Need help with 1.a3 repertoire - Chess Forums - Page 3

IM pfren

Jan 17, 2012

0

#41

Playing 1.a3 is perfectly valid, but expecting a reverse open game is not the point. White must know WAY more than just that.

browni3141

Jan 17, 2012

0

#42

BirdBrain wrote:

1. a3 1247 36.5 % 24.5 % 39 %

1. f4 16877 35.5 % 24.5 %

40 %

It has better win percentages than my beloved 1. f4, which is a fine weapon. Even Fischer won with 1. f4 against Smyslov. But of course, it is bad too.

1. a3 gives White transpositional opportunities. Chalking this up to winning a piece vs. a mate in one is a silly argument, since this has nothing to do with that. It is a waiting move.

What is wrong with 1. d4 and 1. e4? Nothing! But, you do give Black targets to attack. With 1. a3, you have not yet revealed your cards. It is simply a good ,waiting move.

I think it's a perfect analogy. Surely you can see that I was exagerating to make a point? What a3 gives up is very very small, but it still gives something. Play 10 more "good, waiting moves", and see what happens. The best you'll get out of it is transposing into an opening where it's useful, and if black is a good player he'll avoid that. At least f4 is based on some logical principles.

Tomkov

Jan 17, 2012

0

#43

Ha. I know a guy who plays 1...g6 against everything (after studying Soltis book about 1...g6) and had better results with the black pieces than with white (he used to play stuff like d4-Nf3-Bg5).

So a few years ago he started to play 1.a3 followed by 2.g3 and copied his repertoire book and he started to win more games. Ofcourse there was the psychological element for black meeting 1.a3

Why not 1.g3 immediately? Because most people have a line against this. But after 1.a3 they were playing often stuff they weren't used to, like

Hank_McCarty

Jan 17, 2012

0

#44

I agree with bsrasmus, you are givening black to much choice too early and you are dedicating yourself to very few options when in reality 1. e4 e5 provides white with many different opening lines. Dont Give black tempo after the 1st move!

Hank_McCarty

Jan 17, 2012

0

#45

I agree with bsrasmus, you are givening black to much choice too early and you are dedicating yourself to very few options when in reality 1. e4 e5 provides white with many different opening lines. Dont Give black tempo after the 1st move!

tigergutt

Jan 17, 2012

0

#46

Thanks for advices everyone:) hank many people tells me that answering 1.e4 with e5 is bad because it gives white to many choices but 1...e5 is a very good response and you learn alot about the open games by playing it. Also black is at least equal in everything white throws at you. The ruy lopez is hard to play against but very interestning and there white has to struggle with blacks many responses everything from the passive steinitz to the insanely complicated zaitsev. Also the theory in the non ruy lopez lines doesnt change much

BirdsDaWord

Jan 17, 2012

0

#47

blake78613 wrote:

pfren wrote:

blake78613 wrote:

1.a3 allows Black instant equality and he can start playing for a win without having to work for equality first.

It seems you have a wrong idea about chess. I know one dozen Grandmasters which went down against 1.e4 c5 2.Na3, and Gerard Welling has picked up a few scalps with 1.e4 c5 2.a4.

Maybe so, but 1.e4 c5 2.Na3 and 1.e4 c5 2.a4 have nothing to do with what we are talking about. OP wants to play an open game which involves pawns at e4 and e5. In an open game Black needs to equalize before thinking about attacking. Your two examples are Sicilians, which because of the asymmetrical pawn structure either side can play for the initiative. If you are going to criticize please stay on topic, and say something relevant to the discussion.

Blake, his comment is perfectly on topic. This is a discussion about offbeat lines being playable. His discussion was totally relevant - I am sorry that you missed that. I understood it perfectly.

BirdsDaWord

Jan 18, 2012

0

#48

Pellik, linkspringger has some 1. a3 games in his stash, and that is what he did - converted into a type of Queen Pawn Game.

BirdsDaWord

Jan 18, 2012

0

#49

pfren wrote:

1.a3 could be useful against 1...e5, 1...d5 or 1...c5. But against 1...Nf6 or 1...g6 it does very little.

Pfren, I am curious to your thought, then, about something like 1. a3 g6 2. g3, heading for a Modern, or would you prefer a more Stonewall type play with d4 setups? Not literally a Stonewall...

BTW, I have employed a3 in my Bird setups when I went for a type of Closed Sicilian position, and I often face ...g6.

This could also apply to ...Nf6 setups.

IM pfren

Jan 18, 2012

0

#50

1.a3 d5 2.Nf3 aiming for a reversed Benoni/ Benko, or Nimzoindian is the most logical way to make good use of the a3 bonus. QGA accepted also goes, but Black need to be a tad too cooperative...

kwaloffer

Jan 18, 2012

0

#51

But what, come to think of it, is the best white has after 1.a3 a6 ? Any white openings that work extra well after that?

It feels like ...a6 is useful for black pretty often (hence 1.a3), but a3 not as often for white in normal openings.

tigergutt

Jan 19, 2012

0

#52

Now i played alot of 1.a3 games and some of them where interestning. Whats its annoying is that in most of games i had to face a reversed londonsystem and i hate playing against the londonsystem. I think i just go back to 1.e4. I miss the open sicilian. Thanks for good tips everyone:)