Perpetual Chess Linkfest #171, June 19, 2026

Kevin Scull concluded a period of doing 100 chess puzzles per day for 100 days. “Writing this a few weeks after the challenge, I’m happy to have done it. However, there were many moments during the challenge that it felt like a mistake. I wouldn’t do it again or recommend it.” (Chess Journeys)

GM Noël Studer writes about the joys of succeeding at difficult tasks. “That’s the quiet frustration behind so many adult improvers wanting to get better: not the rating points themselves, but the wish to actually enjoy the beauty of the game instead of constantly tripping over their own mistakes.” (Next Level Chess)

Why do many adults struggle to improve? IM Junta Ikeda says they aren’t focusing enough on feedback from their games. “What is my last serious game trying to tell me?” (Infinite Chess)

FM Dennis Monokroussos catches you up on the Uzbek Cup. “It has been an amazing few months for the players around Sindarov. First and foremost, there was his smashing win in the Candidates. Then his girlfriend, Kazakh GM Bibisara Assaubeyava, won the women’s event at Norway Chess. Now, to complete the trifecta, his main second from the Candidates, Madaminov, has won this prestigious tournament.” (The Chess Mind)

GM D Gukesh talked about his slump and the stress of life as the World Champion. “Right now, its a challenge to enjoy chess.” (Susan Ninan for the Hindustan Times)

Is AI killing writing? Jen Shahade writes about the parallels between AI in chess and writing books (including a knock off of hers.) (See the Sideways Move)

As the world is captivated by the World Cup (soccer/football, not chess), Sheldon of Osaka composes a soccer lineup of chess legends based on their chess styles. Personally, I think Fischer should be in the mid-field with Kasparov as a striker, rather than vice-versa.) (Chess.com Blog)

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GM Noel Studer-

GM Studer has published two popular courses- one with the goal of getting you to 1200, and the second designing a study

Check out Noël’s updated course on studying chess the right way here (https://courses.nextlevelchess.blog/courses/simplified-chess-improvement-system?ref=bc4be0)

Chessiverse:

If you have not already, be sure to check out IM John Bartholomew’s new site, Chessiverse. It offers over 600 human like bots to spar and practice openings against, and is rolling out more features and courses, including IM John Bartholomew’s Comprehensive Scandinavian. Playing is free, but you can use the code “Perpetual30” to save 30% on premium courses and subscriptions.