By: Tim Harding

Tim Harding — Mon, 29 Mar 2021 11:30:24 +0000

I bought this book after reading Andrew Martin’s recommendation but I am very disappointed with it. It is clearly inferior to a couple of other books in the “Modernized” series by other authors which I bought in the past.
The coverage is very detailed in the lines the author chooses to recommend but there are huge omissions. In many places he omits altogether some important alternative moves for both White and Black without even a brief statement of why they are rejected. Just to give a couple of examples: in the Mieses Variation 4…Nf6 5 Nxc6 bxc6 6 e5 Qe7 7 Qe2 Nd5 he has a chapter on 8 Nd2 g6 (other replies are not mentioned) 9 c4 Pavlovic fails to mention the reply 9…Nf4 which is recommended in “Bologan’s Black Weapons “and is absolutely critical for the viability of the 8 Nd2 move order.
Then there are chapters on the main line 8 c4 Ba6 (he doesn’t mention 8…Nb6) 9 b3 but the main alternative 9 Nd2 (recommended for example on P. Negi’s DVD) is completely overlooked. So this book is useless for players intending to meet the Scotch as Black and not very thorough if you are intending to play it as White.
This prolific writer doesn’t often play the opening in his own games. (I found two as Black in my database – one from 1987 and one from 2019 – and none as White.)
I won’t be buying any more of Pavlovic’s books.

Comments on: The Modernized Scotch Game : A Complete Repertoire for White and Black

By: Tim Harding