Greenpoint Chess and Go Club

Much has been said about gambits on this blog in the last few months—and in general I find myself attracted by the appeal of sacrificing material for positional advantages. There's something dangerous and sexy about gambits, and the larger the sacrifice, the more exciting and lascivious the gambit. Honestly, is there any better way to get into the mood with that special someone than a well-calculated sacrifice over board before a tumble in the 'sac'? In any case, there is one gambit that has never been covered on this blog—and so let me take a moment to introduce the brain-child of Captain William Davies Evans. Supposedly, the captain and scholar thought of this innovation while at sea, and was unable to put it into practice until sometime later while in London. The classical setup is the Italian game, or Giuoco Piano (quiet game). The b4 sacrifice pays off three fold:

1. When Black accepts the gambit he pulls his bishop forward to take the pawn, and then has to pull it back immediately after c3. This stolen tempo adds to White's initiative.
2. The thematic Qb3 is prepared by both the pawn sacrifice and the tempo stealing c3. The threats created by this move forces Black to contort his position further with the move Nh6.
3. The pawn thrust in the center, d4, threatens to nudge Black out of the center and topple him off the board.

Of course, there are plenty of satisfactory answers for Black, and his defensive resources are numerous. However, Black often has to find the "correct" move early in order to not be squashed immediately—so, if you find yourself sitting across the board from an unbooked patzer who learned how to play chess by watching the YouTube show Chess Now, the Evans gambit is a line you may want to consider with the White pieces.

Bobby Fischer was an exponent of the gambit and used it often in simuls to quickly rid himself of the patzers in order to be left with fewer games on which he could then concentrate. The following game is an example of Fischer's success in a simul with the sensual Evans.

Honestly, game over in 12 moves—how many gambits can boast such simplistic attacking ideas that are so difficult to defend against? Evans gambit would seem to be the thinking man's scholar's mate and a nasty little arrow you need in your repertoire quiver.

In fact, the game of the day today on chessgames.com (2/12/2008) is an Evans gambit blowout that finishes with a beautiful queen sacrifice.

Anther Gambit worth mentioning on this blog since it appears in our games so often is the Milner-Barry Gambit in the French Advance. This gambit is not nearly as intricate or deadly as the Evans Gambit, though it does have some explosive tactical chances for White if Black missteps.

Milner Barry Gambit

In this game, the move 12…Be7 lost a tempo, since on the very next move Black was forced to either play Bd6 or lose the exchange. After Bd6-Bxd6 Qxd6, it would seem that Black is ok, though the lost tempo may still be a factor deep into middle game.

Related tags: evans-gambit, french-defense, gambits, giuoco-piano, milner-barry