Taken from Bill Wall's chess site:
In 1986 I wrote a chess book for Chess Enterprises called Larsen's
Opening. I included hundreds of games and analysis up to that date
that began with 1.b3. I like the opening because of its hypermodern
style, and not many players of less than master strength know much
about it. I play it often and have been quite successful with it on the
Internet and in postal play.
Here are a few traps and analysis of one of my favorite openings.
Bent Larsen popularized this opening in the 1960s and 70s, although
Nimzovich may have introduced it in master practice.
Schlenker - Steinbacher, Heidelberg 1980
1.b3 c5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.e3 Nf6 4.f4 [or 4.Nf3] 4...e6 5.Nf3 Be7 6.Bd3 b6
[6...O-O may be best] 7.O-O Bb7 8.Nc3 O-O 9.Ne5 d6 10.Ng4 Nxg4?!
[Black should play 10...Nb4] 11.Qxg4 Bf6 12.Rf3 Nb4? [12...g6 should
hold] 13.Bxh7+ Kxh7 14.Qh5+ [14...Kg8 15.Rh3 threatens mate.
Black's only hope is 15...Bh4 16.Rxh4 f6, but he is a piece down] 1-0
Wall - M Greenwalt, Dayton, Ohio 1983
1.b3 c5 2.Bb2 d5 3.e3 Nc6 4.Bb5 Bd7 5.Nf3 Ne5 [or 5...Nf6] 6.Nc3
Nxf3+ 7.Qxf3 d4? [7...Nf6 is best] 8.Qxb7 Bxb5? [8...Rc8 had to be
played] 9.Nxb5 a6?? [9...Rb8 10.Qc6+ Qd7 11.Nc7+ Kd8 is better]
10.Qc6+ [or 10.Nc7+] 1-0
Wall - K. Jennings, San Antonio, TX 1996
1.b3 c5 2.Bb2 f6?! 3.e4 e5 4.Bxe5!? [4.Bc4 or 4.Nf3 may be better]
4...fxe5 [best is 4...Qe7] 5.Qh5+ g6? [better may be 5...Ke7 6.Qxe5+
Kf7] 6.Qxe5+ Qe7 7.Qxh8 Qxe4+ 8.Be2 [simply 8.Ne2] 8...Qxg2
9.Bf3 1-0
Wall - Goldeneye, Internet 1996
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 c6 3.Nf3 e6 4.g3 Nf6 5.Bg2 Bc5 6.O-O O-O 7.c4 dxc4
[7...Nbd7 may be better] 8.Qc2 b6 [or 8...Na6] 9.bxc4 b5? [9...Bb7
was best] 10.Ng5 [threatening 11.Bxf6 and 12.Qxh7 mate] g6?
[10...Bd4 should be played] 11.cxb5 cxb5?? [11...Bb4 is a little
better] 12.Bxa8 1-0
Schirmer - Mueller, Postal 1994
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 d4 [more normal is 2...c5] 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.e3 Bg4
[4...dxe3 or 4...e5] 5.exd4 Nxd4? [Black should play 5...Nf6] 6.Bxd4
Bxf3 7.Qxf3 Qxd4 8.Qxb7 Rd8 [not 8...Qxa1 9.Bb5+! c6 10.Bxc6+
Kd8 11.Qd7 mate] 9.Bb5+ [9...Rd7 fails to 10.Qb8 mate] 1-0
Wall - D. Adams, Palo Alto, CA 1988
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 d4 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.g3 g6 5.Bg2 Bg7 6.O-O e5 7.c4 Nf6 8.b4
Ng4 [or 8...e4] 9.b5 Na5?! [9...Ne7 is better] 10.Qa4 b6? [Black
should try 10...c6] 11.Nxd4 exd4?? [best is 11...Bb7 12.Bxb7 Nxb7.
White now plays 13.Nc6] 12.Bxa8 1-0
Wall - S. Johnson, NC 1975
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 e6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nf3 Bd6 5.e3 O-O 6.Be2 c6 7.O-O b6
8.Qc2 Bb7 [better may be 8...Ba6] 9.Ng5 h6?? [9...g6 or 9...Nbd7 had
to be played] 10.Bxf6! 1-0 threatens the Queen and 11.Qh7 mate
Wall - Warrior, Internet 1999
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 e6 3.Nf3 b6 4.e3 a5 5.c4 dxc4 6.Bxc4 Qd6 7.Nc3 Qb4
8.Ne5 f6 9.Qh5+ wins (if 9...g6 10.Nxg6) 1-0
Wall - Erg, Internet (Zone) 1998
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 f5?! 3.e3 Be6 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Be2 Bd7?! [5...Nc6] 6.O-O
Ne4? [6...e6 or 6...Nc6] 7.Ne5 [threatening 8.Bh5 g6 9.Nxg6] 7...Bc6??
