[Event "?"] [Site "?"] [Round "0"] [White "Damiano"] [Black "line"] [ECO "C40"] [Opening "Open Game: Damiano Defence"] 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 {Black has a number of replies to this, some of which are good, and some not. But to improve your game you must be ready for all of them.} 2... f6 {Diagram # This is called Damiano's Defence, although the great Italian player didn't play it, but showed us how to beat it. It is a bad move on general principles, weakening the king's defensive position and not aiding the development of Black's pieces. But it also bad for a specific reason} 3. Nxe5 $1 Qe7 {lets Black regain the pawn but with an obviously inferior position } (3... fxe5 $2 {this leads to a forced loss!} 4. Qh5+ {Diagram #} 4... Ke7 ( 4... g6 5. Qxe5+ Qe7 (5... Kf7 6. Bc4+ $18) 6. Qxh8 $18) 5. Qxe5+ Kf7 6. Bc4+ d5 (6... Kg6 7. Qf5+ Kh6 8. d4+ g5 9. h4 Be7 10. hxg5+ Kg7 11. Qf7#) 7. Bxd5+ Kg6 8. h4 h5 9. Bxb7 Bd6 (9... Bxb7 10. Qf5+ Kh6 11. d3+ g5 12. Qf7 { forcing checkmate. eg.} 12... Bd6 13. hxg5+ Qxg5 14. Rxh5#) 10. Qa5 { White's queen stays within striking distance of the vital f5 square} 10... Nc6 (10... Bxb7 11. Qf5+ Kh6 12. d4+ g5 13. Qf7 $1 {again forcing mate} 13... Bf4 14. hxg5+ Qxg5 15. Bxf4 Nf6 (15... Qxf4 16. Rxh5#) 16. Qxf6+ Kh7 17. Qxg5 { with Rxh5# to follow}) 11. Bxc6 Rb8 {Here Black isn't getting immediately checkmated, but he is 4 pawns down with a worse position....less central control, and his king is not safe.}) 4. Nf3 d5 5. d3 dxe4 6. dxe4 Qxe4+ 7. Be2 {Diagram # White is better developed than Black and is ready to castle. White can develop the remaining pieces with gain of time, by threatening Black's queen} 7... Bf5 {This is a threat White can probably ignore} (7... Nc6 8. O-O Bd7 {Black is hoping to castle on the queen side when his f6 weakness won't affect his king's safety} 9. Nc3 Qe6 10. Bf4 {White has a healthy lea in development, thanks to his pices coming out and attacking Black's exposed queen} 10... O-O-O 11. Nb5 {Threatening c7} 11... Be8 12. Bd3 (12. Nxc7 Qf5 ( 12... Rxd1 13. Nxe6 Rxf1+ 14. Rxf1 { leaves White a pawn ahead with better development}) 13. Qc1 Bf7 14. Bd3 Qh5 15. Re1 {White is a pawn ahead with better development}) 12... Bd6 13. Re1 Qg4 $2 { Diagram #} (13... Be5 14. Nxe5 fxe5 15. Bxe5 Nxe5 16. Bf5 $1 Qxf5 17. Nxa7+ Kb8 18. Qxd8+ Kxa7 19. Qxc7 Nc6 20. Re3 $18 { Notice in this variation, that Black's king side pieces never come into play.}) 14. Bxd6 cxd6 15. Rxe8 $1 {Removing the guard of d6} 15... Rxe8 16. Bf5+ $1 { and then attracting the queen into a fork.} 16... Qxf5 17. Nxd6+ { Black actually resigned after 16.Bf5+ in the game Westman-Havanski Krakow 1964} ) 8. Nd4 (8. Nc3 $1 Qxc2 (8... Bb4 9. O-O Bxc3 (9... Qxc2 10. Qxc2 Bxc2 11. Nd4 Bg6 12. Ne6 Kd7 13. Bc4 Nc6 14. Rd1+ Bd6 15. Nxc7 $18) 10. bxc3 Nc6 11. Re1 Nge7 12. Bb5 Qg4 13. h3 Qh5 14. Rxe7+ Kxe7 15. Ba3+ Kf7 16. Ne5+ Nxe5 17. Qxh5+ $18) 9. Qxc2 Bxc2 10. Nd4 Bg6 11. Bf4 Nc6 (11... c6 $2 12. Ne6 Na6 13. Bxa6 Kf7 14. Nc7 $18) 12. Ne6 $16) 8... Nc6 9. Nxf5 Qxf5 10. O-O Bd6 11. Bg4 Qb5 12. Nc3 Qc4 13. Be2 $2 (13. Re1+ $1 Nge7 14. Be6 $16 { Trapping Black's king in the centre}) 13... Qf7 14. Bb5 O-O-O 15. Qg4+ f5 16. Qh3 Nge7 17. Ne4 h6 18. Nxd6+ Rxd6 19. Bf4 Rd4 20. Be3 Rb4 21. Bxc6 Nxc6 22. b3 Re4 23. Rfd1 Rd8 24. Rxd8+ Nxd8 25. Rd1 Qe6 26. g3 Rxe3 27. fxe3 Qxe3+ 28. Kf1 Qf3+ 29. Ke1 Qe3+ 30. Kf1 Qf3+ 31. Ke1 Qe3+ {all this occured in a simultaneous display by Bobby Fischer. Black was Robert Macgregor, a strong local player from Houston who had tried to put Fischer off-guard by playing an opening known to be bad. Writing about this game, American master Lou Hays says, "Bluffing. McGregor, actually a strong player, wanted Fischer to think he was a beginner." I'm not really sure that the bluff worked - wouldn't a beginner play 3...fxe5? Fischer didn't play a particularly incisive game, but even so, had he not played the 13.Be2 lemon - which had nothing obvious to do with purely psychological factors - McGregor would almost surely have been another simul victim. So, fans of dubious openings, it's true: someone played one of the absolute worst openings against one of the world's absolute best players and lived to tell the tale, but it's not an example worth emulating.} *