EP 471- Dr. Kevin Scull on Adult-Only Tournaments, Plateaus and Progress

Is it possible to continue to get better at chess once you hit your 50s? The Adult Improver Series returns, and that’s one of the central questions I explore with today’s guest, long-time friend of the pod and fellow chess podcaster Dr. Kevin Scull. Kevin is the host of the popular Chess Journeys podcast, where he interviews adult chess improvers on a weekly basis. In our conversation, he shares insights drawn from hundreds of interviews, as well as from his own dedicated pursuit of tournament chess. We discuss: How Kevin managed to reach a new all-time rating high of over 1800 USCF in his early 50s The social and competitive benefits of adult-only tournaments Whether struggling to remember your games afterward means you’re hopeless at chess As you’d expect, Kevin also shares a wealth of chess resource recommendations and practical improvement tips, and reflects on nearly five years of producing Chess Journeys. Perpetual Chess Adult Improver Series Website: Perpetual Chess Adult Improver Series Spotify Playlist: 0:00- Thanks to Chessable, check out Kevin’s course here: 0:01- Kevin joins the pod. How did he achieve a new rating high of 1800+ USCF in his early 50s? 0:08- Why Kevin particularly enjoys adult and senior-only tournaments 18:00- Kevin’s recent chess improvement realizations Mentioned: Karpov’s Strategic Wins by IM Tibor Karolyi 23:00- The benefits of having a coach Mentioned: NM Gopal Menon 28:00- More chess improvement secrets! Mentioned: 100 Tactical Patterns You Must Know The Carlsbad Pawn Structure Revisited Chess Structures 32:00- Is Kevin hopeless at chess because he can’t remember his games? Post- Am I bad at chess or our brains really that different? Playing a Chess Tournament without Calculating 43:00- What is new with the Chess Journeys Podcast and Kevin’s Streaming? Check at Chess Inception at Chesspuzzle.net 47:00- Patterns that Kevin sees in successful improvers 50:00- What has Kevin learned from watching his daughter pursue chess? 53:00- Kevin’s review of IM Danny Rensch’s Dark Squares 54:00- How to recalibrate expectations as you get older 56:00- The value of studying random positions Thanks to Kevin for joining me! Blog/substack here: Chess Journeys Podcast: Chessable course: Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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EP 471- Dr. Kevin Scull on Adult-Only Tournaments, Plateaus and Progress is an episode from Perpetual Chess Podcast by Perpetual Chess LLC .

This episode is 64:54 long.

This episode was published on Feb 10, 2026.

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