user-1: I played a skittles game (no clocks, arbiter etc.) against a beginner who did a lot of trash talking, which I didn't rise to. Here is an example of the conversation:

Beginner: I'm going to beat you easily!
Bad_Bishop: I'd like to see that. I play at quite a high level. Do you want a refresher on the rules, such as en passant and castling?
Beginner: No, I know all that already
Bad_Bishop: OK
Beginner: I'll take white. They always win!
Bad_Bishop: Hmmm...
Beginner: [Part way through the game] How do knights move again?
Bad_Bishop: In an 'L' shape
Beginner: [After being checkmated] OK, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!
Bad_Bishop: Hmmm. Do you want to play a different game?

My questions are, should I have handled this beginner's trash talk differently? How?

I didn't keep a scoresheet, but this is what I remember of the opening:
[FEN ""]
[White "Beginner"]
[Black "Bad_Bishop"]

  1. b3             d5            
  2. Na3            e5            
  3. Nb1            Bc5           
  4. d4             Bxd4          
  5. Kd2            Bxa1          
 *


user15847: From experience, I would have done something like this:

Beginner: I'm gonna beat you easily!!
Bad_Bishop: Maybe, maybe not, anything can happen in chess ;)
Beginner: I'll be white. They always win!
Bad_Bishop: They don't win all the time ;)
Beginner: [After being checkmated]Ok, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!
Bad_Bishop: True, but did you learn anything from this game, that's what's important. :)


user14760: If it is an online server you played the person on, avoid playing the user.  There are better beginners to spend your time playing with out there.
If it is in the club, hard for me to say.  Avoiding the player at the club, regardless of how the player acts,  may give an unwanted reputation change but maybe not.  Maybe people would be understanding, not sure.  I typically in interactions like that(be it chess play or not) I assume conservatively and avoid the trash talking, take everything they say as a joke and brush it off.  You gain nothing doing anything else as far as I am concerned. 
They are obviously insecure about their game that they resort to trying to affect your mental game play by trash talking instead of making good moves on the board. Only the moves on the board win. 
I have no tolerance for that type of etiquette/sportsmanship. As a lower level/rated player myself we should be grateful a higher level player agrees to play with us.  We only get better when we play people who are better than we are.

user70: This isn't about chess. It is about manners. I would explain to the youngster than this isn't Call of Duty. Trash talking is not acceptable.
"Young man, are you aware you're being rude to me?"
"uh, what"
"There is no trash talking in chess. There are only moves and they speak for themselves."

user4418: A much better way of handling it -

Beginner: I'm going to beat you easily!
Bad_Bishop: Of course you are.
Beginner: I'll take white. They always win!
Bad_Bishop: [Emphatically] Always! [pause, then with a note of doubt in your voice] Even when you are black?
Beginner: [After being checkmated] OK, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!
Bad_Bishop: You were just so, so unlucky. [As you push the black pieces over to his side and start setting up the white pieces on your
  side] My turn as white.


-1: <p>I played a skittles game (no clocks, arbiter etc.) against a beginner who did a lot of trash talking, which I didn't rise to. Here is an example of the conversation:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: I'm going to beat you easily!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: I'd like to see that. I play at quite a high level. Do you want a refresher on the rules, such as <em>en passant</em> and castling?</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: No, I know all that already</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: OK</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: I'll take white. They always win!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: Hmmm...</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: [Part way through the game] How do knights move again?</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: In an 'L' shape</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: [After being checkmated] OK, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: Hmmm. Do you want to play a different game?</p>
</blockquote>

<p>My questions are, <strong>should I have handled this beginner's trash talk differently? How?</strong></p>

<hr>

<p>I didn't keep a scoresheet, but this is what I remember of the opening:</p>

<pre><code>[FEN ""]
[White "Beginner"]
[Black "Bad_Bishop"]

  1. b3             d5            
  2. Na3            e5            
  3. Nb1            Bc5           
  4. d4             Bxd4          
  5. Kd2            Bxa1          
 *
</code></pre>
 15847: <p>From experience, I would have done something like this:</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Beginner:</strong> I'm gonna beat you easily!!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop:</strong> Maybe, maybe not, anything can happen in chess ;)</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner:</strong> I'll be white. They always win!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop:</strong> They don't win <strong>all</strong> the time ;)</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner:</strong> [After being checkmated]Ok, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop:</strong> True, but did you learn anything from this game, that's what's important. :)</p>
</blockquote>
 14760: <p>If it is an online server you played the person on, avoid playing the user.  There are better beginners to spend your time playing with out there.</p>

<p>If it is in the club, hard for me to say.  Avoiding the player at the club, regardless of how the player acts,  may give an unwanted reputation change but maybe not.  Maybe people would be understanding, not sure.  I typically in interactions like that(be it chess play or not) I assume conservatively and avoid the trash talking, take everything they say as a joke and brush it off.  You gain nothing doing anything else as far as I am concerned. </p>

<p>They are obviously insecure about their game that they resort to trying to affect your mental game play by trash talking instead of making good moves on the board. Only the moves on the board win. </p>

<p>I have no tolerance for that type of etiquette/sportsmanship. As a lower level/rated player myself we should be grateful a higher level player agrees to play with us.  We only get better when we play people who are better than we are.</p>
 70: <p>This isn't about chess. It is about manners. I would explain to the youngster than this isn't Call of Duty. Trash talking is not acceptable.</p>

<p>"Young man, are you aware you're being rude to me?"
"uh, what"
"There is no trash talking in chess. There are only moves and they speak for themselves."</p>
 4418: <p>A much better way of handling it -</p>

<blockquote>
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: I'm going to beat you easily!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: Of course you are.</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: I'll take white. They always win!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: [Emphatically] Always! [pause, then with a note of doubt in your voice] Even when you are black?</p>
  
  <p><strong>Beginner</strong>: [After being checkmated] OK, you won, but I took 2 pawns and a knight!</p>
  
  <p><strong>Bad_Bishop</strong>: You were just so, so unlucky. [As you push the black pieces over to his side and start setting up the white pieces on your
  side] My turn as white.</p>
</blockquote>
