The Grasshopper Opening: a dynamic setup for positional chess

By Ralph Zoontjens

The Grasshopper is a novel chess opening that will transform your game. If you are an intermediate or advanced chess player looking to expand your repertoire, this book is for you.

The Grasshopper approach to chess is highly positional and focuses on keeping all the pieces on the board for tactical battles. It's similar to yet at the same time notably different from renowned openings such as the Queen’s Gambit, Slav Defense, Grünfeld, and London System.

The book proves the soundness of the opening by showing examples from grandmaster and professional-level games, testing it against computer engines, and demonstrating new ways to gain exciting positions. In separate sections, the author walks readers through the key ideas from the opening to the middlegame and endgame.

• Language: English
• Publisher: Lulu.com
• Release date: Jul 29, 2022
• ISBN: 9781471609190

Book preview

Introduction

If you are an intermediate to advanced chess player looking to expand your repertoire, you have come to the right place. The Grasshopper opening is a surefire way to achieve dynamic and positional play. It’s also different enough from its close cousin, the London System, to stand in its own right.

If you are a beginner, you may find the Grasshopper system too challenging and want to resort to more one-dimensional systems that don’t get you lost too deep in the weeds. After all, we’re combining a long-range attacker with all pieces kept on the board, together with both kingside and queenside attacking possibilities and advanced pawn play.

On the other hand, it is one of the excellent openings that can reveal the complexity and amazing combinations that can happen on a chess board. We hope therefore that this new opening may be all the more incentive for beginning players to take up chess practice.

While the Grasshopper opening is perfectly playable up to a high level, it’s not perfect. Because it involves a flank pawn, the center is somewhat compromised. This does not make the opening unsound; it simply means that every move toward the center will matter.

The Grasshopper is a little less forgiving as compared to openings where the center can be held even after the opponent creates a pawn break, for example in the French, Slav Defense, King’s Indian Defense, English Opening, or Giuoco Piano. It relies more on keeping the diagonals for the bishops open and opening one or more files for the rooks. And those stratagems can be prevented if the opponent manages to plug up the center.

For example, e5 can be a target for the opponent since usually we play e3. So in case e4 is possible, it is often a good thing to do so we can occupy e5 before the opponent does. The same with c4 instead of c3, and Nc3 instead of Nd2. Except that, in the Grasshopper system these more aggressive moves need to be delayed in almost all cases!

As in the London System, c3 and e3 are usually necessary to protect d4, and Nd2 is meant to support Nf3. As such, players need to be wary that all squares are properly reinforced before moving forward. On the other hand, the chief advantage of our system is that we can create surprising queenside attacks, ultimately leading to kingside disruptions.

Once you adopt the Grasshopper system, you can be sure to obtain a strategic weapon not many players have in their arsenal. By studying the lines to sufficient depth, and remembering key squares for tactical opportunities, you can outplay your opponent by relying mostly on your memory. You are likely to develop a strong endgame where the showdown will ultimately be decided by your maneuvering skills.

Like any chess book, this book does not teach chess. Chess is learned on the board. All that literature does is elevate your level of theoretical knowledge and strategic insight so that you start to see how all squares hang together, and what the best ways are to pry open the opponent’s king. Yet only by playing it out on the board with actual opponents is where your chess begins to take off.

Still, opening theory is absolutely necessary because it has the player set up a specific structure with the pieces, that later in the game gets played around to form winning attacks. Without a solid structure that last for the entire game, the player’s position will crumble. It’s the skeleton that allows the individual organs to function efficiently and integrally.

Great chess is a combination of a powerful static setup and dynamic maneuvering skills. A great opening creates favorable territory that paves the roads for pieces to shoot across toward the enemy camp in order to find entryways to the throne. Obtaining opening knowledge, then, is seeing the map to that territory revealed in your mind.

In the end, what makes a great chess mind is less than 5% opening theory and line memorization – the rest consists of roughly 60% practice, 30% skill training to solve specific puzzles and difficult positions, and the other 5% should be spent analyzing games. That said, how to best learn chess is highly dependent on the individual player and not the topic of this book.

