My Favorite Chess Openings

I like to play chess. In fact, I love to play chess. I'm addicted. Yes, I know, I'm a nerd. But hey, playing chess makes you smarter, right? Anyway, here are my favorite chess openings when playing white and black.

When I play white 95% of the time I will start with the king or queen's pawn -- e4 or d4. It depends on what black plays to really determine the opening but if they play accordingly my favorite openings for white are the King's Gambit and the Italian Game. The King's Gambit because it allows white to develop its pieces quickly and set up a solid attack and the Italian Game for the same reason (although I don't think it's as effective as the King's Gambit).

When I play black what I play is determined by what white plays. Most times white plays e4 or d4. So my favorite openings for black are the Scandinavian Defense and the Alekhine Defense. The Scandinavian Defense because it's straight to the point and a brave counterattack against white's e4 and the Alekhine Defense because it's an interesting defense against white's e4 that can throw off the other opponent, not to mention completely destroy their pawn structure if they get too aggressive. 

Other openings I play for white but don't necessarily consider my "favorites" are the Reti Opening, the Queen's Gambit, and the English Opening. Other openings I play for black but don't necessarily consider my "favorites" are the Sicilian Defense, the French Defense, the Caro Kann Defense, and the King's Indian Defense.