Polish Opening 1. b4

Technical questions regarding Openings, Middlegames, Endings etc.
Nick Ivell
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Ivell » Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:10 pm

Best game I ever saw in the Polish (which is no good) was by Hort. Must have been 1984, in the Bundesliga. It was an incredible dark-squared strategy, based on plonking his bishop on d4 and his queen on b2.

I was never able to emulate this strategy during my 'Polish years'.

Incidentally, no one ever played ...c6 against me. 1....e5 is best by test.

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JustinHorton
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by JustinHorton » Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:21 pm

Nick Ivell wrote:
Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:10 pm
Best game I ever saw in the Polish (which is no good) was by Hort. Must have been 1984, in the Bundesliga. It was an incredible dark-squared strategy, based on plonking his bishop on d4 and his queen on b2.
This game?
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Nick Ivell
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Ivell » Mon Apr 06, 2020 6:50 pm

That's the one! Well found, Justin. I was privileged to see it live. Must have been one of the games that inspired me, but unsurprisingly I didn't have Vlastimil's positional feel.

I gave it up in 1989.

Reg Clucas
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Reg Clucas » Mon Apr 06, 2020 7:29 pm

After 1. b4 d5 2. Bb2 - 2...e5 seems very playable without the preparatory ...Qd6, e.g. 3.Bxe5 Nc6 4.Bb2 Nxb4. But I'm not expecting to have the chance to test out either method, as the last time I faced 1.b4 was in 1977!

LawrenceCooper
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by LawrenceCooper » Mon Apr 06, 2020 8:09 pm

Ian Thompson wrote:
Mon Apr 06, 2020 4:59 pm
Nick Ivell wrote:
Mon Apr 06, 2020 3:53 pm
I recall Erik Teichmann (whatever happened to him)
Still playing occasionally according to his FIDE rating record. I thought he'd emigrated to Australia a long time ago. The half-dozen or so FIDE rated tournaments he's played in in the last 4 years have all been in France or Spain, so maybe he no longer lives in Australia.
He also posts on Facebook from time to time. His account say lives in Lyon. https://www.facebook.com/erik.teichmann.98

Nick Ivell
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Ivell » Mon Apr 06, 2020 8:19 pm

Going a bit off-topic now, but re Teichmann, the other thing I remember from Edinburgh 1985 is him listening to Pali motivational tapes DURING PLAY.

Wonder how many regulations that would fall foul of now??

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JustinHorton
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by JustinHorton » Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:28 am

Whether or not it can be properly described as a Polish Opening, I can recall opening an internal club game aganst Harriet Hunt 1. Nf3 d5 2. b4 - a Réti recommendation - about thirty years ago.
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Nick Ivell
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Ivell » Tue Apr 07, 2020 10:53 am

To while away the boredom of lockdown, I've been playing through some old world championship games.

I don't recommend the countless Botvinnik v Smyslov games: not much entertainment to be had there.

Anyway, in the first Spassky v Petrosian match I was amazed to see Boris punt 1....b5 in a couple of games.

No wonder he lost the match. Truly, you couldn't get away with that kind of garbage these days.

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Matt Mackenzie
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Matt Mackenzie » Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:06 pm

Just one saw an actual 1....b5 I think? Spassky essayed a Mongredien defence in a few others though.

The games in that match are generally of a very high quality IMO, its amongst the underrated ones.
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Mike Gunn
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Mike Gunn » Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:14 pm

I've got a book by American Master Joel Johnson which promotes 1. ...b5 as black's main defence. I tried it out down the club without much success. Watson and Schiller in "The Big Book of Busts" describe 1. b4 as "a Mickey Mouse opening based on a few tricks".

Nick Ivell
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Ivell » Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:20 pm

Then Boris moved on to the Tarrasch in the second match, with better results.

I've played the Tarrasch at least 20 times in 4NCL. I can safely say that nearly all of my opponents have given it a sterner test than Petrosian did.

Just shows how much opening theory has moved on, and how you can't just wing it like in the old days.

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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by NickFaulks » Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:39 pm

Matt Mackenzie wrote:
Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:06 pm
Just one saw an actual 1....b5 I think?
That was in game 22, when Spassky had to win with Black for a chance of gaining the title.

There was a three time repetition which Petrosian did not claim. Was the rule different then?
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Tim Spanton
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Tim Spanton » Tue Apr 07, 2020 1:50 pm

The rule, or one very much like it, seems to have been around since at least London 1883, but has varied over the years and at one stage was a six-time repetition rule, according to Wikipedia

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Jonathan Rogers
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Jonathan Rogers » Tue Apr 07, 2020 4:18 pm

1 Nf3 d5 2 b4 was even played by Alekhine (at least) once; it made one of his best games volumes. It is almost certainly better than 1 b4 allowing 1...e5. (I once beat Danny Gormally with it, shortly before he became a GM).

Nick Grey
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Re: Polish Opening 1. b4

Post by Nick Grey » Tue Apr 07, 2020 8:23 pm

Abraham Neviasky RIP opened with 1. b4 the most times v me. Always a good game. Lots of chats about Fulham FC.

Richmond & Twickenham Chess Club held a memorial tournament for him.

Lets see if RTCC can host an online thematic tourney. Mike Healey has dabbled with 1. b4.

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