[7...Rg8 may be best] 8.Bh5+ g6 9.Nxc6 [and 10.Bxh8] 1-0
Wall - D. Bye, Postal (IECC) 1995
1.b3 d5 2.Bb2 Nf6 3.e3 e6 4.f4 c5 5.Nf3 Nc6 6.Bb5 Bd7 7.O-O Bd6
8.c4 Qc7 9.cxd5 exd5 10.Bxf6 gxf6 11.Nc3 Ne7 12.Qc2 a6 13.Bxd7+
Kxd7 14.Rac1 Rac8 15.Nxd5 [15...Nxd5 16.Qf5+ and 17.Qxd5 gives
me an extra pawn and ruins Black's pawn structure] 1-0
Wall - TinHorse, Internet 1998
1.b3 e5 2.Ba3!? [2.Bb2 is the most common move] 2...Bd6?! [best to
take with 2...Bxa3 3.Nxa3 d5] 3.Bxd6 cxd6 4.e4 f6 5.Nf3 Ne7 6.Nh4 d5
7.exd5 Nxd5? [better is 7...d6] 8.Qh5+ g6?? [slightly better is
8...Ke7] 9.Nxg6 1-0
Perlaki - Csatho, Postal 1982
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.e3 O-O 6.Nf3 e4 7.Ng5 Re8
8.Nd5 Nxd5? [Black's best may be 8...Be7. Now White attacks on the
king side] 9.Qh5 [not 9.cxd5 Qxg5 10.dxc6 dxc6 and Black is a pawn
up] 9...Nf6 10.Qxf7+ Kh8 11.Bxf6 Qxf6 12.Qxe8+ Bf8 13.Rd1 Kg8
14.Nxe4 1-0
Sherman - Stone, London 1973
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 d5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.a3 a5 [or
6...Nxc3] 7.e3 Bc5 8.Qc2 O-O 9.Nf3 Re8? [9...Bg4 is better; Black
needs to keep his Rook on f8 to guard the f7 pawn] 10.Nxd5 Qxd5
11.Bc4 Qd6? [slightly better is 11...Qd8] 12.Ng5 [threatening the
pawns at f7 and h7] 12...Kf8 13.Qxh7 Qf6?? [13...Qg6 puts up more
resistance] 14.Ne4 [threatening the Black Queen and the Bishop at c5.
Black can't play 14...Qe7 because of 15.Qh8 mate] 1-0
K Nielsen - Moller, Hillerod 1987
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 d6 5.e4 Bg4 6.Be2 Bxe2 [perhaps
better is 6...Be6 or 6...Bd7] 7.Ngxe2 Nd4 8.O-O c5 9.f4 Nd7?! [9...Be7
and 10...O-O] 10.Nd5 Nb6? [10...Be7 is best] 11.fxe5 dxe5 12.Nec3
[maybe better is 12.Nxd4 and 13.Qh5] 12...Bd6 13.Qg4 O-O 14.Rf2
Qd7?? [Black should play 14...Qc8 or 14...f6] 15.Nf6+ [forking King
and Queen] 1-0
Wall - R Vondruska, Postal 1987
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.e3 d5 4.Bb5 Bd6 5.Nc3 Ne7 6.d4 [6.Nf3 may be
better] 6...e4 7.Nge2 Be6 8.O-O a6 9.Bxc6+ Nxc6 10.Ng3 Qe7
[perhaps 10...O-O or 10...Qh4] 11.Ngxe4 [11.f3; 11.f4; or 11.Nce2]
11...Nxd4?? [11...dxe4 12.d5 O-O-O is best] 12.Nxd6+ [extra tempo
move with check that he overlooked] 12...Qxd6 13.Qxd4 1-0
Wall - SirMick, Internet 1997
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.e4 d5 4.Bb5 dxe4 5.Bxe5 Qd5 6.Bxc6+ Qxc6 7.c4
Qc5 8.Bg3 g6 [8...Nf6 is good] 9.Nc3 Bg7? [perhaps 9...Bf5] 10.Nd5
[threatening 11.Nxc7+] 10...Kd7 11.Nxc7 Bxa1 [Black should try
11...Rb8] 12.Qxa1 [now 2 Rooks are hanging] 1-0
Wall - L. Calvo, Guam 1974
1.b3 e5 2.Bb2 Nc6 3.g3 d6 4.Bg2 Nf6 5.c4 Bd7 6.Nc3 Be7 7.Qc2 O-O
8.Nf3 a6 9.Ng5 Rb8?! [9...Nd4 and 10...h6 may be best] 10.Nce4 h6??
[Black should play 10...Nxe4 11.Nxe4 f5] 11.Nxf6+ [threatening mate
next move with 12.Qh7 mate] 1-0
Sonora - Sobrero, Villa Ballester 1992
1.b3 Nf6 2.Bb2 d6 [other ideas are 2...g6 and 2...Nc6] 3.Bxf6 gxf6
4.c4 Nc6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.g3 Bf5 7.Bg2 Qd7 8.Nd5 Nd4 [or 8.O-O-O] 9.Ne3
Bh6 [9...c6 or 9...O-O-O] 10.Nxf5 Qxf5 11.Rc1 [to prevent 11...Nc2+]
O-O-O?? [11...Nc6 may be best] 12.Bh3 [pinning Queen and King] 1-
0
