Greetings all,

  5...Bc5!? is mentioned on page 88 of Emm's Play the Open Games and he gives some analysis of it.  The critical test is given as 6.dxc6 Bxf2+ 7.Ke2 bxc6 8.Qa4 f5 9.Nbd2 0-0 10.Nxe4 fxe4 11.Qxe4 Bb6 12.Kd1 d5!.  He tends to indicate that 5...Bc5 may be playable.

Estrin in "Comprehensive Chess Openings Open Games" (1980) pg 64 says 5...Bc5 is incorrect.  He gives the line 6.dxc6 Bxf2+ 7.Ke2 bxc6 8.Qa4 f5 9.Nbd2 0-0 10.Nxe4 fxe4 11.Qxe4 Bb6  12.Kd1 with threats of 13.Qxe5 and 13.Bd3.  He does not mention Emm's 12...d5!

Estrin in "3 Double King Pawn Openings" (1982) pg 60 gives  5...Bc5 - "This interesting sacrifice of a piece for two pawns was discovered and analyzed by Frazer in 1856.  Black gets a persistant initiative in return".  His main continuation is 6.dxc6 Bxf2+ 7.Ke2 bxc6 8.Qa4 f5 9.Nbd2 0-0 10.Nxe4 fxe4 11.Qxe4 Bb6  12.Kd1 d5.  He gives this as unsatisfactory, since after  13.Qxe5 Bg4 14.Qg3 15.Bd3 c5 16.h3 White obtained a clear advantage in the game Minev-Hadzhipetrov 1960.  Emm's gives 13.Bf5  as the cricial test.

My poorly educated opinion is that the open file after Emm's 12...d5 13.Qxe5  gives some hope for Black.  A piece is still a piece though. 

  Naturally I would check these lines as just because someone wrote it down and got paid for doing it doesn't make it true.   

  Now the "Sharks" can start "improving' on these ideas.  Have at it guys.  BTW where is Top?

I am dubious of using statistics from even good Databases.  I am a 1500 player and I have one more game in MEGA 2004 than Pete does.  Now that truely is injustice.

Your Humble Servant

Bilbo

A Texan stranded in New Jersey

Hi,

I was looking at a line in the Ponz with my comp, and let it analyze for a while.  After a while it came up with one crazy move, akin to Bc5 in the two knights...

1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 c3 Nf6 4 d4 Nxe4 5 d5 Bc5!? 6 dxc6 Bxf2+

(Nxf2 has terrible statistics...no wins that I could find.)

This.  Looking it up quickly in a database, Big DB 2004, it finds 42 games with 18 1-0, 5 1/2, and 19 0-1.   

What does everyone think of the line?!

NeX iRae