Before we stan our investigation proper
let me briefly mention some similar ideas.
Hugh Myers wrote
a
book on a3-lines in
the open games calling them Mengarini's
opening. The American Ariel Mengarini
liked to play Le4 e5 2.a3. This is a less
forcing move order though. Myers feels
that after 2...f5 White's second move has
little
merit.
We may think of other set-ups
too. Myers himself advocated l.e4 e5
2.lilc3
tLlf6 3.a3. This
is
indeed quite a
tricky move order. Its main idea is shown
after
3...d5
4.ed5 ttJd5 5.'it'h5!
A
reversed
Scotch with the important difference that
the best move
lbd5-b4
is obviously not
on. There are some other ideas connected
to
the Vienna move order too. For exam-
ple, 3....ic5 4.ltJf3 tLJg4 (the Two
Knights) 5.d4 ed4 6.tDa4 and again a3
proves its usefulness. However, I think
that
4...
d6 is an easy equalizer, and besi-
des Black can always play
3...
tLlc6when
White has nothing better than to transpo-
se into
Gunsberg's
Four Knights. There-
fore we will concentrate on 4.a3 in the
Four Knights. Naming this the
Gunsberg
Variation strikes me as most logical, con-
sidering that he was both the first and the
strongest player to regularly adopt 4.a3.
Black
falls for
it
1. e4 e5
2. tL:c3 tbc6
3. ~f3
~f6
4. 83
ses
This allows a simple tactic, which is
known with colours reversed too (4jLC4
lDe4).
5. ~e5 tee5
This is better than 5...
~f2?!
6.~f2 ~5
7.d4 ttJfg4?
(7...
lDg6 8.e5lDg8 9.h4!? d5
lD.ed6 ~d6
J
l.ttJbS 1!r'd8 12.1!r'el
rj.lf8
13.h5 Cvorovic-Stipic, Pula
tt
1992)
8.'~gl ~h4
9.1li'e2
teg6
iO.g3
it'h5
II.h3 tLlf6 12.~h5 ~h5 13.~h2±
Bhend-Avrarn, Lenk
1991.
However,
5...0-0
may well
be
a
berter
idea. For example, 6.iLe2 tt::\d47.lOf3
(7.~d3!?) 7...l1e8 S.O-O(8.d3
d5)
8...l1le4
was equal in
Tarrasch-Duras,
Nuremberg
1906.
Likewise. 6.LUc6dc6 7.~e2 1td4
8.0-0 ttJe4 was also equal in Vande Oude-
weetering-Wemmers, Dutch Team
Championship 2000.
6. d4 i.d6
6...~d4
7.~d4 d6it.
7.
.4
7.de5 iLe5 8.~d3 0-0 9.0-0 is almost
equal
for
Black.
Worth
investigating
though
is
8.lDb5!'! (White is planning f4)
8...
a6
(S...d5
9.f4 LUe4
(9...
~d6 lO.e5)
1O.fe5 ft'h4 I Lg3 ~g3 l2.hg3 'it'g3
13.~d2 itf4 l4.'~c3 and wins) 9.f4 .if4
10.
iLf
4 ab5 I '.e5 with decent compensa-
tion in Hofsteuer-Labahn, cr 1993.
7.... ti:lc6
8. eS iLe7
11