I think the Benko is generally considered to be stronger, although still a bit dubious in longer time controls. It's also harder for white to avoid, since in higher elo ranges you can get the benko most games but for the Blumenfeld you'd have to learn the Nimzo Indian and catalan as well, neither of which are similar to the blumenfeld and they each have a bunch of theory. The flipside though is most people below 2200 won't know any theory against the blumenfeld.
Benko Gambit vs. Blumenfeld Gambit
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Blumenfeld is considered to be unsound. It drops a pawn for no compen whereas Benko gives at least some pressure.
I started to play the pawn grab line against the Blumenfeld but very soon, no-one played it. But once upon a time, the first time I faced the Blumenfeld, I worked out a Q-side pawn sacrifice for white, over the board, and won beautifully.
If you have to accept it then benko, otherwise Blumenfeld benko is refuted after 5.b6 where it looks like a sad Benoni
Thare's some IM trying to sell the Blumenfeld atm. Wait a minute.
Want a chess opening that fights for the initiative right from the start? 🤔 The Blumenfeld Gambit is perfect for club and tournament players against 1. d4. Learn how to play this opening confidently, with IM Paschall's full course. Get instant access with 35% off. ►https://ichs.co/2AbyaMM The Blumenfeld Gambit is a chess opening that begins with the moves 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. d5 b5, although there are around 30 different move orders that can reach the same position. Black immediately plays for the initiative in the game, looking for a win. It is a rich opening with a history spanning over one hundred years, named after the Russian master Benjamin Blumenfeld. It was later played by Alexander Alekhine. This “defense” is closely related to other openings which have been extremely popular in modern times, including the Benko Gambit and the sharp Benoni. The battle for the center begins immediately, and is a fierce fight! It's an ideal opening for club and tournament players because if the opponent isn't familiar enough with it, they can easily go wrong and fall to a crushing defeat. In the Blumenfeld Gambit, Black sacrifices a pawn to establish an imposing center with pawns on c5, d5 and e6. The natural development of the bishops to b7 and d6, combined with the half-open f-file for a rook, tend to facilitate Black's play on the kingside. White, on the other hand, will typically look to counter in the center by playing e4 at some point, while his additional queenside pawn also offers him some initiative on that side of the board. In this video, IM William Paschall takes a look at the Benko-like opening, and, in particular, he focuses on the traditional main line in the accepted variation, as well as some sidelines. With the Blumenfeld Gambit, you will always be one step ahead of your competition. While your opponent stares at the board trying to figure out the next logical move, you will already know the winning sequence and correct plans, paired with flawless execution. You can just relax and enjoy the game… It is a much better position to be in! It not just takes the stress out of your game. This opening preparation gives you an instant confidence booster.>>
Con job
It was considered refuted by the accepted line de followed by cb. Doubt much has changed.
Optimissed έγραψε:
Blumenfeld is considered to be unsound. It drops a pawn for no compen whereas Benko gives at least some pressure.
Far from it. White gets a slight advantage in the Blumenfeld by declining the gambit.
Here is the line that annoys me most. I do not think that Black should lose this in a n ICCF game, but objectively Black's position is quite unpleasant.
Maybe 7...h6 8.Bxf6 qxf6 9.Qc2 Be7 can improve a bit, but this is a line where Black is playing for a draw, it does not really appeal to me.
pfren wrote:
Optimissed έγραψε:
Blumenfeld is considered to be unsound. It drops a pawn for no compen whereas Benko gives at least some pressure.
Far from it. White gets a slight advantage in the Blumenfeld by declining the gambit.
Here is the line that annoys me most. I do not think that Black should lose this in a n ICCF game, but objectively Black's position is quite unpleasant.
Maybe 7...h6 8.Bxf6 qxf6 9.Qc2 Be7 can improve a bit, but this is a line where Black is playing for a draw, it does not really appeal to me.
