Catalan Opening

Why the Catalan Opening is worth training

The Catalan Opening puts a Queen's Gambit pawn center together with a fianchettoed bishop on g2. After 4.g3 and Bg2, the bishop looks down the long diagonal through d5 toward b7 and a8. That pressure makes Black's queenside development awkward, and most Catalan positions are about it. The play looks quiet, which is why the opening is easy to underestimate: one careless move order and the long diagonal decides the game.

Chessmate has a Catalan Opening course for White and a Catalan Opening course for Black. The White course plays 4.g3 and uses Qc2 to win back the c-pawn when Black takes it. The Black course answers with 4...Bb4+ and keeps the center solid with ...c6.

The Closed Catalan in the White sample line

In the Closed Catalan, Black keeps the pawn on d5 with 4...Be7 and castles. The White sample line plays 7.Qc2. The queen supports e4 and lines up with c4, so if Black ever takes on c4, White can win the pawn back without misplacing a minor piece. 8.Rd1 puts a rook behind the d-pawn, and 9.Nbd2 heads for b3 or e4 while the long diagonal stays clear.

After 10.e4 Bb7, White gains space with 11.e5, hitting the knight on f6 with tempo. Then 12.cxd5 cxd5 clarifies the center and leaves Black with a fixed d5-pawn to defend, and 13.Nf1 reroutes the knight toward e3 or g3.

The course also covers the ...Ne4 setup, where White restrains ...b5 with a4 and removes the centralized knight with Bxe4, and the ...b6 setup, where Black ends up with hanging pawns on c5 and d5.

When Black takes on c4

In the Open Catalan, Black takes the c4-pawn at once. White does not rush to win it back. Development and the g2 bishop come first, and the pawn usually falls later.

The White course answers each fifth move separately. Against 5...c6, 6.Ne5 centralizes at once and hits c6. Against 5...Nc6, 6.Qa4 pins the knight and goes after c4. Against 5...c5, White castles and opens the center later. 5...a6, 5...Nbd7, and 5...Bd7 each get their own branch. If Black takes on c4 only after castling, 7.Qc2 a6 8.a4 stops ...b5 before 9.Qxc4 collects the pawn.

The Black sample line: ...Bb4+ and ...Be7

The Black course checks with 4...Bb4+ before White castles. After 5.Bd2, the bishop drops back to e7. The position looks like a normal Closed Catalan, but White's bishop on d2 does less than it would on its usual squares. Black then castles and reinforces d5 with ...c6, which also takes b5 away from White's pieces.

In the sample line, Black gains queenside space with ...a5 and plays ...h6 to prepare ...g5. When White centralizes with 11.Ne5, 11...Qb6 hits b2, Black trades on e5, and 13...Ng4 attacks e3 and f2. After 14.e3 g5 15.h3 gxf4 16.hxg4 fxe3, Black has won a pawn and White's king is short of dark-square defenders.

The course also covers 5.Nbd2, where Black takes on c4 and holds the pawn with ...b5, and 5.Nc3, where ...Nc6 and a timely ...Nxd4 hit White's loose center.

Traps on the long diagonal

The Catalan bishop also makes tactics work. In one ...b6 line, after 7.Qc2 b6 8.cxd5 exd5 9.Nc3 c5 10.dxc5 bxc5 11.Ne5, the natural 11...Bb7 runs into 12.Qb3. The queen hits the bishop on b7 and the d5-pawn at once, and once the bishop moves, White wins the pawn. Black avoids the fork with 11...Na6. The White course trains this punishment.

The Black course has its own lesson. When White pushes e5 too early in the main line, ...Nh5 hits the bishop on f4 with tempo, and Black gets active play against White's weakened kingside pawns.

What to train first

Pick the course that matches the side you play.

• If you play the Catalan with White, start with the Catalan Opening course for White. Learn the Closed Catalan sample line, then the fifth-move answers in the Open Catalan.
• If you face the Catalan with Black, start with the Catalan Opening course for Black. Learn the ...Bb4+ sample line, then the answers to 5.Nbd2 and 5.Nc3.
• With either color, review the 12.Qb3 trap early. It shows how much the g2 bishop sees.

The Catalan rewards patience. Train the lines until you can tell, in any position, which black pawn or piece the long diagonal is hitting.