Don't Fear a Discovered Attack in the 3...Qa5 Scandinavian! | Climbing the Rating Ladder vs. 1927
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- Опубликовано: 22 дек 2024
- In this continuation of the "Climbing the Rating Ladder" series I take on players of various ratings levels while pointing out typical mistakes and spots for improvement along the way (possibly my own!? :)). Here I commentate a 10+0 game against a player rated 1927 on Chess.com. For the past 8+ months I've been working on a course on the 3...Qa5 Scandinavian that I'll be self-releasing in a couple months (details forthcoming!), and this game provides a good opportunity to test the repertoire and discuss some move orders and ideas. In this opening, you have to be comfortable "playing chicken" with White's bishop on d2, as in the line here, 4.Nf3 Nf6 4.d4 Bf5 6.Bd2. I like reacting with 6...Nbd7!?, as I played in an over-the-board game in Charlotte back in May ( • My Strategy against Lo... ), because Black is safe from discovered attacks on her majesty unless White can load up Nc3-d5. My opponent tries the active 7.Nb5 followed by 8.a4, but I rebuff the attack, and we soon settle into a fairly typical Scandi middlegame structure. White surprises me by delaying castling and voluntarily accepting an isolated pawn, but it doesn't prove easy to exploit as my time dwindles lower. Happy New Year, everyone!
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And John is all like... I'll just let the clock wind down to 13 seconds and sacrifice the ROOOOK! A super sneaky line in the Qa5 Scandi!! Thanks for the adrenaline, John!! 😂
You bet! Had to throw in that completely (un)intentional rook sacrifice at the end to maintain the suspense😅
Love your videos John! Climbing the rating ladder is definitely one of my favorites. I've been loving Eric Rosen's beginner to master speedrun he's been doing, and I think it would be awesome to see something like a "Climbing the Rating Ladder Speedrun" too! (In reality i just want more content from you though 😅)
I love how you comment on live games so we can see your fascination and expert thoughts process in real time.
Thank you 🙏
18. Nb8 preparing for Nc6 in the analysis felt like an aha moment to me. Seems so obviously strong but idk if i would have ever played it in a game. Fits right into something i keep hearing about in this game... accumulate small advantages.
Thanks John! I've been waiting for a video where you talk about that Bd2 move. I've always tended to over-react to it and am trying to re-program myself. Happy New Year.
"Analysis Gang" would make a good tshirt. :D
It really would! Time for some John B merch lol.
Thanks for a fun game, John! Have a great 2024!
Cheers, Paul - Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, and thanks for the content again. I was waiting to see your face when you analysed a6, a5 and then realised you had Qe6+...!
Thanks, i love the Scandinavian too and was just thinking i need to look at some pros Scandinavian and you were already there in my feed. How cool! .
Fantastic! Not much love for the Scandi in mainstream chess, but that just gives us Scandi players a practical advantage :)
Your uploads are always instructive. Happy New Year, John!
Kind of you to say that! Happy New Year!
I'd love to see a video from you about how isolated pawns can be used as attacking pieces! I feel like I often end up playing against an IQP, and while I know the routine for blockading & piling up pressure against one, sometimes it all goes horribly wrong. I think it'd help me to have a better idea of the attacking ideas from the offensive side.
Also really looking forward to the Scandi course! Happy new year, and hope you're recovering well!
Geez my anxiety goes up so much as John’s clock casually nears zero
😅
close call with the late hiccup but well played. Happy New Year, John!
Happy New Year, Jay - cheers!
New year new John😃🕺🏻 What a Great way to start the new year with your YT content 😄
dude I'm always paranoid when someone plays the Scandinavian against me.
Nice to see u on again John, remember to be careful when you play the Pink yeti! Dont play Rc2 when facing the pink yeti :)
Love your long after analysis ❤
That must be a reference of some kind that's flying over my head, haha. Thanks for watching, and Happy New Year!
Happy New Year, John! Thanks for another great video!
hey John, Happy New Year! Wishing you all the best!
Pink Yeti's profile picture is adorable!
Oh, this is nice! I've always played c6 in anticipation of the discovered attack, and Qc7 or Qd8 when they try it. Never felt right.
Me too. When John played Nbd7, I want to try using it. But, seeing how complicated it was during middle-late game, I have to wait until I have a pretty good idea about what's going on 😅
As White I've set up that discovery a bunch of times! It definitely worked once or twice lol!
Artful maneuvering, John. Happy 2024
As a 40 year old who has been watching you since your fundamental series was uploaded fresh....
I approve of this vid 😜✌️
As always, incredibly instructive. I'm super jealous of the invaluable feedback your opponent will get from this game. For that reason, I would love to have an opportunity to play you sometime :) I'm a low key lichess streamer. I broke 2000 in rapid but have been steadily dropping to nearly 1900 now...I just can not stop blundering
Anyhow, thanks for this great content :)
At 2:05, if you play 8...a6 and White plays 9.a5, doesn't 9...Qe6+ win the knight?
