Vienna Game with GM Marian Petrov [TCW Academy]

Ask any chess beginner rated around 1400-1600… and they will tell you what’s on top of their mind.

It’s almost always along these lines:

“How to find the best moves in a position?”

 “How to visualize the chess board better?”

And more often than not…

“Which opening to study?”

The real issue here is, they are not absolute beginners anymore—they have crossed that initial threshold.

They are decent at solving chess puzzles. They know the basics of an opening strategy. They know it’s about getting your king to safety as fast as possible and fighting for the center.

They cannot handle the sophistication and complication of a hypermodern opening as of yet. Yet they have graduated from the simple 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 lines as well.

Whew! Even the excitement of the King’s Gambit wore off as they learned the positional drawbacks of the opening.

What’s next?

For these serious learners, it’s time to master the Vienna Game—not too positional to leave you tearing your hair out yet… not too “open-and-shut” to not lead to easy piece exchanges and a draw within 20 moves!

The Vienna Game is the BEST opening that one should learn after understanding the basic principles of chess.

It results in open, tactical positions where you can apply your tactical acumen in a real game.

It does not bore you into maneuvering your pieces for the next 40 moves… but enough to bolster your strategic knowledge that you learned so far.

It is not crazy like the Irish Gambit but still interesting for someone who can still be considered a chess beginner.

And to make it even more interesting…

GM Marian Petrov brings to you this awesome 3-hour video compilation where he goes over both the sharp Vienna Gambit (starting with 3.f4) and other docile variations (3. g3 and 3. Bc4).

Petrov goes deep into the question “What if?” and “What next?” demonstrating the usefulness of his explanations with real-world examples from high-level games.

Throwing new light on this beautiful opening from the romantic era of chess, this course can render a perfect introduction into the Vienna Game to you.

Watch the preview:

Is this course for you?

If you have already passed the absolute beginner level in chess… where you know how the pieces move, how to deploy a fork, mate the enemy king with a 1-2 boxing combination…

You will love learning the Vienna Game.

It leads to sharp, dynamic positions yet forces you to think strategically.

It not only helps to practice your existing chess skills but also prepare the right foundation to graduate on to tougher openings like the Catalan.

And guess what, it’s sheer fun to play! Want to have fun? Play the Vienna Game next time.

Here’s what you will learn:

• Piece exchanges taken to the next level. Even when White goes for a more solid g3 setup, critical situations can arise… where the right piece exchange in the right order can decide whether White ends up with an extra pawn or gives away his advantage. GM Petrov shows you such little nuances, going through the different move orders one by one to help you make the right decision in your game.
• Slight mistakes kill White’s position. White has played the aggressive 3.f4 and Black declines it with a fateful 3.Nc3?? A BIG mistake! White can instantly start by dxe5 and within a few moves, Black is lost like a little puppy. The Vienna Gambit can be extremely powerful and you are going to learn everything about it in Chapter 2 of this course.
• Positional stings redefined. In an interesting line where Black develops its dark-squared bishop to c5. White attacks with Na4 and Black plays Bxf2. If Kxf2, Black lashes out his queen to h4, and… it is commonly held that the game ends in a draw. Or is it? Petrov shows why Bxf2 is a blunder and how White can exploit it for a win. This is an example of how GM Petrov tested even the most positional and seemingly drawish lines and discovered the sting in it. Want to learn how?
• Accumulating advantage on every move. From his own game against Richard Jones, Petrov showcases how to control the key squares, exchange off your opponent’s best pieces and secure a solid passed pawn on the sixth rank… ready to promote to queen! That also from a very symmetrical Bc4 Bc5 position. This is for the positionally minded chess players who don’t like to play the gambit and prefer a more solid and quieter line instead.