From 150 to 200 - chess improvement for older players

I have not played a serious game of chess for over four years. I used to play in the Merseyside Chess League and the Wirral Chess League, but have not done so for years.

I estimate my current ECF (English Chess Federation) chess grading to be about 150.

The aim of this blog is to record the attempt of a senior player, aged 55, to move his chess grading from 150 to 200.

Can improvement in chess on that scale be possible for an amateur like me?

There is only one way to find out and that is to attempt the feat.  One problem with older players is that they tire quickly. Playing through tiredness is a recipe to blunder away points.

My philosophy is that something is only learned if it goes into long term memory. So I have downloaded 10,600 chess puzzles and will memorize them.  I believe it was Teichmann who said that chess is 99% tactics. If I memorize 10,600 chess combinations, that should go a way towards improving my chess strength.

My second aim will be to build an opening repertoire. My openings were always dodgy, so I need to work on them.

My third aim will be to analyse and memorize games in my chosen opening repertoire.

So can an amateur improve his chess rating by 50 points on the British scale, corresponding to 400 points on the FIDE scale in a few years?

We will have to wait and see, and this blog will record my attempts at improving my mastery of chess, while only being an amateur.