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Hot Topic (More than 10 Replies) Best resource for the Benko (Read 12297 times)
TD
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #21 - 06/23/21 at 16:38:24
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Stigma wrote on 06/23/21 at 10:33:22:
I wasn't aware of the Sieglen (2020) book. Do you recommend it? Does it add much to Perunovic' coverage and address recent attempts and suggestions for White?

I don't play the Benko anymore, but bought the book out of interest. In the Vorwort Sieglen compares his book to Perunovic's so you can get much information from that. The only prerequisite is that you know (some) German.
  
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Stigma
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #20 - 06/23/21 at 10:33:22
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TD wrote on 06/18/21 at 15:36:57:

But theory has moved on and the most recent books with the modern Benko are The Modernized Benko Gambit, https://www.debestezet.nl/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3568, and Wolga-Benkö-Gambit, https://www.debestezet.nl/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4795.

I wasn't aware of the Sieglen (2020) book. Do you recommend it? Does it add much to Perunovic' coverage and address recent attempts and suggestions for White?

There's a good index of variations at the end of the pdf sample: https://www.debestezet.nl/catalog/images/PDF/Wolga-Benko-Gambit.pdf ;

After a brief look I see Sieglen and Dhopade make the same basic choices against all the major lines – with the single exception 5.e3 axb5 (Sieglen) vs 5.e3 g6 (Dhopade). Interesting! It could be a coincidence, but there could also be a broad consensus on Black's best tries at the moment.
  

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Stigma
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #19 - 06/23/21 at 10:28:36
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Hale-Bopp wrote on 06/22/21 at 21:34:39:

So, is the course worth it (only for the Benko material)? It's also quite disappointing that you can't see from the outside which lines are recommended. At least some of the big choices are important - 5. ...g6 or 5. ...axb5 against 5.e3? And 5. ...e6 or ...Qxb6/g6 against 5.b6? Perunovic move order should be obvious, I guess, but even that is not clear from the website.

Now the Short & Sweet for the Dhopade Benko/Vienna course is out already: https://www.chessable.com/short-sweet-benko-gambit/course/77754/


* 5.bxa6 g6 6.Nc3 Bg7 7.e4 O-O with 8.Nf3 Qa5, as expected.

* 5.e3 g6
* 5.b6 e6
* 5.f3 e6

* 4.Nf3 Bb7
* 4.Qc2 bxc4 5.e4 e6

etc.
  

Improvement begins at the edge of your comfort zone. -Jonathan Rowson
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TD
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #18 - 06/23/21 at 07:57:12
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TopNotch wrote on 06/23/21 at 02:50:06:
There will be a free Short & Sweet soon so you will be able to better judge for yourself. Also the following link could be of some interest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3yKZJwYdy4

Thanks for the link TopNotch!
  
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TopNotch
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #17 - 06/23/21 at 02:50:06
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Hale-Bopp wrote on 06/22/21 at 21:34:39:
It would be great if someone who has the course could give a quick review how good and convincing the material on the Benko is. I'm very interested in buying the course, even though I only care about the Benko part. Recommending the Vienna of all lines only to cover the 2.Nf3 move order seems completely absurd to me and I definitely don't intend to play it. And the Catalan, for that matter.

So, is the course worth it (only for the Benko material)? It's also quite disappointing that you can't see from the outside which lines are recommended. At least some of the big choices are important - 5. ...g6 or 5. ...axb5 against 5.e3? And 5. ...e6 or ...Qxb6/g6 against 5.b6? Perunovic move order should be obvious, I guess, but even that is not clear from the website.


There will be a free Short & Sweet soon so you will be able to better judge for yourself. Also the following link could be of some interest: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3yKZJwYdy4
  

The man who tries to do something and fails is infinitely better than he who tries to do nothing and succeeds - Lloyd Jones Smiley
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Hale-Bopp
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #16 - 06/22/21 at 21:34:39
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It would be great if someone who has the course could give a quick review how good and convincing the material on the Benko is. I'm very interested in buying the course, even though I only care about the Benko part. Recommending the Vienna of all lines only to cover the 2.Nf3 move order seems completely absurd to me and I definitely don't intend to play it. And the Catalan, for that matter.

So, is the course worth it (only for the Benko material)? It's also quite disappointing that you can't see from the outside which lines are recommended. At least some of the big choices are important - 5. ...g6 or 5. ...axb5 against 5.e3? And 5. ...e6 or ...Qxb6/g6 against 5.b6? Perunovic move order should be obvious, I guess, but even that is not clear from the website.
  
