PAUL Morphy's huge score of +11=0-2 (84.6%) against the Evans is testament to his tactical and positional superiority over his opponents, who included some of the leading masters of the day.
Morphy treated the Evans, both as Black and as White, in the same way he treated other open games, ie with speedy development.
Although he always accepted the gambit, he rarely grabbed a second pawn in the opening, preferring to complete development.
From a theoretical viewpoint, it is impossible to say whether Morphy concluded that 5...Ba5 or 5...Bc5 was superior.
He played 5...Ba5 in his first six Evans' Gambits as Black before switching to 5...Bc5 in the next five, which included both his losses.
When he returned to 5...Ba5 in game 12, it might be thought significant, but in game 13 he went back to 5...Bc5.
Modern authors are almost unanimous in considering 5...Ba5 superior, and it scores a much better percentage in ChessBase's 2019 Mega database.
But Victor Bologan, in his repertoire book Bologan's Black Weapons In The Open Games: How To Play For A Win If White Avoids The Ruy Lopez, devotes more space to 5...Bc5, which he reckons most Whites have little idea how to play against.
The Evans is a rare bird in modern chess, even at club level, which makes it tempting for Blacks to spend just a little time learning a method of declining the gambit without trying for a refutation.
It is interesting to note in this respect that after 4...Bb6!?, which has been played by Carlsen and Aronian, White scores 51% in Mega19, while scoring 59% against 4...Bxb4. Other methods of declining, eg 4...Be7 and 4...d5!?, fare much worse.
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