Benoni and Benko Gambit: free opening course

Key ideas

• Modern Benoni: the g7 bishop on the long diagonal, the rook on e8 against e4, and the queenside break ...b5 backed by ...a6 and ...Rb8.
• Benoni knights: ...Na6-c7 supports ...b5, ...Nbd7-e5 hits c4 and d3; the e5 square is Black's best outpost.
• Always watch White's e4-e5 break: if Black is careless the d5 pawn and an e5 push can rip open the centre.
• Benko Gambit: after ...a6 and ...Bxa6 Black trades the light-squared bishops, then lines up ...Qa5, ...Rfb8 and ...Ra7 against a2, b2 and the c3 knight.
• In the Benko the g7 bishop and the queen on a5 work together against c3: a careless b3 or Nc3 move can drop a piece.
• Endgames in the Benko are often good for Black despite the missing pawn, because White's a- and b-pawns stay under pressure.

The 6 variations in the course

• Modern Benoni: Classical 8.Be2 and 10.Nd2: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4 g6 … — The main line of the Modern Benoni. White plays Be2, castles and regroups with Nd2-c4 and f3; Black answers with ...Re8, ...Na6-c7 and ...b6/...Ba6 to swap White's strong c4 knight.
• Modern Benoni: Taimanov 7.f4 and 8.Bb5+: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. e4 g6 … — White's most dangerous try. The check on b5 disrupts Black's development: Black must block with the f6 knight, not the b8 knight, and then reroute with ...Na6-b4 and ...a6 to drive the bishop back.
• Modern Benoni: Fianchetto variation: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 e6 4. Nc3 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nf3 g6 … — A positional line where White fianchettoes the f1 bishop. Black plays ...a6, ...Nbd7, ...Re8 and ...Rb8, aiming for ...b5, and uses the e5 square for a knight.
• Benko Gambit accepted: 7.e4 Bxf1 main line: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 Bxa6 6. Nc3 d6 … — The main line of the Benko. White takes the pawn and plays e4; Black exchanges the light-squared bishops so White's king is stuck on g2 behind g3, then lines up ...Qa5, ...Rfb8 and ...Ra7 on the queenside files.
• Benko Gambit: Fianchetto variation: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. cxb5 a6 5. bxa6 g6 6. Nc3 Bxa6 … — White develops with Nf3, g3 and Bg2 and castles normally. Black's set-up is the same: ...Bxa6, ...d6, ...Bg7, ...Nbd7, ...Qa5 and the rooks on a8 and b8.
• Benko declined: 4.Nd2 and ...c3: 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c5 3. d5 b5 4. Nd2 bxc4 5. e4 c3 6. bxc3 g6 … — White declines with 4.Nd2, planning e4 to take the c4 pawn. Black answers with the thematic ...bxc4 and ...c3, damaging White's pawns before developing normally.

Traps you will learn (3)

• Benko: ...Qa5 and the loose c3 knight — With Black's queen on a5 and bishop on g7, the c3 knight is held only by the b2 pawn. The natural-looking b3 (to play Bb2) removes that support and ...Qxc3 wins a piece.
• Benoni: b3?? and ...Nfxd5 — In the Classical Benoni the g7 bishop x-rays the c3 knight and the a1 rook. If White plays b3 to develop the c1 bishop, ...Nfxd5! wins material: exd5 Bxc3 hits the d2 knight and the a1 rook at once.
• Benko: 7...Nxe4?? and Nd6 mate — A watch-out trap. In the 5.Nc3 line, after 6.e4 b4 7.Nb5 the e4 pawn looks free, but 7...Nxe4? 8.Qe2! pins the e7 pawn and hits the knight, and the natural retreat 8...Nf6?? allows Nd6 mate.

How the opening courses work

Each course teaches an opening in a few main variations. For every move you read why it is played, which other moves are good, and which tempting moves are mistakes and why. Each course also shows the traps of the opening: the ones you can set and the ones to avoid.

After a lesson you play the moves yourself in a drill. The lines you learn go into your review, which brings them back when you are about to forget them (spaced repetition). 30 line courses add many short lines per opening, a few new ones a day, and every named opening, more than 3,800 lines, has a lesson of its own.