Book Review: The Extreme Caro-Kann Attacking Black with 3.f3
Bezgodov, Alexey The Extreme Caro-Kann Attacking Black with 3.f3. New in Chess, 2014. 280 p.
The Extreme Caro-Kann is a recent publication from New in Chess, written by Alexey Bezgodov, who is a grandmaster and former Russian champion. This book is meant to be a complete repertoire for White in the variation.
Revival of an Opening
The Fantasy Variation of the Caro-Kann has gained in popularity in the last few years at the highest levels. It’s likely that this was sparked by super-GM Ian Nepomniachtchi playing it as White several times around 2010. This caught my attention as well, and after having tried several different systems against the Caro-Kann, I added it to my repertoire and had surprisingly good results in tournaments, with a record of 4-0-0.
After these initial experiences, I have the impression that many Caro-Kann players have one “antidote” line against the Fantasy Variation that hasn’t been worked out very deeply. Given that, the timing of this book is excellent. 1.e4 players can adopt it while it still has surprise value, and as we’ll see, Caro-Kann players can find good material for their own preparation.
Classical Fantasies
The Fantasy Variation begins with 1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.f3. At first glance, the name is fitting. White invests a critical tempo to maintain the classical central pawn duo. White would also like to develop aggressively, similarly to the English Attack, the 150 Attack, or the Yugoslav Attack. The drawbacks of 3.f3 are well-known. It is a bit slow, it weakens the dark squares around the king, and it deprives the Ng1 of its best developing square. However, the practical advantage of this opening choice at the club level is significant. It will lead to fundamentally different middlegame structures than other more popular choices, thus putting Caro-Kann specialists out of their comfort zone if they have devoted all of their preparation to, for example, 3.Nc3 and 3.e5.
Structure of the Book
The Extreme Caro-Kann is a good-sized book at 280 pages. The text is large and easy to read, each page has between 2 and 4 diagrams, and it’s in a wide format that is easy to lay open. There are player, variation, and games indices, and a section ‘Three Important New Games’ covering recent theoretically significant games that were played just before publication. A bit unusually for an opening book, included is a section of 50 tactical exercises in positions arising from the Fantasy Variation.
The main part of the book is divided into 6 sections –
Chapter 1 – Rare Continuations
Chapter 2 – 3…g6 The Fianchetto Variation
Chapter 3 – 3…e6: The Semi-French Variation
Chapter 4 – 3…Qb6: The Restless Queen Variation
Chapter 5 – 3…e5: The Abordage Variation
Chapter 6 – 3…dxe4: Surrendering the Centre
Rare Continuations
The first chapter covers rare but logical third moves such as 3…c5, 3…b6, and 3…Nf6. Regarding the move …Nf6 in general – Bezgodov recommends that White reply with e4-e5, going into a Classical French structure after a subsequent f3-f4. In fact, it can transpose to the French exactly, so the opening really suits White players who already have that in their repertoire.
3…g6
I was initially surprised by the amount of material on 3…g6 (23 pages). But it is the second most popular move after 3…e6 and poses some problems that should be studied. It’s worth noting that in a Modern Defense move order with 1.e4 g6 2.d4 c6 3.Nc3 d5, it’s not clear that 4.f3 is the most challenging move. Bezgodov gives multiple alternatives for White at several junctures. For example, after 3…g6 4.Nc3 Bg7 5.Be3 Qb6, he shows that sacrificing the pawn with 6.Qd2 is promising, and that the less common 6.Rb1 is also interesting.
