Journey to the National Master Title, Part 17

I scored 1.5/4 in the January 10, 2026 Columbus Winter Open, losing 14 rating points to drop my rating to 1966. The key game happened in the third round when I battled top seeded NM Amogh Tripathi. After an interesting struggle, we reached this critical position with Black (Tripathi) to move:

 

He played 51...Rxf2??, which loses by force after 52.Rb6 Kd7 Otherwise Bb4 wins the pinned B. 53. Kd5 During the game, I missed that in this line my Bc3 prevents Black from checking my K with his R. This is an example of what GM Nikolai Krogius called "the retained image": when I visualized the position, I pictured Black's R being on f1, making ...Rd1+ possible. After 53...Be7 54. Rb7+ Ke8 55. Bxe5, White's powerful passed pawn and strongly centralized pieces are too much for Black to overcome.

Unfortunately, I quickly played 52. Rb2. My opponent replied 52...Rf3, and here I betrayed myself with a combination of excitement and relaxation. I was excited when I first noticed the Rb6 idea, and I relaxed because I thought that there was no way I could lose from here. I played 53. Rb6 and was dismayed after my opponent replied 53...Re3, winning my e pawn by force. I lamented not playing 53. Re2, after which the position is equal--but even after my imprecise 53rd move, White's pieces are still active enough to prevent defeat. I defended accurately despite drifting into time pressure. I enjoyed a time advantage for most of the game, but I had less than three minutes remaining when critical decisions still had to be made:

 

Here, Black has just checked my K. One move holds, and all other moves lose. I played 64. Kd1?? The drawing idea is to play 64. Ke1: if Black moves his K forward then White takes e4 with check and then slides the R back to e5 to pick up Black's last pawn. Black can take the Bc3 with his K in this line, but even if Black wins both of White's remaining pawns, R+B versus R is a book draw (and I held that draw in the second round of this tournament). My opponent erred with 64...e3 instead of playing 64...Kc4, giving me a chance to hold with 65. Re4 (preventing Black's K from advancing further)--but I played 65. h4??, after which 65...Kc4 leads to a forced win. Full credit to my opponent for his resourcefulness in time pressure; he played the last 20-plus moves of the game with two seconds left plus the five second time delay. Tripathi finished with 3.5/4 to claim clear first while I flamed out in the last round, eschewing a draw in an equal endgame before blundering and losing.

I bounced back to scored a solid 3/4 in the January 11, 2026 East Market Swiss, gaining five rating points to improve my rating to 1971. I was the fourth seeded player out of 14, and I finished clear second. I won my first round game versus Aadya Kakarla--the 25th highest rated 10 year old girl in the country--with a pretty checkmate in the middle of the board: 

My only loss was to top seeded NM Broderick Bauml, who took clear first with 4/4. Bauml obtained an advantage against me with Black in the second round, but after he lost his Q for two minor pieces and a P I had a decisive advantage, albeit in a complicated position. Bauml defended resourcefully even as his clock ticked below 30 seconds (G/45 time control with 10 second increment). I prosecuted my advantage effectively, but when my time dropped below three minutes I faltered. Here, my opponent has just played 57...Be7??

I replied with what should be a winning tactical blow: 58. Nxe5! My N is immune because of the threat of Qxe5+ followed by Qxe1, so my opponent played 58...Nxh4. I would have had a decisive advantage after 59. Nc6, but instead I played 59. Qc7??, enabling Black to create a blockade after 59...Nexf3+--but my opponent returned the favor with 59...Nf5?? and I answered with 60. f4. Now, if Black takes the Ne5 then White's connected passed pawns are powerful, and if Black does not eliminate the Ne5 then Nc6 followed by Qd7 and Nd8 gives White a winning attack. The game continued 60...Nc2 61. Nc6 Bf8 62. Nd8. The text is more than sufficient, but even stronger is 62. Qd7 followed by 63. Qe8, after which Black's blockade collapses.

We blitzed out several moves in mutual time pressure, and I recklessly sacrificed my N to get connected passed pawns, giving my opponent a winning advantage until he played 72...Nge3+??:

 

Now, 73. Kh1 holds the balance, but I instantly played 73. Kxh2 and lost my Q after 73...Bd6+. As I noted about my loss to Tripathi, I give full credit to Bauml for defending resourcefully for so long that I ended up in time pressure before committing the fatal blunder. National Masters often find a way to draw or even win despite making early mistakes, and that combination of tenacity plus tactical resourcefulness sets Masters apart from non-Masters.

