FREDDIE TAKES A TRIP

What do you in the opening? Remember DCK. DEVELOPMENT, CENTRE CONTROL, KING SAFETY. You also know that you should never, unless you have a very good reason, give up MATERIAL. But sometimes, even at the start of the game, there might be a good reason. In most openings the players are exchanging advantages. In some openings one player gives up MATERIAL in order to gain an advantage in DEVELOPMENT, CENTRE CONTROL or KING SAFETY. For instance, in the DANISH GAMBIT, White gives up two pawns to gain a lead in DEVELOPMENT. In the FRIED LIVER ATTACK, White sacrifices a Knight for a pawn in order to force the Black King into the middle of the board. And in the opening we're going to look at now, the KING'S GAMBIT, White gives up a pawn to increase his CENTRE CONTROL.

The word GAMBIT, by the way, comes from an Italian word meaning, roughly, to trip someone up by their legs.

The KING'S GAMBIT starts like this:

1. e2-e4 e7-e5

2. f2-f4 (Diagram)

You've been warned before about the dangers of moving Freddie in the opening. White has to be very careful about Queen checks on h4 - the FATAL DIAGONAL.

At the moment, Qd8-h4 is rather a waste of time: White can just play g2-g3. But suppose Black plays 2... Bf8-c5 and White, thinking he's winning a Pawn, plays f4xe5. What happens then? Black plays Qd8-h4+, of course, which wins at once. White should prefer 3. Ng1-f3, to prevent the check. Or if Black plays d7-d5 and White carelessly replies f4xe5? Then what? Again Qd8-h4+ is very strong.

But there's also nothing wrong with capturing Freddie at once, as Black did in this game, won by someone called WE Rudolph in 1912.

3. Bf1-c4

The most popular and safest move here is Ng1-f3, but this is also good. White's not afraid of Qd8-h4+ because he'll play Ke1-f1, where his King will be fairly safe, and he'll be able to gain time by driving the Queen back.

3... Bf8-c5?

A weak move. Because Black doesn't have a pawn in the centre at the moment he has to be very careful where he puts his pieces. Now White puts another pawn in the centre at the same time as driving the Bishop back.

4. d2-d4 Qd8-h4+

5. Ke1-f1 Bc5-b6

6. Ng1-f3 Qh4-d8

In the first six moves Black's moved his Queen twice and his Bishop twice. This isn't how you play chess! Don't develop your pieces where they can be attacked by DCK moves.

7. Bc1xf4 (Diagram)

Stop and look at the position. What's the score in development? White's winning 3-1. What's the score in centre pawns? White's winning 2-0. Yes, White's had to move his King but that's a small price to pay for such advantages. Now Black doesn't fancy Ng8-f6 because it gets kicked by e4-e5.

7... Ng8-e7

White's advantage is such that he can already start at attack.

8. Nf3-g5 0–0?

Castling into trouble! The only move was d7-d5.

9. Qd1-h5

A familiar attacking idea when Black has a Knight on e7 rather than f6. Remember it! This is a QUEEN FORK. Black cannot defend both targets: h7 and f7.

9... h7-h6

10. Bc4xf7+ Kg8-h8? (Diagram)

Right, tell me what White's next move is. Think CCT and you'll get the right answer.

Black's King has no squares so all we need is a CHECK. The only CHECK is Qh5xh6+ and, yes, after g7xh6 we have another check, Bf4-e5, which this time is MATE. Another QUEEN SACRIFICE. It's also a DECOY of the Black g-pawn.

Now watch how Paul Morphy, the greatest player of the last century, played the King's Gambit back in 1859. In this game he gave his opponent a Rook start, so take off the White Rook on a1 before you play through the game.

1. e2-e4 e7-e5

2. f2-f4 e5xf4

3. Ng1-f3

The usual move, preventing a Queen check on h4. Now Black can follow one of two policies. He can hit back in the centre and aim for quick development, returning his extra pawn: for example by playing 3... d7-d5, and if 4. e4xd5, Ng8-f6. Or he can try to make life difficult for White by trying to maintain the pawn on f4. One way of doing this is by playing 3... Ng8-f6, and after e4-e5, Nf6-h5 (A KNIGHT ON THE RIM ISN'T ALWAYS DIM) when it's not so easy for White to get the pawn back.

3... g7-g5 (Diagram)

This looks like just the sort of move you've been told not to play, doesn't it? It weakens Black's King, doesn't help his development very much (yes, the Bishop on f8 might go to g7 or h6) and doesn't help in controlling the centre. Yet it's one of Black's best moves. What's the big idea? The idea is to play g5-g4, and when the Knight moves, Qd8-h4+, when Black's Queen and Pawns on f4 and g4 are a strong attacking force.

