Is my low blitz game drawing rate at www.chess.com an indicator that I am weak in chess?Is it true that Chess is generally more played by men?Do strong players move their pieces with different relative frequencies than weak players?Is there a standardized chess test that can measure one's chess playing condition?Can a threefold repetition be claimed in a blitz game? If so, how?Books on drawingWhich side has the advantage in an Armageddon tiebreak game?Top player with the lowest drawing rateDrawing rules for time lossDraws by game number in championship matchesCan it be said that draws occur less often between top-level players of equal caliber, rather than machine draws?

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Is my low blitz game drawing rate at www.chess.com an indicator that I am weak in chess?


Is it true that Chess is generally more played by men?Do strong players move their pieces with different relative frequencies than weak players?Is there a standardized chess test that can measure one's chess playing condition?Can a threefold repetition be claimed in a blitz game? If so, how?Books on drawingWhich side has the advantage in an Armageddon tiebreak game?Top player with the lowest drawing rateDrawing rules for time lossDraws by game number in championship matchesCan it be said that draws occur less often between top-level players of equal caliber, rather than machine draws?













2















I have played 630 blitz game at chess.com and only 10.3% of my games are draw; see the diagram.



enter image description here



When I play black, my drawing rate is slightly higher than my drawing rate playing white. This is likely because that psychologically I am more content with a draw when I am playing black.



I understand that usually blitz games have relatively lower drawing rates. But in World Blitz Chess Championship 2009, 26.41% of the games are draws and my blitz drawing rate at chess.com is not even half of this rate.



enter image description here



Here is my question: Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player, or is it due to my playing style, or both? What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)? Here I am not interested in purposefully requesting a draw in a winning position; instead, I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.










share|improve this question
























  • Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

    – thb
    3 hours ago






  • 1





    Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

    – thb
    3 hours ago
















2















I have played 630 blitz game at chess.com and only 10.3% of my games are draw; see the diagram.



enter image description here



When I play black, my drawing rate is slightly higher than my drawing rate playing white. This is likely because that psychologically I am more content with a draw when I am playing black.



I understand that usually blitz games have relatively lower drawing rates. But in World Blitz Chess Championship 2009, 26.41% of the games are draws and my blitz drawing rate at chess.com is not even half of this rate.



enter image description here



Here is my question: Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player, or is it due to my playing style, or both? What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)? Here I am not interested in purposefully requesting a draw in a winning position; instead, I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.










share|improve this question
























  • Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

    – thb
    3 hours ago






  • 1





    Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

    – thb
    3 hours ago














2












2








2








I have played 630 blitz game at chess.com and only 10.3% of my games are draw; see the diagram.



enter image description here



When I play black, my drawing rate is slightly higher than my drawing rate playing white. This is likely because that psychologically I am more content with a draw when I am playing black.



I understand that usually blitz games have relatively lower drawing rates. But in World Blitz Chess Championship 2009, 26.41% of the games are draws and my blitz drawing rate at chess.com is not even half of this rate.



enter image description here



Here is my question: Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player, or is it due to my playing style, or both? What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)? Here I am not interested in purposefully requesting a draw in a winning position; instead, I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.










share|improve this question
















I have played 630 blitz game at chess.com and only 10.3% of my games are draw; see the diagram.



enter image description here



When I play black, my drawing rate is slightly higher than my drawing rate playing white. This is likely because that psychologically I am more content with a draw when I am playing black.



I understand that usually blitz games have relatively lower drawing rates. But in World Blitz Chess Championship 2009, 26.41% of the games are draws and my blitz drawing rate at chess.com is not even half of this rate.



enter image description here



Here is my question: Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player, or is it due to my playing style, or both? What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)? Here I am not interested in purposefully requesting a draw in a winning position; instead, I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.







draw statistics






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edited 8 hours ago







Zuriel

















asked 8 hours ago









ZurielZuriel

677312




677312












  • Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

    – thb
    3 hours ago






  • 1





    Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

    – thb
    3 hours ago


















  • Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

    – thb
    3 hours ago






  • 1





    Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

    – thb
    3 hours ago

















Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

– thb
3 hours ago





Your surmise seems reasonable. Draw rate should be correlated with ability. How tightly correlated? I don't know. This is a question for hard numbers to answer.

– thb
3 hours ago




1




1





Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

– thb
3 hours ago






Dissenting from closing voters, I do not think that this question is primarily opinion based. A good answer would gather and compile data as OP has done. (No good answer may appear, but the question is objective enough. Besides, Chess.SE has always tolerated opinion-based questions to a greater degree than other SE sites do.)

– thb
3 hours ago











6 Answers
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2















Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player




"Relatively" compared to the 2009 World Blitz Championship players? Well, probably, but who isn't?



