Game 59

D.Kurzawa-S.Galdunts
Recklinghausen 1998

1 b3
Larsen’s opening. Curiously,
Larsen’s most famous game with 1
b3 was the one where he got
horribly mangled by Spassky in 17
moves.
Let’s quickly look at a few other
options:
 a) 1 f4 (Bird’s Opening) 1 ... d6
2 Nf3 (2 e4 transposes to 1 e4 d6
f4, covered in Game 35) 2 ... Bg4 3
e3 e5 is a line recommended by IM
Richard Palliser. After 4 h3 Be6! 5
d 3 (5 fxe5 dxe5 6 Nxe5? is just
asking for pain after 6 ... Bd6) 5 ...
exf4 6 exf4 c6 7 d4 Be7 8 Qe2 Nf6 9
g3 d5 Black already stood clearly
better in A.Harvey-R.Palliser,
Halifax 2010.
b) 1 g3 d6 usually transposes to
the English or King’s Indian Attack.
2 Bg2 e5 3 b3 is one we haven’t
looked at, the Hippopotamus,
double fianchetto setup. White
develops his knights to e2 and d2
soon. After 3 ... f5 4 Bb2 Nf6 5 d3
Be7 6 e3 0-0 7 Ne2 Nc6 Black may
either play for ... d5 or the usual ...
Qe8 plan, J.Egeland-S.Martinsen,
Brattas Skole 2000.
c) 1 b4 is the Orangutan. Every
time someone plays this I am
reminded of the hated orangutan,
Dr. Zaius, who was the most evil of
all the multitude of mean-spirited
simians from the Planet of the
Apes. After 1 ... d6 2 Bb2 e5 3 e3 f5
4 c4 Nf6 5 Nf3 Be7 6 Nc3 0-0 7 d4
e4 8 Nd2 c6 9 d5 cxd5 10 Nxd5
Nxd5 11 cxd5 Bf6 Black should be
happy. He swaps off his bad bishop
and has control over e5, Y.Lapshun-
J.Vila Gazquez, Barcelona 2007.
1 ... e5 2 Bb2 d6
Correct. We would probably
reverse the order and play 1 ... d6.
3 e3 f5 4 d4 e4 5 d5!

