Dear readers: I will be continuing to cover opening variations in my column, but a slight shift will be made. Rather than looking at the historical developments of whole openings, I will be covering specific lines -- and not as much from a histori...
Aron Nimzowisch is one of the great thinkers in chess, and his greatest opening contribution to the opening is the Nimzo Indian Defense. The Nimzo Indian evinces some of the great struggles in chess. Bishop or knight? Are doubled pawns s...
The English Opening is one of the most popular in chess. Its record and the quality of its proponents compare favorably to any opening. Even the great champion of 1.e4, Bobby Fischer, took up the English Opening in his historic match against ...
Are you tired of tackling the Sicilian Defense as White? There are just so many variations — The Dragon, the Najdorf, the Sveshnikov, the Scheveningen... It's exhausting! There are so many variations and ideas you have to know if you do...
Last week, we looked at the origins of the exciting Evans Gambit. Today, let's find out how the opening has journeyed through history to modern day. While in keeping with his style, Wilhelm Steinitz's torturous defensive method against t...
There's nothing quite like the joy of cooking up a fresh opening idea and springing it successfully on an unsuspecting opponent. The thrill of a great novelty is part of the mystery and lore of chess. Who can forget the first time they saw the gam...
This week we turn our attention to one of the most swashbuckling of openings: the Evans Gambit. Unlike some other openings whose first use was surrounded by mystery and uncertainty, the origins of the Evans Gambit seem fairly clear. ...
Last week, we discussed the first few options to fight against Black's Caro-Kann. Now let's take a look at some of the most important ways White can respond to this opening. The Advance Variation: The line 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e5 has...
In the previous two articles, I have discussed the earliest beginnings of the Caro-Kann Defense as well as later usage and developments. In this third part of the four-part series, I will discuss the various methods White has evolved to oppose the...
In part 1 of this series on the Caro-Kann, I discussed the earliest beginnings of the opening, the origin of the name, and its first adoption by top players. It is always fascinating to learn about the beginnings of these openings, which today see...
What makes chess beautiful is what remains undiscovered in its lesser-used openings. Obviously, some theory remains more popular than others and for good reason. Regardless, becoming acquainted with the ugly ducklings of chess, like the Scandinavi...
We turn our attention to a defense that has been known for its solidity from the very beginning: the Caro-Kann Defense. Surely the moves 1.e4 c6 have been played in casual games long ago -- probably soon after the modern rules of chess were inst...
Test your knowledge: which opening did Vladimir Kramnik lean on to equalize his chances as Black in the 2000 world chess championship, where he would eventually defeat the greatest chess player of all time? Fill in the blank: The 2014 world ches...
In Playing Against The Najdorf: The Adams Attack, we saw how an obscure small move (6.h3) was developed as an answer to another small move (5...a6 -- the Najdorf), which had, paradoxically, become the most popular opening in chess. The so-called...
Modernized: The Open Sicilian by IM Zhanibek Amanov & FM Kostya Kavutskiy This book is the second in the Modernized series, as last year MetroChess released Modernized: The King's Indian Defense&nbs...
In recent years, a strange little move has become surprisingly popular in combating the famous Najdorf Defense of the Sicilian: 6.h3. Personally, I have used this move since 2000, when I finally had to admit that it was more correct than the 6.R...
In part 1 of "The Scandinavian Defense: A History," we learned about the earliest beginnings of the Scandinavian Defense, and also saw some games with the slightly less usual 2...Nf6 in response to 2.exd5. Now we will see how the Scandinavi...
The time has come to look at the history of perhaps the first chess opening: the Scandinavian Defense. Also known as the Center-Counter, the Scandinavian Defense can be viewed as the most direct and forcing counter to 1.e4. The intrep...
Last week, we examined the origins of the Smith-Morra Gambit. As the Smith-Morra began to encounter strong players, a variety of different responses developed. In the early days, declining the gambit was actually quite popular. In fact, ...
For this week's edition of my column on the histories of openings, I have chosen the Smith-Morra Gambit -- a selection that might excite many readers. Most grandmasters have a low opinion of the Smith-Morra, while at the same time it is a favo...
Last week, we examined the origins of the Chigorin Defense at the end of the 19th century. In the following years, Chigorin used his defense many times and demonstrated its basic themes. Let's look at some of them. Black's play on t...
The Chigorin Defense is one opening whose history -- unlike some of others we have examined in previous weeks -- revolves around one man. And of course this is its namesake, Mikhail Chigorin. Chigorin was born in 1850 near St. Peterburg, where h...
Last week, we learned about the pre-war origins of the opening that would become the Modern Defense. Thus far, the Modern Defense did not have a real name, nor any kind of reputation. It was a curiosity which had been played a few time...
"Every time the Berlin endgame shows up on the board," GM Vladimir Kramnik remarked a few weeks ago, "everyone starts to cry quietly, [because] such positions are boring. However, games are often full of exciting play, although there are...
