Romantic chess in modern times

9/14/2016 In the romantic era of chess many games followed a similar pattern: a sudden attack was fueled by sacrifices to get a lead in
development and, ideally, the opponent was finally mated with a flourish. This way of playing led to a number of gambits, particularly after the
Close x
opening moves 1.e4 e5. But can you still play that way today? On two ChessBase DVDs Dutch Grandmaster Erwin l'Ami used modern chess
engines to take stock of all gambits that might arise after 1.e4 e5. German amateur player Henrik Meyer took a look at Volume 1 of this Gambit
Guide.

O p e n i n g

E n c y c l o p e d i a

2 0 1 6

In chess, braving the gap often leads to disaster after a few moves. We should be able to avoid things going so far. The
ChessBase Opening Encyclopaedia offers you an effective remedy against all sorts of semi-digested knowledge and a means
of building up a comprehensive and powerful repertoire.
More...

Romantic chess in modern times

By Henrik Meyer
GM Erwin LAmi (ELO 2611, SG Solingen) recently published two DVDs on which he offers a Gambit Guide through the Open Game. Are gambits
indeed still playable? Does anyone today still play the romantic, 19th century chess featuring sharp gambits, spectacular piece sacrifices,
incredible combinations, driven by the desire to mate the enemy king at all costs?

Erwin L'Ami at the Chess Olympiad in Baku (Photo: Pascal Simen

The top players hardly ever play gambits. But why?

GM Anton Demchenko (Winner of the ZMDI-Open Dresden 2016): Chess has changed. The players in the 19th century did not yet know how to
equalize in these sharp openings, but today we do have a huge knowledge about the defensive ressources of such sharp positions. And of course
we also have our electronic friend who is able to explain everything to us. The problem is that all these forced lines in gambits are easy to calculate

for an engine. Sharp positions are often analysed to death and quickly become simplified and boring. The top players of today prefer a different
approach: solid, positional openings with a minimum of forced lines.

How about club players? What is alluring about playing gambits in the time of computer engines?
Here's the view of an amateur, Ingo Hessenius, a German player with a German rating of 2078. About 25 years ago he started to study gambits.
He took part in a theme tournament about the King's Gambit, learned a lot and still uses the gambit today, particularly in blitz and bullet games.
After all, such games with a limited amount of time promise the biggest surprise effect. In games with classical time-control gambits are still a
surprise but the opponent has much more time to delve into the position and to search for the right continuation.
According to Hessenius strong players sometimes find it alluring to try a gambit because they believe they are tactically stronger and that a gambit
will help them to a quick victory.
However, there are also good reasons for the (supposedly) weaker players to play gambits. You often know the lines better than the opponent and
if you manage to push him into an unfamiliar position he is more likely to make mistakes. Hessenius also cites another reason to play gambits, and
this reason applies to both groups: to play a gambit you have to be well-prepared and if you are well-prepared you begin the game with a
psychological advantage.

But what do trainers think about gambits? Are they important for training purposes? Or should one even play
them?
The Russian grandmaster Anton Demchenko has a rating of 2604 and is also a coach. He thinks that beginners in particular should play gambits
and study gambits carefully to develop a feeling for tactical positions. However, as he point outs, "playing (incorrect) gambits is not a long-term
option". But he emphasizes that a player with a rating of 1800+ could start to study gambits in which one side gives material to get positional
advantages. According to Demchenko, today people think differently about gambits. In some lines of the Queen's Gambit or the Catalan one
would, for example, give the pawn c4 for a long-term advantage, but usually not to initiate sacrificial combinations or to start a king hunt but to
get positional advantages.
The Wolga-Benko Gambit which the top players of today try occasionally is another case in point. It shows that gambits are still played today but
with a different objective than in the 19th century.

