1. g4

I would like to be able to play an opening that immediately takes my opponent out of their book. Since I'm a more tactical player, i thought 1. g4 would be a good choice. Does anyone know where i can find help with this opening over the internet?

Originally posted by Dejection
I would like to be able to play an opening that immediately takes my opponent out of their book. Since I'm a more tactical player, i thought 1. g4 would be a good choice. Does anyone know where i can find help with this opening over the internet?

1. W:g4 B:d5
2. W:bg2 or h3 B:c6 , e5 or bxg2 as a reply to bg2. e5 to reply to h3

on and on it goes. Chessmaster has an opening book for this, I'm sure fritz, etc have them too. Or you could check a database to see what people are doing.

Originally posted by Dejection
I would like to be able to play an opening that immediately takes my opponent out of their book. Since I'm a more tactical player, i thought 1. g4 would be a good choice. Does anyone know where i can find help with this opening over the internet?

Originally posted by KnightStalker47
This tournament has some very good games with the grob.

Tournament 1667

Originally posted by irontigran
it looks like all the games history isnt working, or at least the ones i clicked..

Thread 62096 This thread has some good info on the grob.

Originally posted by KnightStalker47
The opening move history is there for most of the games, the game history is missing for the endgame only.

Originally posted by Dejection
I would like to be able to play an opening that immediately takes my opponent out of their book. Since I'm a more tactical player, i thought 1. g4 would be a good choice. Does anyone know where i can find help with this opening over the internet?

I think it would be a wonderful idea just to forget the Grob.
I've always done well with it, but the sequence 1. g4, d5; 2. h3 (Basman's recommendation), e5; 3. Bg2, h5! is tough to meet.
If you like something not analyzed to death, try 1. c3. Oh, by the way, the Grob has been analyzed extensively, and if you must play it, get Basman's book on it, bearing in mind that he himself eventually gave up on it!

Originally posted by cubs
I think it would be a wonderful idea just to forget the Grob.
I've always done well with it, but the sequence 1. g4, d5; 2. h3 (Basman's recommendation), e5; 3. Bg2, h5! is tough to meet.

Originally posted by Squelchbelch
Yep. An early ...h5 pretty much refutes the Grob.

1.g4 is good as a surprise weapon against weak opposition, but against anyone half decent (or indeed anyone with access to a database!) it really leaves white in all sorts of trouble; ie Game 4449001

Originally posted by Korch
If Grob is useful only against weaker opposition how IM Basman managed to beat IMs and GMs with such inferior opening?

Originally posted by Squelchbelch
He is a tactical genius who, for some reason known only to himself, decided to specialise in oddities.
Look at his Grob games on chesslive.de - he lost many against weaker opposition when he could probably have won playing sound openings.

His record on www.chesslive.de with 1.g4:
P=28
W=11
L=9
D=9
Hardly resounding for a leading expert.

I kn ...[text shortened]... the Grob & know it well Korch. You must admit the early ...h5 plan is extremely good for black.

Dragon Fire is the main Grob player on here, I think. I suggest learn a lot of responses to the Grob OTB, as if you play it and they catch you by surprise with a particular variant, you are pretty much sunk. I personally prefer castling queenside as Black against the Grob, particularly after releasing the bishop by dubiously accepting the pawn sac'. Then White either castles on his only side, or pawn storms and leaves his king in the centre.
Anyway, you probably don't want to listen to me, listen to Korch, Squelchbelch and Dragon Fire.
Thanks for reading.
🙂