Hi everyone,

I'm on the verge of ditching my morra repertoire against the sicillian. It has served me well but I'm reaching a good ELO level whereby my opponents are THAT much more well prepared.... So I'm about to switch to the 2.c3 variation (a natural progression for ex-smith morra gambit players). Does anyone have an opinion about this particular variation or any good learning material on it?

Thanks Chess.com community.

It's a solid variation but it's not very sicilianish in that it's a semi- closed kind of variation instead of the open axe murdering madness of the open scicilians. There's a book, 'Play the c3 Sicilian' don't remeber the author though ( I thinks it's some obscure IM) 

 why not start actually studying the main line sicilians? 

The point being is that I want to take my opponent out of his 'comfort zone' as soon as possible and start making him play in positions that he's unfamiliar with. It's a strategy that has served me well in the past. My opening repertoire consists of mainly sidelines. Also, I don't have much time for main line studying! =) I know objectively that what I should be doing, but @ club level sidelines and lesser known lines seem to do the trick for me. =)

Having said that I am aware that the higher one's ELO rating gets, one needs to familiarised himself more and more with main lines.

And yes, I know that 2.c3 is kinda positional/quiet but GM  Tiviakov plays it pretty well with good results.  =p I've heard that it can lead to explosives positions as well.

 I don't play it, but I I am a scillian player and I will tell your that c3 is my least favorite variation. I like Grand Prix's attack though, which is why I play it.

 It was a question....Although, I do think (if you can) you should study main lines.  If you have time to study the c3 lines I don't see why you can't find the time for other lines(although I understand, being an 1.e4 player that it is a lot). 

 Even if you don't get all these lines down pat you certainly learn a whole lot about how to play different pawn structures and different weaknesses etc.  Your playing strength should increase just by studying them.  And as you said the higher you get up the better you need to know the main lines.  And if you plan on getting high up there-then why not just start learning them now? 

 I tried avoiding it and am actually having quite a headache at the moment.  If I had just learned them when I was less skilled and playing less skilled opponents then the learning curve would not have been as big(the lower rateds don't know how to punish your innaccurate move orders and all that)

I've been successfully playing the c3 Sicilian for 25 years. I highly recommend getting a book called "Chess Explained -The c3 Sicilian" published by Gambit books in 2007. The author is Sam Collins.

The only line I would be worried about is 1.e4 c5  2.c3 Nf6  3. e5 Nd5  4. d4 cd   5. cd Nc6  6. Nf3 d6. If Black can play ... Bg4 he has a fine position, so White would like to force ...e6. I think 7. Bc4 is the only try for an advantage but then you have to know what to do against 7. ... de (I recommend 8. Ne5) and 7 ... Nb6 8. Bb3 d5 (Collins recommends 9. Nh4) or 9... de 10. d5 with a gambit.

Some obscure IM?  I believe one IM who is apparently very knowledgeable in the opening, but also GM Rosentalis.  I've read a bit about it.  Seems like it's the book to have on the c3 sicilian.  As for the variation, I play it as white and like it.  One thing I really like about it is that it seems most sicilian players hate it, even if they start off thinking they love it and will have an easy game, after a few games, they tend to hate it.  I also quite like the nice piece development you get with it, and it seems a lot of the moves can be quite natural, but even though it is supposed to be more positional, that doesn't mean that some of the positions cant get quite complicated!  You should be aware that after e6 d4 d5, it is probably best to transpose into an advance french, so long as you don't mind this and know some stuff about this then I don't see that as being a problem.  I can't really imagine a sicilian player being too happy with a french anyway, although again, they probably think they have already an easy equality.  You just have to show them how wrong they are. 

Also try the Delayed Alapin. White plays 2. Nf3 and then 3. c3 instead of 2. c3 immediately

That, my friend is sacrilege.

What particular Black defences are causing this total mental breakdown?

dont listen to them. I think c3 is a very sound reply, not to mention the fact that you can transpose it, forcing your opponent to play the french pretty much. But at the same time, maybe you should try playing 2 Nc3 who knows, from what i can tell. You being a smith-morra player, that makes you a gambiteer/aggressive player. Perhaps you should just try playing some of the mainline things. In order to progress in chess you must know many openings and many diffrent variants, OR just have tons of natural talent. Which most do not, so if you dont have tons of natural talent, then try playing diffrent variants of the sicilian. Im not saying change your playing style, just experiment with what is out there!

ask gonnusuke he could tell you

I do not play the Open Sicilian as I do not want to keep up with lots of theory and play against people's pet lines.

I vary between a closed Sicilian with Bb5 which works excellently against people less than 2200. Against others I play the 2 c3 Sicilian and have done pretty well. It is more of a closed game but I think White gets a solid small edge and again if he knows how to play the resulting positions should do well.

Sam Collins's book (mentioned in post 9)out on the 2 c3 Sicilian which is what I use and would recommend. He really helps describe the position as opposed to giving lots and lots of lines. I supplement Sam's book with modern games and check the lines against ones he recommends.

Good luck I think you will enjoy the opening.

or pelger he has a good rybka

Wow, thanks everyone for the helpful comments. I'll definitely look into Sam's Collin's book. Does anyone recommend Sergei Tiviakov Sicilian Defense with 2.c3 - Alapin Variation by chessbase? I had good experience with previous chessbase dvd's (most noticeably IM Andrew Martin's ABC's of the King Indian and  Ari Ziegler The French Defence) Nowadays I actually prefer looking out for videos rather then books...maybe it's cause i'm getting lazy to actually move the pieces on the board (or computer screen).

Lol. Well, i don't actually have a 'refutation' move order against the morra-smith gambit per say. All I can say is that I've noticed that my opponents are able to resist better and better against the smith morra, and I don't fancy being a pawn down for too long waiting for my opponent to make a mistake. I'd rather start on equal terms. =) Also, the funny thing I've noticed with gambit lines is that your opponent is able to return the pawn back at some stage to regain equality (sometimes even more). Hence, my decision to put off the morra to the 2.c3 alapin variation. =)

If you're not happy being a pawn down for attacking chances & a decent lead in development then the Morra probably isn't for you.

Like most gambits, it is a more powerful weapon OTB than in CC anyhow.

2.c3 is a main line, there is nothing wrong with it. But I don't think the surprise effect is a good reason to play it, as below 2000 the various antis together are more popular than the Open. 2.c3 is a move every sicilian player sees a lot of.

But it's still a fine move.

And the Morra... white sacs a pawn to get the same attacking chances and lead in development that he gets in the open sicilian anyway. It's really bad.

Most sicilian players below 2000 are not surprised to see 2.c3, but I'm yet to play one who is particularly happy with what they play against it.