bragesjo wrote on 04/26/13 at 12:39:01:


Carlsen is Carlsen, and that's why he wins with the d3 Spanish.  If someone expects to outrate his opponent and win by just "playing chess," with no theoretical edge at all, he can take up d3 on the same basis.

Theoretically White's system interesting; it's a game of chess; but it makes no pretense of fighting for an opening advantage.   The idea that the big boys have discovered something special for White is a joke.  I am sure the have discovered some interesting ideas, just not ideas that seriously threaten Black.

Carlsen plays numerous unchallenging systems and then wins because he is Carlsen.  It would be idiocy to immitate his play saying, "Ooh, Carlsen plays this, it must be good for White!"

JEH wrote on 04/26/13 at 10:13:27:

My thinking is almost precisely the same as yours. After looking at McDonald's excellent Move by Move book, my "Spanish with training wheels" (US for stabilisers) plan has been Bishop's opening (aiming for an Italian) -> Italian (learning other 1.e4 e5 Nf3 responses) -> d3 Spanish -> "real" Spanish, though I'm still on step 1. But the current popularity of the d3 Spanish (is this the new mainline?) makes me wonder if I should stop there...

JEH wrote on 04/24/13 at 12:49:42:


Although my link was a little tongue in cheek, there's an element of advice in there.

My first 1. e4 opening was the Scotch, then later adding the Italian (playing Bc4 after ed as well) because I didn't think I was ready for the Lopez. I'm very pleased to have got a work out with those openings in my early days, and it's also helped playing 1. ...e5 as Black.

Adopting the Lopez as White came much much later. Back in the day I used to look at White's positions and not understand why with pieces grovelling and wriggling around on the back two ranks and Black's pieces all developed on nice squares why White was supposed to be better. When the penny dropped, I thought I was ready for the Lopez.

I started taking it all on, mainline, but with an h3 anti-Marshall, a la Khalifmann. But although I had interesting games, I thought I'd bitten off too much, and started retreating into initially Qe2 Worrall systems, and then d3 systems. 

Going back over it again, if I could reboot this process, I think I'd start with a 5. d3 Slowpez (which seems to me to have a little more synergy with moving onto mainlines later than 5. Qe2), and then add in mainline systems one by one. So once ready for the Open Lopez, I can go say 6. d3 (or 6. Qe2), and so on, pushing d3 (or Qe2) later into the game, if at all.

If I was going to think this even further back, and say I didn't want to start my e4 e5 career with the Scotch or the Italian etc, then d4 based Lopez's are another possibility.

If you are going to use the learning Lopez with stabilisers approach, then d3 or Qe2 could be just as good. You could use McDonald's book for d3 and Greet's book for Qe2.

But considering how much these slower systems, especially d3 are cropping up at the highest levels, then maybe they are stabilisers at all 

There's no reason to play Qe2. It just misplaces both the queen and the rook. ...d5 lines equalize forcefully and the ...d6 lines are worse for white than the usual Chigorin as the Qe2 is misplaced (Nbd2 can always be met by ...Nh5! as Nxe5 then just loses to ...Nf4 hitting the queen). Honestly, I think Qe2 objectively deserves a question mark. If you want to be lazy play d3 lines.

I believe this therapist also offers counselling for those with Qe2 issues...

http://www.chesspub.com/cgi-bin/yabb2/YaBB.pl?num=1341393550


Covers the French too

The point is disputed here with depressing frequency, but failure to understand how to play in open positions is quite similar to not having a game at all, and the avoidance of these positions on the basis that one isn't comfortable with them is fatal to one's chess imorovement. I wouldn't recommend the Spanish at all to someone not yet able to play well in such positions.

I don't think that 5.Qe2 is played so much to avoid the Open as to avoid a vast body of Spanish theory in general. That includes the Open but also the Closed and the Marshall.

I like the Open myself, but I doubt that many Spanish practioners lay awake at night worrying about it. There is little doubt that 5.O-O is critical and best.