I think your rating is a much better indicator of your strength than your draw rate. Draw rate can depend on whether you seek a draw or a win in an equal position. It can depend on whether you like to sacrifice material for an attack. It can depend on whether you tend to think a long time, and either find a win or lose on time. It can depend on whether you play people very close to your own rating, or people higher and lower than you.




or is it due to my playing style, or both?




Without seeing your playing style, it's hard to say. You didn't provide any games or link to your account so we can see your games. All we can say is that, in general, your play style can have a large impact.




I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.




Castle on the same side as your opponent to help avoid mutual attacks on the king. Avoid sacrifices. Make and/or accept draw offers in neutral but playable positions. Avoid losing on time, and avoid trying to rush your opponent when he's low on time (sometimes that works, but sometimes it results in you blundering yourself.)






share|improve this answer






























    1














    "Weak in chess" is a rather meaningless statement.



    Chess is somewhat unique in regard to the skill gap between players. For information, a rating difference of 457 points means that the higher-rated player has an approximately 95% probability of winning. Now think about how many "leaps" of 457 points there are between a beginner who only knows the basic rules (which could give an Elo rating of 600 for example), an "average" beginner player who knows some strategy (1000 to 1200), a typical club-level player (1500), a very strong player who's still nowhere near Master level (say 2000), an International Master (2400) and a Super Grandmaster (2700).



    So, without even adressing the issue of draw rates, yes you are indeed a weak player compared to many people. But you're also a practical God compared to others. Therefore, I'll approach your question as being more along the lines of "is there a correlation between rating and draw level" rather than any subjective notion of strength.



    There is indeed some loose correlation between playing strength and draw rate. For example, you can look at the FICS database, which is a database of online games. If we look at games starting with 1.e4 in Blitz time control, then the draw rate increases rather quickly as we change rating category (in order: 7%, 11%, 32%). Keep in mind that the weakest of the three categories is still with a rating of 2000 to 2200. Even if this rating is inflated, it's still well above average. But as you can see, the strongest category also has a draw rating that is somehow higher than that of the World Blitz Championship 2009. This should be enough to show that trying to infer anything at all from these results is somewhat pointless. The fact that one of them concerns online play rather than over-the-board play means that they probably should not be directly compared.



    To conclude, I would not worry about your blitz draw rating of 10.3%. Not only is this probably high for your Elo rating (or so I assume, given you haven't specified your rating), but even if it weren't, the path to getting better wouldn't be based on ideas of attempting to increase your draw rate. Rather, it's the other way around: improving you chess skills in other areas (time management, tactics, reducing blunders, etc.) will mean that you and your opponents will be less likely to give a free win to the opponent, thus increasing draw rates.






    share|improve this answer






























      1














      10% is a high drawing rate for online blitz - I am drawish in classical games and an FM and have 6.6% draw rate on chess.com 3 minutes.
      I would suggest you use your rating as the indicator for playing strength - that is it's only purpose and it is fairly objective.



      I also wouldn't worry about adjectives like "weak" - it's all very relative.
      Chess is fun. Improving is also fun - by all means work hard on your chess just not so that you won't be "weak". I am "weak" to lots of players and I am an FM.






      share|improve this answer








      New contributor




      Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
      Check out our Code of Conduct.



























        0














        I agree with @ATLPoly when he says that draw rates are not the best indicator of your playing strength. Don't try to draw more games as a whole - try to win more! (although of course try to make draws out of lost positions.)



        I'd like to address what the draw percentage means (generally), and why it is often higher at higher levels of play.



        The easiest way to think about this is to think like a computer. When thinking like a computer, you assess it a value based on continued perfect play - on the best possible outlook for both players. In this mindset, the only type of moves that alters the analysis of the position are bad moves. The best moves do not change the analysis, but rather fulfill the analysis's predictions.



        So, the value of the starting position in chess is approximately a draw (chess is somewhat close to being solved, but it's not there yet. It is generally agreed that white has a very small but difficult to measure advantage.)



        Here's the key: With perfect play, the game is a draw. Wins and losses only happen because of mistakes on the part of a player.



        Since mistakes are the only reason that we have wins and losses in chess, it is somewhat expected that the draw rate is higher in higher levels of play, since less mistakes are made there.



        Of course, there are still some mistakes (and thus wins and losses) at the highest levels, and it is still possible to draw at lower levels, (we are human). However, you can see the trend here: Less mistakes on the part of both players contributes to more draws.






        share|improve this answer






























          0














          Lots of factors could affect this:



          • time control (playing with increment should raise the drawing percentage because you are less likely to lose on time)

          • opposition: if you are playing against opponents of similar strength (as at the world championship) you are more likely to draw than if you play against much stronger or much weaker players as you typically do in online chess

          • tournament situation: in a championship there might be situations where players are satisfied with a draw

          • playing style: you can get 50% of the points by drawing each game or by winning half and losing half of the games. Neither is better nor worse

          Based on this, I don't see any connection between drawing ratio and strength.I would not worry about it at all. Me (rated about 2200) has a blitz drawing percentage of only 2% on lichess.






          share|improve this answer






























            0















            What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)?




