CHESS COACHING

I have played chess since the age of 7 and always looked forward to playing against strong opponents. In the beginning of my chess career one of the most inspiring moments was playing chess against a master in a simultaneous exhibition. I became an international master at the age of 18 and started to give back to the chess community much like my start by playing simultaneous exhibitions with children and amateur players. 

There are millions of chess players all over the world without access to a chess master in their local communities. The internet era opened new possibilities in the game of chess where anyone can play and study chess with a master from their home. 

Chess can open up new opportunities where you can meet and make new friends from all over the world. 

Please send me a message if you have any questions or interest about my lessons. 

I am at your service to help you to reach your goals.

I have 27 years experience in  chess teaching. I started to teach online 21 years ago in 2001 and I was one of the first online chess coaches.

   Philosophy of a chess lesson:

– Improve your chess understanding.

– Create an opening repertoire working with you step by step.

– Build up your endgame knowledge.

– Find the right plans in the middlegame by studying typical patterns.

– Strengthen your tactical awareness.

I think it is important to have a balance of studying new ideas and getting feedback by analyzing your games. I like to offer supporting materials and homework to help your studies between lessons.

I will do my best to help you to improve your chess in a positive manner.

Social Media.

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/atilla.turzo/

Twitter: http://twitter.com/AttilaTurzo

I am available for lessons from Wednesday to Sunday in the following times:

America:

6:00 am – 12:00 pm Eastern time.

6:00 am – 11:00 am Central time

6:00 am – 10:00 am Mountain time

6:00 am – 9:00 am Pacific time

Europe:

8:00 am – 5:00 pm UK time

9:00 am – 6:00 pm Central European time

Australia:

5:00 pm – 11:00 pm Eastern time.

3:00 pm – 11:00 pm Western time.

You can order a lesson here.

Some milestones of my chess career:

• started at age 7
• more than 20 gold medals in scholastic tournaments.
• International Master at age 18
• Hungarian Junior Champion at age 19
• Represented Hungary in 2 Junior World Championships and a European Junior Championship
• Winning the Unna open 2003 tournament in Germany with a perfect 7/7 score and a 2700+ rating performance.
• 1st place in more than 10 international tournaments.
• I started with Tony Rook the first online chess radio – Chess.fm (ICC) and was the commentator of the GM Larry Christiansen versus Fritz Human versus Computer match.
• I started to coach players when I was 16 years old
• One of the first chess coaches who started to teach online in 2001.
• Winner of the 1st Apaczai Chess Cup in May 2016
• Hungarian Team Chess Champion in May 2015
• Winner of the 1st Solymar Chess Cup in November 2015
• Winner of the Fót Open Chess Tournament.
• Winner of the First Saturday International Master Chess Tournament in May 2004.
• Winner of the Unna Open in December 2004 – Winning the tournament with 7 wins out of 7 games with a +2700 elo performance rating.
• Winner of the First Saturday International Master Chess Tournament   in December 2009.
• Hungarian Team Chess Champion in 1996, 1999, 2000, 2001.
• Winner of the First Saturday International Master Chess Tournament in November 1995 and December 1995.
• Winner of the Caissa International Master Chess Tournament in 1997 and 1999.
• Participant in the World Junior Championship in India in November 1998.
• Participant in the World Junior Championship in Hungary in 1994.
• Participant in the European Junior Championship in Slovakia in 1996.

Testimonials

“I first was introduced to Attila when he created an online simul playing a 1000 people at one time. He called it 1000 bright minds. I was fortunate enough to be one of those 1000, but unfortunate to lose the game I played him. I began taking lessons online with him and at the time I was a B player. With his instruction and guidance I reached the expert level after about 3 years, even though chess has been a hobby and I was not able to spend as much time as I would have wanted to. Attila is very knowledgeable and patient and I would highly recommend his services!”

