Showing posts with label Duras. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Duras. Show all posts

Monday, January 26, 2009

The next worst thing...



Continuing the discussion from "London Calling... Seven Months of Blog" and "The next best thing..." based on my self-challenge

I also got wondering the other day: is there another totally obscure and disreputable tactical opening line or gambit that I could go digging for information about, while I'm researching the Jerome Gambit [1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+]??

There's been discussion lately on the Fred opening, 1.e4 f5, in the Unorthodox Chess Openings group at Yahoo – including where the name "Fred" came from in the first place (several theories, nothing conclusive).

Sometimes the opening is referred to as the Duras Gambit, which is a lot less obscure: In my database I have four games (from 1936 and 1938) where GM Oldrich Duras played the opening, actually scoring two wins, a draw and a loss.

The earliest game example I could find was Pillsbury - Magana, Paris 1902, a blindfold simultaneous exhibition game (1 of 16) Paris, 06.1902: 1.e4 f5 2.exf5 Kf7 3.d4 d5 4.Qh5+ g6 5.fxg6+ Kg7 6.Bd3 Nf6 7.Bh6+ Kg8 8.gxh7+ Nxh7 9.Qg6+ Bg7 10.Qxg7 mate.

You have to admit, 1.e4 f5 stand right up/down there with 1.h4 as a possible companion to the Jerome Gambit!