Sokolsky Opening. Has anyone had success persisting with the lines

I sense that white “ should “ have a slight advantage in these two positions because they are not the most played lines by black

some of those rare times c5 is playable is agaisnt the london reply. White plays for a big clamp with a3 and d4, but black has to think twice how to counter as early on nd4! threatening the bishop and c6 if the knight went to d7 is a possibility. equal on paper but i have won way too many games with those queenside pawns steam rolling black . Sometmes you even play f4, later on to slow down any kingside activity.

In the first one 5....Bxb4 might be playable anyway because of 6Qa4ch Nc6 7Nd4 Rb8.

Had in mind more 3...Bg4 of Carlsen v So. These lines are more aiming to get a playable game for black, for something see rarely. 

superior is

agaisnt 3.bg4, its just a game, white can choose between early b5 or c5, in many lines

Carlsen lost that game to So but it was neck and neck until Carlsen blundered terribly on move 27. 

No....black should be mercyless...5..be7.

Both the d4 games highlighted earlier, if the games followed the lines ended with whites pawn passing to c5. That seemed to be a reasonably good position for white in both instances with a good battle to follow still with chances both ways. But I would prefer to be in whites shoes slightly.

The other odd line in the Sokolsky opening which was mentioned in passing very early in the forums was disliked by most.

Its the rook exchange with whites bishop sitting on a1 at the end.

But anecdotally it was suggested that it would end in drawish lines with solid play on both sides.

It never seems to be played so I’m assuming it’s flawed for black

its not flawed, its just you can play a billion things vs 1.b4 and be equal or white only has a small advantage so why play for a boring drawish line? esp since some tries like the exchange, 1.e5 2.f6 or 1.d5 2.qd6 are dangerous for white without prep, they are simply superior alternatives if you want to fight.

the rook swap line is great if your opponent is higher rated and you happy for the draw.

https://lichess.org/rHcadUSO#11

look at the draw rate in the master database. it like 65%

Not according to black. b4 would be in the same class as b3 opening move, So good luck with c5. Now you've turned it into a loss, if black goes 6...a5.

Its a whole another way of looking at it. Black could lose sure..but its educational.

NM comments throughout his 1 b4 15/2 game. 

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bCOdKkIM-Gw

Are you keeping 1 b4 as your main, or only, first move, or is it your secondary to something else?

Or are you doing like I am, experimenting with it to see how it goes before you make a decision?

At this time I'm deciding between 1 b4 and the Keep It Simple 1 d4 book's repertoire. I want to play one or the other, not both.  Pros and cons in each, makes it difficult for me to decide. 

In the game that unsidesteppableChess showed I noticed the same issue that I felt.

It was a nice game by white with good spacial positions on the board .

But I mentioned it before that moment when you castle. The feeling of whether there is enough coverage for your king. I felt exactly that.

The bishop sack for the two pawns leaves the white king exposed. However if you recover and can defend it you have an advantage 

I haven't studied the game, mainly just listened to his thinking. After black sacked I did notice that if black's pawn was still on h7 instead of h6 black's attack would have been strong because the black rook would have had access to the h6 square.

I recall he was a bit upset with himself for not playing h3 before castling, but I don't recall why. I tend to be a careful player (often too careful), but I think I am willing to take more risks now than I used to be. 

If worried about a kingside attack then perhaps delay 0-0 for a while if it seems to not make a significant difference. If h3 appears to be a proper move then it might be safer to get it in before 0-0, but it also depends on black's setup of course. Probably don't want to leave white's rook sitting on h1 for a long time.

Generally speaking, if black has played ...h6 there may be less for white worry about in such a position. Yep, chess is tricky, complicated, and easy to mis-figure. 

When we are uncertain, our opponents may well be even more uncertain because they are not used to facing 1 b4, likely don't have any 1 b4 books, and can't be bothered to study 1 b4 middlegames. The more we play and study 1 b4 the better our pattern recognition will become and our theoretical knowledge will improve too. 

Okay. So this is an interesting point. In the Sokolsky Exchange variation after the more modern C3 move the black bishop retreats to d6.

Somewhere further in the game heading to the middle game that black bishop line together with the queen and to a lesser extent the other bishop puts pressure on whites king side for the bishop sack IF white castles.

It’s a very uneasy feeling!!!  . ( If a 2300 elo player feels uneasy with it then what hope an ordinary player).

Is it defendable?. Yes , maybe , probably. You go over the calculations but you do feel a little naked)

Are you one move away from annihilation? or just that one move ahead to cover it and a handsome advantage. Delaying the castling!!

This has been mentioned as a strategy before which seems fine. But I’m assuming very well thought out game plan to not engage the fortress for your king

 I think you forgot about the white bishop on e5. 

Ah yes. Maybe I only saw it after black knight to c6 and white continued with the knight exchange for bishop and then the black bishop retreat to d6. 

No. I’m wrong. I think it’s the combinations only in the game highlighted by unsidesteppableChess!!