I played well in the January 17-18, 2026 Queen City Open, scoring 3/4 to tie for third-sixth overall (and first-second U2200/U2000) while gaining 23 rating points to boost my rating to 1994. Highlights include drawing with Keya Jha (the second highest rated 11 year old girl in the country, 2150), and beating Joseph Kleban (2016) in the last round to avenge my last round loss to Kleban in the December 21, 2025 East Market Swiss. IM Ron Burnett and NM Aryan Balyan shared first place with 3.5/4. I have known Burnett since the late 1980s, and between rounds we had some interesting conversations about chess improvement. I told him about my attempt to earn the National Master title, a goal which he believes is attainable for me. Among other tips, he suggested that it is valuable to learn all of the basic checkmates "by hand"; it is not sufficient to be able to figure them out, because it is often the case that games are decided in time pressure. Even if a checkmate such as K+B+N versus K never comes up in one's games, learning that checkmate by hand improves one's understanding of how pieces coordinate. Burnett built his chess understanding in the late 1970s and early 1980s by playing countless training games against chess computers; he fine-tuned his chess understanding to the extent that he surged from the class ranks to well above National Master during a five year span.

I scored 4/5 in the January 31-February 1, 2026 Cardinal Open, finishing second-fifth in the U2200 section while gaining 19 rating points to lift my rating to 2013. I started out 3/3, setting up a round four game versus number one seeded NM Deshawn Kelley (2171), who was the only other player with a perfect score. I drew with Kelley, which meant that a last round win would clinch no worse than a tie for first, while a draw would clinch no worse than a second place tie. In the last round, I drew with Charithra Arvind (1827), the 19th highest rated 17 year old girl in the country, and Kelley won to claim clear first. This is the first time that I have not lost a game in consecutive two day classical tournaments; my combined score in the Queen City Open and the Cardinal Open is five wins and four draws. After round three, I played in the Cardinal Open Blitz, and I had my worst speed chess tournament result ever, going 0/7; in my previous over the board speed chess tournament at Kings Island in November 2025, I scored 6/8 to win the U2000 prize, so I was quite surprised to have this kind of "perfect score," particularly considering how well I am playing in classical chess. Classical chess and speed chess are similar, but it is fair to say that they are distinct sports to the extent that a player can do well at one and not do as well at the other without this being shocking, although the stark difference between 4/5 in classical and 0/7 in speed during the same weekend is surprising.

I started out 2/2 in the February 8, 2026 East Market Swiss, extending my unbeaten streak to 13 games--but then I lost in the third round to Joseph Kleban before squandering a winning position (and throwing away a simple draw) versus NM Broderick Bauml. I lost 11 rating points to drop my rating to 2002. 

I scored just 1/3 in the February 14, 2026 Columbus G/60 tournament, losing 22 rating points to drop my rating to 1980. After drawing my first two games, I declined a draw in round three before blundering and losing.

On February 21, 2026, I played in the second G/25+5 tournament held at the Kleptz YMCA in Englewood. I won the first event (held on December 20, 2025) with a 4/4 score, and I scored 4/4 this time, gaining 10 rating points to lift my rating to 1990. Rob Dennis of the Dayton Chess Society (the successor to the Dayton Chess Club) did an excellent job running the event, and he was also my last round opponent. I finished a successful chess weekend by scoring 3/4 in the February 22, 2026 East Market Swiss, tying for third-seventh and gaining eight rating points to improve my rating to 1998.

I scored 3/4 in the February 28, 2026 Cincinnati Tornado, gaining 10 rating points to push my rating back over 2000 (2008). I tied for third-ninth, and I won the U2001 prize (my official published February 2026 rating was 1994). 

In recent years, my rating fell below 2000 soon after I pushed it above 2000, so it felt great to score 4/4 in the March 8, 2026 East Market Swiss to gain 37 rating points and lift my rating to 2045, my highest rating since I had a 2060 rating in November 2022.