Ron and Attila

Ron Livaudais – Phoenix, Arizona, United States

“Attila Turzo, an international Master in chess who still knows how to explain things in human language and not the gibber gabber only high rated chess players understand. Also, from the first time you speak with him you feel you have a new friend. To summarize, you dont only get a splendid chess coach but also a friend for live.”

Johan Verduyckt – Brussels Region, Belgium

“I started my classes on May and with in two months i increased my ELO with 200 Points approximately..

But that was not the only thing .. the most important is that my knowledge in chess increase very high and he manage to put all the missing puzzles together ..

i can see the chess board much better now!

He can take you into a deep thought and calculations that you may have during the games specially with endgames calculation.

Definitely recommend any beginner to start his classes if ur looking forward for serious development.”

Talal Almanaseer – Kuwait

“Great instructor. Taught me to calculate so much better. Beating people I never thought I could. He is also a good friend not just a good instructor”

Adam Mocarski – Berkeley, California, United States

“Attila is a knowledgeable, patient, and kind chess coach. Under his direction, I saw an immediate improvement in my game. I recommend Attila for any student, from beginner to advanced.”

Vincent Bataoel – Middleburg, Virginia, United States

“Looking for a chess coach?  Want proven results?  Look no further!  Under IM Turzo’s patient tutelage, in less than six months, my rating has gone up from 1514 to 1742 USCF, I have won the 2011 US Class C Championship, and I am already beating 2000+ rated players.

In situations where I already know what openings my opponent is likely to play, Attila has given me a specific opening repertoire to study and prepare in response, and I have won or drawn every match as a result.

I highly recommend IM Attila Turzo.  He’s supportive and friendly, is able to quickly highlight strengths and weaknesses in any position, and list other master games for me to study.  He also documents homework and keeps a log of all games we have analyzed together.  In short, Attila’s coaching has been critical to my success.”

Brian – Austin, Texas, United States

” I just had my first lesson with IM Attila Turzo, where we analyzed 3 of my games. Communication was done via microphone and I learned a lot more than I would have expected in only 1 hour. In positions where I had spent a long time looking for the right move, he finds it in a matter of seconds and quickly explains why it’s better, in a way that is easy to understand, and lets me build an attacking plan around that move so that it’s easier to remember. I’m very satisfied. I highly recommend him.”

Kim Kaspersen – Stavanger, Rogaland, Norway

“Attila helped me build my opening repertoire and suggested good opening lines for me, provided me with good materials for self study and went over the theories as well as practical games I played. He taught me lots of important ideas in the middle and endgame. Although sometimes those ideas can be more stressed out and expanded during the lessons, you can always review the lessons afterwards as he records and sends the video over, which is helpful for self study.

Most importantly, he encourages me to seek active play and never give up after a blunder or in a bad position, which I found to be very important. Now I enjoy the game much more rather than just focus on winning and hate myself when losing.

Last but not the least, he’s extremely friendly and has a very positive attitude towards life. I always enjoy having lessons with him.”

Jimmy Fan – Shanghai, China

“Attila Turzo deserves to be a National Hero in Chess history because of his astounding skills and easy to understand game analysis.”

Chess Organizer DXB – United Arab Emirates

“Attila is a very good coach, he understands the needs of his student and directs you to suitable information and gives advises and information where ever you fail…he is so much helpful even online that you study with him as if you were together in a classroom. I definitely do recommend him for people who want to improve and become a stronger player. By the way if you keep working with him persistently you yourself can become a master of any level. Good luck “

Levent Kayaalp – Nottingham, England, United Kingdom

“I started training with Attila in 2011 and have since then had many, many lessons with him. He gave me clear and concise advice on how to improve my game. I have grown considerable as a chessplayer following his advice and by having lessons with him. I recommend him for everyone who wants to grow as a chessplayer and get motivated to continue to learn.”

