Article: 3489 of rec.games.chess.analysis Newsgroups: rec.games.chess.analysis Path: info!dregis From: dregis@exeter.ac.uk (D.Regis) Subject: Re: French for Beginners Message-ID: Organization: University of Exeter, UK. References: <324ECF0B.2F2B@indigo.ie> <52n6bb$k6f@newsbf02.news.aol.com> Date: Wed, 2 Oct 1996 09:12:36 GMT In article <52n6bb$k6f@newsbf02.news.aol.com> stdann@aol.com (Stdann) writes: >By the way, I recommend the Pirc, the Najdorf Sicilian and the Winawer >French for beginners as Black; as White, choose 1. e4 and aim for a Ruy >Lopez - perfectly pragmatic chess. Whoa! I wouldn't recommend a beginner touch any of these with a bargepole. They are all sophisticated modern lines heavy on theory. Why those lines and not, say, the Petroff, Sicilian Four Knights, and the Classical French as Black; and as White, 1. e4 with the Italian Game 3. Bc4 and/or a Ruy Lopez with an early d4? The standard advice for beginners is to play open games using systems with straightforward aims until they have got the hang of tactics, attacking the King, simple endgames and so on. I see no reason to depart from this advice. I know club players graded 150 or so (1800 ELO) who can handle the systems you mention with reasonable success, but I doubt they played them as beginners. Maybe when I've played for another twenty years I might open a book on the Najdorf Sicilian, but by then, they will be too heavy for me to lift... -- May your pieces harmonise with your Pawn structure and your sacrifices be sound in all variations D _ / "()/~ Dave Regis &8^D* WWW: http://www.ex.ac.uk/~dregis/DR/chess.html || \_/| = DrDave on BICS ~\ / "...what else exists in the world but chess?" _|||__SHEU: ~/sheu.html -- NABOKOV From info!dregis Fri Oct 4 12:07:04 BST 1996