1. Joined
    19 Jun '06
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    847
    29 Oct '10 16:51
    Guaranteed to get a visit from greenpawn34, if nobody else. 😏

    By the way, GP, is there any book significantly better than Chernev's "Winning Chess Traps", or is that one good enough to learn the normal traps?
  2. Standard memberwormwood
    If Theres Hell Below
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    29 Oct '10 18:13
    the main reason why gp hates opening books, is because they push the idea that solid, objective, sane evaluation of positions, including their ramifications to endgames, might actually be right. instead of speculative unsound sacs.







    😉
  3. Lagos
    Joined
    27 Mar '09
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    29 Oct '10 18:171 edit
    Check out A I Horowitz's New Traps in the Chess Opening.
  4. Standard membernimzo5
    Ronin
    Hereford Boathouse
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    29 Oct '10 18:54
    Originally posted by wormwood
    the main reason why gp hates opening books, is because they push the idea that solid, objective, sane evaluation of positions, including their ramifications to endgames, might actually be right. instead of speculative unsound sacs.







    😉
    Openings study is an arms race-

    Player A goes out and buys some Soltis book on the "Shabby Pawn Sac", which then leads Player B to buy a "Winning against the Shabby Pawn Sac."

    Player A losing with his new opening, then goes out and buys "GM Repertoire 46 The Shabby Pawn Sac Fianchetto Variation" which causes Player B to go out and buy Andrew Martin's video "Flunking the Fianchetto - new ideas in the Shabby Pawn Sac."

    and so on.
  5. e4
    Joined
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    29 Oct '10 19:53
    A good book I picked a while ago is 222 Opening Traps after 1.e4
    by Muller & Knaak.

    They are mostly from modern games played by some well know players.

    Each one has a full game often showing how the initiative stolen for a
    sacced pawn/piece goes all the way through the game for 40+ moves.

    They tell you how many times it has worked in practise according to
    Mega-Database often telling and showing you the refutation that has
    been missed.

    "This scores well in practise, but...."

    For instance after:

    1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 e6 4. c4 Bb4+



    This has appeared 19 times and no White player has played the strong 5.Ke2
    which wins a piece because after the Knight moves the Bishop gets trapped.

    And if 5...Nb6 to give the Bishop e7 then 6.c5 Nc4 7.Qb3



    So you get a tricky lines v any opening after 1 e4. and it's success ratio.

    If the trick or trap fails then you usually end up with a sharp position that you
    will have and should looked at if you are going to play it to give you an idea
    of what might happen next.

    It also shows you Black tricks and traps as well v 1.e4.

    The whole book is full of tactics and ideas from games where humans have
    failed to find an answer OTB or never smelt what was coming.

    Even if you decide not to go for the trap, and often they come from sound moves,
    you will be storing these tricks for postions of a similiar set up.
    View it just as a collection of entertaining tactical games.

    I'd rather be reading something like this than stuffing my head full of
    opening variations played by GM's from a single opening that will
    never appear OTB.
  6. Standard memberwormwood
    If Theres Hell Below
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    30 Oct '10 03:151 edit

    1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 e6???
    I can't imagine a better reason for studying an opening book! 🙂
  7. e4
    Joined
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    30 Oct '10 09:34
    Hi WW

    The trouble is this 'natural' move 3...e6 has been played loads of times
    OTB (122 times on here).

    If you have shelled out £14.95 on a book on how to the beat the Alekhine
    and you get this played against you which is not even considered.

    My point is what good is a load of GM games to you when you are not
    (yet) going to be playing anyone near a GM strength.

    You have wasted £14.95 and spent 2-3 hours memorising chaff
    when 2-3 hours playing over nippy tactical games played by your
    peers will be of benefit to the student of the game.

    How many times have you heard this in the analysis room.

    "I lost because he played a move I have never seen before."

    I pounce like rat.

    "What did he do? Move a Queen like a Knight? Castle out of check?"
    "What is this secret move that wins?"