Correct :) I discuss that in the analysis portion...definitely didn't see it in the game!
@@JohnBartholomewChess My apologies--I should have watched the whole video before commenting.
@jimhenderson6440 No prob! It's a long vid 😁
very nice, thank you John :)
Glad you enjoyed it, katis!
BTW...have you ever considered starting a club or team on one of the chess sites devoted to the scandi? Maybe something where there could be scandi-specific tournaments where scandi players could practice against each other? There is a team scandi on lichess but it is not active.
Great video, I love the Scandi. Would love to know your thoughts on Qa4 vs qd8 vs 2.. Nf6.
Hello fellow Scandi enjoyer! 😁 I've always preferred 2...Qxd5 with 3...Qa5 or 3...Qd8, though I think 3...Qa5 and 3...Qd6 are theoretically "best" Scandi lines. I played a fair amount of 2...Nf6 as a kid, and those are a lot of fun - especially if you get stuff like the Portuguese or Icelandic Gambit. My main issues with 2...Nf6 are that most people don't allow you to play those fun lines, and if you recapture ...Nf6xd5, the position feels more like an Alekhine's Defense to me than a Scandinavian. But 2...Nf6 definitely remains a legitimate option for the vast majority of players!
@@JohnBartholomewChess thanks!!
Hi John. Great video and analysis. I play the Scandi because of you and always have solid games due to that familiarity as you say.
A question: when you recommend 15+10 time controls, is there a particular level and reason you suggest that for?
Thank you for watching - cool to hear you've picked up the Scandi! I think 15+10 is a good return on time invested for the average online player. A 15 minute base time control allows you to think a bit in middlegames or critical positions compared to 10-minute games, and the increment prevents truly crazy time controls. The longer the better for an improving player, though - if you can play 30-60 minute games online and don't mind encountering the occasional cheater, that's even more useful for improvement.
@@JohnBartholomewChess Interesting! I've adopted a quantity over quality approach, so 5+5 but still analysing afterwards. However, you're right, much like otb classical, it can be beneficial to have longer to think things over during the game itself. I'll start incorporating some longer time controls into my games then. Thanks for replying!
Thanks for new Scandi video, John! By chance, do you ever play Qd6 variation?
No he doesn’t, he has spoken out about it on stream, actively condemning both the variation itself and those who play it
I think jyce is trolling 😂 I haven't played 3...Qd6, but it's perfectly good - probably on par with 3...Qa5 theoretically--speaking. Check out Magnus's games in the line - he plays it occasionally
Happy new year John!
Thanks, Carlo - happy new year to you as well.
Do you have a Scandi course available on chessable that covers Qd6 lines and 2. e5!? lines? Cheers 🍻
2.e5 is covered in my 3...Qd8 Scandi course, and I'll also be covering it in my upcoming 3...Qa5 course.
I've never really played 3...Qd6, so no course on that yet :)
@@JohnBartholomewChess Qa5 course? That’s great!
Also, have you read John Emm’s Scandinavian book? It’s a solid read with many different variations to go through. Cheers 🍻
@@BobbyFischer0000 Thank you! And yes I have ready the Emms book :) If you can dig up Wahl's old book in German, that's another great one (they've republished/updated it, too).
Hi John, Your videos are useful as always! I have a question: why has my rating dropped significantly in the past 6 months? I was rated around 1800 rapid, and now I hover around 1650. Not many external influences have changed. However, I have noticed something interesting. Especially in rapid, after your opponent blunders or makes a mistake, they usually go into a long/semi-long think and start playing almost perfectly. Their level jumps dramatically. It looks fishy to me and throws me off even more(and I have been refunded some points from time to time, confirming some of my suspicions.) Is this something you have also seen?
I think you're in your head. If you imagine your opponents are cheating, then you yourself are going to play much worse (see: the famous Carlsen - Niemann OTB game).
Your opponents aren't all cheating. Once you admit that, you just identified a key point of your chess game that you need to work on: converting positions where you are up material!
Final point to consider: online ratings have deflated as players have gotten stronger in the past few years. What was 1800 strength in 2018 is probably closer to 1700 strength now, whatever that means. If you've been able to maintain your rating over the past few years, then you've probably gotten stronger!
Thanks John, love seeing your Scandi stuff. What are your thoughts on the Portuguese gambit? Is it on your radar at all or just complete 🗑️ not worth your attention?
man this pink yeti guy should really start a chess channel or something, he seems really good
ikr
Post of video: I like
Hey John this is guys!
Why not a6 on move 8 and if a5 you play qe6+. Otherwise white moves knight and you take b pawn 2:28
Yes, ...Qe6+ is strong. I missed it in the game, but I discuss it in the analysis.
Jon is your course coming out on chessable? Or is it updating the one i have already? Many thanks...
Hello! My plan is to self-publish this course. It will be on the 3...Qa5 Scandi, so different than my Chessable course, which is on 3...Qd8 (but still good, imo!).
