Chess Opening Theory/1. a4
| Ware Opening | |
|---|---|
|
a b c d e f g h 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1 a b c d e f g h | |
Position in Forsyth-Edwards Notation (FEN) | |
| Moves: 1. a4 | |
| ECO code: A00 | |
| Parent: Starting position | |
1. a4?! · Ware Opening
editThe Ware Opening, named after the US chess player Preston Ware, is a rare opening starting with the move 1.a4. This opening is nearly useless, as it does nothing to control the center or develop a piece. While it does prepare Ra3, Black can stop this with 1... e5, which is a move that Black probably would have wanted to play anyway. Despite its flaws, the Ware Opening can be used to unsettle the opponent, similarly to other unorthodox openings.
This was played in the 10th round of the World Rapid and Blitz 2024, between GM Brandon Jacobson (the supposed owner of the ViihSou Account) and GM Hikaru Nakamura (Former 2° Best player in the world), the match came out with Brandon winning.
Statistics
editThis opening has no statistics, as it almost never occurs among serious chess players and is a fundamentally unsound opening.
Theory table
edit| 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | ||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Crab Variation | ... e5 |
h4 - |
|||
| Symmetric Variation | ... a5 |
= |
|||
| Wing Gambit Accepted | ... b5 |
axb5 Bb7 |
|||
| Wing Gambit Declined | ... b5 |
a5 - |
|||
| Cologne Gambit | ... b6 |
d4 d5 |
Nc3 Nd7 |
=/+ |
|
| Ware Gambit | ... e5 |
a5 d5 |
e3 f5 |
a6 - |
=/+ |
| Banned Gambit (ViihSou Gambit) | ... e5 |
Ra3 Bxa3 |
Nxa3 |
All possible Black's moves
edit| Quick Navigation |
Na6 a6 a5 |
b6 b5 |
Nc6 c6 c5 |
d6 d5 |
e6 e5 |
Nf6 f6 f5 |
g6 g5 |
Nh6 h6 h5 |
References
editEric Schiller (2002). Unorthodox Chess Openings (Second Edition ed.). Cardoza. ISBN 1-58042-072-9. {{cite book}}: |edition= has extra text (help)
