An Unusual Opening (US Rules)
I will put the horse before the cart with this posting just because I don't believe anyone who wasn't at the 07 US Rules National Championships has ever seen it. I call this the "Davies" opening, and I personally have never seen it played before. I must say that throughout the evolution of this opening, as Wayne would bounce idea's off me, I was very skeptical to say the least. Well, the proof of the pudding came when Wayne used it at the recent US Rules 07 Nationals taking everyone by surprise with his ability to execute it time and time again. Each opponent basically postured with their location saying, "come ahead if you like". (Well to bad for them. )
I can see this ratcheting up the opening stakes to new levels in the American game! Let us know what you think and have fun trying it.
David
I would class this along with other gambits that can work well if the opponent hasnt seen it before. But if youre familiar with it, its easy to defend against. If blue enters the game and then plays to the middle of any boundary, red should pick a corner not connected with that boundary. This is pretty basic tactics, really. In the video example, if red had played to corner II or corner III, blue and black have already lost the initiative. Blacks best play at that point would probably be to block #1.