Reti Opening for White Chess Players (1. Nf3)

Link Back To Main Page For Master's Chess Guide By GM Sizzo

Link Back To Main Page For Master's Chess Guide By GM Sizzo

The first opening I have decided to teach my HubPages followers is actually my all-time favorite White chess opening. The Reti Opening, also called the Hypermodern Opening, is popular among players with unorthodox style and a keen eye for positional advantages. Bobby Fischer was even known to tinker with The Reti Opening. Considered by many to host the greatest human chess mind of all time, Fischer often utilized this opening strategy in quick paced tournament play to throw off his unsuspecting opponents.

If practiced with diligence, The Reti Opening could very well be the best chess opening of all time!

The Reti Opening is such a wonderful opening to master because even though it has been proven a strong choice, this opening can be quite difficult to play at times. For this reason, many White players choose to stick with the simpler Queen and King Pawn Openings. Veteran Black players have seen these games thousands of times and will wipe the board with ease against a new player. True chess talent shows in games of the unknown. If you are new to chess, study this guide and try your hand at a few games. I am so confident in the Reti Opening and the strategies I have developed to set up a powerful game both offensively and defensively, that even the most hopeless of players will stand a fighting chance in their next game. Chess.com is a great website to practice your chess skills.

White moves Nf3, attacking 2 of the center squares (d4 and e5). Black replies with Pawn to d5 to avoid the White Knight and establish his own center based formation. At this point, Black is unsure of White's strategy so he will likely rush to control the center. White, however, completely ignores center control and instead carefully develops his pieces primarily within the first 3 rows. When playing this opening, White should constantly be watching for Black to extend his pieces too far into White territory and take advantage of these positions.

1. ..... Nf6

1. ..... c5

1. ..... g6

1. ..... f5

1. ..... d6

1. ..... e6

1. ..... Nc6

1. ..... b6

White moves Pawn to g3 and further prepares to fianchetto his King's Bishop. Black defends his leading Pawn with Knight to f6.

White places his "white-squared" Bishop on g2. This Bishop will most likely remain dormant for at least the first 20 moves, but it provides great protection for the King while also passively threatening a Black Rook. By this time Black has pretty much committed to an aggressive center based strategy after seeing White completely ignore the center.

White's best move is Pawn to d3. This protects against black pushing his Bishop any further and sabotaging our formation, as well as creating a square for the Queen's Bishop to join the battle.

Black castles King-side and at this point in the game, both players have made an effort to build a wall around their King. White has a slight advantage because his King's "fort," if you will, is comprised of more powerful pieces. White should do everything he can to try and maintain the complete structure of his King's "fort" for as long as possible. At the same time, White should focus on disrupting Black's defenses by subtly threatening rows 5, 6, and 7 of the columns f, g, and h.

Nf3

g3

Bg2

d3

Nbd2

O-O

b3

Bb2

a3

Ra2

Qa1

Ideally, White will construct his chess pieces to form The Queen's Corner Power Attack!

Once the QCPA is in motion, White is nearly unbeatable...

If you can make 11 moves without using the same piece twice you are more likely to win.

Trade pieces with your opponent if doing so forces him to double up his pawns.

Take advantage of FORK opportunities early on in the game. For example, attacking your opponents King and Rook at the same time.

An obvious but often overlooked strategy is to simply be aware to at least stay even on points with your opponent. Although sacrifices have been proven useful, try to maintain a neutral score with your opponent during the opening.

Generally, the last 3 Point piece you want to move in your opening is the Queen's Bishop.

If Black threatens your f3 Knight by placing his "white-squared" Bishop on g4, do not give into the temptation to attack the unprotected Bishop with your h2 Pawn. When using this opening, DO NOT move your f2 or h2 Pawns until the LATE END GAME. Protecting their position is vital because they directly protect the King.

White builds a strong defense early with an unsuspecting Knight to f3 first move. This is usually followed by a shallow pawn push (g3), fianchettoed Bishop (Bg2), and finally a King-Side Castle Maneuver.

With such powerful defenses on the left and a strong diagonal force along the a8/h8 line, White can comfortably attack using columns a,b,c, and d.

My favorite way to finish my Reti Opening is to use The Queen's Corner Power Attack.

The first 3 Point piece you should always lose in The Reti Opening is a Knight. Most likely, you will be losing your King's Knight. Knights are great pieces to utilize early on in the game because they can attack in 8 directions with a 2.5 attack range. Having such a short attack range is only exposed as a weakness later on in the game, so in the early battles, maneuver your pieces so the Knight is lost first.

The second 3 Point piece you should always lose is The Queen's Bishop.

Your best set up for the middle game will include one Knight and one Bishop.

If possible, try to maintain a pawn structure that resembles a flock of birds flying away from you in a "V-Formation."

If possible, try to avoid doubling up on pawns.

*Click Here* for a more in-depth analysis of the theory behind losing pieces while implementing the Reti Opening as a White Player.

This has been a basic guideline to my White Opening Game. Obviously there are many variations to the Reti Opening, so the main purpose of this guide was to outline the basic strategy of the opening and list powerful offensive and defensive positions. Based on the opening strategy of your opponent, use the techniques I show you on this page and start practicing! This opening takes years to develop properly, so take it slow and don't lose sight of your goal!

Best of Luck,

NotPC