I definitely agree, the Blumenfeld is one of the few gambits in chess (aside from maybe the Queen's Gambit and a few other) that actually gives nearly full compensation for the lost pawn. Though if white does decline it black can sometimes get unpleasant positions.
pfren wrote:
Optimissed έγραψε:
Blumenfeld is considered to be unsound. It drops a pawn for no compen whereas Benko gives at least some pressure.
Far from it. White gets a slight advantage in the Blumenfeld by declining the gambit.
Here is the line that annoys me most. I do not think that Black should lose this in a n ICCF game, but objectively Black's position is quite unpleasant.
Maybe 7...h6 8.Bxf6 qxf6 9.Qc2 Be7 can improve a bit, but this is a line where Black is playing for a draw, it does not really appeal to me.
Hi yes, sorry, talking at cross purposes. I used to grab the pawn but wouldn't do so now. However, it was considered the most accurate play by white, maybe 15 to 20 years since.
For the past ten years I've been doing this:
1. d4 Nf6
2. c4 c5
3. d5 b5
4. Nf3.
My purpose is to invite a Blumenfeld. Most people, however, try to play a Benko. Black probably has three main moves at this stage. The most usual is g6. After g6 I can play either Qc2 or a4. After Bb7, probably likewise. After e6, however, there's a Blumenfeld. I did work out at one stage a Q-side pawn sacrifice by white. I worked it out one day over the board, played it two or three times and then didn't get a Blumenfeld for years and I've forgotten how it went. Don't even know how sound or unsound it is. But yes, for ten years or more I've been declining the Blumenfeld. But thanks for pointing it out.
My other main approach to the Benko has been the
1d4 Nf6
2c4 c5
3d5 b5
4cb a6
5Nc3 ab
6e4 b4
7Nb5
line. I like that more for blitz but have played it at slowplay and won, in the past.
Benko Gambit as Fischer would probably not haver been World Champ with out Pal Benko.
[thanks for analysis on the 2 gambits]
Blumenfeld is less sound than Benkö.
Incidentally, the GM whose advice I followed just said that in the Benko, black has more positional compensation than in the Blumenfeld in the fully accepted line. I can remember him saying that white can happiy defend it and it amounts to a forced win for white, due to some difference in the structure that made it preferable to a Benko for white. I can't remember who he was or what the salient feature of the positional difference is but I took him fully at his word, played it in an otb slowplay and had no difficulty in winning. I think I played it no more than three times and the last time only managed to draw. In those days I was totally happy to defend as white. My tastes changed, because defending as white is no good in tournaments, since it increases the number of moves you have to play overall. I'd changed from 1. c4 to 1. d4 for just that reason. I found that typical wins after 1d4 happened in less moves than after 1. e4, 1. Nf3 or 1. c4.
I don't know why so many claim Benko is more sound than Blumenfeld.
Maybe they didn't update or they don't know theory.
Benko is considered playable though perhaps dubious : because of a4 line in king's walk variation, though black found improvements, especially in modern move order with Qa5...
Blumenfeld was considered dubious but nowadays it is rehabilited and seen as quite sound.
So I think the theorical status is more positive with Blumenfeld.
Which gambit would you choose? The Benko and Blumenfeld often being identified as similar are anything but that! Even though these to "cousin" gambits both start with the letter b and sacrifice the b-pawn, they provide completely different compensation. The Benko Gambit, the more popular of the two, is a very positional queenside gambit. You sacrifice two pawns, gaining one back, to open lines on the queenside and you will eventually place your major pieces on the a and b files. In the Benko you are almost always committed to the queenside.
Benko Gambit:
On the other hand the Blumenfeld Gambit, not nearly as popular, focuses on a kingside attack. You normally sacrifice 1 pawn, not gaining it back, but getting huge attacking chances. You get a semi-open f file for the rook. A fianchettoed light-squared bishop, and the most significant part of this gambit which it is famous for, is the huge center, with pawns on e6, d5, and c5.
Blumenfeld Gambit:
So which one would you choose out of these dynamic b-pawn gambits?