Openings Update

A devilish twist in the Grand Prix

Welcome to the first ever Openings Update!

The Openings Update is presented weekly by GM Eugene Perelshteyn, a world class openings researcher who’s worked as a second for 2700+ players.

He’s got a spicy one for you today, 5. a4!? in the Grand Prix.

Eugene is a real Grand Prix aficionado, having learned the core ideas from one of his mentors, GM Roman Dzindzichashvili.

In our book Evaluate Like a Grandmaster, Eugene describes how “Dzindzi” showed him the ropes. He’d set up a position from the Grand Prix and invite Eugene to play Black. After his attempts were duly crushed, Dzindzi reset the pieces and invited him to try again. They kept going like this until he knew all the key plans in the Grand Prix.

Computers have not been especially kind to the Grand Prix. The more standard attempts with 5. Bb5 or 5. Bc4 now have well-known antidotes (whether your opponent is diligent enough to know these is a different story). Eugene’s 5. a4!? is an idea that combines old and new. It’s engine approved, but the lines have a way of circling back to those old school Grand Prix strategies.

And the lines are diabolical! Just when Black thinks they’re out of the woods, there is one more unexpected idea to land them in hot water. If your opponent plays the most obvious moves — the most common ones in the database — they go to the brink of losing very quickly.

The Openings Update is a premium feature for paid subscribers. Eugene’s video breakdown is below the paywall.