My daughter Rachel and I played in the March 15, 2026 Chess Earth Rapid tournament, a six round Quick-rated event featuring a G/15 +5 time control. I scored 4/6 to finish fifth-sixth, while Rachel scored 2/6 despite playing higher rated players in five of her six games. The player who beat me in the fifth round, Shashank Palla, scored 5/6 to take clear first place. His USCF Quick rating vaulted from 1519 to 1704. I lost 36 points to drop my Quick rating to 1939. Here are two pictures from the Chess Earth Rapid tournament (the second one shows one of the positions from a game that Rachel and I played on the oversize chess set after the tournament ended):

 

Rachel and I played in the March 19, 2026 Cincinnati Open Qualifier Quads, a Quick-rated event with G/24 with five second time delay time control. I scored 2/3 in the top quad to finish second, while Rachel scored 1/3 in the sixth quad. In the last round, I spoiled a winning position against top seeded Ashwin Kumar, playing an unsound sacrifice. Kumar is a promising junior player who is the 18th highest rated 12 year old (2134) in the United States. I gained seven points to lift my Quick rating to 1946.

I scored 3.5/4 in the March 28, 2026 Cincinnati Tornado, gaining 18 rating points to lift my rating to 2063, which is my highest rating since I had a 2080 rating in October 2022. I tied for first-second with top seeded NM Aryan Balyan, and I won the "Master Bounty" prize by drawing with Balyan in the last round. This is the third time that I won the Cincinnati Tornado "Master Bounty" ($100 for beating the top seeded Master, or $50 for drawing the top seeded Master): I drew with NM Pratik Shriwas (2378) in the July 30, 2016 Cincinnati Tornado, and I defeated NM Yuri Barnakov (2298) in the September 24, 2016 Cincinnati Tornado en route to finishing first-second and gaining 43 points to improve my rating to 2150. My rating has not been higher than 2100 since 2016. 

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 16, I listed four chess goals for 2026. Here are those goals, with notes about how I have performed so far this year:

1) Gain 25 rating points per quarter. I gained 83 rating points in the first quarter of 2026, improving my rating from 1980 to 2063.

2) Do not lose more than eight games to players rated below 1800. I lost 0 games to players rated below 1800 in the first quarter of 2026.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses. I had eight draws and eight losses in the first quarter of 2026.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .700. My winning percentage through the first quarter of 2026 is .727.

In 2026, I have scored 28 wins, eight draws, and eight losses in regular rated tournament games with three first place finishes in 11 events. I lost 0 games to players rated below 1800. My net rating gain for 2026 is 83, so I need to gain 137 points to reach my goal.

Journey to the National Master Title, Part 13

I scored 2/4 in the January 4, 2025 Columbus Plus Score tournament. I lost 16 rating points to drop to 1997. This is the eighth time I have played in a Columbus Plus Score event, and the third time that I did not achieve a plus score (but I also have never had a minus score). I squandered an easily winning endgame in the first round due to hasty, inaccurate play. In the diagram below, I am about to play my 42nd move, and Stockfish 17 says that I have a nearly +7 advantage.

There are many paths to victory, but perhaps the simplest is what I initially planned: pushing my e pawn, and if Black checks me then I can run my K up the board, using my R and P for shelter if necessary. However, I became concerned that Black's g pawn could become dangerous if Black uses his K and R to take my f pawn and g pawn while my e pawn runs. So, I decided to be "safe" and take the g pawn--but now my K has no shelter, so Black can either check me forever, or else be just in time to pick off all of my pawns. A couple moves later, my opponent blundered and gave me a second chance to push my e pawn under favorable circumstances, but after I missed that winning opportunity the game fizzled to a draw; turning a win into a draw represents a 12 point rating swing, and in order to regain those points at my current rating level I would have to win one game against a 2000 rated player or two games against an 1800 rated player. Chess can be brutal!

How can a strong and experienced player make such a mistake? Ignoring for a moment the reality that even world champions blunder because blunders are an inherent part of chess, this specific mistake reflects a larger weakness that I need to correct: I too often rely on a combination of my general chess knowledge and my intuitive feel for chess positions as opposed to doing move by move calculation. My general chess knowledge states that a player who is up two pawns wins trivially the vast majority of the time, and my intuitive feel for chess positions led me to believe that capturing the g pawn eliminated Black's last practical drawing chance--but move by move calculation would have enabled me to see that White is winning after 42. e4 Ra2+ 43. Ke3 Ra3+ 44. Kd4 Ra4+ 45. Ke5 g4 46. Rf4. Black's g pawn will fall, and my K and R will escort the e pawn down the board, as Black's K is cut off and I can evade R checks.

