From: Patrick Davin LYRA VEGA OR JP> Date: 16 apr 1997 Subject: Re: First 40(originally 30)move examples from the opening --- 019 Manabu Terao writes: >Habu Meijin loved this opening strategy very much when he was a child. >Futhermore, Tanigawa Ryuo used to adopt this many times after he became >a professional player. Thus isn't it too early to conclude we should try >this opening in order to become as a strong player as them-:)? Ross Dickson writes: >These three openings are very interesting, probably because as a beginner I >find the logic deep and difficult to understand. Indeed, these variations are extremely sharp and interesting, full of paradoxical moves and major sacrifices. And I think in terms of winning games, they well return careful study. Some quick words of explanation (and opinion)... (Please refer back to Mr. Terao's Examples) Examples 55 & 56: If Gote intends to play the B*4e attack, he must preface it with the pawn drop on 2h (move 18). The purpose of this is to prevent the Rook retreat. I.e. if 18 B*4e (?) 19 R2d 20 P2c 21 R2h Sente defends the 2nd rank and has a big advantage. After the pawn sac, Sente can no longer retreat the Rook. For example, if 23 R2f (instead of B*7g), Sente is destroyed after 24 Bx6g+ 25 Gx6g 26 Rx8h+. Example 55 results in a famous position. It's supposed to favor Sente somewhat after 41 P*5h. Example 56 is one possibility out of many. Sente appears to be ahead after 41 K4h 42 +S6h 43 R4a 44 K6b 45 P6d. Possibly even better is 37 K4h instead of the knight drop. Example 57 shows Sente passing one move (15 P9f) and playing the reverse side. I haven't seen this before, although it looks like something Naito 9-dan might try. However, the result doesn't look that great, as Sente's pieces are all hanging. Perhaps Mr. Terao has something up his sleeve. (?) Hope this helps, though we've barely scratched the surface. -Patrick