What is the longest opening main line you remember?

I make it a point to play lines that don't require memorization, that's my least favourite part of this game

SpaceCreator, If that is how you play, I have a question. What is your favorite move on move one for white? I ask this to a lot of players who say they hate memorization, and they all still say e4 and d4, which confuses me as many lines require tons of theory. Other than e4 and d4 I get a lot of nf3 followed by g3 etc.

@Morphyesque I play 1.d4 I try to play catalan or pseudo catalan positions, the catalan can have heavy theory but the cost of not knowing theory is relatively low and my intuition tends to follow book pretty well. what I do is aim for obscure or unknown lines to avoid any sharp theoretical position

#10

Sure, check out the famous game Karpov-Korchnoi, that’s just under 30 moves, and pretty much all main line and many people around 2000 actually know that game by heart.

Then after you check that game out, if you’re still alive after your brain explodes from the tactics, check what would happened if Karpov played another main line 16 Bh6!? Instead of his classic 16 Nde2!
That line wins for white unless black sacrifices several times: 16 Bh6 N:e4! And here correct move is 17 Qe3 or white will be in trouble, and black must now sacrifice AGAIN! 17... R:c3! Every other move loses for black... 18 bc and now black knight must suddenly retreat 18...Nf6! Again, every other move losses. And it goes on like this for some time...

You can check out in this line these games:
Kasparov-Piket Tilburg 1989
Trofimov-Nesis Postal 1972

Then there are some main lines where black MUST sacrifice a thousand pieces, or lose, those lines are hilarious. But if black does so, he wins most likely, since it’s very tricky for white to come out alive into an unclear endgame, white must memorize the lines too. Check out The game Althausen VS Simagin Moscow 1940. In that line black must sacrifice the exchange on c3, AND a piece on g4 one after another, but then white is in deep trouble and better know exactly what to do to get out of it. In my experience 60-70% of white players are clueless there, and so I picked up some easy points that way.

Anand didn’t want any of that stuff VS Kasparov, so when Garry brought out the Dragon, Anand played early Kb1 and played passively. Kasparov still managed to trick him thou and won a game. Check out Anand-Kasparov World Championship match, Kasparov played the Dragon a couple of times there, and beat Anand with it once or twice. Game #11 I think. That game with a sick knight fork which Kasparov saw from like 5-7 moves back while nobody else did.

I know 1.d5 and then 2. Nh6, then I'm beat

My personal theory by the way: the longer the line the lower the chance to get an advantage. It seems that there is a intrinsic stability. If a line keeps tight for so many moves it can’t be refuted. There are many possibilities to deviate.

Conclusion: the super-long variations don’t lead to an advantage. The just keep the equilibrium. To all learners, you can’t do it by just memorizing long lines.

The initial position is in equilibrium. The long lines keep the equilibrium just like the short lines, but in the short lines you give your opponent and yourself more possibilities to go astray.

Regarding how many moves one knows, it depends what one means by "know". Usually after move 8 or 9 I'm playing largely by principles (controlling the centre) and calculation; however, up to and into the twenties I often find the positions familiar, especially in queen's gambit variations and several Sicilian variations. I will sometimes vaguely remember stockfish recommending a move in one of those positions, and that will help me decide what to do. But I need to see the point too, not just recall the recommended move without understanding why.

the longest opening line i remember is in the Ruy Lopez, close variation. I know the first 12 moves (basically the starting position, LOL) and in some lines i know up to 25 moves (not difficult to remember because they are kind of natural moves when you remember the plan). Problem is, no one plays the 12 moves i studied, included stockfish, so i never get to use this "knowledge". And that's why i'm not studying openings anymore. :D