Bust to the KING'S Gambit.pdf

A BUST TO THE KING'S GAMBIT

Bobby Fischer

The King's Gambit has lost popularity, but not sympathy. Analysts treat it

with kid gloves and seem reluctant to demonstrate an outright refutation.

“ The Chessplayers Manual” by Gossip and Lipschutz, published in 1874,

devotes 237 pages to this gambit without arriving at a conclusion. To this

day the opening has been analyzed romantically - not scientifically.

Moderns seem to share the same unconscious attitude that caused the old-

timers to curse stubborn Steinitz: “ He took the beauty out of chess” .

To the public, the player of the King's Gambit exhibits courage and

derring-do. The gambit has been making a comeback with the younger

Soviet masters, notably Spassky (who defeated Bronstein, Averbach and

myself with it). His victories rarely reflected the merits of the opening

since his opponents went wrong in the mid-game. It is often the case,

also, as with Santasiere and Bronstein, that the King's Gambit is played

with a view to a favorable endgame. Spassky told me himself the gambit

doesn't give White much, but he plays it because neither does the Ruy

Lopez nor the Giuoco Piano.

The refutation of any gambit begins with

accepting it. In my opinion the King's

Gambit is busted. It loses by force.

his King and Queen reversed, Black wins

easily.

4. …

h7-h6!

1. e2-e4

e7-e5

2. f2-f4

e5xf4

This in conjunction with Black's previous

move I would like to call the Berlin

Defense Deferred. By this subtle

transposition Black knocks out the

possibility open to White in the last note

(to move 3).

3. g1-f3

d6!

This is the key to a troublesome position, a

high-class "waiting move". At Mar Del

Plata, 1959, I played 3... g7-g5; against

Spassky, but this is inexact because it

gives White drawing chances in the

ensuing ending: e.g., 4. h2-h4 g5-g4; 5. f3-

e5 g8-f6; 6. d2-d4 e7-e6; 7. e5-d3 f6xe4;

8. c1xf4 f8-g7; and now 9. c2-c3!

(replacing Spassky's 9. b1-c3) 9. ... d8-e7,

10. d1-e2 c8-f5; 11. b1-d2 leads to an

ending where Black's extra Pawn is

neutralized by White's stranglehold on the

dark squares, especially f4.

5. d2-d4

g7-g5

6. 0-0

f8-g7

7. c2-c3

...

Necessary to protect the QP. 7. g2-g3 is

always met by … g5-g4.

7. …

b8-c6

Here there is disagreement as to Black's

best move. Puc and Rabar, Euwe, Keres,

and most analysts give the text as the main

line and mention 7. … g8-e7(!); in

passing.

Another good try, but also inexact, is the

Berlin Defense: 3. ... h7-h6; 4. d2-d4 g7-

g5; 5. h2-h4 f8-g7; 6. g2-g3 g5-g4; (also

playable is 6. … d6; 7. g3xf4 g5-g4) 7. f3-

h2 f4xg3; 8. h2xg4 (8. d1xg4 loses to 8. …

g3xh2; 9. g4-g7 d8xh4+; 10. e1-d1 h4-f6)

8. … d7-d5; 9. e4-e5 c8-f5; 10 c1-f4,

where Black cannot demonstrate any

advantage.

I think 7. … g8-e7; is best because there is

no reason why Black should not strive to

castle King-side: e.g., 8. g2-g3 d6-d5!; 9.

e4xd5 f4xg3; 10. h2xg3 (if 10. f3-e5

g3xh2+!; 11. g1-h1 0-0; 12. d5-d6 d8xd6;

wins) 10. … 0-0; 11. d1-b3 d8-d6; 12. g1-

g2 e7-f5; wins. There is little practical

experience with this sub-variation.

Of course 3. … d7-d5; equalizes easily,

but that's all.

4. f1-c4

...

8. d1-b3

...

4. d2-d4 transposes, the only difference if

White tries to force matters after 4. … g7-

g5; 5. h2-h4 g5-g4; 6. f3-g5 (White also

gets no compensation after 6. c1xf4 g4xf3;

7. d1xf3 b8-c6; or 6. f3-g1 f8-h6) 6. … f7-

f6!; 7. g5-h3 g4xh3; 8. d1-h5+ e8-d7; 9.

c1xf4 d8-e8!; 10. h5-f3 d7-d8; and with

If 8. g2-g3 g5-g4; 9. f3-h4 f4-f3; 10. b1-d2

(Euwe and other analysts betray their soft-

mindedness toward this opening by giving

the inferior 10. … g7-f6(?); 11. d2xf3

g4xf3; 12. d1xf3 – “ unclear” !!). This is

yet another example of “sentimental

evaluation” - after 12. … d8-e7; followed

by c8-h3 and 0-0-0 Black wins easily.

10. h4xg5 h6xg5

11. f3xg5

f6xe4

The Black's Pawn on f3 is a bone in

White's throat so why force him to

sacrifice when he must anyway? 10. …

d8-e7; is the strongest move.

A wild position, but Black is still master.

12. c4xf7+ ...

The game is rife with possibilities. If 12.

g5xe4 e7xe4; 13. f1xf4 e4-e1+; 14. f4-f1

e1-h4; 15. c4xf7+ e8-d8; 16. b3-d5

c6xe5!; 17. d4xe5 g7xe5; (threatening B-

R7 and mate) 18. f1-d1 h4-g3; wins -

owing to the threat of h8-h1+.

In this last variation (instead of 10. b1-d2)

White can vary with 10. d1-b3 … but then

comes Nimzovitch's beautiful winning

line: 10. … d8-e7; 11. h4-f5 c8xf5; 12.

e4xf5 (if 12. b3xb7 a8-b8; 13. b7xc6+ e7-

d7; 14. c6xd7+ f5xd7; and Black has a

winning endgame) 12. ...0-0-0; 13. c4xf7

e7-e2; 14. b3-e6+ (if 14. f1-f2 c6xd4!; 15.

f2xe2 fxe2; wins) 14. … d8-d7!; 15. f1-f2

e2-d1+; 16. f2-f1 d1-c2; 17. b1-d2 g8-f6;

(threatening c6-d8) 18. f7-g6 (if 18. e6-b3

c2xb3; 19. f7xb3 d6-d5; with a winning

endgame) 18. … d6-d5; followed by c6-e7

with a winning game for Black.

12. … e8-d8

13. g5xe4

...

Not 13. g5-e6+ c8xe6; 14. b3xe6 e7xe6;

15. f7xe6 c6xd4!;

13. …

e7xe4

14. c1xf4

...

8. … d8-e7

9. h2-h4 g8-f6

14. f1xf4 also loses to 14. … e4-e1+; 15.

f4-f1 h8-h1+; 16. g1xh1 e1xf1+; 17. h1-h2

f1xf4; etc.

Again theoretical disagreement. Perfectly

good is 9. … g5-g4!; 10. c1xf4 (forced,

not 10. f3-d2 c6xd4!; 11. c3xd4 g7xd4+;

etc.) 10. … g4xf3; 11. f1xf3 - given by

analysts again as "unclear" but after g8-f6

followed by 0-0, White has nothing for the

piece.

14. …

c6xd4

And Black wins...

Of course, White can always play

differently, in which case he merely loses

differently.

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