Although the tournament was not a success, I ended the event on a positive note; in the fourth round, I beat Mehmet Yilanli, the highest rated seven year old in the United States (1880), avenging my loss to Yilanli in the fourth round of the October 5, 2024 Columbus Plus Score tournament. 

I scored 3/4 in the January 5, 2025 East Market Swiss, gaining nine rating points to bounce back over 2000 (2006), and tying for second-fourth. I won my first three games before losing to top seeded Broderick Bauml in a last round battle for first place. 

As soon as I popped my head above 2000, I crashed below again by losing 19 rating points in the Columbus Winter Open to slip to 1987. I reached a winning position in the first round versus Maxwell Chung (1783) only to dissipate my advantage with inaccurate moves before doing an unsound piece sacrifice; instead of a quick win, I suffered my first loss of 2025 versus a player rated below 1800. I won my next two games but then lost to Aryan Balyan (2162) in a last round battle for second place.

I scored 2/3 in the Dayton Chess Club's January 18, 2025 G/45 Swiss, losing 10 rating points to drop to 1977. Although I did not perform as well as I expect to perform in this event, in the first round I delivered a pretty checkmate versus two-time Dayton Chess Club Champion David Guehl. I do not recall ever seeing this exact pattern before; it is interesting that my Q could be replaced by a B or even by a P and it would still be a checkmate because my opponent's K is hemmed in by his own Ps:

I scored 2/4 in the January 19, 2025 East Market Swiss, losing 19 rating points to fall to 1958. In the last round, with second place up for grabs, I lost to Keya Jha (1934), the second highest rated 10 year old girl in the country; she already ranks on the 95th percentile of all players nationwide! She finished clear second behind John Miller (2049), the top ranked player who beat me in the third round en route to a 4-0 performance. 

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 9, I described the history of the Cardinal Open, and I explained why it is one of my favorite tournaments. I tied for second-third among players rated under 2200 in the strong Open section of the 1999 Cardinal Open, highlighted by beating 13 year old National Master A.J. Steigman in the last round. Last year, I scored just 2.5/5 in the U2100 section. This year, I started with 2/3 on Saturday, putting myself in position to win a prize and gain rating points with two wins on Sunday. After the third round, I played in the Cardinal Open Saturday Night Blitz, scoring 5/8 to tie for first-second U2000 in the Open section. I scored 1.5/2 versus players who hold the NM title, including an exciting last round win versus Savio Bennihyn Joseph Benher, who has a 2231 regular rating. In the main event on Sunday, I beat my friend Robert Chenault (1906) in the fourth round, but I lost to Srihari Kandadai in a last round game on board two; as a result, Kandadai tied for first place with 4.5/5, but if I had won that game then I would have tied for second. Kandadai gained 139 rating points, vaulting from 1803 to 1942. I lost one rating point, dropping my rating to 1957.

I scored 3/4 in the February 1, 2025 Columbus Plus Score tournament, gaining 14 rating points to improve my rating to 1971. This is sixth time I achieved a plus score in nine appearances at this event. In the last round, I defeated Magnolia Zhu (1747), the fifth highest rated eight year old girl in the country. I was the eighth highest rated player in a strong field that included National Masters Will Sedlar (top scorer with 3.5/4), Jonathan Hilton, and Brett Passen, but I tied for second-fourth with Hilton and Expert Nicholas Bize. Sedlar defeated me in round two.

The February 15, 2025 Columbus G/60 tournament had an "Adults Only" (age 18 and up) format. Many adults prefer to not face young players, particularly young players who are not only strong but also underrated. I don't duck anybody at any time, but I wish that the U.S. Chess Federation would follow FIDE's example by adjusting the ratings of players rated under 2000 to reflect the obvious deflation that has happened in recent years. In the first round, I faced Pranav Jayaganesh, a young player who is still a "junior" according to the U.S. Chess Federation but who qualified for this "Adults Only" event because he is older than 18 and graduated from high school. I obtained an opening advantage plus a huge lead on the clock, but I did not cash in and my opponent offered me a draw twice in the endgame. Both times that he offered a draw the position was equal, but I convinced myself that I could induce him to make a time pressure error. Eventually, I sacrificed a pawn to create complications. With best play, he would have been forced to sacrifice back to maintain equality--but, instead, I blundered in his time pressure:

