GM John Burke

Hello! I am a 24-year-old GM from the USA. My peak FIDE rating was 2604 (September 2023) and my peak USCF rating was 2697. I coach players of all levels, from beginners to titled players. I am also available for more high-level opening work and seconding for professional players.

I started playing chess when I was about 6 years old and have loved it ever since! I became a GM in 2018 at the age of 16. Probably the highlight of my career came in 2021, when I tied for first at the World Open, which is the biggest open tournament in the US, and played in the US Championship.

Over the years, I've had the chance to work with a vast array of players, from teaching school classes to players just starting out, all the way to strong titled players. I've gotten used to adapting my teaching style to fit whatever the student's needs may be.

I strongly believe the number one road to improvement is by studying your own games. Therefore, I spend a lot of time with students going through their games, trying to highlight certain mistakes or weaknesses that become patterns. I'm also sure to identify students' strengths and things that they are doing well - it's important to know what you're good at so you can keep it up!

I'm also a big advocate of studying the classics, and I have a ton of instructional material from the great players of the past - mostly the world champions, like Kasparov, Fischer, Capablanca, etc.

In general, I try to work with a student to become as well-rounded as possible in all phases of the game - Tactics, positional play, endgames, evaluation, openings, etc.

No matter what your level may be, I will help you improve and make the most of your potential!