Clemenz Opening
1.h3 e5 2.e4 Nf6 3.Nc3 Bb4 · A00
Starting positionWhite to move
0 / 12
A tempo spent on a useful square
- 1.
- 2.
- 3.
- 4.
- 5.
- 6.
The idea
White plays h3 on move one — a pure waiting move that prevents ...Bg4 later and usually transposes into a normal 1.e4 game.
Main line: 1.h3 e5 2.e4 Nf6 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nf3 O-O 5.Bc4 Nc6 6.O-O d6
What White wants
- Transpose into a standard 1.e4 position with ...Bg4 ruled out
- Develop normally and gain a small, quiet edge
- Use the extra kingside pawn move as a useful luft move later
What Black wants
- Take the centre and develop freely
- Exploit the wasted tempo and claim equality with ease
- Play ...d5 and challenge e4 immediately
Key idea
Understand this and the moves stop needing to be memorised.
A tempo spent on a useful square
h3 is not a bad move — it stops ...Bg4 and ...Ng4, and the pawn might have to go there later anyway. But Black gets a free move in the centre, so the practical value is limited to surprise.
Common mistake
Believing 1.h3 confers an advantage. It only rules out ...Bg4 and gives the king luft, and treating the position as better than a normal 1.e4 game gets White into trouble — a tempo spent on h3 is not a tempo saved.
Representative position
The position this opening is aiming at. Copy the FEN, or open it in the analysis board and let the engine tell you what it is worth.
r1bq1rk1/ppp2ppp/2np1n2/4p3/1bB1P3/2N2N1P/PPPP1PP1/R1BQ1RK1 w - - 0 7
Analyze this position