250 Gambits and Mazes on the Chess-Board

Every chess player strives to avoid falling into a trap. In addition to being ashamed at the quick defeat, one may easily become the target of fellow-players' mockery. It is interesting that sometimes even grandmasters fall victims of some cunning opening traps. This manual is an essential aid for all those desirous of getting familiar with them. Its IM author makes you acquainted with all the important opening traps, the knowledge of which is something you simply cannot do without.

Foreword

Opening errors and chess traps are closely related. As a matter of fact, it is very difficult to make a distinction between them. One can, of course, say that an opening trap is an opening containing a hidden threat, but the term hidden threat has a different meaning for each person. To some extent this fact signifies the difference in chess knowledge, too. This is why I have not classified the material of this book according to the above. Everyone can decide if the given game is a chess trap or an opening error - if it is worth to deal with it at all. The main thing is to know them. I have tried to collect the most important and frequent types. Besides the old classical instances you can find the fresher ones, too: the crop of the recent 5 years.

The size of the book has, of course, prevented me from recounting all the important errors and traps, The order of games is determined by the openings, on the basis of Encyclopedia (Informator) code System. So it happens that some chess themes are not arranged beside each other, because they can arise from different openings as well.

I wish everyone - apart from sex, age and chess knowledge - to take delight in my book.

I hope that with my compilation I can contribute to the broadening and deepening of the chess knowledge of the readers.

July 2006, Eger

András Meszáros

International Master

Content:
009 Foreword

011 Basic Opening Principles

012 Frequent Errors in the Opening

013 Motives

035 Opening Errors and Traps

035 Irregular Opening (Kádas' Opening)

037 Grob's Opening

038 Orang-Utan Opening

039 Larsen's Opening

041 Bird's Opening

044 Reti Opening

047 Barcza Opening

048 English Opening

057 Irregular Opening

059 Benoni Defence

062 Queen's Pawn Opening

066 Budapest Gambit

069 Benkö Gambit

070 Dutch Defence

073 Irregular Opening (on 1 e4)

074 Nimzovitch Defence

075 Scandinavian Defence

082 Alekhine's Defence

085 Pirc Defence

090 Caro-Kann Defence

093 Sicilian Defence (Sicilian Gambit)

096 Sicilian Defence (Morra Gambit)

097 Sicilian Defence (Variation with c3)

101 Sicilian Defence (Variation with Nc3)

102 Sicilian Defence (Closed System)

104 Sicilian Defence (Bakonyi Variation)

105 Sicilian Defence (Variation with b6)

106 Sicilian Defence (Nimzovitch Variation)

107 Sicilian Defence (Paulsen Variation)

108 Sicilian Defence (Rossolimo Variation)

109 Sicilian Defence (Sveshnikov Variation)

110 Sicilian Defence (Modern Dragon)

111 Sicilian Defence (Maroczy Bind)

114 Sicilian Defence (Paulsen Variation)

118 Sicilian Defence (with b3)

119 Sicilian Defence (with d6)

122 Sicilian Defence (Dragon)

127 Sicilian Defence (Modern Dragon)

128 Sicilian Defence (Sozin)

129 Sicilian Defence (Najdorf)

131 French Defence

144 Blackmar-Diemer Gambit

145 Danish Gambit

146 Middle Game

146 Middle Gambit

148 Bishop's Opening

150 Vienna Game

151 King's Gambit (Declined)

152 King's Gambit (Accepted)

153 Falkbeer Counter-Gambit

154 Irregular Opening (1 e4 e5 2.Nf3 f6?)

156 Latvian Gambit

157 Philidor Defence

159 Petroff Defence

163 Scotch Game

167 Three Knights' Game

169 Belgrade Gambit

171 Scotch Gambit

171 Italian Game

173 Evans Gambit

175 Scotch Gambit

175 Ruy Lopez

185 Blackmar-Diemer Gambit

185 Trompowsky Attack

187 Queen's Pawn Opening

187 Queen's Gambit (Keres Variation)

188 Queen's Gambit (Irregular)

188 Albin Counter-Gambit

192 Slav Defence

195 Queen's Gambit (Accepted)

197 Queen's Gambit (Vienna Variation)

198 Queen's Gambit (Tarrasch Variation)

199 Queen's Gambit (Orthodox Variation)

199 Queen's Gambit (Exchange Variation)

200 Queen's Gambit (Cambridge Springs Variation)

201 Grünfeld Defence

205 Irregular Opening (1 .c4 Nf6 2.d4 e6 3.d5?)

206 Catalan Opening

207 Queen's Indian Defence

208 Nimzo-Indian Defence

209 King's Indian Defence

210 Anti-Grünfeld Opening

211 King's Indian Defence

215 Sicilian Defence, Meszáros Variation

217 Illustrative Games of the Meszáros Variation

222 Index of Players

226 Index of Themes

227 Symbols used