If we combine the two experiments into a 600game sample we can estimate that the. For explanation of theory tables see theory table and for notation see algebraic notation 1. His is a good example of how a video dvd can provide a solid starting point even if it isnt as analytically complete as a fulllength book on the subject. Chow urged me to keep exploring the possibilities hidden in the gambit, and projected that in my hands the morra may morph into a formidable weapon after all. Dear viewer, your anti smith morra gambit analysis is a very interesting one and were still trying to figure it out. Developments in the smithmorra gambit 198089 by neil carr and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. The smithmorra gambit system against the sicilian defence. Move order matters a lot for black at times, and some natural moves give white the advantage really quickly. The smith morra gambit system against the sicilian defence.
Ive actually seen an 1800 rated player beat a grandmaster online on icc with the smithmorra gambit. Why did you elect to take up the smithmorra gambit in the first place. I have finally annotated the seven available games from im marc essermans 8board smith morra gambit thematic simultaneous exhibition at the kenilworth chess club, which followed his lecture about the opening on april 15, 2010. It is more solid as gambits go than say the latvian gambit for instance. Almost an outright refuation of the smithmorra gambit accepted. Armed with im marc essermans book, i was initially persuaded that this gambit was sound or close to it. Nf3 and decides by the reaction of black whether to enter the gambit. Also, unlike the center game, the trade of the cpawn for the dpawn also gives black added central control. Fm chow, who, in a perfect storybook ending, adopted the finegold defense himself. Nf3 and decides by the reaction of black whether to enter the gambit theory table. Winning with the smith morra gambit batsford chess library burgess, graham on. I like playing the smith morra as white against the sicilian. The senior american master ken smith, who died last month february 1999, was an advocate of gambits.
In chess, the smith morra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves. The name appears to result from boris schipkov of novosibirsk in southwestern siberia the trap has occurred at least twice in tournament play. Gambitguidesmithmorragambit1 play chess with friends. White has better chances for an advantage in the main lines after 2. In chess, the smith morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves. Watch more free videos from gm ivan salgados antisicilian repertoire series at.
The chess tempo chess database provides over two million searchable chess games. Combating 2 c3, the closed, the morra gambit and other tricky ideas. The internets oldest and best chess database and community. Mayhem in the morra by marc esserman quality chess. I played a standard chess game as black with time controls set at 15 minutes with a 2 second increment. Youthful smith morra gambits kenilworth chess club. The smithmorra gambit against the sicilian defense 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3 dxc3 4 nxc3 is perhaps not common in grandmaster chess, but at club level it can be a very potent attacking weapon. Blacks king is frequently stuck in the middle if he makes any innaccuracy and whites pieces will flood forward. Jan 29, 2015 last week, we examined the origins of the smith morra gambit. For explanation of theory tables see theory table and for notation see algebraic notation. First of all, let me reassure the numerous fans of this opening. A bust to the smith morra gambit by elijah logozar. Winner of countless tournaments and former top 10 player. The smithmorra gambit, characterized by the moves 1.
He was a noted practitioner of the morra gambit against the sicilian, viz 1. By sacrificing a pawn, white aims to rapidly develop his pieces with the objective of delivering a swift knockout blow to the unprepared black camp. Search the chess games database, download games, view frequent practitioners and browse the opening explorer. In fact, in the one game where bobby fischer encountered the gambit, he preferred. In the early days, declining the gambit was actually quite popular. Drawing upon his own experience and analysis, lawrence trent put together a complete dvd on the smithmorra gambit, 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3. Ken smith smithmorra comparing poker and chess gambits. A modern guide to a fascinating chess opening the gambit, yudovich mikhail download book contents an old but formidable weapon the immortal gambit blow in the centre captain evanss secret in the heat of. As the smith morra began to encounter strong players, a variety of different responses developed. Icc chessfm presents the smithmorra gambit part 1, by im. It has been my main weapon against the sicilian defense and my sympathies are clearly on the white side, but during my detailed study of it, i had to correct many of my assess.
Alejandro ramirez, esserman finished with a score of 7 points, a half point behind the leaders. While it is indeed dangerous against an unprepared opponent, someone thats armed with the best lines for black can expect equality at the worst, and in many cases an advantage. Kolenbetschipkov, khabarovsk 1987, and tesinskymagerramov, budapest 1990. Nxc3 and a pawn in the center, while black has an extra pawn and a central pawn majority. In chess, the smithmorra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the.
In exchange for the gambit pawn, white has a piece developed after 4. Almost an outright refuation of the smithmorra gambit. As with most gambits, there are solutions for black but they are difficult to find. Drawing upon his own experience and analysis, lawrence trent put together a complete dvd on the smithmorra gambit, 1. Add the chess puzzle of the day application to your facebook profile. Im looking for a collection of games using the smith morra gambit. The morra gambit is a popular weapon at club level, but can it be effective at gm level. Encyclopaedia of chess openings classification code index pdf. Trents presentation is systematic and clearly outlined and the morra is a great opening with which to teach younger players basics like the value of development, while developing their tactical skills. Sicilian defence, smithmorra gambit, siberian trap. The shortest game, kolenbet v schipkov b, siberian and far east chess championship, khabarovsk 1987, 01. I used to think that the smith morra gambit was a dangerous attacking weapon. I like playing the smithmorra as white against the sicilian. Mayhem in the morra by marc esserman, opening chess book.