Stig Uteng – Troms og Finnmark, Norway

“Attila coaching is top notch, transformational in nature style of leadership. As a seasoned player with more than 40 years of playing experience, I was able to benefit from Attila’s insight in just a few minutes into our first session. His coaching manner is adopted to your skill and focused on your goals. Perhaps what I like about Attila’s experience the most is the predictability of the outcomes… even if you come to him with unrealistic expectations, Attila will lead you to realize your maximum potential to achieve your dream. He is also an amazing person to know and fellowship.”

Greg-Isaak (Grisha) Voykhansky, J.D., Ph.D. – Worcester, Massachusetts, United States

“I trained under Atilla for around 4 months and found him to be an exemplary chess coach, No matter what level you are at Atilla will help you to overcome any obstacles in your way by reviewing your games and personalising a program to improve your weak points.
I found Atilla both pleasant to work with and a very good English speaker.”

Phil Barker – Wigan, England, United Kingdom

“Attila is a great chess coach, his recommendations helped me break through a 10 year slouch, increasing my rating by 150 points in a single tournament, first in my section (U1600). I have been working with Attila for quite a while now, and have worked with others in the past, including a super GM, and have had better results with Attila’s one-on-one approaches to chess improvement. Going over my games with him has opened my eyes to a lot of ideas I have never thought about before. I would strongly recommend Attila to anyone looking to improve in chess, his coaching is the best I have ever received in my 20+ yrs of playing chess.”

Jarret Minkler – Buffalo, New York, United States

“Attila is a great chess coach. We have worked together for several years now and I can say that he is really dedicated and supportive. I thoroughly enjoy working with him and I have no doubt that my game has improved accordingly. I would recommend him very highly.”

David Young – Budapest, Hungary

“I have had the pleasure of witnessing Attila’s dedication and patience when he is teaching member of chess.com how to play chess. He manages to make his lessons entertaining and informative and generates crowds when playing and analyzing games in Live Chess.”

Kisha “Kayt” Pettigrew – Fayetteville, North Carolina, United States

“Attila is organized, reliable and a great Chess Coach. Attila can work independently and is able to follow through to ensure that the job gets done. Attila was quick to volunteer to assist in all aspects of Community Support at Chesspark. The users loved Attila not only for his Chess skills but his patient and courteous manner.”

Dandee Fleming – Seattle, Washington, United States

“I had many enjoyable lessons with Attila over a 6 month period in 2009 and always found him to be very personable and extremely knowledgeable chess coach. Attila has many years of experience both in coaching and as a tournament player and commands excellent language skills in English. I would highly recommend Attila as a coach that can take you to the next level.”

Phil Barker – Wigan, England, United Kingdom

“I have never met Attila in person, but interacted with him as he facilitated Chesspark.com.

He worked in a way that can only exist with passion, drive, empathy, in a role of community organizer and chess trainer that required intelligence, patience, and humor.

He created daily side-games for members, made himself available as a trainer, and played at the master level within the community. And he did it all completely as an online presence.

Whatever he does, and whoever he works with, will be better for his involvement. Hopefully I will get to meet him someday outside a chat room or email.”

Ben Guthrie – Dallas, Texas, United States

“I have just finished my first lesson with Attila and was really most impressed. I must say that I was a little worried that dealing with an International Master, I would feel intimidated. But within minutes Attila’s relaxed and friendly manner put me at ease right away. He has the ability to come down to your level and has the patience to explain until you understand. There was no sense of rushing through the lesson but would stop and explain ideas and tactics at a pace that one could easily follow. You quicly realised that he has a genuine interest in you and in improving your chess abilities. I was impressed by his thoroughness and plans and ideas put forward to help you succeed. A tremendous amount was achieved in the hour we had and also gave you a desire to go out their and do it. I will certainly be continuing my lessons with Attila. and I have made new friend as well. I would whole heartedly recommend Attila if you have a desire to improve your chess.”

