From MooseMouse, for use in your scholastic clubs, feel free to share.
PLAY GAMBITS - WHY AND HOW
Hi, Coach Kaech here. Remember the Opening Game? The winner of the Opening Game is the first player to complete their development (connect rooks and activate a rook) without losing material. It should be your aim every game to get your pieces quickly onto active squares.
WHAT IS A GAMBIT? A gambit is an opening where you're willing to give up a pawn or more to get your pieces out 1) even faster and 2) to more effective squares. For the price of a pawn (or sometimes more), you will open lines for your pieces and complete development quicker than your opponent, often while generating immediate attacking pressure.
WHY PLAY GAMBITS?
From "Gambiteer I" by GM Nigel Davies:
"Having examined literally thousands of club player' games over the years, I have noticed several things:
The player with the more active pieces tends to win.
A pawn is rarely a decisive advantage.
Nobody knows much theory.
When faced with aggressive play, the usual reaction is to cower.
"Accordingly I suggest that a different approach to that used by the 'big boys' and their opening science is in order. Activity is the key, pawns don't matter too much, and if you play something your opponent hasn't seen before he's likely to respond very passively. Therefore I suggest that gambits represent an excellent practical proposition to any club player with a decent eye for tactics."
From "Openings for Amateurs" by Pete Tamburro:
"At scholastic levels, gambits happen a lot. Why? Players have learned that, if you study a gambit, a good many scholastic or average players have no idea how to meet it. What happens is that the gambiteer often gets a great position and a win because the game is decided in the first few moves."
"If you'e a scholastic player, you have a good chance of doing well with a King's Gambit, Max Lange Attack, Goring Gambit, Vienna Gambit, Boden Gambit or Danish Gambit. I know this because I taught this to my scholastic team of recent years and they ended up in the New York Metro Chess League championships seven years in a row, winning four of those times. Each year, I would change the gambit in case our opponents studied up."
You don't see grandmasters play many gambits anymore because 1) they can research their opponents' favorite openings in advance, and 2) their opponents are excellent defenders. Compare that to scholastic chess -- you can't research what your opponent is playing ahead of time, and we're all normal chessplayers, not masters.
Another reason to play gambits is -- they're fun!
PLAYING A GAMBIT -- GUIDELINES If you're giving up a pawn for rapid development and piece activity, great. Remember, every move counts. Get all of your pieces into the game, rapidly. Make sure you win the opening, that's why you've spent a pawn. You'll have the advantage of pressure and the initiative in the opening and middle game. But the endgame will not be friendly if you're down a pawn. So avoid unnecessary exchanges (until after you've won material!)
HOW TO PLAY AGAINST GAMBITS
From "Openings for Amateurs" by Pete Tamburro:
"There's confusion about how to handle gambits. I say you should choose whatever makes you feel most comfortable. If you're one of those players who wants to take the pawn and hold it right to the endgame because you feel good about being able to defend, then by all means do that. If you want to turn the tables on the would-be attacker with a countergambit, then go for it!
"In order to figure out what to do against a gambit, you have to understand what they are trying to do. Different gambits have different reasons for being played, but they pretty much fall into these categories:
To gain control of the center
To speed up development
To try and hit an opponent's weakness
To be tricky, in an attempt to catch their opponent sleeping
To stick an advanced pawn in the other fellow's position
To play a positional sacrifice for pressure
"In the open games (1.e4 e5), here's some good advice to keep in mind when you're thinking about meeting gambits.
Aggressively develop your pieces
Look for a well-timed ...d5 as a freeing move
Try not to abandon the center to your opponent
Always have castling on your mind
You can accept a gambit, decline a gambit, or sometimes accept it with the idea of giving the pawn back right away if it helps your position"
So go find a YouTube video on an interesting gambit, learn it and have fun!
From MooseMouse, for use in your scholastic clubs, feel free to share.
PLAY GAMBITS - WHY AND HOW
Hi, Coach Kaech here. Remember the Opening Game? The winner of the Opening Game is the first player to complete their development (connect rooks and activate a rook) without losing material. It should be your aim every game to get your pieces quickly onto active squares.
WHAT IS A GAMBIT?
A gambit is an opening where you're willing to give up a pawn or more to get your pieces out 1) even faster and 2) to more effective squares. For the price of a pawn (or sometimes more), you will open lines for your pieces and complete development quicker than your opponent, often while generating immediate attacking pressure.
WHY PLAY GAMBITS?
From "Gambiteer I" by GM Nigel Davies:
"Having examined literally thousands of club player' games over the years, I have noticed several things:
"Accordingly I suggest that a different approach to that used by the 'big boys' and their opening science is in order. Activity is the key, pawns don't matter too much, and if you play something your opponent hasn't seen before he's likely to respond very passively. Therefore I suggest that gambits represent an excellent practical proposition to any club player with a decent eye for tactics."
From "Openings for Amateurs" by Pete Tamburro:
"At scholastic levels, gambits happen a lot. Why? Players have learned that, if you study a gambit, a good many scholastic or average players have no idea how to meet it. What happens is that the gambiteer often gets a great position and a win because the game is decided in the first few moves."
"If you'e a scholastic player, you have a good chance of doing well with a King's Gambit, Max Lange Attack, Goring Gambit, Vienna Gambit, Boden Gambit or Danish Gambit. I know this because I taught this to my scholastic team of recent years and they ended up in the New York Metro Chess League championships seven years in a row, winning four of those times. Each year, I would change the gambit in case our opponents studied up."
You don't see grandmasters play many gambits anymore because 1) they can research their opponents' favorite openings in advance, and 2) their opponents are excellent defenders. Compare that to scholastic chess -- you can't research what your opponent is playing ahead of time, and we're all normal chessplayers, not masters.
Another reason to play gambits is -- they're fun!
PLAYING A GAMBIT -- GUIDELINES
If you're giving up a pawn for rapid development and piece activity, great. Remember, every move counts. Get all of your pieces into the game, rapidly. Make sure you win the opening, that's why you've spent a pawn. You'll have the advantage of pressure and the initiative in the opening and middle game. But the endgame will not be friendly if you're down a pawn. So avoid unnecessary exchanges (until after you've won material!)
HOW TO PLAY AGAINST GAMBITS
From "Openings for Amateurs" by Pete Tamburro:
"There's confusion about how to handle gambits. I say you should choose whatever makes you feel most comfortable. If you're one of those players who wants to take the pawn and hold it right to the endgame because you feel good about being able to defend, then by all means do that. If you want to turn the tables on the would-be attacker with a countergambit, then go for it!
"In order to figure out what to do against a gambit, you have to understand what they are trying to do. Different gambits have different reasons for being played, but they pretty much fall into these categories:
"In the open games (1.e4 e5), here's some good advice to keep in mind when you're thinking about meeting gambits.
So go find a YouTube video on an interesting gambit, learn it and have fun!