Answers.Body: <p>Isolated double pawns like in your example are considered to be both a static and a dynamic weakness. It is a static weakness since the pawns can no longer defend each other or be defended by other pawns. It is a dynamic weakness since the front pawn is blocking the advance of the pawn behind. It is strategically important for the opposing player to control the square directly in front of the pawns, <code>c5</code> in your example, thereby cramping the movement of both pawns.</p>
  
  <p>However, doubled pawns are often compensated by other dynamical factors, like open files for the rooks and long diagonals for the bishops. </p>
  
  <p>In the Budapest line you are asking about, the move <code>6.Nbd2</code> is more popular (than <code>6.Nc3</code>), leading to a good position for white by simple means.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2013-09-07T00:42:03.973Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2013-09-07T00:42:03.973Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Dag Oskar Madsen
Answers.Body: <p>One important aspect of doubled pawns is, that pawn majorities, which encompass doubled pawns, usually aren't able to create passed pawns on their own, i.e. without help from another piece:</p>
  
  <p>So in this position, although material is even, white will win by creating a passed f-pawn. Black isn't able to create counterplay with his own majority because it has been crippled by the taking on c6. White will just wait out any advances on the queenside without moving his pawns from a3 or c3 (unless he has to recapture). Note, that a3-b2-c3 is a good defensive setup, a2-b2-c2 would actually allow a breakthrough.</p>
  
  <pre><code>8/ppp5/2p1k1pp/8/4KPPP/P1P5/1P15/8 w - - 1 13
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>In this example it looks less obvious that there is no passed pawn for black's majority, but in fact white just has to modify his defensive setup:</p>
  
  <pre><code>8/p1p5/2ppk2p/8/P3K1PP/1P6/2P5/8 w - - 1 13
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>So pawn majorities are devalued by doubled pawns and as a result, pure pawn endgames are often lost. Funnily enough pawn <strong>minorities</strong> are often better at stopping the opposing pawns …
  But in practice this is less relevant, because doubled pawn majorities are usually isolated as well and therefore quite weak if attacked. 
  But in a position like this, white wouldn't be able to create a passer without allowing black a passed pawn as well ...</p>
  
  <pre><code>8/8/8/5p2/pk3p1p/8/K3PPPP/8 w - - 1 13
  </code></pre>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2014-12-22T13:49:41.093Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2014-12-22T13:49:41.093Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: BlindKungFuMaster
Answers.Body: <p>It's always a matter of tradeoff. You can find plenty of IM &amp; GM games where a player accepts doubled pawns because they feel it's worth it in that position.</p>
  <p>In this position, the doubled pawn is lending support to the center, is not making the king weak, and provides an open file for the rook. The black d pawn is restricted, and trading on d5 would undo the doubled pawns for white and give a strong center presence. However, it could turn out to be an endgame weakness.</p>
  <p>Here is some commentary by a GM.</p>
  <ul>
  <li><a href="http://www.chess.com/article/view/doubled-pawns" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.chess.com/article/view/doubled-pawns</a></li>
  <li><a href="http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-two" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-two</a></li>
  <li><a href="http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-3" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-3</a></li>
  <li><a href="http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-4" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-4</a></li>
  <li><a href="http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-5" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-5</a></li>
  </ul>
  <p>And by IM (now GM) Larry Kaufman</p>
  <ul>
  <li><a href="http://home.comcast.net/%7Edanheisman/Articles/doubled_pawns.htm" rel="nofollow noreferrer">http://home.comcast.net/~danheisman/Articles/doubled_pawns.htm</a></li>
  </ul>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2013-09-08T00:22:05.313Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2021-02-06T22:25:45.480Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2021-02-06T22:25:45.480Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: James Christopher
Body: <p>There's another question on this SE, which asks the question in reverse:
  <a href="https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/239/what-are-the-reasons-why-i-should-not-try-to-take-a-knight-with-my-bishop-if-it">What are the reasons why I should not try to take a Knight with my Bishop if it&#39;ll result in doubled pawns?</a></p>
  
  <p>The answers do not adequately address, <em>why</em> you should try and double up your opponents pawns. To be more precise let me point to this Youtube video explaining 
  <a href="http://youtu.be/urITvqQleUE?t=1m30s" rel="nofollow noreferrer">the Budapest opening</a>.</p>
  
  <pre><code>[fen "r1bqk2r/pppp1ppp/2n5/4P3/1bP2Bn1/2N2N2/PP2PPPP/R2QKB1R b - - 0 1"]
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>The Youtuber recommends ...BxNc3 with the sole aim of creating doubled pawns. So why are doubled pawns so awkward? The only reasonable answer on the Wikipedia <a href="https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doubled_pawns#Types_of_doubled_pawns" rel="nofollow noreferrer">page</a> I could understand was that the Rooks can't provide support to the leading pawn in a doubled pawn structure. Can someone shed more light?</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2013-09-11T00:50:30.140Z
Comments.Text: These are not just doubled pawns, they're _isolated_ doubled pawns, which are significantly weaker.
Comments.UserDisplayName: dfan
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2013-09-11T00:55:48.923Z
Comments.Text: Yeah... that does make it a bit more objective.
Comments.UserDisplayName: Shashank Sawant
Tags: <pawns><pawn-structure><doubled-pawn>
Title: What's up with the doubled pawns?
ThreadText: # What's up with the doubled pawns?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2013-09-06)
  