            This question is a bit ridiculous. You don't want to improve your drawing rate in chess. And it's not even a question of your winning rate, since a 2600 player and a 1200 player both might win 50% of the time, but clearly they're not the same strength.



            You simply want to improve your playing strength, and the best indicator of this happens to be your rating. Another indicator might be a computer analysis of your game to see how many mistakes you made and how serious these mistakes were.



            If you honestly care about something as superficial as your drawing rate, then I would suggest changing your attitude to focus on quality of play and number of mistakes made...



            But to answer your question head on...



            Your drawing rate is 10.3%. Okay. Check the profile of the number one blitz player on Chess.com, Hikaru. His drawing rate is only 9%. That's even lower than yours! See... a high drawing rate doesn't make you a better player. Good moves make you a better player.



            Honestly, this focus on drawing rate is entirely superficial and will distract you from the important aspects of the game, such as your quality of play, mistakes made, etc. I caution you against looking too closely at chess statistics, and trying to make your statistics resemble those of the pros. That takes away your focus from the actual moves of the game. I would focus on the moves instead.






            share|improve this answer
























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              6 Answers
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              2















              Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player




              "Relatively" compared to the 2009 World Blitz Championship players? Well, probably, but who isn't?



              I think your rating is a much better indicator of your strength than your draw rate. Draw rate can depend on whether you seek a draw or a win in an equal position. It can depend on whether you like to sacrifice material for an attack. It can depend on whether you tend to think a long time, and either find a win or lose on time. It can depend on whether you play people very close to your own rating, or people higher and lower than you.




              or is it due to my playing style, or both?




              Without seeing your playing style, it's hard to say. You didn't provide any games or link to your account so we can see your games. All we can say is that, in general, your play style can have a large impact.




              I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.




              Castle on the same side as your opponent to help avoid mutual attacks on the king. Avoid sacrifices. Make and/or accept draw offers in neutral but playable positions. Avoid losing on time, and avoid trying to rush your opponent when he's low on time (sometimes that works, but sometimes it results in you blundering yourself.)






              share|improve this answer



























                2















                Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player




                "Relatively" compared to the 2009 World Blitz Championship players? Well, probably, but who isn't?



                I think your rating is a much better indicator of your strength than your draw rate. Draw rate can depend on whether you seek a draw or a win in an equal position. It can depend on whether you like to sacrifice material for an attack. It can depend on whether you tend to think a long time, and either find a win or lose on time. It can depend on whether you play people very close to your own rating, or people higher and lower than you.




                or is it due to my playing style, or both?




                Without seeing your playing style, it's hard to say. You didn't provide any games or link to your account so we can see your games. All we can say is that, in general, your play style can have a large impact.




                I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.




                Castle on the same side as your opponent to help avoid mutual attacks on the king. Avoid sacrifices. Make and/or accept draw offers in neutral but playable positions. Avoid losing on time, and avoid trying to rush your opponent when he's low on time (sometimes that works, but sometimes it results in you blundering yourself.)






                share|improve this answer

























                  2












                  2








                  2








                  Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player




                  "Relatively" compared to the 2009 World Blitz Championship players? Well, probably, but who isn't?



                  I think your rating is a much better indicator of your strength than your draw rate. Draw rate can depend on whether you seek a draw or a win in an equal position. It can depend on whether you like to sacrifice material for an attack. It can depend on whether you tend to think a long time, and either find a win or lose on time. It can depend on whether you play people very close to your own rating, or people higher and lower than you.




                  or is it due to my playing style, or both?




                  Without seeing your playing style, it's hard to say. You didn't provide any games or link to your account so we can see your games. All we can say is that, in general, your play style can have a large impact.




                  I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.




                  Castle on the same side as your opponent to help avoid mutual attacks on the king. Avoid sacrifices. Make and/or accept draw offers in neutral but playable positions. Avoid losing on time, and avoid trying to rush your opponent when he's low on time (sometimes that works, but sometimes it results in you blundering yourself.)






                  share|improve this answer














                  Is my low blitz drawing rate an indicator that I am a relatively weaker player




                  "Relatively" compared to the 2009 World Blitz Championship players? Well, probably, but who isn't?



                  I think your rating is a much better indicator of your strength than your draw rate. Draw rate can depend on whether you seek a draw or a win in an equal position. It can depend on whether you like to sacrifice material for an attack. It can depend on whether you tend to think a long time, and either find a win or lose on time. It can depend on whether you play people very close to your own rating, or people higher and lower than you.




                  or is it due to my playing style, or both?




                  Without seeing your playing style, it's hard to say. You didn't provide any games or link to your account so we can see your games. All we can say is that, in general, your play style can have a large impact.




