JFugre wrote on 07/14/20 at 13:26:56:


I think its on a case by case basis. Shankland's Semi Slav repertoire for example had a hole in it i think which led to a fairly significant update.

Other repertoires by the top players are less likely to see updates (at least not very often), particularly if the repertoire is still solid.

JFugre wrote on 07/12/20 at 19:30:16:


The course is quite good and definitely worth getting, lets not forget that Gustafsson is one of the world's leading experts on the Marshall and a lifelong exponent, not to mention one of Carlsen's Wch seconds. Not sure about the support level, my experience is if you ask easy questions you get quick answers, however if you ask challenging ones then it can get tricky.

There has in fact been an update, and a pretty important one at that. The video has been updated as well as the move trainer, some recent Anish Giri game as Black if memory serves, I'm at work now so can't be more specific.  What I can say is that they need to do a more efficient job of notifying consumers when updates are posted, I found out about the one I mentioned due to a friend of mine asking me what I thought about the Giri game, to which I answered "What Giri game?"

I also like his suggestion against the Bishop's Opening, it goes against established norms but he presents a very convincing argument, also the line could be used as a second choice against the King's Gambit, have I whet your appetite yet.

The course is rated among the best on Chessable and Peter Svidler has sometimes referred to some of its analysis in his game commentary on You Tube when it applies, which suggests that he has made it his business to take Gustafsson's recommendations very seriously.

LeeRoth wrote on 07/06/20 at 20:33:31:


Just use the 'browse repertoire' button?

Seeley wrote on 12/28/19 at 12:17:42:


I empathise with your dilemma brother, Iv'e been there, but sometimes you just gotta bite the bullet. Every popular and successful Opening defence carries with it a lot of theory, it's true that if you forget your theory as black in a critical Marshall line it could spell doom, but the same goes for white, moreover the Marshall is not a one trick pony and there are enough options in every mainline that you need not be predictable. There is a learning curve with the Marshall of course  but I believe if you stick with it the potential upside is tremendous, just ask Aronian who continues to play it almost exclusively despite his opponents awareness its coming.

If you are a bean counter then the Marshall, Schliemann and Arkhangelsk Variations are probably best avoided, but the Breyer and Chigorin also have a huge body of theory and if you wing it there it can also become very unpleasant against a prepared opponent. Further I am not certain that 7...d6 rather than 7...0-0 allows for more variety of Ruy as you state, more often than not the Marshall move-order bluffs white into choosing less theoretically challenging lines such as early d3's etc.

In the end every player has to decide what works best for them, but bare in mind that chess is also a psychological game. I remember in my Dragon playing days being paired against a much higher rated Austrian IM who always played 1.d4 according to my database, but in our game he uncorked the TN 1.e4. Clearly he was up to something, nevertheless I still played my Dragon except I chose a line I had never used before confident that my overall experience with the opening should be superior to a lifelong 1.d4 guy who probably just prepared for the line I usually played, and I was proved right. Moral of the story, whatever defence you ultimately choose, put in the work and after awhile you will get a feel for the type of positions that arise and even when out of theory you will come up with sensible ideas and playable moves.   
 

an ordinary chessplayer wrote on 12/28/19 at 04:16:34:

I think this is exactly right, though I'd argue that scenario A happens less frequently if you don't threaten the Marshall as Black by playing 7...0-0. Whereas it's extremely common, certainly at my level, for people to answer 7...0-0 with something other than 8.c3 so as to avoid the Marshall, more people seem willing to play 8.c3 after 7...d6, which means Black is still on course to get a mainline Chigorin, Zaitsev or Breyer on the board.

TopNotch wrote on 12/28/19 at 02:11:30:


The first half of this is absolutely correct, but my point was that there's little incentive to learn lots of Marshall theory in the first place if you know you're unlikely ever to get a chance to play it.

I realise the second half of TopNotch's point is tongue-in-cheek, but his 'other option' is, of course, not the only one. As I've just argued, a different variety of Ruy mainline is much more likely to appear on the board than the Marshall, as long as you play 7...d6 instead of 7...0-0.

TopNotch wrote on 12/28/19 at 02:11:30:


Okay you do have a point, but the counterpoint is not all mainline openings have the same memory burden for over-the-board play. At least in the Chigorin or Breyer, if you forget the book move you can just wing it to a certain extent and it might work out. In the Marshall, if you forget the book move you are more likely to immediately go down in flames.

Years ago I rejected the Marshall for the same reason Seeley gave. In scenario A, about 90% of the games, white deviates on moves 4-8. In scenario B, white has specially prepared for the Marshall and I have to remember some variation which I have never (or hardly ever) faced over-the-board. The key point is that scenario A happens with similar frequency no matter which mainline Ruy I might have in my repertoire.

Seeley wrote on 12/13/19 at 18:16:33:


Yeah that's fair, although I do think you don't really need to know all that much theory anyways in the Marshall honestly. Just learn the new and trendy d3 line, and perhaps the d4 Re4 line, as the others are very rarely played at any levels whatsoever. Only if you want you can check the other critical lines. See IsaVulpes' post for example.

Also, from my personal experience, I have got many more Sveshnikov propers than mainline Marshalls. I don't know why! Perhaps its because none of the Anti-Sicilians besides the Rossolimo are really very dangerous compared to the Anti-Marshalls like a4 and h3.

Leon_Trotsky wrote on 12/14/19 at 05:56:04:

I am curious. How do you liven up the Re1 line?