Ashley – East London, South Africa

“Attila is a very good coach I highly recommend him for anyone looking to improve in chess seriously, he has helped me a great deal in getting my chess back to state, I work with him once a week and it really improves my chess understanding every time. We work on an new opening repertoire with him and I was at first quiet worried with the amount of time it would take and the amount of time i have in a week but after a few lessons with him it really feels like there is nothing to learning new openings he really takes time with what he teaches, doesn’t just hastily go through lines if i have any questions about anything we would immediately stop and analyze what ever idea i saw and he would explain it great. I will definitely continue studying with him as long as I can”

Johann – Ventersburg, South Africa

“I’ve been studying with Attila for a month now, and I am very satisfied with the quality of the lessons.  His chess coaching experience is obvious.  He has helped me to develop an opening repertoire suited for my style, and I am already a more confident player as I am now playing the right openings.  Attila is passionate about chess, and this is something that’s very important for any chess teacher.  I am looking forward to many more lessons with him.”

Calvin – Illinois, United States

“Attila is an excellent coach.  I have been studying with him for several months and I can feel and see the difference. I can only echo the comments of the others.  He is clearly a good communicator and has really helped my self-confidence and attitude towards the game.  Money well spent!”

David – Budapest, Hungary

“Attila has coached me for 8 months. He is an excellent coach and has helped focus my chess analysis and study time. Through his help, I believe that my playing ability has stablized and my confidence is greater for my chess games for both OTB and online chess. He has pointed out various “bad habits” I’ve developed.

In our sessions, we’ve covered building opening repertoires, position analysis, end game play and middle game planning. The sessions are very focused and, as a follow up,  he sends the games that we’ve analyzed (along with the study lines) and a record of what was covered. In addition, he assigned homework to help keep me working toward my objectives.

I consider these sessions very valuable and feel that my playing strength is much stronger. I highly recommend him as a chess coach.”

Julian – Albuquerque, United States

“I was searching around for a good teacher when I first met Attila. I met him by joining one of his simuls and talking after the game with him. In the game we played I was blown away by his superior endgame technique and after taking lessons with him I still see him as an excellent endgame player. He was very friendly when we first met and I know that he takes good care of his students.

Ever since I started getting lessons from him I have seen a nice improvement in my play and rating. I give credit to him for my goals that I have reached. I was able to score my first over-the-board win against a FIDE master that was previously beating me constantly before Attila taught me. I am extremely fortunate to have met him during my time of searching around for chess coaches.”

Matt – United States

“A few years ago, I took classes with Attila.  He really helped improve my gameplay.  Even though I no longer play chess, I treasure the classes that I had with him.”

Alex –  United States

” I’m a university student and I had my first chess lesson with Attila today and enjoyed every minute of the lesson with him. Although things didn’t quite go to plan (chess live analysis board didn’t work and the microphones and camera were a bit jerky (which was my internet connection)) we still got through; and he didn’t just stay for the hour, he made sure I actually had the hour of teaching, whilst also spending time before and after the hour talking to me about my chess life and trying to fix the technical problems. I couldn’t have found a better coach and the value for money is amazing! He also wasn’t pressurizing at all with the money, and never asked for it before or during our sessions, his aim is to help the students!

Thank you very much Attila for the lesson and I hope to study with you again!”

Calum Harris – Buckinghamshire, England

” I’ve had 8 lessons with Attila so far and I can clearly see improvement on my over the board play. I have a 1500 ELO equivalent and my best win over the past three years I have been playing was a single time I beat a 1600 ELO player. Over the last three weeks I beat a 2100ELO, an 1700ELO and a 1600ELO player with ease and all down to Attila. Attila is very friendly and very good communicator and makes the lessons very fun and rewarding. He is also very good in making my study being more focused which has finally helped me to start covering some of the books I have had collected so far but had ended up jumping from one to another.

Playing the above games I could clearly see what would my moves be had I not had these lessons and at the same time I could see Attila would have suggested to me to play instead – stronger more dynamic moves that increase the pressure to the opponent and then you see the opponents position to be falling apart move after move.”

