6, which keeps your center locked and your bishop on f5 properly supported. The knight move loosens everything instead and the eval swings four full points against you in seven seconds flat — this is a move that needed one more beat of thought.
• ›White had just handed you a gift by blundering with castles the move before, and the engine wanted you to press immediately with pawn to h5, ripping open the kingside. Instead bishop to d6 is just quiet development, way too slow for the moment, and it hands the advantage right back.
• ›This is the big swing — rook takes on h3 looks like a crushing shot but knight to e5 was the actual move, and this one costs six and a half points of eval in just seven seconds. You got lucky though, because white immediately blunders right back with queen takes e6 check the very next move, so the chaos cancels out.
• ›This was your lowest point on the clock, but with over five minutes left it wasn't really a time scramble — queen to g5 in four seconds just isn't as good as queen to e2, which keeps things tidy. It's a small slip, but it's part of why a game that should've been settled stayed messy all the way to the final draw.