Play the Englund Gambit!?

     When black plays the quirky Englund Gambit (1. d4 e5) his idea is to avoid the closed d-Pawn openings and create an open game with tactical chances at the cost of a Pawn. 

     The gambit is considered unsound and Israeli GM Boris Avrukh wrote that to him it was the worst possible reply to 1.d4. Most agree which is why it's only occasionally seen even in amateur games although the Swiss Master Heni Grob sometimes played it using the 3...Qe7 line. But, then Grob also played the Grob Attack, 1.g4.

 

After 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 black has numerous ways to continue:  

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 d6 

Black offers to exchange his d-Pawn for white's e-Pawn. The idea is that if white plays 3.exd6 then 3...Bxd6 gives black a lead in development as compensation. This sounds like a pretty weak argument. This line is known as the Charlick Gambit after Henry Charlick (1845–1916) who introduced the 2...d6 line in the early 1890s. It is also sometimes called Blackburne–Hartlaub Gambit 

 

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 

If 3.Nf3 black can go after the white P on e5 with 3...Qe7, intending to meet 4.Bf4 with the 4...Qb4+. In that case, the only way white can maintain the extra P on e4 is to expose his Q with 4.Qd5 where it can prove to be awkwardly placed. 

 

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3 f6 

The Soller Gambit. White can play either 4.exf6 or return the P (as recommended by IM Gary Lane) with 4.e4 

 

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3 Bc5  

The Felbecker Gambit, intending to follow up with ...f6, with similar play to the Blackmar–Diemer Gambit except that black is a tempo behind. 

 

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3  

The Zilbermets Gambit. Black intends 4...Ng6 in an effort to regain the P, but this requires extra time. 

 

* 1.d4 e5 2.dxe5 Nc6 3.Nf3 Qe7 

This the Main Line today which has considerable analysis available. 

 

     Because the gambit is considered unsound that means with careful play white should be able to obtain a significant advantage. However, white may prefer to decline the gambit and in that case he can play 2.e4 transposing to the ancient Center Game which was abandoned by 1900 because no advantage could be demonstrated for White. 

     White can also play 2.c3 transposing to the rare Saragossa Opening. The Saragossa is likely to transpose into many solid systems, including a reversed Caro-Kann, a Slav Defense with an extra tempo for white, or the Exchange Variation of the QGD. 

     Or, white can decline the gambit with 2.d4, but then black gets a satisfactory game with 2...Bc5. 

     White can play 2.e3 when after 2...exd4 3.exd4 d5 the opening has transposed into the Exchange Variation of the French Defense.. 

     Lastly, 2.c4 d6 results in what is known as the Rat Defense. 

 

     The following miniature played by Charlick back in 1894 is good for a chuckle.

[Event "Adelaide-Unley match"] [Site "Adelaide AUS"] [Date "1894.12.10"] [Round "?"] [White "Henry W. Apperly"] [Black "Henry Charlick"] [Result "0-1"] [ECO "A40"] [Annotator "Stockfish 15"] [PlyCount "30"] [EventDate "1894.??.??"] {Englund Gambit} 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 d6 {The Blackburne–Hartlaub Gambit. Everybody knows who Blackburne was, but Hartlaub was Carl Hartlaub (1869-1929), a lawyer from Bremen, Germany. Emanuel Lasker called him a player of extraordinary imagination. In more modern time GM Robert Huebner said he had a "fine sense for early, rapid and surprising attacks."} 3. Bf4 Nc6 4. exd6 Qf6 5. Bc1 {What was white thinking? There was no reason to retreat the B.} (5. Qc1 {This is white's best move. After} Bxd6 6. Bxd6 Qxd6 7. Qd2 {White is a clear P up and black has no compensation.}) (5. e3 {is met by} Qxb2 6. Nd2 Bxd6 7. Bxd6 cxd6 8. Rb1 {and white has no more than equality.}) 5... Bxd6 6. c3 { White's play is incredibly passive.} Bf5 7. e3 {Apparently white never heard of the term development. Obviously he should play 7.Nf3 compelling black to deal with the coming Bg5 attacking his Q.} (7. Nf3 Qe7 (7... h6 8. g3 {and white has a reasonably good, if passive, position.}) 8. Bg5 f6 9. Be3 {The position is equal, black's P minus being compensated for as a result of his lead in development and white's cramped position.}) 7... O-O-O {[%cal Od6h2] [%mdl 1024]} 8. Nd2 Qg6 9. h3 {[%mdl 8192] One passive move too many. Now black gets a clear advantage. Correct was 9.Ngf3} Nf6 {Way back I read a book on the middlegame by Znosko-Borovsky in which he broke the middlegame down in to Space, Time and Force. Here black has a huge advantage in space and he has six pieces in play compared to white's one. This seems like a lot more compensation than Komodo 14's 3/4 of a P in black's favor. Stockfish 15's evaluation of a little over 3 Ps seems more appropriate.} 10. Ngf3 Rhe8 11. Qa4 {White is lost no matter what he plays, but this only makes matters worse, if that's possible.} (11. Nh4 {was relatively best, but black has a nifty answer.} Rxe3+ 12. Be2 (12. fxe3 Bg3+ 13. Ke2 Bd3+ 14. Kf3 Ne5#) 12... Qh5 13. Nxf5 Qxf5 14. fxe3 (14. Nc4 Rxc3 15. bxc3 Bc5 {wins the Q}) 14... Bg3#) 11... Bc2 12. Nb3 Ne4 13. Nh4 {This allows a truly stunning finish.} Qg3 {[%mdl 512] Let's not quibble over the fact that Stockfish points out a mate in 23 moves after 13... Bg3} 14. fxg3 {Why not allow the mate?} (14. Qxe4 {avoids the mate.} Rxe4 15. Nf3 Qg6 {and white is totally without hope,}) 14... Bxg3+ 15. Ke2 Bd1# { A fun little game.} 0-1