3…e6
3…e6, is by far the most popular reply to 3.f3. Usually it leads to more positional play, but here Bezgodov analyzes an old but still interesting gambit after 4.Be3, in addition to the main move 4.Nc3. He offers no less than three flavors of the gambit, one of them being a novelty. Given that 3…e6 may be aiming for quieter positions, 4.Be3 is a good practical choice. After 4.Nc3 Bb4, again two options are given. One is a pawn sacrifice with 5.a3 Bxc3 6.bxc3 dxe4, which has been reinvigorated by Zviagintsev with 7.Qe2!?, and the other is 5.Bf4. Before reading this book, I had thought that 6…b6 instead of 6…dxe4 is sufficient for Black in the line above, but Bezgodov covers 6…b6 in one of the illustrative games and offers an interesting improvement for White. 3…e6 4.Nc3 Bb4 is arguably the main line of the Fantasy Variation right now, however Bezgodov goes into less detail on it than with other lines. He acknowledges this, and his reasoning is that it’s a slower position with a lot of playable move orders and plans for both sides. As a testimony to the thoroughness of the book, even here there are 3 illustrative games covering 4.Nc3 Bb4.
3…Qb6, 3…e5
3…Qb6 and 3…e5 are two ‘antidote’ lines that players often choose against the Fantasy Variation. Several ways to play as White are covered, varying from gambit lines to quieter tries. White is doing well here theoretically, and the first player can choose how ambitiously to play while retaining some advantage. Perhaps the biggest challenge for White is the variety of different positions that can arise depending on how Black proceeds – sometimes complicated middlegames, and other times a slightly better endgame, for example.
3…dxe4
The positions after 3…dxe4 4.fxe4 e5 5.Nf3 are some of the most complicated and violent in the book. After 5…exd4, White is forced to sacrifice a pawn with 6.Bc4 to retain any advantage. I think that White often has enough of a development lead that natural moves will lead to good positions, but the analysis in this chapter shows that some tempting combinational ideas by White are not as good as they seem. 5…Be6 is the more solid option, and White could find himself getting outplayed if he isn’t familiar with this sub-line. 5…Be6 6.Nc3 and 6.c3 are covered in depth, and there is also some analysis on the pawn grab 6.dxe5!?, which may be an underrated option with surprise value. The coverage in this chapter is really quite complete.
Summary
Overall, the Extreme Caro-Kann is a very detailed work that will serve as a complete repertoire for White in the Fantasy Variation. In fact, I felt prepared as White in this opening until investigating this book, and now I can see how many interesting options there are for Black that I hadn’t considered!
It’s clear that the author has a personal like for the opening, and that a lot of thought and effort has gone into choosing the recommended routes. Importantly, although computer-analysis was used, it seems to me that the author’s own understanding had the final say. Several of the moves that Bezgodov gives as the top option were not the top computer recommendations, at least using my own engine. This means that we’re getting his honest opinion, and furthermore, such moves may be overlooked in home preparation by the opponent.
Recommendations on how to use this book
This is not a book that can be skimmed through to get the benefits. You’ll have to go over each line in detail and there is definitely memorization required, since Black can sharpen the game early in a several different ways. There are usually two or three alternatives given for White for a given tabiya, which range from quiet to more ambitious or exotic. Bezgodov generally names one of them as the best move and backs this up with analysis, but often the final difference between them is slight, so the reader is best advised to look at all alternatives and make his or her own choice.
The reader should be prepared to gambit a pawn early (for very real compensation). It might be possible to choose lines from the book that always avoid this, but it would be very limiting. It’s recommended for White to mesh this repertoire with the Classical French (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.e5 Nfd7 5.f4) since the Fantasy Variation should transpose into this when Black plays …Nf6.
For Caro-Kann players, this book can be used to find challenging ways to play against the Fantasy Variation. I wouldn’t recommend either 3…Qb6 or 3…e5 – the book convincingly shows that White is better in those lines. 3…dxe4 4.fxe4 e5 6.Nf3 Be6 requires White to play energetically and accurately to avoid being equal or worse. With 3…e6 4.Nc3 Bb4, Black can move the struggle to the middlegame, although gambit lines after 3…e6 4.Be3 should be studied. 3…g6 is a good alternative way to test White, especially by trying to take the ‘poisoned pawn’ on b2 with a later …Qb6. This book is recommended for players rated 1800 and up.
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Very nice book review on the f3 Caro-Kann. Thank you very much.
A perfect reply! Thanks for taking the trbeulo.