                  I would seek advice on how to keep playing naturally while end up with a much higher drawing rate.




                  Castle on the same side as your opponent to help avoid mutual attacks on the king. Avoid sacrifices. Make and/or accept draw offers in neutral but playable positions. Avoid losing on time, and avoid trying to rush your opponent when he's low on time (sometimes that works, but sometimes it results in you blundering yourself.)







                  share|improve this answer












                  share|improve this answer



                  share|improve this answer










                  answered 2 hours ago









                  D MD M

                  4,5831131




                  4,5831131





















                      1














                      "Weak in chess" is a rather meaningless statement.



                      Chess is somewhat unique in regard to the skill gap between players. For information, a rating difference of 457 points means that the higher-rated player has an approximately 95% probability of winning. Now think about how many "leaps" of 457 points there are between a beginner who only knows the basic rules (which could give an Elo rating of 600 for example), an "average" beginner player who knows some strategy (1000 to 1200), a typical club-level player (1500), a very strong player who's still nowhere near Master level (say 2000), an International Master (2400) and a Super Grandmaster (2700).



                      So, without even adressing the issue of draw rates, yes you are indeed a weak player compared to many people. But you're also a practical God compared to others. Therefore, I'll approach your question as being more along the lines of "is there a correlation between rating and draw level" rather than any subjective notion of strength.



                      There is indeed some loose correlation between playing strength and draw rate. For example, you can look at the FICS database, which is a database of online games. If we look at games starting with 1.e4 in Blitz time control, then the draw rate increases rather quickly as we change rating category (in order: 7%, 11%, 32%). Keep in mind that the weakest of the three categories is still with a rating of 2000 to 2200. Even if this rating is inflated, it's still well above average. But as you can see, the strongest category also has a draw rating that is somehow higher than that of the World Blitz Championship 2009. This should be enough to show that trying to infer anything at all from these results is somewhat pointless. The fact that one of them concerns online play rather than over-the-board play means that they probably should not be directly compared.



                      To conclude, I would not worry about your blitz draw rating of 10.3%. Not only is this probably high for your Elo rating (or so I assume, given you haven't specified your rating), but even if it weren't, the path to getting better wouldn't be based on ideas of attempting to increase your draw rate. Rather, it's the other way around: improving you chess skills in other areas (time management, tactics, reducing blunders, etc.) will mean that you and your opponents will be less likely to give a free win to the opponent, thus increasing draw rates.






                      share|improve this answer



























                        1














                        "Weak in chess" is a rather meaningless statement.



                        Chess is somewhat unique in regard to the skill gap between players. For information, a rating difference of 457 points means that the higher-rated player has an approximately 95% probability of winning. Now think about how many "leaps" of 457 points there are between a beginner who only knows the basic rules (which could give an Elo rating of 600 for example), an "average" beginner player who knows some strategy (1000 to 1200), a typical club-level player (1500), a very strong player who's still nowhere near Master level (say 2000), an International Master (2400) and a Super Grandmaster (2700).



                        So, without even adressing the issue of draw rates, yes you are indeed a weak player compared to many people. But you're also a practical God compared to others. Therefore, I'll approach your question as being more along the lines of "is there a correlation between rating and draw level" rather than any subjective notion of strength.



                        There is indeed some loose correlation between playing strength and draw rate. For example, you can look at the FICS database, which is a database of online games. If we look at games starting with 1.e4 in Blitz time control, then the draw rate increases rather quickly as we change rating category (in order: 7%, 11%, 32%). Keep in mind that the weakest of the three categories is still with a rating of 2000 to 2200. Even if this rating is inflated, it's still well above average. But as you can see, the strongest category also has a draw rating that is somehow higher than that of the World Blitz Championship 2009. This should be enough to show that trying to infer anything at all from these results is somewhat pointless. The fact that one of them concerns online play rather than over-the-board play means that they probably should not be directly compared.



                        To conclude, I would not worry about your blitz draw rating of 10.3%. Not only is this probably high for your Elo rating (or so I assume, given you haven't specified your rating), but even if it weren't, the path to getting better wouldn't be based on ideas of attempting to increase your draw rate. Rather, it's the other way around: improving you chess skills in other areas (time management, tactics, reducing blunders, etc.) will mean that you and your opponents will be less likely to give a free win to the opponent, thus increasing draw rates.






                        share|improve this answer

























                          1












                          1








                          1







                          "Weak in chess" is a rather meaningless statement.



                          Chess is somewhat unique in regard to the skill gap between players. For information, a rating difference of 457 points means that the higher-rated player has an approximately 95% probability of winning. Now think about how many "leaps" of 457 points there are between a beginner who only knows the basic rules (which could give an Elo rating of 600 for example), an "average" beginner player who knows some strategy (1000 to 1200), a typical club-level player (1500), a very strong player who's still nowhere near Master level (say 2000), an International Master (2400) and a Super Grandmaster (2700).



