does white always have the advantage..?

Yeah I don't like moving any of my pawns near my castled king until I absolutely have to. It just creates a viable weakness to be played into, giving an enemy attack a focal point.

Originally posted by arrakis
White has his initiative to defend.

true poetry!

Black has the advantage of greater information. In practice, this means that black is okay, but white's initiative is often sufficient.

I agree with arrakis.

White has the advantage of making the first move, usually an agressive one, setting the pace. Black has the advantage of moving second! Black sees whites first move and is able to play accordingly. Therefore I believe that with absolute best play the outcome will be a draw. Of course, absolute best play is close to impossible for humans to achieve, and maybe even for computers since they are designed by humans.

Black picks the tune.

Black's advantage is negligible - a single tempi (one move of time). However, many a player has shown that Black can soon equalize with proper play. Black has just as much of a chance to win as White with correct play. No one plays a perfect game of tempo. Let's get real. One day, I guess, a computer might, but until then, remember that Black has many options to equalize.

White starts the heavy lifting earlier in the day. If he doesn't stop for breakfast, he might very well faint.

I find this thread interesting, because if you can find how much of an advantage you need then you to win against a rated opponent, then you probably dnt need to use much more effort than that.

What about for simple book line openings?

Take for instance queens gambit accpeted. Would this be considered close to a win for white, with two high-rated evenly matched opponents?

the advantage to white is tiny and ephemeral,it can disappear very quickly and certainly not enough for a guaranteed win.

Originally posted by powershaker
Black's advantage is negligible - a single tempi (one move of time). However, many a player has shown that Black can soon equalize with proper play. Black has just as much of a chance to win as White with correct play. No one plays a perfect game of tempo. Let's get real. One day, I guess, a computer might, but until then, remember that Black has many options to equalize.

But if you convert the tempo difference into a structural advantage (good static factors), you do not have to play tempo perfectly. Take the QGD exchange variation for example - a clear advantage at move four. Of course, one could argue one still has to play tempos perfectly (theoretically), but I think at some point a closed/static position reduces the importance of tempo.. just a thought.

I personally never play to win with black until I at least equalize.. at least from experience, it is always too dangerous to try anything until you are at least level with white. I belive the game is theoretically a draw, although the initiative white has gives him the better practical chances.