The flank opening move 1.b3 prepares to fianchetto the queen's bishop where it will help control the central squares in hypermodern fashion and put pressure on Black's kingside.

In the 1920s and 30s, Aron Nimzowitsch experimented with 1.b3 but more commonly employed the move order 1.Nf3 d5 2.b3, usually reaching positions akin to a reversed Nimzo-Indian Defence (e.g. after 2...Nf6 3.Bb2 c5 4.e3 Nc6 5.Bb5).

A notable longer-term exponent of the opening, however, was Soviet GM Vladimir Bagirov who played 1.b3 on around 100 occasions between 1976 and 2000 with considerable success (scoring approximately 54% wins and 38% draws).

The Nimzowitsch–Larsen Attack is sometimes used as a surprise weapon in super-GM-level online blitz tournaments, including by Hikaru Nakamura, Magnus Carlsen, Richárd Rapport, Ian Nepomniachtchi, Vladislav Artemiev and Baadur Jobava.

The main choice has been to proceed in true hypermodern style, allowing Black to form a classical e5/d5 pawn centre that White will then undermine.

The 1.Nf3 move order could be argued to limit the number of variations at Black's disposal and to channel the play towards those where White scores more highly.

Jacobs & Tait[3] note that the 1.b3 move order has the added advantage that in most lines White has a greater range of options available because f4 is still playable.

Bibliography 1.Na3: Durkin 1.a3: Anderssen 1.b3: Nimzowitsch-Larsen 1.Nc3: Dunst 1.c3: Saragossa 1.d3: Mieses 1.e3: Van 't Kruijs 1.Nf3: Zukertort 1.f3: Barnes 1.g3: Benko 1.Nh3: Amar 1.h3: Clemenz