I’ve played the GQ exclusively for awhile now and there was always one aspect that wasn’t as fluid as the rest. It was the dark squared Bishop, either it wasn’t developed early enough, it was blocked in by a pawn or a Knight or simply not influencing the game. I set out to find some other move orders in the QG to help fix the issue of the bad Bishop and I found that b3 fit into most of my games without any down sides. This game was the first time employing the move into my opening and it worked incredibly well and felt fluid just as I was looking for.
Below is the position after Black played 1…Bb4+ 2. Bd2 Bxd2 3. Nxd3
White’s opening position is incredibly solid and active while Black is lacking in space for the Queen’s Knight and the light squared Bishop is blocked by a pawn. From here Black play Ne7 and I push e5 blowing the center open supported by the Knight on d2. Black had a chronic problem of being behind in development and cramped for positions, it lead to a smooth conversation and too much pressure on a pawn lead to a collapse in Blacks territory.
A Journey of 64 Squares 