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MNb
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #15 - 06/22/21 at 12:21:11
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Another annoying advertisement:

"You've tried the slow, positional grind of the Slav and the Queen's Gambit Declined, but White is not intimidated. And the Indian games are just not doing the trick either. But what can you play to score the full point against 1.d4?" You need a bold, aggressive response that shakes White up from the outset."

Sounds like he's promoting the Albin's, the Von Hennig-Schara or the Dutch.

"And not just some one-shot pet system - you need a solid repertoire that will last you a lifetime."
Oh wait - he wants you to intimidate your opponent with solid play!
I've had a lot of fun with the Benkö in the past, but no, it didn't last my llifetime.
  

The book had the effect good books usually have: it made the stupids more stupid, the intelligent more intelligent and the other thousands of readers remained unchanged.
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TD
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #14 - 06/22/21 at 08:12:47
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #13 - 06/21/21 at 06:54:19
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TopNotch wrote on 06/20/21 at 22:17:06:
L'Ami did a Benko DVD for Chessbase that was quite good. As a practical weapon the Benko is still useful but it is creaking theoretically in a number of places, so choose your opponents carefully.


My ten-yer old post (with minor modifications) is still valid:

I have played Benko 38 years. In the good old days people took the pawn and I was winning almost every game. Many players avoided it against me and played e.g. 2.Nf3. Nowadays Benko feels very different.

Glenn Flear: "Again we see the problem for Black in the Benko Gambit Accepted: If White is well-prepared, he can keep Black's dynamic activity in check and gradually make progress. This explains why top level players are reticent to play the Benko on a regular basis: Black's winning chances are perhaps not much better than in more 'solid' openings and he may have to play many moves with little to show for the pawn deficit."

I agree.

Despite its defects Benko used to be until recently nice at least against lower rated players, but what openings are not. Nowadays also lower rated players  usually know how to minimize black's activity.

How often does one nowadays meet comfortable benko-like positions, when white has so many uncomfortable ideas such as 4.Qc2, 4.Nf3, 5.b6, 5.e3? Moreover, even the "real Benko" -variations with 5.ba are better for white. The old main line with 12.a4 is simply better for white and Perunovic's line is neither good enough for equality.

Benko is also very committal. You cannot play fluent positional chess: at some point you often just sit and wait, or you decide to make a highly committal -c5-c4,  -e7-e6, -f7-f5 -move when you either get more activity or lose quickly.
  

1.Nf3! -  beat your opponent by killing his zest for life.
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TopNotch
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #12 - 06/20/21 at 22:17:06
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L'Ami did a Benko DVD for Chessbase that was quite good. As a practical weapon the Benko is still useful but it is creaking theoretically in a number of places, so choose your opponents carefully.
  

The man who tries to do something and fails is infinitely better than he who tries to do nothing and succeeds - Lloyd Jones Smiley
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Sandman
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #11 - 06/20/21 at 00:00:56
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Thank you for that.  Appears to be no shortage of Benko books.
  

“All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy.
That's how far the world is from where I am.
Just one bad day.”
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TD
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #10 - 06/18/21 at 15:36:57
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I liked the Aveskulov book, it is a complete repertoire for Black against 1.d4.

But theory has moved on and the most recent books with the modern Benko are The Modernized Benko Gambit, https://www.debestezet.nl/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=3568, and Wolga-Benkö-Gambit, https://www.debestezet.nl/catalog/product_info.php?products_id=4795.

Thinkers Publishing is going to publish a book on the Benko and Chessable a course.
  
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #9 - 06/18/21 at 15:18:10
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While I’m dusting, how does the Aveskulov book compare to the Pedersen book and the McDonald benko revealed book? 

  

“All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy.
That's how far the world is from where I am.
Just one bad day.”
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #8 - 06/18/21 at 15:12:19
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Wait, let me dust off the cobwebs…… now, that’s better.

How is the quality of the benko move by move book for learning the benko?
  

“All it takes is one bad day to reduce the sanest man alive to lunacy.
That's how far the world is from where I am.
Just one bad day.”
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TN
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Re: Best resource for the Benko
Reply #7 - 05/25/16 at 17:21:48
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I think there was some Move by Move book on the Benko that covered some of the fresh ideas for Black. I don't own it so I have no idea as to its quality. 

For what it's worth, the Accepted and 4.Qc2 seem the most annoying lines to me.
  

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