Blitz chess

Blitz chess is high-speed chess that allots only 5 minutes or so per side. The world championship in blitz chess allows only 3 minutes per side but 2 extra seconds per move.

It is common for a player to win blitz chess when his opponent runs out of time. This happened to world champion Magnus Carlsen at the Sinquefield Cup in 2019 where blitz chess is used as a playoff if classical chess and rapid chess fail to produce a clear winner.

Players who excel at blitz chess are not necessarily the same who prevail at the slower, classical chess. However, mastering classical chess is considered essential prior to excelling at blitz chess.

Time Management

Managing the time effectively is perhaps the most important tactical consideration. Sizing up the board while the opponent thinks of his moves, and quickly assessing the threats that his pieces and movements present, is essential.

Spending less time on early moves and more time when one's king or queen is in jeopardy is helpful. When ahead on the clock, taking a bit more time to be careful is worthwhile. When behind on the clock, look for opportunities for capturing pieces which result from mistakes by the opponent as he moves too quickly.

Successful tactics

Placing your opponent in check quickly is an often successful approach to blitz chess. But if ahead on pieces near the end of the game, repeatedly putting the opponent in check can simply waste valuable time which could instead be used to develop a path to victory by checkmate.

Algorithm

Quick algorithms are helpful to manage time. When the other side moves, quickly review:

• does their move jeopardize, directly or indirectly, one's king or queen
• did they blunder in their move such that their piece can be captured
• can you move a piece out of jeopardy by placing the other side in check, or jeopardizing one of their pieces?