The first section of the book treats the opening itself as well as some variations of playable lines. The rest of the book comprises explanations of strategic principles that occur in the middle game and endgame.

The book further provides a plethora of exemplary games from both the author’s practice and renowned chess masters. Most of these master games illustrate a position that, even if they haven’t stemmed directly from the Grasshopper opening, they might as well have with a subtle variation in the line.

It is as such that many top grandmasters have already played the Grasshopper system, with the exception that they didn’t add the flank pawn move in the opening. They added it later in the game to arrive at the exact same structural configuration.

World champions such as Magnus Carlsen, Viswanathan Anand, and Anatoly Karpov are no exception: they have incidentally shown the playability of the system, probably without having a name for it themselves.

Often this happens in a London System opening, but it may well happen after the Queen’s Gambit, Grünfeld Defense, Tarrasch Defense, Horwitz Defense, or Queen’s Indian Defense openings. Queen’s Pawn Openings like the Mason Variation, Zukertort Variation, Krause Variation, and Sarratt Attack can easily lead to the Grasshopper System after a simple h-pawn push. It has also occurred on grandmaster level as a transposition of the Dutch, Russian Game, Giuoco Piano, and even the French Defense.

Many of these master games have been included, but for the full game you can find a web link in the ‘References’ section at the end of the book.

We claim that the Grasshopper opening is the only surefire way to achieve this system without one of its elements, such as the thematic bishop, getting prematurely disrupted. You will also find that in terms of chess style, the Grasshopper is not dissimilar to other openings that use a sniper bishop, like the Catalan, King’s Indian Attack, Modern Defense, and Pterodactyl Defense.

The Grasshopper works against almost any response for black, save for a few gambit openings, and it can transform your game. Still, in some cases we have to respond immediately to black’s opening moves in order to gain a better advantage.

Since the Grasshopper is an opening for white, we only show games from white’s perspective. In most cases, it’s white’s turn to move in the diagram. The text below will explain the situation and offer the best moves.

The advice is not to read on immediately, but pause with each illustration to see if you can find the correct moves. It’s a good idea to cover the paragraph underneath with a postcard of an iconic chess town like Khanty-Mansiysk, Wijk Aan Zee, Linares, Baden-Baden, Mar Del Plata, Hastings, Tilburg, or Karlsbad.

And because the Grasshopper is a white system, this book is a little biased. We are not handing out pamphlets for how to beat our own opening here. In fact, some of the positions given in the book might contain traps that we will purposely not reveal. And we are already giving away a ton of secrets out of the Pandora box of chess.

For analyzing the positions, we have used a combination of own insight, annotations, and computer engine verification. We deployed the Stockfish 15 algorithm to at least a depth of 30 ply, but in most cases somewhere between 40 and 50 ply or higher.

In case you’re doing an analysis yourself and come to a different conclusion, we suggest letting the algorithm run a little deeper; it will often realize there are better lines to the ones initially constructed. In some cases that changes the entire evaluation.

The book assumes the reader has at least basic knowledge of chess notation, and enough mental visualization skills to follow the lines as written. If not, this is good practice to take up while reading the book, because the diagrams only show the key positions. And if you are at sea as to what a chess term means, check out the glossary at the end.

Beginning players shouldn’t feel intimidated: explanations are often written out in more readable human language next to the formal notation. But keep in mind that chess, like mathematics, Na’vi, or Java, is a language of its own. It feels alien because chess intelligence is something alien to us – but it’s not unobtainable. In that, chess perhaps reveals that we are more than human.

In the last section of the book, entire games are included up to the endgame where we test the opening against several computer engines. Readers are encouraged to follow along with the notation on an actual chessboard and study the positions that way. This is good training to see if you can resolve the position or come up with novelties.