The most dangerous of White’s

options.
Question: Why? It doesn’t help
his development.
Answer: It clears d4 for a
knight, which then gets us nervous
about e6. On our side though, he
hands us e5, so we shouldn’t be too
unhappy.
When White avoids d5 he tends
to toss it in a few moves later,
otherwise Black takes over the
central space. For example, 5 c4
Nf6 6 Nc3 Be7 7 Nge2 c6 8 Nf4 Na6,
J.Hodgson-E.Agrest, Harplinge
1998. Now White feared ... Nc7 and
... d5, and played 9 d5 0-0 10 Be2
Nc7 11 h4 with a position similar to
those covered in Chapter Six.
5 ... Nf6 6 Be2 Nbd7 7 Nh3
Ne5 8 Nf4 Be7
Question: Why always post the
bishop on e7?
Why not fianchetto, where the
bishop eyes e5?
Answer: There is nothing
wrong with fianchettoing, but by
developing our bishop to e7 we
deny White a connection point with
h4 and h5. Also, our bishop is
actually more flexible on e7. For
example, we can play it to d8 and
also to f6, which would be similar to
fianchettoing except without
incurring pawn weaknesses on the
kingside.
9 Nd2?!
Question: This looks odd. What
is his idea?
Answer: It is odd! White wants
to play his knight to c4 to challenge
e5. I would go for a normal plan
like 9 h4 and then c4, Na3 and Nc2
hoping to achieve Nd4.
 9 ... 0-0
Question: I am tempted to play
9 ... g5 to punish
 White for the omission of h4. Is
this okay?
Answer: Rybka claims it’s
playable, but it’s obviously risky and
you court trouble. I would avoid it
and play the way Black did in the
game.
10 Nc4 Qe8 11 Qd2 Nfg4!
Question: Why the exclam?
Doesn’t this move just lose a
tempo?
Answer: No. It’s a multi-
purpose move:
1. Black plans to swap on c4 and
then play the g4-knight to e5.
2. This also frees f6 for Black’s
bishop.
 3. In general, the swap helps
Black unclutter his pieces.
12 h3 Nxc4
He can also try 12 ... Bf6 which
forces White to deal with tricks on
b2.
13 Bxc4 Bf6
Certainly not 13 ... Ne5?? 14
Bxe5 dxe5 15 d6+.
14 Bxf6 Nxf6
White’s bishop on c4 is oddly
placed and vulnerable to a ... b5
gain of time.
15 Qb4?!
 Exercise: Should we seize the
moment and disturb
the balance? Evaluate the
aggressive but also committal 15 ...
g5.
15 ... a5
Answer: 15 ... g5! is strong:
a) 16 Ne2? a5 17 Qb5
(otherwise ... b5 traps the c4-
bishop) 17 ... Qf7! and White is in
big trouble. For example, 18 h4??
Bd7! 19 Qxb7 Rfb8 20 Qxc7 Ne8
traps the queen.
b) 16 Ne6 Bxe6 17 dxe6 d5 18
Be2 b6 19 Qc3 Qxe6 20 Qxc7 Rac8
21 Qxa7 Rxc2 with clear advantage
to Black. White’s king is in danger
and his pieces fester like rotten fruit
sitting too long in the bowl.
16 Qd2 b5
 16 ... g5! wins material while
retaining the initiative: 17 Ne6 (the
trouble is 17 Ne2?? drops a piece to
17 ... b5) 17 ... Bxe6 18 dxe6 Qe7!
rounds up the e-pawn since White
has no answer to the coming ... c6
and ... d5.
17 Bf1
Okay, that didn’t work. Time to
sound the retreat.
Question: Why all the way
back?
Answer: White juggles two
issues:
1. The original sin: by retreating
to home base on f1 White falls
drastically behind in development.
 2. The depressing alternative
would be to turn a weakness into a
virtue by buying Black off with a
pawn: 17 Be2 g5! 18 Ne6 Bxe6 19
dxe6 Qxe6 and the b5-pawn is
taboo due to the ... Qe5 double-
attack trick.
17 ... g5! 18 Ne2
 White’s pieces flow in reverse.
B o t h Fritz and Rybka make the
outrageous claim that the position
is even. There is a Bowie lyric which
goes: “Homo sapiens have
outgrown their use.” Apparently
not, if Fritz and Rybka continue to
make such boneheaded
assessments!
Once again 18 Ne6 drops a
clean pawn (with a rotten position)
to 18 ... Bxe6 19 dxe6 Qxe6.
18 ... Qe5
A surreal moment. More than
half of White’s pieces are on their
original squares while Black works
over d5 and prepares a strike on
the kingside with ... f4.
19 Rd1 Bd7 20 c4
Rybka likes this move; I don’t.
White is miles behind in
development, and 20 c4 allows
Black opportunities to open the
position. 20 Nd4! looks better but I
still hate White’s position.
20 ... a4
Principle: Open the game when
ahead in development.
21 Nd4
Perhaps it was better to try 21
b4 bxc4 22 Nc3 f4 23 Bxc4 when at
least pieces emerge from the
shadows.
21 ... axb3 22 axb3 bxc4 23
Bxc4 f4
The same principle applies.
White’s trouble is he can’t survive
kingside castling with that massive
Black pawn roller coming his way.
24 Rc1 Kh8 25 Bb5?
He had to castle and hope for a
miracle.
25 ... fxe3 26 fxe3
 Exercise (combination alert):
26 ... Qg3+ is tempting, but not
the strongest move. Can you
find the shot which ends White’s
hopes?
Answer: 26 ... Nxd5!
White’s position collapses. He
can’t castle and Black threatens ...
Qg3+ followed by ... Rf2 or ... Nxe3.
27 Bxd7 allows the violence to filter
down to White’s king after 27 ...
Qg3+ 28 Kd1 Nxe3+ 29 Ke2 Qf2
mate.
The simpler 26 ... Bxb5 27 Nxb5
Nxd5 is also good, but not as strong
crushing as 26 ... Nxd5.
27 Ke2 Qg3! 0-1

Summary: Larsen’s Opening

soon gets us into positions
similar to those we looked at in
Chapter Six.