I discovered that I have several (no name dropping, though).
There are some players that play in such a way that they hit exactly my weak spots. They are equally or lower rated than I am (a player rated 400 points higher than you isn't your nemesis, but simply better), usually are tactically very sharp, fast with the mouse, and so on.
But this is nothing special since next to everybody can be described that way, and not everybody is my nemesis (most of the players so described I have at least a level score against). So what makes a player my nemesis is rather inexplicable: Somehow, they make me not playing my best chess by far. I really don't know how this comes about, but as soon as I get paired against one of them, I start dropping pieces or squares, etc.
Is this a common phenomenon? What's your nemesis like, and how do you play them?
My nemesis is PUUNTUUPPAAJA, he playes here too.
I'm a positional defensive player by nature, he is an aggressive attacking player by nature.
He is my nemesis because he approaches the game differently than I. I try to make the positionally best move, he tries to create an attack. So our styles clash making him a difficult opponent for me. We used to be toe to toe, now he is a slightly better player, I still get wins though ;)
Usually I try to play my best positional chess vs him, to disprove his attacks, but I recall getting good results by launching a semi-crazy attack myself and making it a crazy game.
I don't know which is better vs his style, but I love the guy and he is a true treasure, because he hits and shows the weak spots in my game and in my psyche :D
The sob plays poker too, just like I, and there he is an aggressive player, I'm a tight player, mimicing the situation in chess, goddamit! :D
My nemesis is multitasking, he always leaves me with time trouble. I usually beat him by premoving or playing fast.
Ah:
"because he hits and shows the weak spots in my game and in my psyche"
This is a truly refreshing view for my taste. I never saw it this way, and, frankly, got very annoyed once I was paired with one of my nemeses. Thank you,
@NoLuckOnlySkill , this changes my mind alot. Nemeses are there to tell you, what you have to do!
Idiots.
Cause when they play like idiots I think "Haha, what an idiot" and then I play like an idiot.
People who are very fast and very defensive/passive in closed systemy openings like the closed sicilian, london defense, or even the french to a degree.
I love to face this sort of play over the board, but with 3 minutes I spend too much time trying to 'crack' them and do remarkably poorly.
<3 Closed Sicilian. Its my favorite opening to play with white in 1. e4
lower rated players who play near perfect games (usually at a slower pace). there are some ~1800s who play stronger than ~2000s lol.
although chances are their otb is higher than mine.
Any person that plays the King's Gambit has one up on me, regardless of anything else. People keep saying it's unsound, but looks like I've yet to find a definitive refutation.
At times, I've found myself in 0-10 situations against the kind of opponents you call, "nemesis". There are more than one for me just as in your case... but I can't seem to still put my finger on it. I tend to add them to my follow list, so I can have an opportunity to get back at them.
