The BongCloud Attack
The Bongcloud Attack is an unconventional chess opening characterized by the moves:
1. e4 e5
2. Ke2?!
Originally viewed as a "joke" opening, it is closely associated with Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura, who has employed it in online blitz games and occasionally in high-level matches for humorous purposes. World Chess Champion Magnus Carlsen has also experimented with this opening. A variant involves 1. e4 (or e3) 2. Ke2, which is also referred to as the Bongcloud.
Background
The name "Bongcloud" may derive from Chess.com user "Lenny Bongcloud," who used the opening unsuccessfully, or it could be a playful nod to the term "bong," a device for consuming cannabis. The opening gained a cult following with the rise of internet chess. Notably, Nigel Short encountered the Bongcloud in an Internet Chess Club game and suspected his opponent might be Bobby Fischer. The opening's reputation was further cemented by Andrew Fabbro’s humorous manual, Winning With the Bongcloud*.
In standard chess theory, the Bongcloud is regarded as a poor choice due to its deviation from key opening principles. The king’s move to e2 obstructs castling, hampers the queen and light-squared bishop's development, exposes the king, and wastes a tempo. This lack of redeeming features makes the Bongcloud a notable exception in conventional practice. English Grandmaster Nigel Short has criticized the opening as an "insult to chess."
High-Level Usage
Grandmaster Hikaru Nakamura has used the Bongcloud Attack in online blitz games, even streaming it on a new Chess.com account with the goal of reaching a 3000 rating. In the 2018 Chess.com Speed Chess Championship, Nakamura played the Bongcloud against GM Levon Aronian three times, winning one game and losing two. He also successfully employed the Bongcloud against GM Vladimir Dobrov and GM Wesley So in the 2019 Speed Chess Championship. On September 19, 2020, Nakamura used the Bongcloud to defeat GM Jeffery Xiong in the final round of the online St. Louis Rapid and Blitz tournament.
On March 15, 2021, Magnus Carlsen played the Bongcloud against Nakamura at the Magnus Carlsen Invitational. Nakamura responded with 2... Ke7, creating a position humorously termed the "Double Bongcloud." The game ended in a draw by threefold repetition, marking the first recorded use of 1. e4 e5 2. Ke2 Ke7 in a major tournament. Despite its clear drawbacks, such "joke" openings can have a psychological impact, as demonstrated when Carlsen's 2020 blitz game with 1.f3 2.Kf2—a variant of the Bongcloud—had a notably demoralizing effect on his opponent.