    That's a shocking excuse for losing a game of chess.

    Self Test No1.
    All openings are goverened by the principles.
    Pick an opening you have never played before and play it on here.
    You will be surprised how much of this 'new' opening you will understand
    just by obeying the developing rules.

    Give it a try, you have nothing to lose and you may be saving yourself
    £14.95 in the future.

    I'm still in the Polugayesky camp. He said:

    "99% of chess books should never have been written."

    I'd add that 80% of that 99% are opening books.
    (the rest are endgame books) 😉
  8. Joined
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    Moves
    12361
    30 Oct '10 14:14
    Originally posted by nimzo5
    Openings study is an arms race-

    Player A goes out and buys some Soltis book on the "Shabby Pawn Sac", which then leads Player B to buy a "Winning against the Shabby Pawn Sac."

    Player A losing with his new opening, then goes out and buys "GM Repertoire 46 The Shabby Pawn Sac Fianchetto Variation"
    That's not opening study. That's opening memorisation. That's not the same thing.

    Greenpawn is actually 90% (roughly) right, as 90% (equally roughly) of opening books consist of showing you just the fashionable lines at the moment it was written, plus notes of why alternatives are "now definitely refuted". The other 10% actually explain why you play what you play in what opening, and what plan to opt for once you get out of it. Betcha those don't sell nearly as much, though.

    Mind you, opening trap books are 100% part of the 90%, AFAICT. But then, their purpose is different. You really shouldn't read them as books telling you what to play, but as books telling you what not to play. Not giving strategy is slightly more excusable in that case.

    Richard
  9. Standard memberwormwood
    If Theres Hell Below
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    30 Oct '10 14:47
    Originally posted by greenpawn34
    Hi WW

    The trouble is this 'natural' move 3...e6 has been played loads of times
    OTB (122 times on here).

    If you have shelled out £14.95 on a book on how to the beat the Alekhine
    and you get this played against you which is not even considered.

    My point is what good is a load of GM games to you when you are not
    (yet) going to be playing anyone ...[text shortened]...
    I'd add that 80% of that 99% are opening books.
    (the rest are endgame books) 😉
    yeah, that's all true of course. nevertheless, knowing your openings is the first step of understanding your middlegame positions. and knowing your endings is the first step of understanding your openings. 🙂
  10. e4
    Joined
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    42492
    30 Oct '10 15:41
    Hi WW

    Agree. But this is the beauty of the Opening Trap.

    You don't have to know anything about middle game planning or endings.
    It's all ove by move 10. 😉
  11. Joined
    09 Feb '09
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    36654
    18 Nov '10 21:12
    After a game is there a rule about changing sides. Does the winner chose or do you chage sides/colours?
  12. e4
    Joined
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    42492
    18 Nov '10 21:331 edit
    A strange and yet valid question to appear in a thread about opening traps.

    If you have a dozen opening traps as Black up your sleeve and only
    two as White, then just stay as Black.

    If not then follow the time honoured proceedure of swapping sides
    after each game irrespective of the result.
  13. Joined
    29 Nov '08
    Moves
    9272
    19 Nov '10 06:49
    I made tremendous improvement with my game 20+ years ago by following these simple structured rules for openings.

    Objectives of opening game

    1. To fight for control over the center of the board
    2. To get your minor pieces out to fight for the center as fast as possible and place them at the secured squares
    3. Shift your K to the edge of the board
    4. Let your KR and QR looking each other at the back without interference
    5. 1-4 shall be done as fast as possible. By default they have to be achieved before you can think of any attacking initiative.

    Item 5 is measured relative to your opponent. You can measure whether your are leading or lagging in development by looking at 1-4 above. Who achieves the most is said to lead in development.

    More advanced application in opening is you include items 1-4 above if you opt for executing exchange maneuver during the opening. On top of that try to disturb your opponent's initiatives to achieve 1-4 above if you have opportunity to do so.
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