Chess Openings - Scotch Game

Scotch Game

The Scotch Game begins with the direct central strike d4 on the third move, after the natural developing moves ♘f3 and ... ♞c6.

White exchanges the d-pawn for Black's e-pawn and obtains an active knight in the center. Black has no good way to keep the pawn on e5, so 3... exd4 is essentially forced. A recurring theme throughout the opening is the exchange ♘xc6 followed by ... bxc6, which gives White a small structural concession from Black in exchange for time and central control.

After 4. ♘xd4, Black's two main replies, ... ♝c5 and ... ♞f6, both offer good chances of equality and are considered the main lines. White also has two gambits available instead of 4. ♘xd4: the Scotch Gambit with 4. ♗c4 and the Göring Gambit with 4. c3.

4... ♝c5

Black develops the bishop with tempo, pressuring the knight, which is defended only by the queen and must be reinforced, exchanged, or moved.

The main reply is 5. ♗e3, reinforcing the knight. Black almost always adds a third attacker with 5... ♛f6, and White answers with a third defender, 6. c3.

This position, with 7. ♗c4 and 7... ♞e5, is one of the main positions. After 9. O-O, White leaves the pawn on e4 apparently undefended, but capturing it is considered poisoned: after 9... ♛xe4?!, White's development and the exposed black queen give enough compensation.

Instead of 7. ♗c4, White has several alternative seventh moves, including 7. g3, intending a kingside fianchetto, 7. ♘c2, and 7. ♕d2. Black has to be careful with the move order at every step: 5... ♞f6?? loses the bishop to 6. ♘xc6 followed by 7. ♗xc5, and 5... d6? similarly allows 6. ♘xc6 bxc6 7. ♗xc5 dxc5, leaving Black with tripled pawns on the c-file.

White's other main try on move five is to move the knight to safety while attacking the bishop at the same time:

Black's bishop steps aside to b6 without losing time on other development, and White typically follows with ♕e2, ♗e3 or ♗g5, and long castling.

There is a sharp trap if White instead tries to win a piece with the knight:

White forks the king and rook and wins the exchange, but the knight on a8 is trapped, and Black's queen has grabbed a rook of its own on h1. The resulting material count and the exposed kings on both sides make this a sharp but balanced continuation.

Finally, Black can meet the immediate exchange with an in-between move:

Rather than recapture immediately, Black's 5... ♛f6 threatens mate on f2, so White cannot retreat the attacked knight and must first defend against the threat with 6. ♛d2 or 6. ♛f3. Black then recaptures on c6 with the d-pawn rather than the b-pawn, avoiding doubled pawns.

4... ♞f6

Instead of the bishop, Black develops the knight, attacking the e4-pawn directly.

The recapture 5... bxc6 is forced, since 5... dxc6? allows 6. ♛xd8+ ♚xd8 and the loss of castling rights. White's most popular continuation, advances the pawn instead of defending it:

Black's knight is driven from d5, and both sides fight for the initiative rather than settling into a quiet structural game.

The original recommendation was the quieter 6. ♗d3, simply defending the e4-pawn, and it remains the second most common choice today:

Here the position is symmetrical and roughly balanced, with both sides having an isolated or hanging central pawn to work with. Other methods of defending the e4-pawn include 6. ♞d2, and the more modern 6. ♛e2.

4... ♛h4

This move almost wins a pawn by force, but at a cost in development and king safety.

White's most successful continuation is 5. ♞c3, and after 5... ♝b4, 6. ♗e2 ♛xe4, White plays 7. ♞b5!, hitting c7 and forcing the black king to move.

Black keeps the extra pawn, but has lost the right to castle, and the exposed king position has generally proven more significant than the material gain. The main alternative on move five is 5. ♞b5, which usually transposes to similar positions after 5... ♛xe4+.

Scotch gambit

Instead of recapturing on d4 with the knight, White can develop the bishop at once, offering the pawn for rapid development.

The bishop stays on f7, and White may later add pressure with ♘g5. Black's most common replies are 4... ♞f6, attacking e4, and 4... ♝c5, defending the extra pawn.

This main line is identical to the Open variation of the Two Knights defense, which the Scotch gambit transposes into. Against 4... ♝c5, White most often plays 5. O-O.

Göring gambit

A different kind of gambit reinforces the center pawn instead of developing a piece:

This is a delayed version of the Danish gambit, and it has similar themes: White typically follows up with pressure on f7 via ♗c4 and ♕b3, sometimes adding ♘g5, with the ♘c3-d5 maneuver as another recurring motif.

If Black accepts with 4... dxc3, White usually recaptures with the knight, offering only a single pawn:

This pin with 5... ♝b4 is considered Black's principal response, since White does not appear to obtain enough compensation for the two-pawn deficit after further simplification. White's main alternative is 7. ♕b3, when 7... ♝xc3+ followed by 8. ♕xc3 ♛f6! costs White too much time with the queen.

Black's main alternative to 5... ♝b4 is the solid 5... d6, which usually leads to roughly balanced complications after 6. ♗c4 ♞f6 7. ♕b3 ♛d7 8. ♘g5.

If Black declines the gambit and strikes back in the center instead, White typically ends up with an isolated queen pawn but active piece play:

♞xd4

A move that was popular in the past, but is now regarded as dubious is 4... ♞xd4:

White's queen occupies a strong central square early and, unlike in most openings, cannot be chased away, since a move such as 5... c5? would weaken Black's dark squares and block in the king's own bishop.

Modern analysis suggests that with precise play, for instance 5... ♞e7 6. ♗c4 ♞c6 7. ♘d5 ♕f6 8. O-O ♞e5, Black can equalize without too much difficulty, so the line is now considered simply a way for Black to sidestep the main theory of the Scotch.

Go to the top of the page