10.Qf2 or 10.Qf4 in Gunderam's line

As a follow up from last post on Gerhart Gunderam's line 1.d4 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.f3 exf3 5.Nxf3 Bf5 6.Ne5 e6 7.g4 Bg6 8.Qf3 c6 9.g5 Bh5 (diagram), I am checking now whether 10.Qf2 or 10.Qf4 is the better choice.

Previoulsy, I believed 10.Qf2 was the better move  - it leads to a forced game after 10...Ng4 11.Nxg4 Bxg4 12.Bd3. But now, after analysis, I believe black is better after the simple 12...Be7 13.0-0 Bf5 14.d5 g6 and white has less than nothing for the sacrificed pawn.

So let's have a look to 10.Qf4, when black has two responses : 10...Nd5 and 10...Nd7. Let's first check out 10.Qf4 Nd5 11.Qh4 (diagram)

a/ 11...g6 12.Qf2
...a1/ 12...Qe7 13.Ne4 Nd7 14.Nxd7 Qxd7 15.c4 (+=)
...a2/ 12...Qc7 13.Nxd5 (+)
...a3/ 12...f5 13.gxf6 Qxf6 14.Qxf6 Nxf6 15.Bh3 (+=)

b/ 11...Bg6 12.Nxg6 fxg6 13.Qe4 

...b1/ 13...Be7 14.Bh3 (=)

...b2/ 13...Nxc3 14.Qxe6+ Qe7 15.Qxe7 Bxe7 16.bxc3 (+=)

...b3/ 13...Bb4 14.Qxe6+ Qe7 15.Qxe7+ (+=)

...b4/ 13...Nc7 14.Bh3 (+=)

...b5/ 13...Qd7 14.Bh3 (+=)

c/ 11...Nxc3 12.bxc3 

...c1/ 12...g6 13.Qf2 (+=)

...c2/ 12...Bg6 13.Nxg6 fxg6 14.Bh3 (+)

The second line 10.Qf4 Nfd7 11.Be2 Nxe5 12.Bxh5 Ng6 13.Qf2 (diagram) is far more complicated for the attacker ( to be noted is that white also has 13.Bxg6 hxg6 14.Rf1 with equal play )

Black's most promising defense is 13...Bb4 14.Bxg6 Bxc3+ 15.bxc3 hxg6 16.0-0 Qe7 17.Rab1 and white has to prove he has some compensation.

Summary. Both 10.Qf2 or 10.Qf4 do not win by force, but then again, didn't Gunderam predict that already ?

Hauptrecept

I have been working through Gerhart Gunderam's "Neue Eroffungswege" this week, and I have to admit, there are some great lines in it. Of course, this has to been seen in the context of the time of writing this book - 1961 - when there was no silicon assistent available...

Let's have a look at a line presneted on page 26 - Gunderam labels this as "Stammanalysen meiner Verteitigung, Hauprezept", roughly translated as the main line of his defense against the Blackmar Diemer.

Analysis Gerhart Gunderam, 1961.
1.d4 Nf6 2.Nc3
Gunderam does not cover the move 2.f3 - so it is obvious he has to deal with the Gubsch defense a lot.
2...d5 3.e4 dxe4 4.f3 exf3 5.Nxf3 Bf5 6.Ne5 e6 7.g4 Bg6 (diagram)

The main position in the Gunderam defense.

In addition to to tsandard move 8.Qf3, Gunderam now also considers 8.Bg2 c6 9.h4 butblack's reply 9...Bb4 is quite strong.

8.Qf3 c6 9.g5 Bh5 ! (diagram)

The author correctly indicates 9...Nd5 as inferior and suggests 9...Bh5 as the best defense, but now Gerhart misses the best white move.

10.Qh3 ??
We all know that 10.Qf2 or Qf4 is needed here. I will come back on that difficult choice in my next post. The text move is logical, it attacks a piece whose defender is attacked. But unfortunately black is to move first.

10...Qxd4 (diagram)

Gunderam still suggests 11.Nd3 Bg4 12.Qh4 but it is obvious that black is winning.
My computer finds 11.Nxf7 Kxf7 12.gxf6 Bg4 13.Qg3 but black is ahead.

So we can only applaude the work performed by Gunderam. His analysis proved to be invaluable for the development of the Blackmar Diemer. Obvuiously he misses some moves, but the ideas in his work on defending against the Blackmar Diemer ( eg 9...Bh5 ) have contributed a lot to modern theory.

New Opening Lanes

Yesterday evening all old books in my local chess club were auctioned. I was able to get some bargains, as one of the books was written by Gerhart Gunderam, a name that is familiar to many Blackmar Diemer gambiteers. I bought the book for 1 euro and indeed - the book is loaded with lots of games and analysis on the Blackmar Diemer. The is dated 1961 and is signed, unfortunately not by the author. It is like holding history in my hands as I was still like that one.

I will start looking into it and report any interesting stuff back to you asap.

Picking up old loves again

Sometimes it is good to pick up old loves again. Okay, maybe not in real life, but in chess for sure. I got bored of the drawish French defense and have decided to pick up good old Latvian again. Despite the horrible beatings I had to endure... And the first serious game got me nearly into a win against a much stronger opponent.

Simic - De Bouver, Antwerpen,
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 3.Bc4 fxe4 4.Nxe5 Qg5

A horribly complicated position for white - white can emerge with an advantage, but it is not easy...

5.d4 Qxg2 6.Qxh5+ g6 7.Bf7+

White seems to know the theory... bad luck for me...

