The Unsound Torre Attack
While the Torre Attack actually gives up most of white's initial advantage, and according to chessgames.com statistics page gives white a measly 31% of wins to black's 35%., Torre himself was able to achieve some immaculate wins with it. Most commentators have attributed those wins to his creative tactical ability though and not to his eponymous opening. One such game is a famous match between he and Lasker, in which Torre sacrifices his queen in order to erect a windmill and destroy Lasker's forces through methodical checking. That game (Torre Lasker 1925) mirrors a recent game played by Jeffrey and myself in that a queen sac was decisive…in our game though, the sac and the outcome differ slightly.
Hypothesis: openings which are unsound at the highest levels of chess are playable at the club level for surprise and attacking value.
Cursory Conclusion:
1.d4 Nf6
2.Nf3 d5
3.Bg5 c5
4.c4 Ne4
5.dxc5 e6??
6.Bxd8 1-0
November 24th, 2007 at 1:13 pm
The shame, the shame…
Yesterday's beer is today's shocking loss…
November 24th, 2007 at 1:17 pm
Torre Plays the Torre at Moscow 1925 on the Kenilworthian.
"Basically, I think Black does well against the Torre with a hedgehog formation. That’s not to say the Torre is bad at the amateur level—and you could learn a lot from Torre's games with it. But in every game, Torre's opponents were fine or even better out of the opening and blundered later…
November 24th, 2007 at 1:21 pm
The Kenilworthian is the best chess blog in the universe…I'm so jealous of their club and their blog.
It wouldn't have occurred to me, but it makes sense why the hedgehog formation could be good against the torre, and that nugget of info is definitely worth knowing for blitz, since I've encountered a few blitz players at the chess shop who play the torre with white, and nothing else.
November 24th, 2007 at 7:56 pm
I sometimes play the Torre Attack, but only when Bg5 pins the Black knight on f6.
Who played the “Cursory Conclusion” game??
November 24th, 2007 at 9:17 pm
HA! Perhaps you should ask Jeffrey.
November 25th, 2007 at 12:02 am
wtf Jeffrey.
Why do I get a maneuvering, war of attrition game– and that’s just us fighting for the center– while Greg gets a miniature with the Torre Attack?!