Sometimes in describing an engine move, we tend to anthropomorphize the computer because it seems to have some kind of human intention behind what it’s doing—even if it’s just a complex algorithm to find the quickest routes to checkmate. But we’re not to forget that chess is meant to be played by humans. So even if the engine’s moves are technically optimal, a number of other moves can definitely be considered—especially if they spice up the game.

For the sake of brevity, the author has chosen to speak in the male form when referring to either side of the chess board. So when the book says ‘he,’ it often means ‘he or she,’ unless it’s referring to a specific male player. It has nothing to do with a gender predilection for attaining chess mastery. Famous female players like Judit Polgár have proved that getting to the top of the chess world has nothing to do with gender, and are also included in this book. The Grasshopper is a queen’s pawn opening, after all.

The Grasshopper isn’t a meme opening meant to go viral for short-term popularity; it’s a subtle, quiet opening that often proves its worth in the long term by striking from the dark like a ninja. Its lines are devised to keep all pieces on the board to open up specific tactical opportunities later in the game. The idea arose from the author’s disgruntlement with early piece exchanges as these reduce the complexity of the configuration.

Having that additional piece does not mean there are a few squares extra on the board to control; it can open up an entirely new level of play and scale up the complexity exponentially rather than linearly.

Rather than focusing on exchanges and swashbuckling-style combat, positional chess is more like constructing a city with different functional units that can form roads, bridges, fortresses, and hidden catacombs. It will also test your stamina, since move count can easily reach 100 or higher. That’s why the Grasshopper deserves to share the podium with the Queen’s Gambit, Italian Game, Modern Defense, Catalan, English Opening, and Ruy Lopez.

The Grasshopper’s fields are vast, and next to studying the book it’s important that you learn to make the actual jumps on the board. After all, the mental practices of visualization, analysis, creativity, and memory make an outstanding chess player, and not passive absorption of information.

Enjoy reading,

SignatureRZ 2022-XS

Ralph Zoontjens

Chess axioms

Rules of thumb in chess are like a user manual for a jet liner; the cockpit has plenty of useful buttons, but in the end it’s about flying the plane.

If you want to experience the entirety of chess, play 1.d4. If you want a premature finish, play 1.e4.

The queen is two-faced; she can either be used for her all-obliterating power, or her life can be wasted in exchange for a few centipawns—it may turn out to be a fundamental investment.

A pawn’s value increases with each step up the ladder; not just at the end of the ride. An advanced passed pawn can be estimated at the value of a full piece or even a rook — all of his positions must be well-secured.

Succeeding in checkmate is like opening a safe; while blunt-force attacks will work in some cases, it’s better to find the right combination.

The unseen is more important than what is seen. For example, all squares have a ‘temperature’ that changes based on how close they are to the king, which pieces are staring at it, and which ones are potentially eyeing it down the line.

As a position opens up, a bishop progressively nears the value of a rook for the mobility it gains.

Next to long range attacks, seek to form a cluster of pawns and pieces to bulldoze down the enemy grounds. Like a manned tank, all occupants need to be in continuous close communication, only occasionally leaving the vessel for scoping the outside area.

Chess is the gamification of quantum physics. We must continuously think about short-term possibilities, and consider different strategic long-term intentions accordingly.

Chess does not drive the sane mind crazy — it keeps the crazy mind sane.

SECTION 1: Fundamentals

"The grasshopper lies heavy."

— English proverb

The Opening

The Grasshopper is a Queen’s Pawn Opening (QPO) characterized by two pawn moves:

d4 d5

h3

This setup prepares to tuck away the black bishop on h2. Being the mascot of our opening system, we will dub it the Grasshopper bishop.

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper Opening (Stockfish 0.00)

NOTE: In the Grasshopper, we aim to develop the dark-squared bishop (DSB) as soon as possible. We always bring it outside of the pawn chain, preferably to f4, before playing e3. And in case of any other response by black (the Benoni and the Englund gambit being the only exceptions), we play 2. h3 regardless.