Here, 66.Kb5 maintains a narrow path to equality: 66...Bxh4 67.c4 Bf2 68.Kxa5 h4 69.Kb5 Kg5 70.c5 Bxc5 71.Kxc5 Kf4 72.a5 Kf3 73.a6 h3 74.a7 h2 75.a8Q h1Q 76.Qa6 Kf4 77.Qxf6 Qxf1 78.Qh6+ Kxe4 79.f6 Qf2+ 80.Kd6 g3 81.Qh7+ Ke3 82.Qa7+ Kf3 83.Qxf2+ gxf2 84.f7 f1Q 85.f8Q+ Ke2 86.Qxf1+ Kxf1 87.Kxe5=. Unfortunately, I played 66.Kd5?? and lost after 66...Bxh4 67.c4 Bf2 68.c5 h4 69.c6 Bb6 70.Kd6 Kg5 71.c7 Bxc7+ 72.Kxc7 h3 73.Kd6 Kh4 74.Ke6 g3. I played the game continuation because I missed how fast Black's pawns are after 73...Kh4. I hastily assumed that if Black's K abandons f6 then my pawn would roll through. I remember NM Jim Jordan asserting "If you can count, you can become a Master." That still seems like an exaggeration to me, but this position is a great example of how important it is to count/calculate accurately. Jayaganesh finished with 2/3, gaining 32 rating points. I won my last two games to finish with 2/3, but I lost five rating points, dropping my rating to 1966.

I tied for first-third U2000 in the February 22, 2025 Cincinnati Tornado, scoring 3/4. I lost one rating point, dropping my rating to 1965. I was the fifth seed in the 29 player Open section, and I was the only player seeded in the top five to win a prize. The next day, I completed a full chess weekend by scoring 2.5/4 in the February 23, 2025 East Market Swiss. I lost nine rating points, dropping my rating to 1956. I was the third seed out of 23 players. Only one of the top three seeded players won a prize. Shiv Srinivasan won the event with 3.5/4 after beating me and the second seeded player in rounds three and four respectively, and he gained 89 rating points to push his rating to 1865; this is the third time this year that I lost to a player rated below 1800 (and the second time that the sub-1800 player who beat me had a post-tournament rating above 1800). I missed several forced wins (and some forced draws) versus Srinivasan. Here is my last chance before I blundered and handed the win to him:

Srinivasan had just played 54.Kc4, getting out of check and renewing the mate threat on g7. I should have played 54...f6, which blocks my opponent's B while opening up f7 for my B and freeing my Q to swing over to d1. Stockfish 17 says that Black is nearly +5 here, meaning that my advantage is equivalent to being ahead by a R. Instead, I hallucinated that my opponent could get a perpetual check by sacrificing his R on f6 if I pushed the pawn, so I played 54...Qh6?? My opponent replied 55.g4, threatening both to deflect my Q with 56.g5 and to pin my Q with 56.Rh2. I can parry both threats by playing either 55...f6 or 55...Rd1--but because I did not notice the Rh2 threat I played 55...Be4?? and I thought that I had caught White's K in a mating net. I was deflated and discouraged when my opponent played 56.Rh2, a move which may look spectacular to a novice but is in fact a simple deflection tactic that I should have seen as soon as my opponent opened his second rank by pushing his g pawn. I had an advantage for a substantial portion of this game, but posterity will record the result as 1-0; there are no rating points or prizes awarded for "almost winning" or "winning for most of the game." 

Over 20 years ago, I asked Grandmaster Edmar Mednis how to consistently convert winning positions/how to avoid blundering away winning positions, and he told me to think of a chess game as equivalent to taking a five hour car trip: if you drive safely for four and a half hours but then crash into a ditch that is not a successful car trip; similarly, if you dominate your opponent for most of the game but then blunder, that is not a successful chess game. The car trip/chess game is not over until you safely reach your desired destination. I remember Mednis' story but remembering it is not enough: I must apply this wisdom when the outcome of the game hangs in the balance. It is not enough to be a good storyteller. I asked Mednis the question not to have a pithy pearl of wisdom to share, but to obtain practical advice to use during my games.

