Jesse Kraai

Chess player and coach, post-academic, dad - helping out with chessdojo

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

I trusted the @chessdojo training program and the hard work paid off. Clear second in a field of Legends. Fifth GM norm 😀It's possible to compete against players far more talented than yourself!♟️ Many thx to the @STLChessClub for an amazing event. Some of my fav images 👇

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

@chessable is running a sale on Dojo Training Program courses👉An aggressive repertoire for white according to the dojo🦖Mastering Time in Chess⏰And It's about Time, a beginner's guide👉https://t.co/qzM5iZylUp

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Another great action tournament from @CharmCityChess ♟️♟️♟️UncGM scored 5-0 with some very close games. Sam went 4-1 in her section and got second place. She's been using the @chessdojo Game and Profile Review to keep her training on track!

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Maryland State Champ 🏆 ahead of two gms, fours IMs and a cruise ship 🚢 full of little kids

[Sam♟ @ineedacortadito]

Finished 3/5 and didn’t get the result I wanted. At least I got to play with some friends ♟️🥹

[Kostya Kavutskiy @hellokostya]

Very excited to launch live classes from Dojo starting in January! Doing game & profile review plus group classes!! 🥋 w/ @JesseKraai @DPruess

[ChessDojo @chessdojo]

Chess Dojo Launches Live Group Classes!!♟️ Join before Dec 2nd and get 25% OFF with code “BLACKFRIDAY” 🙌🏼

We are starting 3 new live classes on Jan 1st, 2026:

1. Endgame Fundamentals with GM Jesse Kraai (0-1200)
2. Calculation with IM Kostya Kavutskiy (1000-1400)
3. The Najdorf with IM David Pruess (two sections 1400-1800, 1800+)

Find all the info here: https://t.co/5Hsm6VVakj

& Sign-up here! https://t.co/1SP7XHp6wE

[Stephen Sparks @sjwsparks]

One @chessdojo's finest podcasts. Listen even if you think you've heard/read enough about Rensch. Offers insights into wider cultural politics of 'late capitalist' USA, as much as it does chess. Thank you @hellokostya @DPruess @JesseKraai https://t.co/9PfBhsKB9c

[ChessDojo @chessdojo]

#DojoTraining - Graduate of the Day #288

Jared Hall🎓 800-900 ⤴️ 900-1000
https://t.co/7yVRGMPkug

It's been almost a year since I graduated. My initial rapid improvement at the Dojo took me to a https://t.co/d71TPiXOW9 rapid rating that was well beyond my actual playing skill. I hit a wall at 1000, and then I backtracked substantially, dropping down two cohorts. I also started playing OTB tournaments regularly, and I found that my opponents over the board were much more resilient and focused than what I was encountering online. Now, I'm looking at my OTB performance as the true test of my playing ability and online games are more like sparring and training. I had a huge amount of help breaking through my 10 month “plateau.” BlindBandit patiently and selflessly coached me through the worst of it while many other people in the dojo commiserate, commented, sparred, cajoled, bantered, wondered, and jeered with me through the ups and downs. Aside from BlindBandit, shoutout to Fiddler, MNorris, SeniorMoments, CrossOnline, Fouracle, CatInABox, RealRaptor, Scuba, CrossOnline, NoseKNowsAll, and many others. These guys all did the real work and I was basically along for the ride. Thanks to these guys, I had a wonderful experience at my first FIDE rated classical tournament in Strasbourg, France this July, where I somehow walked away with a provisional FIDE rating of 1714. In this next phase, I plan to be more consistent with my work on tactics. If I’m not doing tactics every day, what’s the point? I also need to be more consistent with annotation. I’m probably only annotating one out of 10 games, but I’ve been consistently playing 5 - 10 classical games a week. At minimum, I should keep up with my OTB games (currently, 2 - 6 a week).

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Hikaru knew about the rule change! In March 2024 Fide, concerned about deflation, made it so that anything above a 400 point difference is treated as a 400 point diff. So Hikaru beating a 2400 is the same amount of points as beating a 1400! https://t.co/uTsADuesq7

[Adadwhoplayschess @Dadchess]

@JesseKraai @hellokostya @DPruess
Thanks for making the dojo such a great program and community! I have gained almost 200 rating points since joining and so far this year my OTB performance rating is another 200 elo higher still.

U1600 trophy all thanks to the Dojo!

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Always fun to talk to @Bennyficial1 ♟️♟️♟️ https://t.co/Wpdydxq9uk

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

@anishgiri @chessdojo Gukesh did much better with his time this game 🦖 With 10 seconds delay it's gonna end in a mess! ☠️

[ChessDojo @chessdojo]

1) Weekly goals + training algo 🗓️

You can now set goals on a weekly basis, to schedule & track your training 📊

Your tasks will get picked by the new Dojo training algo & your heatmap will light up 🎄

Check out @JesseKraai's video on it here: https://t.co/w2hOp87G7H

[Michael Aigner @fpawn]

Prayers for Uncle Yermo! Two-time US champ GM Alex Yermolinsky is hospitalized in Turkey after a quadruple bypass. Check out the following fundraiser co-organized by Grandmasters Shabalov and Kaidanov for more information. Your support is also appreciated. https://t.co/4TqwXJA2oi

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

@Qxf21 @chessdojo we only counted longer serious games

[ChessDojo @chessdojo]

@JesseKraai wants you to know about the art of concentration in our new video on deep work in chess, based in part on Cal Newport's book,"Deep Work"!

Focused practice and deep work can change your game! Link below 👇

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Time to do what? ⏲️Time to go get her some flowers 🌹🌹🌹😅More sage advice 👇 https://t.co/CCxpud4fi1 @chessable @chessdojo

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

@Epitaxi @chessdojo thx, Gustaf, this is great! I imagine the boost working its way up the ladder like a wave. And that this wave's first year was primarily touching 1800-2100. Could your program look at the curve of just that rating range?

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

Does anyone have a good data source on how the Fide rating boost has effected the landscape? We are going to do a DojoTalks on the one year anniversary (Mar 1st) @chessdojo

[Jesse Kraai @JesseKraai]

@KennethRegan15 @chessdojo thank you so much!