Jacob Aagaard wrote on 07/24/08 at 15:50:06:
I just thought it was a really funny thing to try out. I am Danish by birth and thus prone to irony. I am sorry if anyone missed the joke
Methinks not, more plausible is you tried it because like Tony and others you must have concluded after a closer look that it was a risk free way to play for the edge with the added bonus of being little known and studied. That's chess as Bibs says, its a move you played it, and why not.
As I mentioned earlier in this thread, there also a recent chessbase magazine article advocating the Ponziani, and as far as surprise weapons go I would sooner punt this than the Centre game advovated in Dangerous Weapons 1.e4 e5.
We can continue to expect players to rehabilitate old and forgotten lines and openings, so long as the Marshall continues to prove such an effective drawing weapon.
Heaven forbid should the Petroff prove annoying enough we may have to abandon 1.e4 all together or even worse yet resort to, dare I say it, the King's Gambit which has the positive of avoiding the draw but the negative of handing black the full point.
Rule of thumb for annonymous and his many aliases, Focus a bit less on what the masters say and a bit more on what they play, and with that pearl of wisdom I'm outta here.
Sayonara,
Toppy