My e4-e5 Opening: The Obscure Glek

I am not all that ambitious in the openings. I'd rather play for an equal middlegame than a theoretical battle. So I play the Glek, which is basically the 4 knights with g3! Here are some sample games of the Glek where black makes the wrong kinds of moves (...Bxe3, Ne7, etc). I play white in all of these games:

Why am I telling you this? So you know what to look out for when we start playing each other!

Yes Erik! I also think this is a very reasonable system. I agree with your comment about aiming for an equal middle game rather than a 25 move deep theoretical opening where your opponent can suprise you with a devastating novelty that they saw in the databases by some GM. I also like to just achieve a equal middle game where both sides have chances and out-play my opponent. I usually try to stay away from the very sharp openings.

I think the g3 move against the four knights game is a very reasonable and solid idea. The bishop on g2 can become very powerful on the h1-a8 diagnol if the player with the black pieces is not careful. Also the fianchetto set-up really keeps white's king safe for some time.

Sometimes when I am playing white against the Sicilian defense I will even play 1. e4 c5 2. b3!? or 1. e4 c5 2. d3!? and play for the g3, Bg2 set-up to avoid all the opening theory.

I look forward to playing some interesting games with you Erik! (once the website adds the feature for playing live games on the internet)

bump

Worst bump of all time.  

 Igor Vladimirovich Glek is a Russian chess Grandmaster, coach, theorist, writer and organiser. He now lives in Essen, Germany and has mainly resided there since 1994. Glek was born in Moscow. Wikipedia

The gambit Nxe4 might be playable for black.

I haven't played it, but I did some serious study of it as a way to avoid the Frankenstein-Dracula Variation of the Vienna Game after 1 e4 e5 2 Nc3 Nf6.  If Black plays 2...Nc6 I'll play the Vienna 3 Bc4, etc. but 2...Nf6 I've transposed to the Giuoco Piano in the past and may do so to the Glek by playing 3 Nf3, etc. I avoid this Frankenstein-Dracula Variations in fast (anything more than 1 hour on the initial clock for me!):

1e4 e5 2.nf3 Nc6 3Nbc3 Nf6 4g3 nxe4?! could be called the reversed Halloween Gambit but that would be a really stupid name. Hawkins mentioned it as playable in his book.

Is is playable in 1 minute? Trick question, 1 minute is not playable on V3. Thanks for nothing. :/

If White wants the queens on though he has to play this or not play Bc4 early.

Glek is the guy the opening was named after. 

I really liked this opening, you know sometimes we spend too muhc time in theory, analizing diferent ways of facing certain defenses,etc... and well I want to spent more time in another activities, and finally found this thanks you so much bro : D

GM Glek has written two articles in NIC on this opening. Black's soundest reply is 4...d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.Bg2 Nxc3 7.bxc3 Bd6.

My view is if going to play g3 type stuff then better to start with 1.Nf3 and play reti type stuff

Frankestein Dracula is not a stupid name, but the best among all openings

There is 10 years between two of the posts... wonder how it was unearthed.