I scored 3/4 in the March 1, 2025 Columbus Plus Score tournament. This is the seventh time I achieved a plus score in 10 appearances at this event. I gained seven rating points, lifting my rating to 1963. I was the seventh seeded player, but I tied for second-sixth behind rising young Expert Siddarth Kunapuli. In the last round, I defeated National Master Brett Passen, the top seeded player. Two of the top three seeded players did not finish with a plus score, which indicates how competitive this tournament was.

I followed up my solid Columbus Plus Score result by winning the March 8, 2025 Columbus G/60 tournament with 2.5/3. I gained 14 rating points to improve my rating to 1977. The combined ages of my three opponents was significantly less than my age, and I am proud that I am showing that "Generation X" players can still compete with talented "Generation Alpha" players. On March 9, 2025, I scored 3/4 in the East Market Swiss, tying for second-fourth but losing seven rating points to drop my rating to 1970. I played ...Nxh3 in two games--the first time, I sacrificed unsoundly and lost to Stanley Qiu (1790) in the second round, but the second time my attack versus veteran Columbus player Thomas Stafa (1859) crashed through successfully.

Here is the position prior to my 29th move versus Qiu:

 

I stand clearly worse here, so I went for it with ...Nxh3+. I captured two pawns for my N, and I had ideas of lifting the Rf8 and swinging the other R to the f file, but White's Q, B, and R are putting too much pressure on my K. I lost after 30.gxh3 Qxh3 31.Qg2 Qxc3 32.Ne3 Rf4 33.Qg6 Rf6 34.Qxh5 Qd3 35.Rfd1 Rg6+ 36.Ng4 Qe4 37.Rb8+ Bf8 38.Rxf8+ Kxf8 39.Qh8+ Ke7 40.Qe8#.

Here is the position prior to my 30th move in my fourth round game versus Stafa. My pieces are swarming around Stafa's K, and after ...Nxh3 I won quickly: 31.Bxh3 Qxf2+ 32.Ng2 Nf4 33.Qf3 Rxh3+ 34.Rxh3 Qxf3.

I scored 3.5/4 in the March 16, 2025 East Market Swiss, claiming clear first while gaining 15 rating points to push my rating to 1985--but the highlight of the event was spending the day with my daughter Rachel, who drew her first round game despite not playing in any tournaments since the December 28, 2024 Cincinnati Tornado (where I also scored 3.5/4, finishing first-second). Rachel and I enjoyed Yellow Brick cheese pizza during the lunch break after the second round, and she also had a brownie batter sundae from NOLA Daq Shack.

Pre-tournament selfie with Rachel at March 16, 2025 East Market Swiss

The March 29, 2025 Cincinnati Tornado was my final tournament of the first quarter of the year. I scored 3/4 to finish clear second, gaining 12 rating points to increase my rating to 1997. In the third round, I drew Will Sedlar (2341), and thus I earned the "Master Bounty" prize paid out to a player who defeats or draws with the event's top seeded player.

I started the first quarter of 2025 horribly--losing 57 rating points in January--but I finished strongly, gaining 41 rating points in March. In five March tournaments I finished first twice and second three times while scoring 15/19 with just two losses--but both losses were to players rated below 1800, which means that a great month could have been even better. The blown winning positions described earlier in this article represent the difference between being rated over 2050 now versus being rated 1997; the rating points are there for the taking, but I have to take them by consistently converting winning positions. 

In Journey to the National Master Title, Part 12, I listed four chess goals for 2025. Here are those goals, with notes about how I have performed so far this year:

1) Gain 50 rating points per quarter. I lost 16 rating points in the first quarter of 2025, decreasing my rating from 2013 to 1997. 

2) Do not lose more than six games to players rated below 1800. I lost five games to players rated below 1800 in the first quarter of 2025.

3) Accumulate more draws than losses. I had nine draws and 14 losses in the first quarter of 2025.

4) Maintain a winning percentage of at least .750, to break my personal record of .740 set in 2014. My winning percentage in the first quarter of 2025 was .681.

In 2025, I have scored 35 wins, nine draws, and 14 losses in regular rated tournament games with two first place finishes in 15 events. I lost five games to players rated below 1800. My net rating gain for 2025 is -18, so I need to gain 205 points to reach my goal.