Power of the Ponziani

I play this opening a lot since it somehow always confuses my opponents and it's easy to get an advantage.

Lovely finish. Poor queen!

Thank you! Might not get another chance to trap a queen like this in the future hahaha.

I've never seen it before, so I guess it's very rare, and also your opponent had to cooperate by not giving an escape square before it got too late. ...

Interesting idea for a discussion.

David Taylor who is a member here won a correspondence championship using the Ponziani and wrote a book titled Play the Ponziani if my memory serves me correctly. 

In the game you posted, even though you later trapped your opponent's queen, I noticed

14 Nxc7+ or even 14 Nf6+ would have captured your opponent's queen with the won exchange.

4...Nxe4 is supposed to be better for black

#1
Yes, Ponziani is a decent sideline.

Yeah, but there is a very common trap in it that GMs have fallen for:

That's an amazing trap, thanks.

Granted, when the opponent is in "Piece Giveaway" mood, all openings are very powerful.

If he is playing like that, then the next thread will be "The Power of 1.h3".

#10
"The Power of 1.h3".
IM Basman won an open tournament playing 1 g4, 2 h3 as white and 1...h6, 2...g5 as black in all 9 games. He has played that exclusively for years e.g. in the British Championships.

Basman is a strong tactical player, who did not really care reading theory. At his peak he was rated 2410, but this was 50 years ago, and equivalent to at least 2500-something in modern ratings.

#12
He also wrote
Michael Basman, The Killer Grob. Pergamon chess openings (1989). ISBN 0-08-037131-0

wilzrd

Lol.. I think black is doing just fine in the ponziani. Whites king can be liable to a counterattack.. this is why the Ruy Lopez is the main opening in the upper levels when king pawns get played. 

Same plan just a better move order. 

Anyways .. pfren has a point.. 

I even analysed the Magnus 1.h4 and have a theory about it. 

Let's just say he took a beginner move and changed it into surprise where basically all of your choices might just work in his favour.. so you have to be very alert when a player like that plays a move like 1.h4 .. he isnt just trolling his opponent.  The idea is to make a fianchetto lover uncomfortable and basically try to ensure a classical style game!