I was a practitioner of the Evans Gambit until recently, when I switched from the aggression of the Evans Gambit to the quietness of the Giuoco Pianissimo. However, I am still fascinated by the activity white gets from the Evans Gambit, which I still play for fun occassionally. I wonder why it was abandoned in modern times after being popular before WWI. Does anyone know why? Also, I would like some openings lines of the Evans Gambit. Thanks.
The Evans Gambit is respectable again, if I recall correctly. But the position in which one can play it seldom comes up in GM play.
The reason to avoid it is that one gives up a pawn for nothing clear, and Black has a sound structure that, one could believe, should prevail with precise, patient play. But it seems that like other formerly discredited gambits (the Marshall Gambit) computer analysis has actually helped the attacking side.
I won most of my games with the Evans Gambit. I drew one, against a Class E player, because although I had a clearly won position, I fell prey to a three-fold repetition my opponent found. I lost another one, against a B player, because although initially I went up the Exchange, I played too casually and let my opponent back in it and win the game. But, in every case I played it, I found that I was hanging in the balance; one small mistake from my side could prove fatal for me. That, along with lack of deep opening lines, is why I have favored the Giuoco Pianissimo, on which I have more opening lines, nowadays.
As chess players became professionals during the time of Steinitz and afterwards, they no longer felt it necessary to give up material in the opening in order to play for a win. Furthermore, Steinitz developed the notion of “positional equilibrium” whereby one only went for an all out attack after one developed an advantage (which would preclude doing so in the opening stages of a game). Thus all gambit openings were to some degree marginalized in master play.
Steven Craig Miller
That makes sense. Actually, I am not comfortable at all in giving up material, but I just used to like the attack the Evans Gambit used to provide. I think that being the player that I am, I would be more comfortable with positional openings.