A Strategic Chess Opening Repertoire for White

by John L. Watson

Such has been the acclaim for John Watson's ground-breaking works on modern chess strategy and his insightful opening books, that it is only natural that he now presents a strategic opening repertoire.

It is the chess-player's holy grail: a flexible repertoire that gives opponents real problems but doesn't require masses of memorization or continual study of ever-changing grandmaster theory. While this book can't quite promise all of that, Watson offers an intriguing selection of lines that give vast scope for over-the-board creativity and should never lead to a dull draw.

The repertoire is based on 1 d4 and 2 c4, following up with methodical play in the centre. Watson uses his vast opening knowledge to pick cunning move-orders and poisonous sequences that will force opponents to think for themselves, providing a true test of chess understanding. Throughout, he discusses strategies for both sides, so readers will be fully ready to pounce on any inaccuracies, and have all the tools to decide on the most appropriate plans for White.

Genres: Chess

272 pages, Paperback

First published May 22, 2012

About the author

Librarian Note: There is more than one author in the Goodreads database with this name.

John Leonard Watson is an International chess Master and author.

Reviews

[Mindaugas Mozūras · Rating 3 out of 5]

Playing the same moves every game teaches you less about chess as a whole and often results in dull and uncreative play.

I thought the book would spend more time explaining strategies and imbalances to target instead of going through variations. Thus, I was a bit disappointed by the sheer amount of pages spent going through variation after variation. I still found the book helpful. Here are my quick notes on what the author recommends for some of the various openings:

- QG Declined: exchange on d5, Bg5, e3, Qc2-Bd3 setup (often leading to a minority attack on the queenside)
- Tarrasch: cxd5, and g3 fianchetto setup
- QG Accepted: mostly Nf3, e3, and then it really depends on how the opponent chooses to defend c4
- Slav: Nc3, Qb3 in case of Bf5, gear the play toward Anti-Meran
- Semi-Slav: g4 in case of f5, b3 fianchetto otherwise
- Nimzo Indian: mostly e3, Ne2, and being ready to play Nf4 in a lot of lines (or Ng3, e4 in others)
- King's Indian: h3, Bg5-Be3, Nf3
- Grünfeld: Bg5, Rc1, d5 in case of c5
- Modern Benoni: d5, Bg5, fight for e5 push in a lot of lines
- Benko: Qc2 instead of capturing, immediate e4 in case of capture on c4
- Dutch: e3, f3 setup

[Oliver Ward · Rating 4 out of 5]

An excellent book, with the right amount of depth, but that focusses on overall strategic plans, rather than concrete lines. I use a lot of the openings I learned here, and tend to get the game I want far more of the time.

[Scott · Rating 5 out of 5]

This was a oerfect opening repertoire book for me. I don't have time to study thousands of variations for every possible defense to d4, but I also didn't want a book too shallow in it's repertoire. Watson strikes the perfect balance. The opening plan is fairly consistent across many d4 defenses so it's easier to follow and replicate. Watson keeps you on a path towards solid play with moderate advantages, while avoiding risky variations which require very accurate play.