7...Kd8 8.Qg5+
No good, much better is 8.Bxg6, when white sacrifices his h1 room in a search to strangle the black king.

8...Qxg5 9.Bxg5+ Be7 10.Bd5

The remainder of the game was quite simple for me after 10...Bxg5 11.Nf7+ Ke7 12.Nxg5 Nf6 13.Nc3 and a draw was quickly agreed.

So my old love did not turn me down after dating someone else !!

Back on the Viking study after a short break

Last post, I looked at a Viking-French-Blackmar-Diemer attack when black decided to capture the offered pawn on e4 : 1.d4 Nf6 2.f3 d5 3.e4 e6 4.Be3 dxe4 5.fxe4 Nxe4 6.Nd2 Nxd2 7.Qxd2.

From the resulting massacre, we can conclude that blacks 6th move is certainly not optimal : it does exchange a piece, but brings the white queen into the game and allows for white castling queenside quickly. So 6...Nxd2 is certainly no good. A quick look at my silicon assistant tells me that 6...Nf6 is far better.

let's look at the lines after 6...Nf6 7.Ngf3 and compare this to the normal Euwe defense`( black to move )

It is obvious the Viking attack differs in two ways from the regular Euwe defense
- the bishop is on e3 instead of g5. On e3, it discourages the typical French c5 break, but obvioulsy, it does little to attack the black defense - if white wants to attack lateron, an additional move will be needed to redloy it to g5.
- the knight is on d2 instead of c3. This should not make much difference, since it goed most of the time to e4 anyway. Also, black can defend d4 with a pawn on c3, which allows for the white queen to go to c2.

So based on these two observations, it seems the Viking attack is an inferior version of the Euwe defense - silicon analysis seems to confirm this.

But is sure is a decent surprise weapon against a french defender that refuses to head into the Blackmar Diemer.

The Viking-French-Blackmar-Diemer-... attack

I already played my opponent from yesterday evening a year or so ago. At that time, he accepted the f3 pawn and was swept away by a berserk attack. Have you ever seen the series "Vikings" ? Well, I looked like Ragnar Lothbrok and England was there to conquer.

Yesterday evening, my opponent choose the more cautious path - he initially declined the offered pawn but could not resist lateron.

Guido De Bouver - Robert De Hert
Antwerpen 2015.

1.d4 Nf6 2.f3 d5 3.e4 e6
Black steers into a French-like defense

4.Be3 (diagram)
Vikings on the horizon !

4...dxe4 5.fxe4 Nxe4 6.Nd2 (diagram)
Vikings have set ashore and immediately set camp.

6...Nxd2 7.Qxd2
King Aelle of Northumberland believes he won the first battle, but Ragnar sees it differently.


7...Bd6 8.Nf3 Nc6 9.Bd3 e5 ?
It is strange what the sight of a berserk viking does to man. King Aelle should have tried to reduce the viking forces by 9...Nb4, and if this fails, set up an outpost with Nd5.

10.000 exd4 11.Nxd4 Nxd4 12.Bxd4 0-0 (diagram)

Now Ragnar makes a premature attack, but king Aelle doesnt really benefit from this mistake.
13.Qc3 c5 14.Bf2 Qg5 15.Kb1 Be5 16.Qxc5 Qf6 (diagram)

17.Rf1 ! Bxb2 18.Bxh7+ Kxh7 19.Qxf8 Bf5 20.Qb4 (diagram)

The remainder of the game is of no interest to us - we dont want to witness the massacre that Ragnar imposes on the poor English defenders. But the suggested Viking attack certainly has some potency in it - especially as the defender is likely to make mistakes when faces with this unusual attack.

Editors note : This story is historically correct - vikings got into contact with chess when they travelled the seven seas, Ragnar did invade England, king Aelle suffered a terrible blow, and yes, the vikings would have played the Blackmar-Diemer if it had already been invented...

Oh horror, black develops faster in this Vienna sideline

We all know that the Vienna defense is annoying as black refuses the free f3. The result is a difficult choice for white, as he has the choice between the berserker attack with g4, sometimes followed up by the even more-than-hara-kiri h4. The other choice is the quiet fxe4, but also here, white is not without problems.

1.d4 Nf6 2.f3 d5 3.e4 dxe4 4.Nc3 Bf5 5.fxe4 Nxe4 6.Qf3 Nxc3
The other option is 6...Nd6, protecting both the b6 pawn and f5 bishop.

7.bxc3 e6 (diagram)

In my book, I had given 8.Qxb7 Nd7 9.Nf3 as equality, but I am not so sure anymore now. Let's have a closer look.

8.Qxb7 Nd7

The alternative line 8...Qh4+ offers no winning chances for black, eg 8...Qh4+ 9.Kd1 Be4 and white has the luxury of choice between 10.Qc8+, 10.Qxc7 and 10.Bb5+. So back to our main line after 8...Nd7 9.Nf3 (diagram)

It is now black who has the luxury of choice. Let's consider today black's most challenging continuation 9...Rb8. The white majesty can go to c6 or capture on a7 - my silicon assistant prefers the capture after a long thought.

9...Rb8 10.Qxa7 (diagram)

The problem is that black now has 10...Bxc2 and white has no more development moves. Ideally, the white bishop wants to be developed to d3, but this is one of the few lines where this is not possible. Also, 11.Bg5 is not so good as black simply replies 11...Be7 and it is black who can castle first.

So, are we facing a simple, yet effective antidote against our beloved gambit ? It surely seems so.