The Baltic Defense (also known as the Grau Defence or Sahovic Defence) is a chess opening characterized by the moves:
- 1. d4 d5
- 2. c4 Bf5
The Baltic is an unusual variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined. In most defenses to the QGD, Black has difficulties developing his queen bishop. This opening takes a radical approach to the problem by bringing out the queen bishop immediately.
The Baltic has not found widespread acceptance among chess masters, but some world-class players have used it including grandmasters Paul Keres and Alexei Shirov.
The ECO code for the Baltic Defense is D06.
Read more about Baltic Defense: White Responses
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