George McBak – London, United Kingdom 

“

Just finished my first lesson with Attila and I feel pretty good about it. During the Start Lesson Attila asks: what your goals are with chess, your history playing the game, a self-asssessment of your strengths and weaknesses, and then provides a general study plan for improvement. If time permits he analyzes your games with you. Unfortunately I didn’t get to have a game analyzed, but don’t misunderstand, my call lasted 1hr 20min!! So, you can see, I asked MANY questions, and Attila patiently and thoroughly answered every one. When the call ran over he didn’t even seem to mind, but to continued to work with me til we arrived at a mutual stopping point. As mentioned by others, he provides an email summary of the call and study plan.Adrian Rhodes

I definitely recommend Attila Turzo for any player wanting to improve their game and I look forward to my next session to demonstrate my progress!”

JediMasterRVA – United States

“I just had my latest lesson with Attila. We covered a game I played with a higher rank player. Attila quickly pointed out better moves I could have made and gave clear explanations of why I should have made them. In addition, we covered D4 and E4 openings from the perspective of black, having covered these openings from the perspective of white in a previous lesson. For each opening, Attila presented not just the moves to make, but reasons for making them and he also covered variations of these openings. I am a long way from a complete understanding of these openings but I felt this lesson brought me significantly closer to understanding them.”

Patrick Regan – Western Ma., United States

“Attila’s New Start Lesson is very helpful. He gives you a clear plan on how to improve and sends you files of everything you went over after the lessons. He is also extremely friendly and very patient.”

Stuart Yee – San Francisco, United States

” The best thing you can do to improve your chess is to have a chess coach/teacher. But with so many chess players giving lessons these days, who should you choose? Please take my advice. International Master Attila Turzo is a wonderful chess coach who will improve your understanding of chess.I can honestly say that Attila has helped me to improve my rating significantly and that my understanding of chess has vastly improved. So if your goal is to be a better chess player, get yourself a chess coach. Better yet, get Attila Turzo to be your chess coach. You will never regret it

During our training sessions together we look at my games and discuss the tactical and positional aspects of the game. We look at where I made good decisions and where I went wrong and what I should have played instead. After each lesson, Attila provides an annotated pgn file of the game(s) we studied to help reinforce the lesson. He also assigns homework which helps me to focus on reaching my chess goals. For example, I am currently looking at the exchange sacrifice, since this occurred in two of my games that we studied in our last lesson.”

Jack – United States

” I just had my first lesson with Atilla, and I must say I’m very satisfied. He is a very good teacher, and communicator. Initially we established my strengths and weaknesses, my chess history and goals (which I found surprisingly motivating, just having to articulate it all). It is obvious, as perhaps expected, that his comprehension of the game is very good. However, his capacity of relaying that comprehension to you is very good. At the end of the lecture he gave me a good plan for continuing my chess studies.

All in all, a great teacher, I highly recommend him.

What I think is Atilla’s greatest strength as a teacher is listening as much to my ideas as presenting his own (vastly superior ideas). He also has a very friendly attitude, and displays no sign of superiority towards one.

We then looked at a game, analyzed and discussed it. While analyzing, he would first and foremost ask what my thoughts in a given position was, and from there construct appropriate feedback, and thereafter present his own thoughts on the position.”

Tormod Haugland – Trondheim, Norway

“Chess lessons with Attila are great. I recommend him to everybody!”

Capay – United States

“

So happy to accomplish my 4th goal for 2013 today: Getting assistance from a professional chess coach in the name of Attila.The real value of this experience is that he gave me an indepth notes of our conversation with suggestions on how I should structure my personal training, types of books to read and  how I should manage my time doing all this.

It was a nice chat; we easily get comfortable with each other. We discussed my chess history  then my immediate and long term goal. Finally, we go over one of my recent games where he provided feedback.”

Ernesto Simbulan – Bulacan, Philippines  

“I had my first lesson with Attila and I can say it was a very good experience. As many others have stated he asked me about my chess history and my goals. We also analyzed one of my recent games. A study plan has been set up and we are moving forward. I found Attila to be very pleasant and I would strongly recommend him to anyone who is interested in improving their game!”

