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1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. Nf3 cxd4 4. Nxd4 e5 5. Nb5 d5 6. cxd5 Bc5 (Kasparov) is one way for Black to get a sharp position anyway.
I did a lecture a few months ago on this line going over the game where Kasparov introduced it. I have had very good results with black with a more conservative line which I studied with Milan Vukadinov. I had several draws with black against 2400 or even 2500 players when I was a 2000 rated player.
I played the Benko pretty successfully at that 1900-2000 level, for many years. Many players will avoid 3. d5 or 2. c4, so you need some other options.
Thanks Ken. I don't think I would have considered that before your post.
If you've also played it at regular slow speed, I would welcome thoughts.
I played the Benko pretty successfully at that 1900-2000 level, for many years. Many players will avoid 3. d5 or 2. c4, so you need some other options.
I love to crush the French Defence, generally speaking most any cowardly defence that has for its first move a wimpy pawn push of one single square forward.
So naturally for the French Defence I enjoy playing The Reti Gambit ... 1.e4 e6 2.b3 ...
Gambits are a lot of fun to play and great surprise weapons. But they are also alot of work to prepare. I wouldnt recommend playing them regularly in tournaments as they are too easy to prepare against. Back in the 90's I used to play the Smith Morra and King's Gambit regularly and had a lot of exciting wins but also a lot of debacles and finally the computer put a stop to that.
Recently I still play the Max Lange (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.d4) but thats mainly in homage to Kolty (Koltanowski) who made that gambit an art form.
I would recommend whatever your opening is to add a little spice to it with one or two gambits (ex.1. d4 Blackmar Diemer or 1.e4 e5 Evans Gambit) and use it as the occasional surprise.
So during this pandemic, I've been gaining an interest in gambit openings, which is not my usual "style".
If you have a gambit repertoire, I would be interested in your suggestions. I'm in the 1800-2000 range.
Thanks!
I find at 1800-2000 range, b pawns are not particularly useful in the middlegame, and it's normally fun and fine to push them to b4 and b5. The endgame odds given tend to be highly technical at rating range as well...
d pawn gambits tend to be more of theoretical battles. I wouldn't play a d pawn gambit in a serious game.
One challenge with a gambit repertoire for White is that so many Black players have a decline-the-gambit response that is perfectly adequate, e.g. early ...d5 vs King's Gambit, declining the Morra with ...Nf6 turns it into an Alapin. I don't think those are objectively the best moves, but they're close enough to equality and they definitely make make Black's prep simpler, and most players are happy enough with that as Black.
But players seem to want more with White, which may explain why so many of the gambit suggestions here are for gambits with Black.
yes thanks, good points John --- so far I'm appreciating the feeling of not playing the same things over and over, especially as gambits seem less predictable to stay in "expected" theory
During this gambit research, I'm finding out just how much there is to learn when the opponent doesn't even let you get there, or declines when offered. Having fun with this.
One challenge with a gambit repertoire for White is that so many Black players have a decline-the-gambit response that is perfectly adequate, e.g. early ...d5 vs King's Gambit, declining the Morra with ...Nf6 turns it into an Alapin. I don't think those are objectively the best moves, but they're close enough to equality and they definitely make make Black's prep simpler, and most players are happy enough with that as Black.
But players seem to want more with White, which may explain why so many of the gambit suggestions here are for gambits with Black.
In 2017 New In Chess published My First Opening Repertoire for Black by Vincent Moret. Designed for ambitious beginners, the repertoire recommends aggressive systems for black. Against e4 Moret gives the Scandinavian, including the Icelandic Gambit and the Portuguese Variation (see also David Smerdon), against d4 the Albin Countergambit, or when that is avoided the Stonewall. Not for me, but playing such openings has more to do with style and being comfortable with the resultant positions rather than objective soundness.
Here in the Pacific Northwest there are a couple of players who have achieved legendary status for their use of gambits, Ernst Rasmussen with the Blackmar-Diemer and Viktors Pupols with the Latvian.
Good ideas Stephen, something more for me to peruse during Thursday Night Football tonight, thanks!!
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