@@JohnBartholomewChess john sorry i didn't know it was a self publish,when is it out sir?
hi john is your qa5 course out ? and how could i get there ?
also i'm team scandy 😂😂😂
LOVE to hear you're on Team Scandi! The course is coming along well - I hope to have a late November/early December release. Here is the waiting list if you'd like to be notified when it gets published: johnbartholomewchess.com/master-the-qa5-scandinavian-defense-coming-soon/
@@JohnBartholomewChess hi again john , can i ask you what would you do if white play d4 , c4 staight ?
and btw i dont the kc6 lines
can i go to my normal setup with bf5 , castle king and maybe play rook c8 and pressure on the queen side for the fact that he's weakening by playing c4 ?
is that even a play ?
@@shayanabbasi8897 Can you be more specific with the move order?
@@JohnBartholomewChess yes , thanks for responding john , somthing like that :
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. d4 c6 4. c4 Qa5+ *
white now plays c4 before nc3
is this good for them ?
one other mover order which is more common is :
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Nf3 c6 4. d4 Nf6 5. Be2 Bg4 6. h3 Bxf3 7. Bxf3 Qa5+ 8. c3 e6 9. Bf4 Qa6
this game is a famous game between giri and kramnik
in these lines white could get c3 or c4
i know i could play nc6 line but i found myself uncomfortable with those lines
@shayanabbasi8897 Thanks for typing that out!
It's a good question, because Black is potentially in danger whenever White establishes the d4+c4 pawn duo. For this reason, I would not recommend 3...c6; it's a bit passive (I generally avoid ...c7-c6 too early in the 3...Qa5 Scandi). Against 3.d4 specifically, I recommend the aggressive 3...Nc6 in my upcoming course, when 4.Nf3 Bg4 5.Be2 0-0-0 transposes to the main line of 3.Nf3.
You could also meet 3.d4 with 3...e5!?, planning 4.dxe5 Qxd1+! 5.Kxd1 Nc6, which is a promising pawn sacrifice for Black. This was my recommendation in my 2016 3...Qd8 Scandi course for Chessable.
John, I genuinely hate that this is my first message to you - chiefly because it's a tedious 'housekeeping' type of comment as opposed to one filled with unqualified hero worship which is what you really ought to be receiving instead. Anyway, in a number of your videos there's a pesky little issue with the compression levels on your mic. I'd noticed some people have commented about 'sound issues' in previous posts, but I haven't seen anyone naming the compression issue precisely. And it really is an issue because it most often effects the specific moves you are discussing - so that we often only hear an "ee" sound without any preceding consonants that may or may not have come before it (meaning you might have said either one of "b4", "c4," "d4", "e4" or "g4" and we have to guess which). If there's any way you can dip into the settings and notch down the level of compression a few percentage points it would help enormously, because right now it's just a little too severe. After all - we need every second of your genius, so this stuff matters! (As a random, hastily found reference - 9:48 onwards, for a few sentences, is a fairly decent example - where a few of your more softly spoken words are compressed super low, including your repeat of "b4").
I'll now end this hyper-mundane comment with the appropriate level of hero-worship...
"John Bartholomew for President!"
(Overcompensation...?)
I appreciate the detailed critique! I was watching this vid back and was also unsatisfied with the audio. Will see if I can tweak it and improve it - thanks for pinpointing the problem
I love how the hero worship of youtubers has gotten to the point where people are afraid to give qualified criticism without tossing in a bunch of unsorted, over-the-top praise.
@@Yakushii I’ve watched at least one JB video per day since September after returning to chess, having dismissed almost all other Tubers showing chess content. To my mind he’s that good. I figured I owed him at least some acknowledgement of my respect before tearing into his microphone settings. Besides, why not ramp up the positives - the world needs it!
@@markdextermusic7349 Haha, fair's fair.
Yeah no the feedback was spot on. I suspect there's a noise gate enabled somewhere that filters low frequency inputs until his voice kicks in. You're totally right on the description.
@@Yakushii Yeah, I subsequently wished I’d mentioned ‘gates’ specifically, but sending John another comment was not a great idea after I’d hit him with that colossal-sized first one…! 🥴
Thank you
Can you play a scandi for white(Center game) and apply some of the logic and ideas for the white side? Like E4 E5 D4 exd4 Qxd4 nc6 qa4 ? Might be fun to do. Your expertise in the scandi you might be able to apply some scandi logic with tempos up or something.
The e pawn being on e5 is a concern there actually because notice that he played e6 (e3 if you were white) in this game and calls it a "typical Scandi structure"
Its great video
Glad you like it
💓💓💓
I hope you had a great holiday John. Thanks for helping me and my family improve at chess! 👽🙏🏻♟️
Sweet
a6 a5 Qe6+ and whatever white plays you have axb5 winning the knight
scandi is good though
Analysis Gang in 2024!
My man! 👍
I would like to play a match with u .That's my only dream❤❤pls
"always play c5"
Per se means by itself so a slight inaccuracy. "...I would anticipate by itself..." One might say, A knife isn't a weapon per se. Or cultural pride isn't fascist per se. As bad as in spite of vs despite.