average opponent

I am currently rated as high as I've ever been. Playing an opponent rated 120-130 points higher than me(1770-1780), I won convincingly both times(I rematch). I got curious...his avg. opp. was 1430-something!! Curious type that i am, I've pursued this since with my opponents. There is a self-evident pattern emerging...I'm passionate about chess; it has ignored the boundaries we have set up between ourselves with a careless abandon that is instructive for those who romance the notion of the inherent likeness we all possess. Are there really that many members out there who place that much importance on appearance?...Pick on someone your own size! (Not about "big me", but i start my seeks at my rating...it's about getting better.)

P.S. what about the guy with an 1850 who's best win is like 1580?!

It depends to an extent on where you get most of your opponents from.

• If you create a large number of open seeks, then you get to specify the rating range of your opponents.
• If you play quite a few restricted range tournaments - or team matches - that is likely to keep your average opponent rating similar to your own rating.
• If you play mainly open tournaments (successfully), your average opponent rating may end up higher than your own rating.
• If you attract many unsolicited challenges, that is likely to reduce your average opponent rating.
• If you mainly play your friends, and if your friends are improving faster than you, then your average opponent rating will climb; but if you're improving faster than your friends, your average opponent rating will sink.

In conclusion: you can't read too much into someone's average opponent rating without knowing their policy.

Point taken..and thanx! Aside from the feeling of importance i have now, obviously you put quite bit of thought into that. Live( I've leveled off around 1450), I used to abort anyone under 13-1350 , but thats not fair to those TRYING TO GET BETTER... and so it is with my stance on turn-based. However, under certain circumstances, I do play a guy that's rated 900-ish. I do see the truth in the principle of not judging a book by it's cover. Thanx again.