Two Knights Defense, Fritz-Ulvestad Variation

Dennis Monokroussos has annotated the game Charbonneau – Schneider, USCL 2009 (Round 3) which featured the Fritz-Ulvestad Variation of the Two Knights Defense (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Ng5 d5 5.exd5 b5 6.Bf1 Nd4 7.c3 Nxd5), with the continuation 8.cxd4!? (sidestepping the famous Estrin – Berliner game with 8.Ne4). I was thinking the Fritz/Ulvestad was due for a revival, especially after Hikaru Nakamura beat Josh Friedel’s more standard gambit 5….Na5 to win the 2009 US Championship using Gunsberg’s 6.Bb5+ c6 7.dxc6 bxc6 8.Bd3!? If the Fritz/Ulvestad bites the dust, what will Two Knights Defense players fall back on? This is still a very much contested territory, but White has been winning of late. For those who want to learn more about the Fritz/Ulvestad lines, some resources:

• Bobby Ang, Having Fun with the Two Knights
  An archived version of Bobby’s article on the Estrin – Berliner line from Chess Asia 3.11 (1995).
• A.J. Goldsby, Estrin – Berliner, Corr. 1965
  Meta-annotates the classic Fritz game. Useful even if the page design is terrible.
• Tim Harding, The Open Game Revisited: The Two Knights (Kibitzer #114) and Two Knights Defence, Part 3: Berliner Variation Busted (Kibitzer #60) at ChessCafe.
• Dana Mackenzie, Blogging from 32,000 Feet
  A recent post at Dana Blogs Chess analyzing Rogalski – Mackenzie, US Senior Open 2009, which featured the line 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Nf6 4. Ng5 d5 5. ed Nd4 6. c3 b5 7. Bf1 Nxd5 8. Ne4 Qh4 9. Ng3 Bb7!? — also discussed by Harding.
• Jan Pinski. The Two Knights Defense. London: Everyman Chess, 2003.
  Offers some coverage of the Fritz and Ulvestadt lines.
• Pete Tamburro, Chess.fm lecture: Two Knights (Fritz) notes
  Notes to a Chess.fm video lecture which is difficult to locate. The NJ Chess forums site requires registration to access.

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