The Blunder Check: Checks, Captures, Threats Before Every Move

A ten-second routine that catches most game-losing moves before you play them.

Look back at your games and you will usually find the same story: the game was close until one move threw it away. A piece left loose, a mate threat missed, a pawn grab that opened your king. ChessLvl marks these as blunders, and they cost more points than everything else put together. The good news is that they are the easiest thing in chess to fix, because you don't need to know more. You need a habit.

The routine

Before you touch a piece, run three questions, first for your opponent and then for yourself:

1. Checks: which checks can my opponent give after my move? Can any of them win something or lead to mate?
2. Captures: what can my opponent take after my move? Is every piece I own still defended, and defended enough?
3. Threats: what is my opponent threatening right now, and does my move deal with it?

Then ask the same three questions from your side: do I have a check, a capture or a threat that is better than the move I was going to play?

Position: Black to move. The blunder check spots the threat: Qxf7 is checkmate. A natural developing move like Nf6 loses on the spot; g6 or Qe7 stops it.

Why it works

Blunders rarely come from not knowing chess. They come from looking only at your own plan. The routine forces you to look at the board through your opponent's eyes for a few seconds every move, which is exactly when the danger shows up.

How to make it stick

• Do it on every move for a week, even the obvious ones. Obvious moves are where blunders hide.
• Sit on your hands until the check is done. It sounds silly; it works.
• Play at Relaxed rival speed while you build the habit, so you never feel rushed.
• After each game, open the review and look at the moves marked Blunder. Ask which of the three questions would have caught it.

Within a few games your blunders drop, and your ChessLvl score climbs with them, even before you learn a single new opening.

"The mistakes are all there waiting to be made."

— Savielly Tartakower