Deep analyses
On his Gambit Guide through the open game, Vol.1 Erwin l'Ami shows that almost all gambits that had been played in the past are "incorrect".
He offers Black a good repertoire against all kinds of gambits after 1.e4 e5, takes the gambits seriously, and analyses them on grandmaster level.
But he also shows the chances these gambits offer for White and the many dangers Black has to navigate when confronted with a gambit. If Black
misses the right move in a sharp gambit line after 1.e4 e5 he might suddenly awake to a piece sacrifice on f7 and it's "game over". A good
example is the Urusov Gambit. After the moves 1. e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.d4 Nxe4?! 4.dxe5 (White already threatens to win a piece with Qd5) 4Qh4
5.g3 Nxg3 6. Bxf7+ (here we go!) Kxf7 and 7.Qd5+ followed by hxg3 White is already clearly better.
L'Ami is a strong grandmaster and has the help of Fritz&Co. but even he cannot analyse all variations to an end to find the absolute truth. This
means that gambits can still be successfully played on grandmaster level, e.g. the Gring Gambit:

Yu Yangyi (2607) - Jumabayev,Rinat (2555) [C44]

I think this DVD offers Black a very good anti-gambit repertoire and that you do not need to fear any gambit with Black when you follow the
recommendations on the DVD. However, the gambit player might be a bit disappointed that the whole repertoire is refuted. But LAmi shows
that White still has chances and can use the various gambits as surprise weapon. My own experience (100 blitz games on playchess + two
tournament games) tells me that most people are not familiar with old gambit lines and often make mistakes.

If you work through this DVD you will have a good idea how to play gambits and you will be able to surprise your opponent in many lines!
Translation: Johannes Fischer

Are you well versed in main lines but are you

also often surprised by old and forgotten
gambit lines? Or are you tired of main lines
and do you prefer some easy to learn, yet
very dangerous gambits? This is your DVD!
In his Gambit Guide Vol. 1 Dutch
Grandmaster Erwin lAmi takes you on a
journey through time and shows gambit lines
in the Open Games (that is, after 1.e4 e5).
This DVD includes the infamous
Frankenstein-Dracula Gambit, the Cochrane
Gambit, the Belgrade Gambit and, of course,
the mother of all gambits: the Kings Gambit.
Many of these long forgotten lines offer
plenty of room for creativity and exploration
and this DVD is full of new ideas with which
you can surprise your opponents. Apart from
a theoretical section and illustrative model
games the DVD contains a number of
exercises, which allow you to test your new
knowledge. LAmi, winner of the Reykjavik
open 2015 and a former second to World
Champion Veselin Topalov, is the perfect man
to guide you through the maze of dazzling
complications!
Video running time: 6 hours 41 min
(English)
With interactive training including video feedback
Extra: extensive analysis of the theory shown on this DVD
Including CB 12 Reader
Order this DVD in the ChessBase Shop...

Feedback and mail to our news service

Please use this account if you want to contribute to or comment on our news page service
Twittear
Topics
Gambit Guide through the Open Games, Erwin l'Ami

See also

Erwin lAmi is Dutch online Blitz Champion

6/27/2016 The Dutch online Blitz Championship was played on 23rd June on the ChessBase playchess server as a
16-player knock-out tournament with a time-limit of 3+3 - three minutes for the whole game plus three seconds
increment per move. Reigning champion Erwin lAmi dominated the tournament from the start and in the final
defeated Loek van Wely 5-2 to defend his title. [Discuss]

Erwin L'Ami: The modern Two Knights

7/2/2015 The Dutch Grandmaster Erwin L'Ami recently won the strong Reykjavik Open and soon after that the Blitz
Marathon in Rabat. Before he went to Reykjavik he recorded a ChessBase DVD: "The modern Two Knights".
Coincidence? Davide Nastasio saw the DVD and liked it. A fine, funny and enjoyable presentation of interesting
material. Obviously it helps your chess. [Discuss]

Discuss
Rules for reader comments
User:
Password:
Not registered yet? Register
Comment:

Leave comment

Submit

Reset

2013 ChessBase GmbH | Osterbekstrae 90a | 22083 Hamburg | Germany | Privacy policy | Imprint | Contact | Home