White usually decides to stop this by playing the KIESERITZKY GAMBIT: 4. h2-h4 g5-g4 5. Nf3-e5, with chances for both sides, but in this game Morphy decides to let Black do his worst.

4. Bf1-c4 g5-g4

5. d2-d4?!

Already a Rook down, Morphy gives up a Knight as well. If White doesn't want to sacrifice he can play Nf3-e5 (the SALVIO GAMBIT), which leads to very complicated play. The most common way of giving up the Knight is 0-0 (the MUZIO GAMBIT). White can also try Nb1-c3 (the McDONNELL GAMBIT). Morphy's move is the GHULAM KASSIM GAMBIT, named after an Indian who analysed the opening in the 1820s. Another sacrifice here is Bc4xf7+, called, would you believe, the LOLLI GAMBIT! Lolli and Muzio were both Italians: Muzio lived in the 17th century and Lolli in the 18th century.

5... g4xf3

6. Qd1xf3 Bf8-h6?

Correct is 6... d7-d5 7. Bc4xd5 Ng8-f6 when Black would almost certainly be winning even without the extra Rook. Notice how often d7-d5 is a good reply to a gambit!

7. 0–0 Ng8-e7

8. Bc1xf4 Bh6xf4? (Diagram)

One of the ideas of the King's Gambit is an attack on the f-file once the Black pawn on f4 has disappeared. If you look at White's Queen and Rook it will give you some idea how White can win quickly.

Yes, it's an EXPLOSION ON f7 to force the Black King out.

9. Bc4xf7+! Ke8xf7

10. Qf3xf4+ Kf7-g7

11. Qf4-f6+ Kg7-g8

12. Qf6-f7#

You see from these games how easily the King's Gambit can give White a strong attack. Try it out yourself and see what happens.

Another opening you might like to try is the VIENNA GAME.

It starts:

1. e2-e4 e7-e5

2. Nb1-c3 Ng8-f6

2... Nb8-c6 is equally possible here.

3. f2-f4 (Diagram)

This is a sort of delayed King's Gambit. What move would you play if you were Black in this position?

Black only has one really good move here: 3... d7-d5 (not for the first time this lesson) when White usually continues 4. f4xe5 Nf6xe4. In this position, 5. Ng1-f3 is White's safest move, preventing the check on h4. Second best is d7-d6, holding the Pawn on e5 but blocking in the Bishop on f8. Unlike in the King's Gambit, Bf8-c5 is no good: White can just play f4xe5.

Did you suggest e5xf4? It's a good move in the King's Gambit but not here. Do you see why?

Remember to think about using your centre pawns to drive back enemy pieces. Here, White can play e4-e5 and the Black Knight only has one safe square: g8. Then White continues with Ng1-f3 (to stop the check on h4 again), d2-d4 and probably Bc1xf4 with a very strong position.

We'll look at the game Dr Wurzburger-Peifer, Paris 1933.

3... e5xf4?

4. e4-e5 Qd8-e7

PINNING the e-pawn, but it only makes matters worse. The Queen is a target for attack here.

5. Qd1-e2

UNPINNING the e-pawn. Now Black has no choice.

5... Nf6-g8

6. Ng1-f3 Nb8-c6

7. d2-d4 d7-d6??

8. Nc3-d5

I told you so.

8... Qe7-d8 (Diagram)

Now Black's moved both his Knight and his Queen out, only to have to move them both back home again. I repeat, THIS IS NOT HOW YOU PLAY CHESS.

Can you find White's winning move? CCT!

Look out for TROUBLE ON THE E-FILE! e5xd6 is DISCOVERED CHECK, but by using a DECOY we can make it even stronger. Try Nd5xc7+ (FORK!), and if Black, not wanting to lose a Rook, takes the Knight with Qd8xc7, he'll find that e5xd6 hits the Queen as well as CHECKING the King. So the game continued:

9. Nd5xc7+ and Black resigned.

1. Most of your opponents, if they haven't had this lesson, won't know how to play against these openings. If you learn them and try them out you'll win lots of points with them.

2. Make sure you know a good defence to the King's Gambit (there are several to choose from), and you know that after 1. e2-e4 e7-e5 2. Nb1-c3 Ng8-f6 3. f2-f4 the only good reply is d7-d5.

3. An early d7-d5 is a good move for Black against most White gambits.

4. Look out for EXPLOSIONS ON f7 in the King's Gambit.

5. Look out for the chance to use your centre pawns to attack your opponent's Knights and Bishops.

6. Don't develop your pieces where they can be attacked by moves which develop pieces or help control the centre.