swingdoc wrote on 12/18/08 at 11:43:43:


1. yes, 9.Bc4 is more popular at high level, but-

2. -the point is that during many years -from the fifties- it was believed that (after 9.0-0-0) 9...d5 was very strong. About 25 years ago it was discovered that White has several promising continuations after 9.0-0-0 d5. But-

3.-meanwhile the theory of 9.Bc4 was so rich that there was much more to find there, or so people assumed. For this reason 9.Bc4 continued to be regarded as the main line.

You must take into account that the Dragon has been regarded as too risky for Black, basically after a famous game that Botvinnik lost to an Austrian named Duckstein, in the so called "Yugoslav attack" (White castles long, opens the "h" file and, hopefully, mates). Certainly there were some other games lost by Black in those days, But Duckstein-Botvinnik was especially important because the winner was not a top grandmaster.  In other words, imagine you were a strong grandmaster. Playing the Dragon you had a significant probability to be whipped by underdogs.

Some years later the theory was much improved from the point of view of the Black player, but there was a price for that: in some sharp lines White had the choice to get a draw by force. Now imagine again that you were a very strong grandmaster, a Botvinnik say: it is a disaster if you lose to a Duckstein, but it is also a disaster if you draw with him as well.

For these reasons the Dragon has been little attractive for top players and continues to be so. 

But you are not a strong grandmaster, nor your adversaries are. Also it is unimportant if you memorize variations to 30th move, as your adversaries are not to enter these variations. And, if they do, you -or your rival- are likely to lose a piece as soon as you are out of the book.

So, why do you mind about 9.0-0-0 or 9.Bc4? These kind of preocupations are for the expert. Play the move you like more -both are good enough- and don´t care.   

One thing I've been wondering about...  In all the supertournaments I've been watching recently, White always goes 10.0-0-0 instead of 10.Bb3.  I always thought 10.Bb3 was better, because it cut out the Chinese Dragon.  The one downside (potentially) is that Bb3 allows Nxd4 Bxd4 b5, but I had the impression that this line is better for White, or at least better than the Chinese Dragon.  Any thoughts?

TN wrote on 12/18/08 at 22:15:49:


Fischer wrote: sac, sac, mate.

TN wrote on 12/18/08 at 22:15:49:


This is a non-sequitur. I'll have to check it, but I am pretty sure the percentage of draws after 9.0-0-0 is considerably higher than after 9.Bc4. And that means 'better drawing chances' indeed. Still both may 'be equal in objectiv merit'.
So for a GM it's logical to turn to 9.Bc4 as soon as something promising is found and go back to 9.0-0-0 as soon as Black has found a remedy - until the next promising idea.

Maybe I'm beside the mark, but it always has been my impression that the GM's choice depend on the theoretical status of 9.Bc4. If this promises a mating attack or a winning endgame every GM turns to 9.Bc4. As soon as convincing response is found for Black 9.0-0-0 is in vogue again. So GM's preference is like a pendulum.
The logic might be that 9.0-0-0 is more solid and allows less counterplay, but also allows better drawing chances, unless Black has a fine defence available after 9.Bc4.

Thanks everyone for the advice and thanks MNb for pointing out the accelerated should be considered too when making this choice. A couple questions that I'm still wondering about (these are purely for my own curiosity because the Dragon is incredibly interesting, not factors in my personal repertoire choice) 

1. Is 9. Bc4 significantly more popular at the grandmaster level? This seems to be the case, but I certainly don't keep up with opening theory so I don't know.

2. If it is, why? Is this a matter of what is currently fashionable, or does white have a better chance at a long-term advantage in the 9. Bc4 line? Are there certain subvariations within 9. 0-0-0 where black has an easier time? Etc.

To be honest, after playing through several months worth of games in the Dragon section I'm tempted to play it myself. I love sacrificing material for the attack so that's not an issue.

This is not entirely correct and that has to do with the Accelerated Dragon. 9.Bc4 Bd7 10.Bb3 is the same as 2...Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 g6 5.Nc3 Bg7 6.Be3 Nf6 7.Bc4 0-0 8.Bb3 d6 9.f3 Bd7 10.Qd2. And this is not really more work than the Jugoslav Attack 9.0-0-0 plus the Maroczy.

I'm going through Experts vs Sicilian and there they recommend 9. 0-0-0 vs the Dragon.  However, most of the high level games I've seen in the last 6 months or so have seen white go 9. Bc4.  Is this just a trend in taste or is white struggling in some lines after 0-0-0?   

Thanks.