                          So, without even adressing the issue of draw rates, yes you are indeed a weak player compared to many people. But you're also a practical God compared to others. Therefore, I'll approach your question as being more along the lines of "is there a correlation between rating and draw level" rather than any subjective notion of strength.



                          There is indeed some loose correlation between playing strength and draw rate. For example, you can look at the FICS database, which is a database of online games. If we look at games starting with 1.e4 in Blitz time control, then the draw rate increases rather quickly as we change rating category (in order: 7%, 11%, 32%). Keep in mind that the weakest of the three categories is still with a rating of 2000 to 2200. Even if this rating is inflated, it's still well above average. But as you can see, the strongest category also has a draw rating that is somehow higher than that of the World Blitz Championship 2009. This should be enough to show that trying to infer anything at all from these results is somewhat pointless. The fact that one of them concerns online play rather than over-the-board play means that they probably should not be directly compared.



                          To conclude, I would not worry about your blitz draw rating of 10.3%. Not only is this probably high for your Elo rating (or so I assume, given you haven't specified your rating), but even if it weren't, the path to getting better wouldn't be based on ideas of attempting to increase your draw rate. Rather, it's the other way around: improving you chess skills in other areas (time management, tactics, reducing blunders, etc.) will mean that you and your opponents will be less likely to give a free win to the opponent, thus increasing draw rates.






                          share|improve this answer













                          "Weak in chess" is a rather meaningless statement.



                          Chess is somewhat unique in regard to the skill gap between players. For information, a rating difference of 457 points means that the higher-rated player has an approximately 95% probability of winning. Now think about how many "leaps" of 457 points there are between a beginner who only knows the basic rules (which could give an Elo rating of 600 for example), an "average" beginner player who knows some strategy (1000 to 1200), a typical club-level player (1500), a very strong player who's still nowhere near Master level (say 2000), an International Master (2400) and a Super Grandmaster (2700).



                          So, without even adressing the issue of draw rates, yes you are indeed a weak player compared to many people. But you're also a practical God compared to others. Therefore, I'll approach your question as being more along the lines of "is there a correlation between rating and draw level" rather than any subjective notion of strength.



                          There is indeed some loose correlation between playing strength and draw rate. For example, you can look at the FICS database, which is a database of online games. If we look at games starting with 1.e4 in Blitz time control, then the draw rate increases rather quickly as we change rating category (in order: 7%, 11%, 32%). Keep in mind that the weakest of the three categories is still with a rating of 2000 to 2200. Even if this rating is inflated, it's still well above average. But as you can see, the strongest category also has a draw rating that is somehow higher than that of the World Blitz Championship 2009. This should be enough to show that trying to infer anything at all from these results is somewhat pointless. The fact that one of them concerns online play rather than over-the-board play means that they probably should not be directly compared.



                          To conclude, I would not worry about your blitz draw rating of 10.3%. Not only is this probably high for your Elo rating (or so I assume, given you haven't specified your rating), but even if it weren't, the path to getting better wouldn't be based on ideas of attempting to increase your draw rate. Rather, it's the other way around: improving you chess skills in other areas (time management, tactics, reducing blunders, etc.) will mean that you and your opponents will be less likely to give a free win to the opponent, thus increasing draw rates.







                          share|improve this answer












                          share|improve this answer



                          share|improve this answer










                          answered 6 hours ago









                          ATLPolyATLPoly

                          4007




                          4007





















                              1














                              10% is a high drawing rate for online blitz - I am drawish in classical games and an FM and have 6.6% draw rate on chess.com 3 minutes.
                              I would suggest you use your rating as the indicator for playing strength - that is it's only purpose and it is fairly objective.



                              I also wouldn't worry about adjectives like "weak" - it's all very relative.
                              Chess is fun. Improving is also fun - by all means work hard on your chess just not so that you won't be "weak". I am "weak" to lots of players and I am an FM.






                              share|improve this answer








                              New contributor




                              Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                              Check out our Code of Conduct.
























                                1














                                10% is a high drawing rate for online blitz - I am drawish in classical games and an FM and have 6.6% draw rate on chess.com 3 minutes.
                                I would suggest you use your rating as the indicator for playing strength - that is it's only purpose and it is fairly objective.



                                I also wouldn't worry about adjectives like "weak" - it's all very relative.
                                Chess is fun. Improving is also fun - by all means work hard on your chess just not so that you won't be "weak". I am "weak" to lots of players and I am an FM.






                                share|improve this answer








                                New contributor




                                Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                Check out our Code of Conduct.






















                                  1












                                  1








                                  1







                                  10% is a high drawing rate for online blitz - I am drawish in classical games and an FM and have 6.6% draw rate on chess.com 3 minutes.
                                  I would suggest you use your rating as the indicator for playing strength - that is it's only purpose and it is fairly objective.



