<The treatment of doubled pawns has become increasingly complex in our times. As a broad characterization, we can say that the unifying factors of the modern treatment are retention of maximum structural flexibility and a general open-mindedness. More than ever, players are willing to enter into positions in which they have doubled pawns, even when it means retaining them for much of the game without prospect of liquidation. Conversely, players are more willing to sacrifice positive tactical and positional factors in order to create doubled pawns in the opponent’s camp. Those factors might include time, development, the bishop-pair, safety and the like. It’s all a matter of specific context, and there don’t seem to be many general guidelines. Specific structures and formations may allow of doubled pawns while others tend to suffer from them. Yet even in those cases, delicate issues of timing and initiative can intervene and make general assessments unreliable. In short, the ideas are in the moves themselves.

What is clear is that the stronger players are experts at drawing upon their vast experience to assess which side they favour and thus when to enter into a doubled-pawn situation. Opening structures are as usual important teachers. Of course, most opening variations do not involve doubled pawns early on, if only because the opposing forces do not engage one another for some time. It also takes two to tango, so both the doubler and double must see advantages in their positions. Normally there must be a planned effort to create or provoke the creation of doubled pawns early on, and that’s precisely what we are seeing more and more of today. In many situations, players no longer view doubled pawns as weaknesses to be compensated for but as natural or even positive features of the position. Because doubled pawn play has become so widespread, I will concentrate upon a few illustrative structures and some ideas that weren’t discussed in SOMCS (“Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy”).

The Extension of Doubled Pawn Theory

16.Nd4 <Black is ahead in development and can double on the d-file whereas White will have to use a tempo to play the weakening g3 in order to bring his king to safety. White's advantage is his better-placed queen, which can operate well in conjunction with the minority attack and c-file. Morozevich enters into a forced sequence that most of us would blanche at.>

21..Qf6! <The point. Instead of worrying about ’weaknesses’ that will never be attacked, Black exchanges off White’s best piece.>

22.Qxf6 gxf6 <Wells: “What I wonder is how many players simply would fail even to seriously examine 21..Qf6! because taking on such doubled, isolated pawns goes against deeply ingrained instincts. In fact, these pawns easily contain White’s majority, while Black obtains total control on the other wing.” This is one of Wells’s themes: doubled pawns can be excellent restrainers of a majority. After all, when one pawn is exchanged the other takes its place! Conversely, he makes the (better-known) point that “a doubled pawn on the majority side is in general a far greater burden since it profoundly complicates the task of creating a passed pawn.”

As for Wells’s question of how many players would consider 21..Qf6, I’m pretty sure I wouldn’t! On the other hand, it’s easy enough to imagine this move from any number of positionally-minded grandmasters (and surely top ones like Kramnik or Karpov), particularly since the taboos against doubled pawns even in simplified positions is disappearing.>