Baadur Jobava – The Creative Maverick

Baadur Jobava (born 1983) is a Georgian Grandmaster and former World Top 20 player. He is widely considered one of the most naturally talented and artistic players on the circuit.

The Jobava London System (1.d4, 2.Nc3, 3.Bf4) is named after him. Before Jobava, blocking the c-pawn with 2.Nc3 was considered "bad." He proved it leads to dynamic attacks, and now thousands of amateurs play it.

Yes, extremely. He often sacrifices material for initiative. His style is often compared to Mikhail Tal or Bent Larsen due to his love for irregular positions.

He won the 2006 Aeroflot Open, the 2011 European Rapid Championship, and has two individual Gold Medals from Chess Olympiads (2004, 2010).

His signature opening. By playing 2.Nc3 and 3.Bf4, he created a fresh, dangerous weapon that avoids the boring draws of the standard London System.

At the 2010 Olympiad, he crushed Magnus Carlsen with White, using deep preparation and tactical precision.

He won the individual Gold Medal for Board 4 at the Calvia Olympiad with a stunning performance rating of 2842.

He won Gold again, this time on Board 1, defeating the best players in the world and proving he belongs in the elite.

He is one of the few top GMs to regularly employ 1. b3, using it to drag opponents into unfamiliar territory.

He reached his peak rating in 2012, ranking as high as World No. 19.

He won the notoriously difficult Aeroflot Open in Moscow, a tournament known for having the highest density of Grandmasters.

He shares a stylistic bond with Richard Rapport; both are celebrated as the leaders of "New Romanticism" in chess.

While others study engine lines to move 30, Jobava studies sidelines to get a playable game by move 5, forcing opponents to think.

Jobava plays with his heart. When he is in form, he is unstoppable; when he is off, he can lose quickly. His games are never boring.

He is exceptionally strong at blindfold chess, a testament to his vivid visualization skills.

He dominated the Al Ain Classic, finishing ahead of a field of strong 2700+ GMs.

His victory against Veselin Topalov is a classic example of how creativity can dismantle classic preparation.

One of his trademarks is maneuvering Knights to unusual squares (like h3 or a3) to control the center from the flanks.

He carried the torch of Georgian chess for a decade, inspiring a new generation of players in his home country.

He is a regular on "Titled Tuesday" and online speed events, where his tricky opening repertoire is deadly in short time controls.

He has revived obscure lines against the French Defense, often castling Queenside and launching pawns at the King.

His speed and intuition helped him clinch the European Rapid title in 2011.

Another name for his system. It is now so popular that almost every top GM has tried it at least once in blitz.

Jobava believes chess should be beautiful. He will often play a speculative sacrifice just to make the game interesting for the fans.