Chess Opening Theory/1. h3/1...h5/2. g4

Spike Lee gambit A00 Clemenz opening → 1...h5 2. g4?? · Spike Lee gambit This dubious gambit is an obvious mistake for the following reasons: It gives up a free pawn without compensation for Black because the h-pawn is pinned to the white rook. It weakens the e1-h4 dark-squared diagonal for White's king, further disincentivizing castling. White does not use the extra tempo given by Black's waiting move to make a useful move. History Early g4 pushes are often known as "spikes": there is a spike variation of the Nimzo-Larsen (1. b3 Nf6 2. Bb2 g6 3. g4!?), a spike variation in the Caro-Kann (1. e4 c6 2. g4?!), a spike gambit in the Grünfeld (1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 d5 4. g4?!), a spike attack in the Pirc (1. e4 d6 2. g4?) and many others. Why is this bad gambit associated with filmmaker Spike Lee? There is probably no direct connection. Perhaps the joke is just that Spike Lee doesn't play chess, so one shouldn't play "his" chess moves either. There is no record of this gambit having been played in a tournament game. Theory table 0 2...hxg4 3. d4 d5 4. Bg2 Nf6 -- 2... ... 3. hxg4? Rxh1 --- References See also