Attention King's Gambiteers!

Now it's apparently due out sometime in the next couple of months...

I can also recommend the book 'The fascinating Kings Gambit' by Thomas Johansson, which is a repertoire book for the Kings Bishop Gambit.

Originally posted by Garnoth
I can also recommend the book 'The fascinating Kings Gambit' by Thomas Johansson, which is a repertoire book for the Kings Bishop Gambit.

If I can ask a silly question - what's the idea behind the King's Bishop Gambit? I play the KNG, and my main idea is pretty simple : castle and make use of the open f file. However, that clearly doesn't work with the Bishop gambit as the rook is stuck in the corner after Qh4.

Just curious ...

Well, your goal is still the f7 square. The Qh4+ lines look really bad for white and most people unfamiliar with the KBG will play it, but it actually does not promise black a good game, as Nf3 comes with tempo and black can use the queen to develop really quickly. If you put 1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4 Qh4+ 4.Kf1 Bc5 (which is a tempting move) in Rybka, it will give an evaluation of about 0.2 or something, much better than certain KNG lines. The best defense to the KBG is the jaenisch bogolubov defense, which is a very positional line, not something people would play without knowing the theory.

A lot of grandmaster say that the bishop's gambit is sounder than the knights gambit, that is also why Fischer played it himself, while he claimed to have refuted the KNG with 3...d6

A nice extra is that almost every defense that is good against the KNG is bad against the KBG.

Game 6126515
Game 6081091

These are two games of mine where black plays the 3...Qh4+ line. Just look at some positions in the middlegame, I would gladly give up my castling rights to get such positions with all my minor pieces placed beautifully!

Originally posted by Garnoth
Well, your goal is still the f7 square. The Qh4+ lines look really bad for white and most people unfamiliar with the KBG will play it ...

Ah, I understand a bit better now - thanks! I might try it myself one day. And your games look fun - it's always nice to see black retreating from a premature attack with a bloody nose!

Well, the games are not perfect, Bxf7,although it looks like a logical sacrifice, is not good and he could have defended his position.