Hey thanks guys for the imput.  Yeah I'm thinking to continue playing the king's gambit, and very very slowly practice the Vienna or something similar (I'm still playing 1.e4 no matter what anyone says!).  The King's Gambit is very sharp and can be something of a shocker against an unprepared opponent expecting 2.Nf3, and its rare to find someone well versed in the refutations below the master level.

I've been hearing good things about the Bishop's Gambit 1.e4 e5 2.f4 exf4 3.Bc4.  Does anyone know if this is better/equal to 3.Nf3, i.e. is it worth looking into or is it a waste of time?

On a completely unrelated note... can someone please tell me how to quote others in these forums.  I see people quoting what others said in a grayish box before they reply and I can't figure out how to do that. Thanks!

Quote:


B.

Keep playing the KG and get good at tactics. When you get to 2500, worry about changing then 

everalexfor wrote on 08/16/07 at 00:45:41:

everalexfor wrote on 08/16/07 at 00:45:41:


By all means continue to play The King's Gambit, as its hard to give up on something you enjoy success with. As a practical weapon especially on the lower levels, the Kings Gambit is fearsome as are most Gambit Openings (Queens Gambit excluded) at that level. Potential problems arise when as a result of your success you advance to higher level tournaments/opposition and realise that you are suddenly finding it very difficult to make these gambit openings work as you would like. Some realise this later than others, and the consequences at times can be rather depressing.

If one's primary attraction to chess is excitement and fun, without bothering unduly about the result, then one can play gambits exclusively your entire chess playing life. However if you want sustainable growth up the elo ladder, it would be advisable to encorporate into one's repertoire some openings noted for their durability along with the wild stuff, and this should be done concurrently.

Be proactive, do not wait till you start encountering problems with a risky opening to think about switching to something more solid. But rather start preparing your backup and fail safe Openings even while enjoying success with your chosen gambit, that way when the time comes any transition to be made should be less traumatic. Many amateurs fail to anticiptate these issues and often when their pet lines/openings fall on hard times they find it near impossible to play anything else with any confidence. Don't let that happen to you.

Toppy

Hi everyone,

I have been a hardcore King's Gambit fan for several years now, and was quite pleased to see the evolution of this thread, as it gave me some very interesting insights on my favorite line.  So yes, it does seem like some lines are on their deathbed, so now I must decide (as must every king's gambit player) do i want to continue playing the king's gambit?  I thought about this long and hard until I realized it is not that simple.  I considered several possible options for myself which I would like some advice as to which one to choose.  Note that I am a 2000 level player who plays actively both tournament and blitz chess.

Options:

A: Continue to play the King's Gambit with my head held high on the stubborn idea that the king's gambit is a good line and the current troublesome lines will have improvements found for white soon enough by those studying theory.

B: Continue to play the King's Gambit in view of the fact that I am scoring 80% with it and have had few troubles in my games.  I will accept that at the highest levels the opening is unsound but at my level the opening is fine.  If i ever advance to a level where I have trouble with it, then I'll switch over. (this option is tempting, but seems to go against my desire to play the best chess I can)

C: Play my beloved King's Gambit in tournament games where I'm used to all the different positions, and play a different line in blitz/practice games, to slowly learn the theory and nuances of the other line.. and then eventually switch to that line in tournament play (note that this could take me months, maybe even years before I would be that comfortable)

D: Study the books really hard, and immediately switch to a different line in tournament games.  Continue to play King's Gambit in blitz games as a sharp aggressive line

E: Drop the King's Gambit entirely.  It's dead.

These are my options for the future.  Which do you guys think is the most reasonable?

alumbrado wrote on 08/02/07 at 18:58:17:


Not worth the trouble, O most noble Pontius.  Friends and Romans, what do I care if the spurious allegation that I wronged this boy's mother remains graven upon the tablets of this forum?  Let future generations judge who was in the right, the noble Marcus Markovictus of 1300 most learned posts (to date), whose ancestors fought alongside Horatius on the Pons Sublicius, and who contributed so lavishly to last winter's games, or that lowborn boy whose name is not worthy of my utterance!  Hail and fairwell, I am off to my Campanian estate.  The Senate knows where to find me if it needs me!

If contributions have only been insults, rantings and Fritz-dumping it appears there will be little loss to the masses if the individual is banned. 
Agree.

Erm, original ideas and/or analysis for discussion anyone...?