Main Lines with 2… e6

The flank pawn move 2. h3 is often regarded as obscure and enigmatic. But it isn’t dubious or unsound at all. Its main purpose is to give the dark-square bishop a secure home at h2.

By preventing it from being exchanged, it remains a permanent thorn in the eye of black’s defense. Because part of what makes playing against the Grasshopper so difficult is that right off the bat, white has three squares in the enemy camp under direct control by the bishop: d6, c7, and b8. And what’s more, the bishop can quickly change diagonals to take aim at other key squares.

The advantage of 2. h3 becomes apparent after black plays 2… Nf6. We now aim to play Bf4 and if black replies with Nh5, we safeguard the bishop to h2. Black’s knight is now a weak target; he will lose a tempo once the knight is attacked either by the queen, light-squared bishop (LSB), or g-pawn.

It’s true that here, h3 is not formally required because we can also shuttle the bishop to safety through g5. But now it can be kicked back by h6, and if we play e3 for a discovered queen attack onto the h5 knight, we still lose the bishop for the knight. Black will have a weakened kingside but on the other hand has gained several tempi to launch a pawn storm. We will likely have to transpose into a queenside castling setup this way.

If we play h3, however, black will often play e6 to liberate its own dark-squared bishop for a face-off. To prevent that, we can play Nf3 and Ne5 to blockade the bishop, inviting it to take the knight instead. This move also prevents black from playing Qe7 followed by e5 for a central push down the lane. From here on out, it is white’s aim to develop the other knight to d2 and play e3 to bring out the dormant LSB to e2 or d3.

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Basic position for the 4… e6 setup. (Black to move, Stockfish -0.30)

Computer engine verification shows that black has a tiny positional advantage after we prevent the capture of the bishop. With two human players at the board though, this is virtually insignificant. Despite this controversial move that seems dubious, all lines have been analyzed. The position holds and we prevent entering drawish territory.

So this way, both bishops can be kept for a dynamic middle game where the Grasshopper bishop will be kept either on g3 or h2 after it’s been threatened.

The main line follows:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

Bf4 Bd6

Ne5 O-O

Nd2 c5

dxc5 Bxc5

e3 Nc6

Be2 Qe7

O-O

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper system, main line. (Black to move, Stockfish -0.03)

NOTE: Bd3 is perfectly playable as well to create an immediate attack on h7. Like an archer drawing his bow, or the tensile stress building up in the grasshopper’s femoro-tibial joint, you can add the queen to the diagonal to amp up the tension.

Still, there is a problem here. With Qc7, black adds another attacker to e5. Also, its DSB can come back to d6. White can add the d-knight to f3 but is out of supporting pawns; our precious bishop is bound to be exchanged.

C4-C5 Line

The above lines are playable, but to completely ensure survival of the Grasshopper bishop in 2… e6 lines, the situation gets more complicated. We can play c4 followed by several other moves first, as we see in the following line:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

c4 c5

cxd5 exd5

g3 Qb6

Bg2 Nc6

dxc5 Bxc5

O-O O-O

Nc3 Ne4

Nxe4 dxe4

Ng5 e3

Qd3 exf2+

Kh1 g6

g4 Bd4

Bf4

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper system, c4-c5 preservation line. (Black to move, Stockfish 0.00)

This is theoretically the best way to obtain the Grasshopper bishop without ending up positionally disadvantaged. Unless the opponent has read this manual, black will play different lines most of the time, so we have time to get our bishop out sooner. For high-level play, it’s important that the exact move order is followed if we are not to end up in a compromised position.

Note that in the final position, b2 is free to take for the queen. But we can gain back a pawn starting with Rad1. Black’s bishop has to move because now its only defender, the knight, is under fire by our LSB. And after Rxf2, Qxa2 is impossible because we have Bd5, forking the queen and f7 pawn. All kinds of sharp combinations are made possible by this setup while we retain an equalized position.

