Reti Opening Classics

The main feature of the Reti Opening is to delay moving the d,e pawns and play from the flanks.

Bio-Richard Reti Wikipedia Reti
Richard Réti (28 May 1889, Bösing (now Pezinok) – 6 June 1929, Prague) was an Austro-Hungarian, later Czechoslovak chess player, chess author, and composer of endgame studies. He was born in Pezinok which at the time was in the Hungarian part of Austria-Hungary, where his father worked as a physician in the service of the Austrian military.

Richard Reti

Photo prechlapa

Réti was one of the top players in the world during the 1910s and 1920s, he began his career as a fiercely combinative classical player, favoring openings such as the King's Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.f4).

However, after the end of the First World War, his playing style underwent a radical change, and he became one of the principal proponents of hypermodernism, along with Aron Nimzowitsch and others. Indeed, with the notable exception of Nimzowitsch's acclaimed book My System, he is considered to be the movement's foremost literary contributor.

He had his greatest early tournament successes in the period 1918 through 1921, in tournaments in Kaschau (Košice) (1918), Rotterdam (1919), Amsterdam (1920), Vienna (1920), and Gothenburg (1921).

The Reti Opening
The Réti Opening (1.Nf3) is named after him. Réti famously defeated the world champion José Raúl Capablanca in the New York 1924 chess tournament using this opening – Capablanca's first defeat in eight years, the only one to Réti, and the first since becoming World Champion. 

Endgame Studies
Réti was also a notable composer of endgame studies.



In 1925 Réti set, and for a time held, the world record for blindfold chess with twenty-nine games played simultaneously. He won twenty-one of these, drew six, and only lost two.

His writings have also become classics in the chess world. Modern Ideas in Chess (1923) and Masters of the Chess Board (1933) are still studied today.

Photo-Newinchess-Masters of the Chessboard

Feature Game

In the following classical example played by Richard Reti, the opening gave white no particular advantage. In fact black had an excellent position and then misplayed the game.

Reti,Richard - Capablanca,Jose Raul 
Reti Opening vs. Double Fianchetto[A15]
New York New York (5), 22.03.1924

Position 1
White the more active rooks and Qh5 looks oddly placed. What do you recommend for white?

White to Play

25...Qh5