The Scotch Game (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4) is a great repertoire addition for any player looking for a solid yet active opening, which relies more on understanding rather than pure memorization. The popularity of the Scotch rose exponentially after Garry Kasparov employed it in the World Championship match against Anatoly Karpov in 1990, and the opening has stayed in style ever since. In modern times, the Scotch Game can sometimes be seen at top level from such players as Magnus Carlsen, Fabiano Caruana, Hikaru Nakamura, and Ian Nepomniachtchi, all having overwhelmingly positive scores with it. Besides in-depth theory and exciting tactical exercises in the Scotch Game, this video course also includes a bonus section on the Scotch Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Bc4), a lively variation often leading to very dynamic positions.
• Video running time: 5 hours 50 minutes (English)
• With interactive training including video feedback
• Extra: Training with ChessBase apps - Memorize the opening repertoire and play key positions against Fritz on various levels
• Database with model games
The opening known as the Scotch Game owes its name to a correspondence match played between the cities of Edinburgh and London between 1824 and 1828. In it, however, the Scots first had the black pieces and lost to 3.d4, but later took their revenge by successfully opening with 3.d4 with the white pieces. At the start of the 20th century interest in this direct method of play had noticeably waned, but then in 1990 no less a player than Garry Kasparov opened with the Scotch Game in the 14th game of his WCh match (Lyon/New York) against Anatoly Karpov at a moment when the scores were level. This brought the sleeping beauty of an opening back to life. This game was in fact drawn, but in his next game with White Kasparov repeated his “experiment” – and this time he was successful. The result was a boom in the Scotch. A whole host of top players rushed into the variation and what the day before had been considered old-fashioned was suddenly chic and modern.
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