Presented by International Master Bill Paschall for ChessLecture.com

Bobby Fischer almost beat the then world champion Mikhail Botvinnik at the 1962 olympiad in Varna, Bulgaria, with the Grunfeld defense. Named after the Austrian master Ernst Gruenfeld, the defense has been around for nearly 90 years. Those who play the Gruenfeld defense knew that it could turn into a nightmare in an instant. The Gruenfeld steals the diagonal play from white because black’s dark bishop has a target in the center. Botvinnik went on to master the Gruenfeld and even wrote a book about it. Here IM Paschall takes us through Botvinniks games in the Gruenfeld as both black and white.

Content: 2 hours and 7 minutes of instruction and analysis in a series of 5 lectures.

ECO: D96, D83, D87, D90

Members of ChessLecture.com rated this series a 4. 4.45 out of 5

Fans on Chesslecture.com said: Great game, I love this Botvinnik and the Gruenfeld series, hope it continues for much longer. 

IM Bill Paschall currently resides in Budapest, Hungary. Bill was the Boylston Chess Club Champion 2002, finished 1st at the Foxwoods Open 2002, Three-Time New England Open Champion, and has defeated more than 20 IGM's in tournament play. Bill has extensive experience training both adults and children privately and in the schools.