NM Hal Terrie

• USCF Rating: 2200
• Openings : -100
• Tactical Ability : -100
• Positional Play : +25
• Endgame Technique : +50
• Speed Chess : 3
• Consistency : 6
• Tenacity : 4
• Overall Aggressiveness : 3
• Against Strong Players : 4
• Against Weak Players : 5

Strengths: Hal has a good understanding of endgames and positional play. He is especially good at technical positions.

Weaknesses: Hal doesn't play often, and thus is always rusty. He has terrible time management skills, as he gets into time pressure virtually every game. He misses some fairly simple tactics sometimes, this probably has to do with the fact that he doesn't play enough to stay sharp.

Amusing Story:

Hal won the 2001 Greater Boston Open, where he beat GM Alexander Kalinin in the last round. Before the game, strong players commented that Hal has "no chance". Indeed it looked dismal for Hal, as he had a worse position with only 1 second left (plus the 5 second delay) in his game against Kalinin. Thankfully for Hal, Kalinin hung his rook in the time pressure and Hal went on to win the tournament.

Reason for this song choice:
Hal is known for having very long games. Even when he has a decisive advantage in the middlegame, he prefers to trade down pieces to the endgame, taking "The Long Way Home".