In an alternative line, we offer a queen exchange on b3:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

c4 c5

cxd5 exd5

dxc5 Bxc5

Bf4 Qb6

e3 Nc6

Qb3 Qxb3

axb3 Bb4+

Nbd2 Ne4

Bb5 O-O

Ke2 Nxd2

Nxd2

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper system, c4-c5 queen exchange line. (Black to move, Stockfish -0.22)

We end up with an exciting middle game position where it is very difficult for black to hold everything together.

Bishop Exchange

We may opt to exchange our bishop for a slight advantage in the sense that our pieces are better coordinated and centralized, and black has an isolated pawn. Nevertheless, it’s more in the spirit of the opening to hold onto the bishop until the endgame.

The bishop exchange line goes:

d4 d5

h3 Nf6

Nf3 e6

c4 c5

dxc5 Bxc5

cxd5 exd5

Bf4 Bd6

Bxd6 Qxd6

Nc3 O-O

e3 Rd8

Bd3 Qb6

Qe2 Nc6

Nb5 Bd7

O-O

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper system, c4-c5 bishop exchange line. (Black to move, Stockfish +0.60)

Delayed Queen Exchange

White can also choose not to exchange queens yet, but allow the capture on b2. This results in a temporary loss of a pawn, but we will be able to create a weakness in black’s camp on our part. The line follows:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

c4 c5

cxd5 exd5

dxc5 Bxc5

Bf4 Qb6

e3 Qxb2

Be5 Bb4+

Nbd2 Bxd2+

Qxd2 Qxd2+

Nxd2 Nc6

Bd6 Be6

Bd3 Rd8

Ba3

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper System, c4-c5 delayed queen exchange line. (Black to move, Stockfish -0.36)

So after some exchanges on d2, both sides are developed, while we have obtained a fully mobilized bishop pair and prevented black from castling his king. Its additional pawn is isolated and therefore weak; it can be overpowered in the endgame.

Before entering such complex lines, we have to note that black will often refrain from playing the immediate c5, as this structurally determines the rest of the game and delays development of the LSB.

Knight Reroute

An alternative for black is to release the knight first and reroute it so it doesn’t block the pawns. The LSB then comes to b7 or to a6 for an exchange. This setup inhibits black from lashing out with c5 as it will weaken his queenside pawn structure.

Grasshopper opening, knight reroute line:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

Bf4 Bd6

Ne5 O-O

Nd2 Nc6

e3 Ne7

Bd3 a5

a3 b6

O-O

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper System: Knight Reroute Variation. (White to move, Stockfish +0.00)

Knight Bounce

It seems that our frontmost knight is firmly lodged in front of the bishop. Yet it can be kicked away in the opening if black removes his knight to push f6. This, however, weakens the light-square diagonal toward the king. The adagio holds that we want to retain the Grasshopper bishop, unless we gain material or the exchange evokes a weakness. And that’s exactly what we achieve here.

Also, if c5 is played, now we have time to insert c3 for additional support to d4. The LSB retreats to c2 or b1 for the queen to align herself onto the diagonal.

The knight bounce line goes:

d4 d5

h3 e6

Nf3 Nf6

Bf4 Bd6

Ne5 O-O

e3 a6

Bd3 Ne4

O-O f6

Nf3 Bxf4

exf4 Qd6

Qc1

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper System, knight bounce line. (Black to move, Stockfish +0.45)

The last queen moves revolve around the f4 pawn. We want to protect this hanging pawn for the remainder of the game as it becomes the center of the battleground. Together with d4, this forms a Maróczy bind-like structure that isn’t necessarily bad for white. Also, we want to use our pieces for as long as possible, rather than introducing g3, as this introduces a weakness in front of our king.

Nd7 Line

Another playable alternative for black is to respond to our opening with Nd7 as the first developed piece:

GH position 2 btm -p27 d42

Grasshopper System: Knight Cave Variation. (White to move, Stockfish +0.16)

This gives black a tempo on e5, making it harder to white to bring the knight there. The idea is that if an exchange happens on e5 and we recapture with