ENDORSEMENTS "NM David Bennett is my 8 yr old son, Adamson Steiner's, chess coach and I highly recommend him to anyone looking for a chess coach for their child. David is very patient and connects well with my son who is generally slow to warm up to people and has a hard time sitting still. David's lessons are fun and keeps my son engaged (and sitting...or at least standing by the board). Adamson always looks forward to meeting with his chess coach and asks me to schedule more lessons. Adamson has been playing tournaments since November of '15 when he basically knew how to move the pieces. He wanted to play chess because his older cousins play chess tournaments in Ohio. Since getting David as his coach in January '16, Adamson has gone from a preliminary rating of 440 to over 1000 in less than 6 months, and to over 1600 within a year, winning the 2016 USCF Junior Grand Prix. David is an awesome coach and a really nice guy. Cannot recommend him enough!"
~Helena S.
"I received lessons from David Bennett for several weeks recently in an effort to strengthen my chess game. The objective was to do better when playing my chess “partner” on Friday nights. Before I met David, I was losing two-thirds of my games. After a few weekly lessons of about two hours each lesson, he gave me an organized strategy for openings and set me up with some good “forced” lines I could use. The result was that I am now winning most of my games against my playing partner. He is an excellent teacher, very organized, very articulate, and very adroitly fits his instruction to my own needs as a chess player. He also (without charging me) gave me good references to several sources for further study and provided lines to supplement the lessons. He is very personable and effective as a teacher and I would recommend him without qualification to anyone seeking to improve their game."
~Dave L.
"My sons loved today! I just love that you are challenging the boys. At an old school, the kids just played, supervised by a volunteer. We are so fortunate to have your skills & enthusiasm. My kindergartner is already showing signs of outwitting me! I wish I had you as a teacher/coach. Thank you for this wonderful opportunity!"
~Erica C.
"In the months that I have known David, I’ve found him to be a great teacher. I have been especially impressed by his devotion to helping me improve as a chess player. He has encouraged me to go to tournaments and compete. Under his guidance my rating has consistently gone up. I started out winning only one game a tournament and now I can win a couple as well as draw some. I scored 5/7 at the 2015 Washington Chess Congress, and 4/5 at the 2016 Potomac Open. He is really devoted to developing his students' positional and calculating skills. David also tailors his teachings to the individual weaknesses of his students. He doesn’t just teach from a book, but likes to see his student’s games, analyze them, and show where they went wrong. This has helped me become more self-aware of the areas I struggle with and correct them. This individualized teaching style coupled with his devotion to helping his students makes all the difference. He is a fun guy to be around and is very flexible when it comes to rescheduling sessions. Whether people are looking to become a GM or just to be able to beat their friends, David is the guy to go to!"
~Nick B.
"I can’t thank you enough for sharing your love of chess with Nico and Sammy. You are a remarkably patient and skilled teacher, and Nico and Sammy are very lucky to have you at their side each week. Thank you again for everything."
~Chris L.
"David is a highly talented chess teacher. I've been very impressed by his ability to wade through a morass of opening questions and tactical frustrations and find the point where your game needs improvement. It's that judgment and guidance where he has been able to help me improve the most. I just finished my first tournament since I was 12 yrs old and I came out of it with 5 points out of 7 (only 1 loss) and some prize money. I have to attribute a lot of this to David!"
~Abraham P.
"Thanks, David. We are so happy that you are Graham's coach! He seems to be learning a lot."
~Kelly N.
"David's a great chess tutor. Highly knowledgeable and enthusiastic, he advanced my previous passing interest into a greater appreciation and enjoyment of the game. I recommend without hesitation."