General Strategy
Gambit
Definition
A gambit is an opening where a player deliberately sacrifices 1-2 pawns (sometimes a piece) early to gain faster development, open lines to the opponent king, or center control. If the opponent defends accurately, the gambit player must work hard to compensate. If not, the gambit player wins quickly.
Usage and Example
Famous gambits: King's Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.f4), Queen's Gambit (1.d4 d5 2.c4, not a true gambit since the c-pawn can always be recovered), Benko Gambit (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5), Danish Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3).
Grandmaster Tier Context
T2 Club through T3 Competitive Local. Gambit is a fun way to learn attacking chess. Grandmaster coaches sometimes recommend Danish Gambit for T2 to learn the feel of initiative directly.