  There's another question on this SE, which asks the question in reverse:
  [What are the reasons why I should not try to take a Knight with my Bishop if it'll result in doubled pawns?](https://chess.stackexchange.com/questions/239/what-are-the-reasons-why-i-should-not-try-to-take-a-knight-with-my-bishop-if-it)
  
  The answers do not adequately address, *why* you should try and double up your opponents pawns. To be more precise let me point to this Youtube video explaining
  [the Budapest opening](http://youtu.be/urITvqQleUE?t=1m30s).
  
  ```
  [fen "r1bqk2r/pppp1ppp/2n5/4P3/1bP2Bn1/2N2N2/PP2PPPP/R2QKB1R b - - 0 1"]
  
  ```
  
  The Youtuber recommends ...BxNc3 with the sole aim of creating doubled pawns. So why are doubled pawns so awkward? The only reasonable answer on the Wikipedia [page](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doubled_pawns#Types_of_doubled_pawns) I could understand was that the Rooks can't provide support to the leading pawn in a doubled pawn structure. Can someone shed more light?
  
  **Tags:** pawns, pawn-structure, doubled-pawn
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: These are not just doubled pawns, they're _isolated_ doubled pawns, which are significantly weaker.  
  > **username_0**: Yeah... that does make it a bit more objective.  
  
  ---
  
  ## 3 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2013-09-08. Score: 7 | Accepted answer
  
  It's always a matter of tradeoff. You can find plenty of IM & GM games where a player accepts doubled pawns because they feel it's worth it in that position.
  
  In this position, the doubled pawn is lending support to the center, is not making the king weak, and provides an open file for the rook. The black d pawn is restricted, and trading on d5 would undo the doubled pawns for white and give a strong center presence. However, it could turn out to be an endgame weakness.
  
  Here is some commentary by a GM.
  
  * <http://www.chess.com/article/view/doubled-pawns>
  * <http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-two>
  * <http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-3>
  * <http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-4>
  * <http://www.chess.com/article/view/the-truth-about-doubled-pawns-part-5>
  
  And by IM (now GM) Larry Kaufman
  
  * [http://home.comcast.net/~danheisman/Articles/doubled\_pawns.htm](http://home.comcast.net/%7Edanheisman/Articles/doubled_pawns.htm)
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_2 on 2013-09-07. Score: 8
  
  Isolated double pawns like in your example are considered to be both a static and a dynamic weakness. It is a static weakness since the pawns can no longer defend each other or be defended by other pawns. It is a dynamic weakness since the front pawn is blocking the advance of the pawn behind. It is strategically important for the opposing player to control the square directly in front of the pawns, `c5` in your example, thereby cramping the movement of both pawns.
  
  However, doubled pawns are often compensated by other dynamical factors, like open files for the rooks and long diagonals for the bishops.
  
  In the Budapest line you are asking about, the move `6.Nbd2` is more popular (than `6.Nc3`), leading to a good position for white by simple means.
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2014-12-22. Score: 2
  
  One important aspect of doubled pawns is, that pawn majorities, which encompass doubled pawns, usually aren't able to create passed pawns on their own, i.e. without help from another piece:
  
  So in this position, although material is even, white will win by creating a passed f-pawn. Black isn't able to create counterplay with his own majority because it has been crippled by the taking on c6. White will just wait out any advances on the queenside without moving his pawns from a3 or c3 (unless he has to recapture). Note, that a3-b2-c3 is a good defensive setup, a2-b2-c2 would actually allow a breakthrough.
  
  ```
  8/ppp5/2p1k1pp/8/4KPPP/P1P5/1P15/8 w - - 1 13
  
  ```
  
  In this example it looks less obvious that there is no passed pawn for black's majority, but in fact white just has to modify his defensive setup:
  
  ```
  8/p1p5/2ppk2p/8/P3K1PP/1P6/2P5/8 w - - 1 13
  
  ```
  
  So pawn majorities are devalued by doubled pawns and as a result, pure pawn endgames are often lost. Funnily enough pawn **minorities** are often better at stopping the opposing pawns …
  But in practice this is less relevant, because doubled pawn majorities are usually isolated as well and therefore quite weak if attacked.
  But in a position like this, white wouldn't be able to create a passer without allowing black a passed pawn as well ...
  
  ```
  8/8/8/5p2/pk3p1p/8/K3PPPP/8 w - - 1 13
  
  ```
  
  
  ---
  
  