                                  I also wouldn't worry about adjectives like "weak" - it's all very relative.
                                  Chess is fun. Improving is also fun - by all means work hard on your chess just not so that you won't be "weak". I am "weak" to lots of players and I am an FM.






                                  share|improve this answer








                                  New contributor




                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.










                                  10% is a high drawing rate for online blitz - I am drawish in classical games and an FM and have 6.6% draw rate on chess.com 3 minutes.
                                  I would suggest you use your rating as the indicator for playing strength - that is it's only purpose and it is fairly objective.



                                  I also wouldn't worry about adjectives like "weak" - it's all very relative.
                                  Chess is fun. Improving is also fun - by all means work hard on your chess just not so that you won't be "weak". I am "weak" to lots of players and I am an FM.







                                  share|improve this answer








                                  New contributor




                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                  share|improve this answer



                                  share|improve this answer






                                  New contributor




                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.









                                  answered 3 hours ago









                                  HamishHamish

                                  314




                                  314




                                  New contributor




                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.





                                  New contributor





                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
                                  Check out our Code of Conduct.






                                  Hamish is a new contributor to this site. Take care in asking for clarification, commenting, and answering.
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                                      0














                                      I agree with @ATLPoly when he says that draw rates are not the best indicator of your playing strength. Don't try to draw more games as a whole - try to win more! (although of course try to make draws out of lost positions.)



                                      I'd like to address what the draw percentage means (generally), and why it is often higher at higher levels of play.



                                      The easiest way to think about this is to think like a computer. When thinking like a computer, you assess it a value based on continued perfect play - on the best possible outlook for both players. In this mindset, the only type of moves that alters the analysis of the position are bad moves. The best moves do not change the analysis, but rather fulfill the analysis's predictions.



                                      So, the value of the starting position in chess is approximately a draw (chess is somewhat close to being solved, but it's not there yet. It is generally agreed that white has a very small but difficult to measure advantage.)



                                      Here's the key: With perfect play, the game is a draw. Wins and losses only happen because of mistakes on the part of a player.



                                      Since mistakes are the only reason that we have wins and losses in chess, it is somewhat expected that the draw rate is higher in higher levels of play, since less mistakes are made there.



                                      Of course, there are still some mistakes (and thus wins and losses) at the highest levels, and it is still possible to draw at lower levels, (we are human). However, you can see the trend here: Less mistakes on the part of both players contributes to more draws.






                                      share|improve this answer



























                                        0














                                        I agree with @ATLPoly when he says that draw rates are not the best indicator of your playing strength. Don't try to draw more games as a whole - try to win more! (although of course try to make draws out of lost positions.)



                                        I'd like to address what the draw percentage means (generally), and why it is often higher at higher levels of play.



                                        The easiest way to think about this is to think like a computer. When thinking like a computer, you assess it a value based on continued perfect play - on the best possible outlook for both players. In this mindset, the only type of moves that alters the analysis of the position are bad moves. The best moves do not change the analysis, but rather fulfill the analysis's predictions.



                                        So, the value of the starting position in chess is approximately a draw (chess is somewhat close to being solved, but it's not there yet. It is generally agreed that white has a very small but difficult to measure advantage.)



                                        Here's the key: With perfect play, the game is a draw. Wins and losses only happen because of mistakes on the part of a player.



                                        Since mistakes are the only reason that we have wins and losses in chess, it is somewhat expected that the draw rate is higher in higher levels of play, since less mistakes are made there.



                                        Of course, there are still some mistakes (and thus wins and losses) at the highest levels, and it is still possible to draw at lower levels, (we are human). However, you can see the trend here: Less mistakes on the part of both players contributes to more draws.






                                        share|improve this answer

























                                          0












                                          0








                                          0







                                          I agree with @ATLPoly when he says that draw rates are not the best indicator of your playing strength. Don't try to draw more games as a whole - try to win more! (although of course try to make draws out of lost positions.)



                                          I'd like to address what the draw percentage means (generally), and why it is often higher at higher levels of play.



                                          The easiest way to think about this is to think like a computer. When thinking like a computer, you assess it a value based on continued perfect play - on the best possible outlook for both players. In this mindset, the only type of moves that alters the analysis of the position are bad moves. The best moves do not change the analysis, but rather fulfill the analysis's predictions.



                                          So, the value of the starting position in chess is approximately a draw (chess is somewhat close to being solved, but it's not there yet. It is generally agreed that white has a very small but difficult to measure advantage.)



                                          Here's the key: With perfect play, the game is a draw. Wins and losses only happen because of mistakes on the part of a player.



                                          Since mistakes are the only reason that we have wins and losses in chess, it is somewhat expected that the draw rate is higher in higher levels of play, since less mistakes are made there.



