Martin C, 

Thanks for the analysis, I will probably try to use it in a tournament game some time!


As a practical weapon, I'm sure the Garry Gambit is reasonable.   

However, I wouldn't want to rely on it too heavily because I do believe it's close to busted.  See Kasparov's own notes on it as well as Karpov's.  Their analyses, and more importantly their opinions about the opening,  have been around for about two decades now!

Just been looking at this and I'm not sure it's remotely as bad as often stated. Certainly the main line that's often given (Burgess in detail, but also in passing in the safest sicillian):
1 e4 c5 2 Nf3 e6 3 d4 cd 4 Nxd4 Nc6 5 Nb5 d6 6 c4 Nf6 7 N1c3 a6 8 Na3 d5!? 9 ed ed 10 cd Nb4 11 Be2 Nfxd5 12 o-o Be6 13 Qa4+ b5 14 Naxb5 ab 15 Bxb5+ Ke7 16 NxN+ NxN etc

isn't any fun for black at all. Juniors five minute idea of 17 Qh4+ ^ f6 18 Re1 Kf7 19 Rxe6 etc is quite frightening enough for me

However black may well be able to improve on this. Burgees mentions 13 .. Qd7 in a note as having not been played but deserving attention. Indeed as far as I (and my friendly computer) can tell black is fine here.

The below lines look like the logical, direct attempts to pin black down:
14 Bb5!? Nc6 15 NxN BxN 16 Rd1 Rd8 (as Burgess says sensible - unlike o-o-o!) seems to force the white bishop to retreat and hence be rather equal. Also possible:

16 Re1+!? Be7 17 Bg5!? f6 18 Rad1 Rd8 19 BxN QxB 20 Qb4 o-o 21 Rxe7 fg or 21 Qxe7 Rde8 22 Qb4 RxR+ 23 RxR fg

However black might even be better at the end of this - of course white can equalise by playing less ambitiously earlier.

What I don't see is any way for white to get a real advantage, perhaps he can squeeze a small edge somewhere but I've no idea where.

11 Bc4 is the other main idea (but meant to be ~ ok). Junior seems to like 11 ..Bd6!? after this, meeting Qe2+ with either Kf8 or Qe7 and Qd4 by just o-o. Of course Junior loves being a pawn down so I wouldn't be totally sure about trusting this. The main line(?!) 11 .. Bg4 12 Qd4 b5 13 Ncxb5 etc is a real mess.

I guess that *the* famous game with this line must have got into Stohl's recent books - does he analyse the opening in any detail? 

On a practical level this isn't all that interesting since the main lines aren't meant to be dangerous for black and this line gives white numerous ways to force truly dull equality. Intriguing though - have I missed anything big here?