Which openings give you the most trouble?
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earltony15
Sep 29, 2007
0
#21
chess openings.
I hate play agains the petroff
1a3 is called Anderssen's opening I believe. Perhaps its to avoid any reverse Ruy ideas by black? :-)
I generally don't like anything as black against e4. No matter what I play, it always seems like my opponent is a step ahead of me. This is coming from a d4 player who doesn't mind being on the black side of d4. It's just e4 that's the problem for me. Too complicated, too quickly, and no subtle positional maneuvers to take over initiative against a less prepared player. Any ideas for black against e4?
Also, for anyone interested in new ideas for black against d4, you should try playing the Meran Variation. 1. d4 d5 2. c4 c6 3. Nf3 Nf6 4. Nc3 e6 5. Bd3 dxc4 6. Bxc4 b5 7. Bd3 (Bb3) with plenty of chances for both sides. However, if white is not totally prepared in this, (because I have been quite a few times), then the position can swing in black's favor quickly.
Oct 3, 2007
0
#26
I don't like openings that are too narrow for me to get my shoulders through. Always get stuck. Oh, wait...
erad1288 wrote:I generally don't like anything as black against e4. No matter what I play, it always seems like my opponent is a step ahead of me. This is coming from a d4 player who doesn't mind being on the black side of d4. It's just e4 that's the problem for me. Too complicated, too quickly, and no subtle positional maneuvers to take over initiative against a less prepared player. Any ideas for black against e4?
Of course your opponent is ahead of you--Black is a move behind. 
Seriously though, I understand what you're saying. Openings with e4 are generally less positional than d4 openings. You may want to take a page out of Karpov's book and try the Caro-Kann. It's very safe and sound, and it's much more positional than some of the other defenses to e4.
Early in his career, Karpov mostly played the Ruy Lopez against e4. I play 1...d5 and it's fun. White's quickly out-of-book and often plays lesser moves to avoid the mainline.
fischer wrote: ericmittens wrote:Any D-pawn opening where white does not play 2.c4 gives me big headaches. Mostly because I dont know any theory on these openings and white usually specializes.
I hear you because 1 d4 without 2 c4 usually leads to a dull, boring game (assuming 3 c4 isn't played). If your reply is 1 d4 Nf6, then you might want to give 2 ... c5 a try. It immediately opens up your queenside and puts pressure on the d4-square.)
I'm laughing at this statement. 1. d4 without c4 is dull and boring? You've never seen the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, have you? It starts 1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3. That's is my specialty these days. When my opponents respond to 1. d4 with Nf6, I still go for 2. Nc3, preparing 3. e4 whether they like it or not. Half the time it transposes back to the main line of the gambit. Otherwise, it's other lines that I know better than my opponents. :)
As for openings you hate playing against, I've always had problems with the Sicilian as white. That's part of why I switched to the BDG as white - it's an attacking gambit, but it doesn't start with 1. e4, so I can avoid the Sicilian, Caro-Kann, and other lines against e4 that I don't want to spend time studying.
Also, as black, I hate playing e5 against e4 if my opponent plays anything besides the Ruy Lopez or Giuoco Piano. The Scotch just trades pieces too early, so it ends up being a prelude to an endgame most of the time. And there are a bunch of other double kings pawn openings that I don't know much about, so my opponents can catch me off guard. I know a little about the King's Gambit, and Vienna Gambit, but there are a bunch of openings like the Bishop Opening, Danish Gambit, and Vienna without the gambit 3. f4 push (which I used to play as white) that I know very little about.
--Fromper
Fromper wrote:fischer wrote:ericmittens wrote:Any D-pawn opening where white does not play 2.c4 gives me big headaches. Mostly because I dont know any theory on these openings and white usually specializes.
I hear you because 1 d4 without 2 c4 usually leads to a dull, boring game (assuming 3 c4 isn't played). If your reply is 1 d4 Nf6, then you might want to give 2 ... c5 a try. It immediately opens up your queenside and puts pressure on the d4-square.)
I'm laughing at this statement. 1. d4 without c4 is dull and boring? You've never seen the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit, have you? It starts 1. d4 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Nc3 Nf6 4. f3. That's is my specialty these days. When my opponents respond to 1. d4 with Nf6, I still go for 2. Nc3, preparing 3. e4 whether they like it or not. Half the time it transposes back to the main line of the gambit. Otherwise, it's other lines that I know better than my opponents. :)
Yes, I've seen the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit (I even talked about it in another thread). The key word in my post was 'usually'. The BDG is only one line out of all the d4 (without c4) openings. The Colle System, London System, etc. are dull, boring, and everything else in between.
I do agree with you about 1 e4 e5. There are a whole lot of lines that can catch a person off guard. And the Sicilian is so tough to play against (with so much theory to learn) that I don't blame you for switching to d4.
chewybac5 wrote: He says he heard about some GM playing 1. a3 and winning, so he thinks hes sweet when he does it....
If my memory serves me right, Something like this was used by Tony Miles to beat Karpov when he was reigning world champion, the idea being to get out of prepared theory. But I think Miles had black! Somebody must have that on a database, i've got it in a book somewhere.
MattHelfst wrote:
I hate playing black against 1. d4, always the c8 bishop ends up being bad. Either it is stuck behind away from the action, or when I try to develop the c8 bishop then I get killed on the b7 square.
I am still looking for a good system to play against 1. d4, any suggestions?
If 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 try playing the Benko gambit.
it took GMs long enough to work out as white and the ideas behind it are unusual, but easy for black to understand. Underprepared opponents are toast.
Love the French, hate the Sicilian. The sharper things get, the worse off I am. At least relative to the competition. My tactics aren't that bad really, but when things get blocked off, I score very well. Hopefully, one day things will balance out.
THE french winawer.i dont want to play a-3!?
I have a lot of trouble vs the Samisch Var. In 10 years of postal play, my KI never lost to any other line. But I lost once in each and every line vs the Samisch, except ...b6, which I didnt get to play yet :)
Of course the WC I based my KI on didn't do exceptionally well against it. But I couldn't play Evan's line either ... }8-D
PS I can relate to the Taimanov trouble ... I was asking what people play vs it back in the 80's on Leisure Linc :))
No idea about my worst opening to play against. Sorry.
I like the King's Gambit as white, but I have problems with lines that feature an early Be7. I have some problems with the sicilian.
I play a variety of e4 openings as white. I play a variety of openings as black. I can't say that I know any of the openings that I play especially well, so if I encounter some problems it is to be expected.
Mar 8, 2008
0
#38
As no one has said this one yet, please share your insights on this by a message.
I have an ungodly amount of trouble playing against the Pirc.
Well unlike many I love playing the French defence (not everyline though), but I don't like playing against d4. Still I don't find it too difficult to play simples moves or Nimzo/Indian which may be condidered as the best defence ever invented against d4.