                                          Of course, there are still some mistakes (and thus wins and losses) at the highest levels, and it is still possible to draw at lower levels, (we are human). However, you can see the trend here: Less mistakes on the part of both players contributes to more draws.






                                          share|improve this answer













                                          I agree with @ATLPoly when he says that draw rates are not the best indicator of your playing strength. Don't try to draw more games as a whole - try to win more! (although of course try to make draws out of lost positions.)



                                          I'd like to address what the draw percentage means (generally), and why it is often higher at higher levels of play.



                                          The easiest way to think about this is to think like a computer. When thinking like a computer, you assess it a value based on continued perfect play - on the best possible outlook for both players. In this mindset, the only type of moves that alters the analysis of the position are bad moves. The best moves do not change the analysis, but rather fulfill the analysis's predictions.



                                          So, the value of the starting position in chess is approximately a draw (chess is somewhat close to being solved, but it's not there yet. It is generally agreed that white has a very small but difficult to measure advantage.)



                                          Here's the key: With perfect play, the game is a draw. Wins and losses only happen because of mistakes on the part of a player.



                                          Since mistakes are the only reason that we have wins and losses in chess, it is somewhat expected that the draw rate is higher in higher levels of play, since less mistakes are made there.



                                          Of course, there are still some mistakes (and thus wins and losses) at the highest levels, and it is still possible to draw at lower levels, (we are human). However, you can see the trend here: Less mistakes on the part of both players contributes to more draws.







                                          share|improve this answer












                                          share|improve this answer



                                          share|improve this answer










                                          answered 5 hours ago









                                          Brandon_JBrandon_J

                                          67616




                                          67616





















                                              0














                                              Lots of factors could affect this:



                                              • time control (playing with increment should raise the drawing percentage because you are less likely to lose on time)

                                              • opposition: if you are playing against opponents of similar strength (as at the world championship) you are more likely to draw than if you play against much stronger or much weaker players as you typically do in online chess

                                              • tournament situation: in a championship there might be situations where players are satisfied with a draw

                                              • playing style: you can get 50% of the points by drawing each game or by winning half and losing half of the games. Neither is better nor worse

                                              Based on this, I don't see any connection between drawing ratio and strength.I would not worry about it at all. Me (rated about 2200) has a blitz drawing percentage of only 2% on lichess.






                                              share|improve this answer



























                                                0














                                                Lots of factors could affect this:



                                                • time control (playing with increment should raise the drawing percentage because you are less likely to lose on time)

                                                • opposition: if you are playing against opponents of similar strength (as at the world championship) you are more likely to draw than if you play against much stronger or much weaker players as you typically do in online chess

                                                • tournament situation: in a championship there might be situations where players are satisfied with a draw

                                                • playing style: you can get 50% of the points by drawing each game or by winning half and losing half of the games. Neither is better nor worse

                                                Based on this, I don't see any connection between drawing ratio and strength.I would not worry about it at all. Me (rated about 2200) has a blitz drawing percentage of only 2% on lichess.






                                                share|improve this answer

























                                                  0












                                                  0








                                                  0







                                                  Lots of factors could affect this:



                                                  • time control (playing with increment should raise the drawing percentage because you are less likely to lose on time)

                                                  • opposition: if you are playing against opponents of similar strength (as at the world championship) you are more likely to draw than if you play against much stronger or much weaker players as you typically do in online chess

                                                  • tournament situation: in a championship there might be situations where players are satisfied with a draw

                                                  • playing style: you can get 50% of the points by drawing each game or by winning half and losing half of the games. Neither is better nor worse

                                                  Based on this, I don't see any connection between drawing ratio and strength.I would not worry about it at all. Me (rated about 2200) has a blitz drawing percentage of only 2% on lichess.






                                                  share|improve this answer













                                                  Lots of factors could affect this:



                                                  • time control (playing with increment should raise the drawing percentage because you are less likely to lose on time)

                                                  • opposition: if you are playing against opponents of similar strength (as at the world championship) you are more likely to draw than if you play against much stronger or much weaker players as you typically do in online chess

                                                  • tournament situation: in a championship there might be situations where players are satisfied with a draw

                                                  • playing style: you can get 50% of the points by drawing each game or by winning half and losing half of the games. Neither is better nor worse

                                                  Based on this, I don't see any connection between drawing ratio and strength.I would not worry about it at all. Me (rated about 2200) has a blitz drawing percentage of only 2% on lichess.







                                                  share|improve this answer












                                                  share|improve this answer



                                                  share|improve this answer










                                                  answered 4 hours ago









                                                  user1583209user1583209

                                                  12.6k21757




                                                  12.6k21757





















                                                      0















                                                      What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)?




                                                      This question is a bit ridiculous. You don't want to improve your drawing rate in chess. And it's not even a question of your winning rate, since a 2600 player and a 1200 player both might win 50% of the time, but clearly they're not the same strength.