Chris – Massachusetts, United States

” IM Turzo is one of the greatest teachers I have ever met in my life; in our first lesson, after listening to my story really carefully and patiently, he has set my goals, study plans, and gave me appropriate assignments.  IM Turzo is also an excellent “guide to the blind”.  As they say, if the blind leads the blind, both shall fall into the ditch.  This is the reason why we should be careful in choosing the good teacher.  I have much difficulty analyzing my past games. However, with IM Turzo’s help, I could understand clearly which move was good and which move was bad, with specific reasons.  In addition, he inducted five lessons from my game, which would be useful for me for a long time.  I strongly recommend that every ardent chess player should have him analyze his or her game . . . he is “the light of the world.”

Some teachers do not listen to students, just imposing his / her theory. Other teachers just let students tell their story, and say “Hang on in there.”  Neither of them is a good teacher, I think.  IM Turzo’s teaching style is, on the other hand, “tailor-made”; he proposes the best method which suits each of his students.”

vinemule – United States

” Great teacher! He takes the time to get to know you, and he starts off by asking your goals. He asks you what you like and dislike in a position and specific openings. He uses all this information to formulate a plan so you can achieve your goals.

He is friendly and very helpful with all questions. I would highly recommend this teacher to all levels of player wishing to improve their game to the next level.”

Rabbitcold – United States

“I started my lessons with IM Attila, and now I can say I’m on the right track to learn and improve my chess.”

Jefferson Almeida – Mogi das Cruzes, Brazil

“I am new to this game–at 40! I took advantage of Coach Attila’s offer for 50% off. It was a great $25 spent. I have only been playing since September, and during our study, he gave me some tips and rules to follow. I probably would have been making those mistakes (or not knowing those rules) forever unless Attila pointed them out to me. This is a great value. For as much as I have been playing–and hope to continue to play–I believe that I will improve much quicker and have less frustration with these lessons. He also respects the fact that we have jobs and families and cannot dedicate hours and hours a day on chess and puts together efficient study plans. He is a very nice man and sets you at ease. Well worth it!”

Ken Frakes – Phoenix, AZ, United States

“I have had 2 coaching sessions with Attila.  It goes without saying that his chess knowledge is extremely in depth: openings, positional understanding and endgames.  The plans we have put in place have already improved my overall play and positional and tactical knowledge.  I am looking forward to continued improvement with  Attila.”

John – Inverness, Scotland

“I took lessons from Attila Turzo for several months and it was my best experience ever with a chess coach. He had me write down everything chess related I was doing and adjusted to my interests in helping me decide what to study. He was open minded regarding my choices of favorite openings and did a lot to help my game. I wish I had time to study more with him.”

Nets Katz – Bloomington, IN, United States

“

When I started taking lessons with Attila, I had a goal of breaking 1900 by the end of the year. I started at the beginning of the year with about an 1800 rating…and the goal was reached by the beginning of April and I give Attila most of the credit. He is very patient and communicates the principles, where you can understand them and use in your everyday games”

Ron Livaudais – Phoenix, United States

“Before I took a lesson with Attila, I was on a losing streak… Then, the same day, I won in 5 moves against a strong opponent, what more can be say, give him a try, Attila is a great teacher, very clear, he give you the right exercises and the good advices for your level of play, It wont be my last lesson… that is sure!”

Marc Bisaillon – Saint-Hyacinthe, Martinique

“I started taking lessons from Attila less than a year ago, and my USCF rating has increased by well over 100 pointts after playing in only a handful of tournaments.  The lessons I have taken from other teachers in the past were never as personally customized for me as what Attila offers.  His ability to teach complex positional concepts, tactics, and chess psychology have led to a breakthrough in my play that I thought wasn’t possible (especially since I’m well into my 30s).  You will not be able to find better instruction or value for your money than what you will receive from Attila.”

Joe Sremack – Washington, DC, United States