The smithmorra gambit chess opening software on dvd. The sicilian defense is by far blacks most popular answer to 1 e4 at all levels of chess but many white players prefer to avoid the main lines by playing one of the multitude of socalled anti. The database can be searched via many criteria, including chess players, chess opening, player ratings, game result, and the year the chess game was played. This writer, having the advantage of a present day perspective, and having read almost all publications since 1993, concurs with timothy taylors incisive analysis and crystal clear assessment of the smithmorra gambit accepted variation.
The smith morra gambit is a very interesting answer from white to the sicilian gambit. We have many other materials and lessons that will help you to learn or improve the skills of the game of chess. The game is a smithmorra gambit, with esserman playing white and at its finish it set the internet all abuzz. The smith morra gambit is a variation of the sicilian defence in which white sacrifices a pawn right in the opening to get a small long term positional advantage. Why play defense for 12 the game with no winning chances if white so chooses to regain the pawn by force. Developments in the smith morra gambit 198089 by neil carr and a great selection of related books, art and collectibles available now at. When youre ready to take your chess studies to the next level, check out pgn mentor, the very best program available for. In chess, the smithmorra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves. I am impressed by my youthful creativity and have a sudden nostalgic desire to play the smithmorra again. Players 22002400 do not take it and it usually transposes to an alapin. In chess, the smithmorra gambit or simply morra gambit is an opening gambit against the sicilian defence distinguished by the moves 1.
I feel that there are three lines for black that stand out above all the others. The plan for white is straightforward and consists of placing the bishop on c4 to attack the f7square, and controlling both. The smith morra gambit against the sicilian defense 1 e4 c5 2 d4 cxd4 3 c3 dxc3 4 nxc3 is perhaps not common in grandmaster chess, but at club level it can be a very potent attacking weapon. I recently discovered an old chess scorebook of mine from a time when i played a lot of serious chess and it seemed like every other game i played was a smith morra gambit. Winning with the smithmorra gambit batsford chess library burgess, graham on. Declined push variation matulovic vs z vospernik, 1955 b21 sicilian, 2. This is the first game in a series on the delightfully aggresive smithmorra gambit. If you play e4 as white for any length of time you probably run into the sicilian defense quite often. Mayhem in the morra offers a complete fighting repertoire for white against the sicilian with 1. Qxd4 really isnt a promising option, since the queen will be pushed around, while black makes developing moves like nc6. But i suppose its good to keep it in mind when facing a line like this, when most players on the black side just grab the pawn. I have finally annotated the seven available games from im marc essermans 8board smithmorra gambit thematic simultaneous exhibition at the kenilworth chess club, which followed his lecture about the opening on april 15, 2010. Ken smith smith morra comparing poker and chess gambits.
Winning with the smith morra gambit batsford chess library. Therefore, the morra gambit is not seen very often at the top level. I am impressed by my youthful creativity and have a sudden nostalgic desire to play the smith morra again. The theoretical status of the morra is that black is fine.
Winning with the smithmorra gambit batsford chess library graham burgess on. But thats probably the rating threshold where you should switch to a more mainline opening. Sep 25, 2010 this writer, having the advantage of a present day perspective, and having read almost all publications since 1993, concurs with timothy taylors incisive analysis and crystal clear assessment of the smith morra gambit accepted variation. Sep 10, 2011 the game is a smith morra gambit, with esserman playing white and at its finish it set the internet all abuzz. Im marc esserman smithmorra gambit thematic simul at the. View and download countless other grandmaster chess games from our pgn file collection, completely free.
The smithmorra gambit smash the sicilian defense in style. What surprises me thus far is that players below 1800ish will nearly always take the gambit. Trents presentation is systematic and clearly outlined, and he doesnt ignore challenging lines. It is not widely respected among gms but at club level it is extremely potent. First off, let me state that i have little to no respect for the smithmorra gambit. White sacrifices a pawn to develop quickly and create attacking chances. After an early bishop sacrifice, my knight raided the. The smith morra gambit is a sharp and aggressive line against the sicilian defense from black.
Smithmorra gambit successfully twice more in the 2000 us masters. Sicilian defence, smithmorra gambit accepted standard chess. Chess magazine how to crush smith morra gambit facebook. I recently discovered an old chess scorebook of mine from a time when i played a lot of serious chess and it seemed like every other game i played was a smithmorra gambit. This is the first game in a series on the delightfully aggresive smith morra gambit.
Winning with the smithmorra gambit batsford chess library. After a series of natural moves in the smithmorra gambit of the sicilian defence, white can lose a queen. The smith morra gambit is such an exciting weapon against the sicilian defense, why dont grandmasters play it. You move all your poker chips to the middle of the table when you think you have the best hand. Kasparov win because he played the evans gambit, or because he is kasparov. As you play your gambit, you are projecting all the confidence in the world. Smith morra players want you to accept the gambit so they have active piece play and faster development than you. It is almost an outright refutation of the smith morra gambit accepted. A useful reference manual, combining detailed analytic coverage. The modern morra gambit introduction when i began writing this book, after having played the morra gambit for some years, i was of the opinion that i knew my opening.
Marc esserman believes so and he has 2700rated scalps to back up his view. I frequently hear the same question from many club players. It is questionable if this slight edge justifies to sacrifice an important center pawn, the cpawn. Is the smithmorra gambit a good idea for regular play. On move two white sacrifices a pawn for fast development and good attacking chances, and black can easily fall into one of the many devious opening traps.