                                                      You simply want to improve your playing strength, and the best indicator of this happens to be your rating. Another indicator might be a computer analysis of your game to see how many mistakes you made and how serious these mistakes were.



                                                      If you honestly care about something as superficial as your drawing rate, then I would suggest changing your attitude to focus on quality of play and number of mistakes made...



                                                      But to answer your question head on...



                                                      Your drawing rate is 10.3%. Okay. Check the profile of the number one blitz player on Chess.com, Hikaru. His drawing rate is only 9%. That's even lower than yours! See... a high drawing rate doesn't make you a better player. Good moves make you a better player.



                                                      Honestly, this focus on drawing rate is entirely superficial and will distract you from the important aspects of the game, such as your quality of play, mistakes made, etc. I caution you against looking too closely at chess statistics, and trying to make your statistics resemble those of the pros. That takes away your focus from the actual moves of the game. I would focus on the moves instead.






                                                      share|improve this answer





























                                                        0















                                                        What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)?




                                                        This question is a bit ridiculous. You don't want to improve your drawing rate in chess. And it's not even a question of your winning rate, since a 2600 player and a 1200 player both might win 50% of the time, but clearly they're not the same strength.



                                                        You simply want to improve your playing strength, and the best indicator of this happens to be your rating. Another indicator might be a computer analysis of your game to see how many mistakes you made and how serious these mistakes were.



                                                        If you honestly care about something as superficial as your drawing rate, then I would suggest changing your attitude to focus on quality of play and number of mistakes made...



                                                        But to answer your question head on...



                                                        Your drawing rate is 10.3%. Okay. Check the profile of the number one blitz player on Chess.com, Hikaru. His drawing rate is only 9%. That's even lower than yours! See... a high drawing rate doesn't make you a better player. Good moves make you a better player.



                                                        Honestly, this focus on drawing rate is entirely superficial and will distract you from the important aspects of the game, such as your quality of play, mistakes made, etc. I caution you against looking too closely at chess statistics, and trying to make your statistics resemble those of the pros. That takes away your focus from the actual moves of the game. I would focus on the moves instead.






                                                        share|improve this answer



























                                                          0












                                                          0








                                                          0








                                                          What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)?




                                                          This question is a bit ridiculous. You don't want to improve your drawing rate in chess. And it's not even a question of your winning rate, since a 2600 player and a 1200 player both might win 50% of the time, but clearly they're not the same strength.



                                                          You simply want to improve your playing strength, and the best indicator of this happens to be your rating. Another indicator might be a computer analysis of your game to see how many mistakes you made and how serious these mistakes were.



                                                          If you honestly care about something as superficial as your drawing rate, then I would suggest changing your attitude to focus on quality of play and number of mistakes made...



                                                          But to answer your question head on...



                                                          Your drawing rate is 10.3%. Okay. Check the profile of the number one blitz player on Chess.com, Hikaru. His drawing rate is only 9%. That's even lower than yours! See... a high drawing rate doesn't make you a better player. Good moves make you a better player.



                                                          Honestly, this focus on drawing rate is entirely superficial and will distract you from the important aspects of the game, such as your quality of play, mistakes made, etc. I caution you against looking too closely at chess statistics, and trying to make your statistics resemble those of the pros. That takes away your focus from the actual moves of the game. I would focus on the moves instead.






                                                          share|improve this answer
















                                                          What can I do to naturally improve my blitz game drawing rate (so it looks more like top or professional players)?




                                                          This question is a bit ridiculous. You don't want to improve your drawing rate in chess. And it's not even a question of your winning rate, since a 2600 player and a 1200 player both might win 50% of the time, but clearly they're not the same strength.



                                                          You simply want to improve your playing strength, and the best indicator of this happens to be your rating. Another indicator might be a computer analysis of your game to see how many mistakes you made and how serious these mistakes were.



                                                          If you honestly care about something as superficial as your drawing rate, then I would suggest changing your attitude to focus on quality of play and number of mistakes made...



                                                          But to answer your question head on...



                                                          Your drawing rate is 10.3%. Okay. Check the profile of the number one blitz player on Chess.com, Hikaru. His drawing rate is only 9%. That's even lower than yours! See... a high drawing rate doesn't make you a better player. Good moves make you a better player.



                                                          Honestly, this focus on drawing rate is entirely superficial and will distract you from the important aspects of the game, such as your quality of play, mistakes made, etc. I caution you against looking too closely at chess statistics, and trying to make your statistics resemble those of the pros. That takes away your focus from the actual moves of the game. I would focus on the moves instead.







                                                          share|improve this answer














                                                          share|improve this answer



                                                          share|improve this answer








                                                          edited 1 hour ago

























                                                          answered 1 hour ago









                                                          ktm5124ktm5124

                                                          34819




                                                          34819



























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