The Scotch Game is a chess opening

Chess opening

A chess opening is the group of initial moves of a chess game. Recognized sequences of opening moves are referred to as openings as initiated by White or defenses, as created in reply by Black. There are many dozens of different openings, and hundreds of named variants. The Oxford Companion to...

 that begins with the moves

1. e4 e5

2. Nf3 Nc6

3. d4

Ercole del Rio

Ercole del Rio

Domenico Ercole del Rio was an Italian lawyer and author. He published an 110-page chess book in 1750 which was the basis of a work by Giambattista Lolli thirteen years later. He composed many chess problems. He was one of the Modenese Masters.-References:...

, in his 1750 treatise

Treatise

A treatise is a formal and systematic written discourse on some subject, generally longer and treating it in greater depth than an essay, and more concerned with investigating or exposing the principles of the subject.-Noteworthy treatises:...

 Sopra il giuoco degli Scacchi, Osservazioni pratiche d’anonimo Autore Modense (On the game of Chess, practical Observations by an anonymous Modenese Author), was the first author to mention what is now called the Scotch Game. The opening received its name from a correspondence

Correspondence chess

Correspondence chess is chess played by various forms of long-distance correspondence, usually through a correspondence chess server, through email or by the postal system; less common methods which have been employed include fax and homing pigeon...

 match in 1824 between Edinburgh

Edinburgh

Edinburgh is the capital city of Scotland, the second largest city in Scotland, and the eighth most populous in the United Kingdom. The City of Edinburgh Council governs one of Scotland's 32 local government council areas. The council area includes urban Edinburgh and a rural area...

 and London

London

London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...

. Popular in the 19th century, by 1900 the Scotch had lost favour among top players because it was thought to release the central tension too early and allow Black to equalise without difficulty. More recently the Scotch has regained some popularity and it has been used by grandmasters

International Grandmaster

The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....

 Kasparov and Timman

Jan Timman

Jan Timman is a Dutch chess Grandmaster who was one of the world's leading players from the late 1970s to the early 1990s. At the peak of his career he was considered to be the best non-Soviet player and was known as "The Best of the West"...

 as a surprise weapon to avoid the well-analysed Ruy Lopez

Ruy Lopez

The Ruy Lopez, also called the Spanish Opening or Spanish Game, is a chess opening characterised by the moves:-History:The opening is named after the 16th century Spanish priest Ruy López de Segura, who made a systematic study of this and other openings in the 150-page book on chess Libro del...

.
White aims to dominate the centre by exchanging his d-pawn for Black's e-pawn. Black usually plays 3...exd4, as he has no good way to maintain his pawn on e5 (this same position can be reached by transposition

Transposition (chess)

A transposition in chess is a sequence of moves that results in a position which may also be reached by another, more common sequence of moves. Transpositions are particularly common in opening, where a given position may be reached by different sequences of moves...

 from the Centre Game 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Nf3 Nc6). After 3...d6, White is better after 4.dxe5 dxe5 5.Qxd8+ Kxd8 6.Bc4, or he may simply play 4.Bb5, when 4...exd4 5.Nxd4 Bd7 transposes to the Steinitz Defense in the Ruy Lopez.

3...Nxd4 is possible, though rarely played today by strong players. It was popular in the 19th century, and receives five columns of analysis in Freeborough and Ranken's opening manual Chess Openings Ancient and Modern (3rd ed. 1896 p. 53). It is often described today as a strategic error, since after 4.Nxd4 exd4 5.Qxd4 (5.Bc4 is the Napoleon Gambit) White's queen

Queen (chess)

The queen is the most powerful piece in the game of chess, able to move any number of squares vertically, horizontally, or diagonally. Each player starts the game with one queen, placed in the middle of the first rank next to the king. With the chessboard oriented correctly, the white queen starts...

 stands on a central square, and is not developed too early since it cannot be chased away very effectively (5...c5? is a seriously weakening move that blocks Black's king's bishop

Bishop (chess)

A bishop is a piece in the board game of chess. Each player begins the game with two bishops. One starts between the king's knight and the king, the other between the queen's knight and the queen...

). Nonetheless, the Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings

Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings

The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings is a classification system for the opening moves in a game of chess. It is presented as a five volume book collection describing chess openings...

(volume 3, 3rd edition 1997, p. 251 n.28, referring to p. 252 line 1) concludes that Black equalises with 5...Ne7 6.Bc4 Nc6 7.Qd5 Qf6 8.0-0 Ne5 9.Be2 c6 10.Qb3 Ng6 11.f4 Bc5+ 12.Kh1 d6. Similarly, Harald Keilhack concludes in Knight on the Left: 1.Nc3 (p. 21) that although ...Nxd4 is a "non-line" these days, if Black continues perfectly it is not clear that White gets even a small advantage. Keilhack analyses 5.Qxd4 d6 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.Bc4 Be7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Bg5 c6 10.a4 Qa5 11.Bh4 and now after 11...Qe5 or 11...Be6, "White has at most this indescribable nothingness which is the advantage of the first move." (Id. p. 25) The Encyclopaedia of Chess Openings also concludes that Black equalises after the alternative 4.Nxe5 Ne6 5.Bc4 Nf6 6.Nc3 Be7 7.0-0 0-0 8.Be3 d6 8.Nd3 Nxe4 10.Nxe4 d5 (p. 251 n.28).

After the usual 3...exd4, White can respond with the main line 4.Nxd4 or can play a gambit

Gambit

A gambit is a chess opening in which a player, most often White, sacrifices material, usually a pawn, with the hope of achieving a resulting advantageous position. Some well-known examples are the King's Gambit , Queen's Gambit , and Evans Gambit...

 by offering Black one or two pawns in exchange for rapid development.

Main variations

After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4, the most important continuations are

• 4.Nxd4 (Main Line)
  • 4...Bc5 (Classical Variation)
  • 4...Nf6
  • 4...Qh4!? (Steinitz Variation)
• 4.Bc4 (Scotch Gambit)
• 4.c3 (Göring Gambit)

Main Line

In the main line after 4.Nxd4, Black has three major options. Either 4...Bc5 or 4...Nf6 offers Black good chances for an equal game.

4...Bc5

After 4...Bc5 White has 5.Nxc6, 5.Be3, or 5.Nb3. After 5.Nxc6 play almost always continues 5...Qf6 (Black does not lose a piece on c6 because he is threatening mate with 6...Qxf2) 6.Qd2 dxc6 7.Nc3. On 5.Be3 play almost always continues 5...Qf6 6.c3 Nge7 7.Bc4 (as proposed by IM Gary Lane

Gary Lane

Gary William Lane is a professional chess player and author. He became an International Master in 1987 and won the Commonwealth Chess Championship in 1988...

 in Winning with the Scotch) 0-0 8.0-0 Bb6 where the position is roughly equal. On 5.Nb3 play almost always continues 5...Bb6 6.a4 a6 7.Nc3. Another plan for White is to play 6.Nc3, followed by (in some order) Qe2, Bd3, h4 and castling long.

4...Nf6

After 4...Nf6 White has 5.Nxc6 (the Mieses Variation) or 5.Nc3 (the Scotch Four Knights Game

Four Knights Game

The Four Knights Game is a chess opening that begins with the moves:The opening is fairly popular with beginners who strictly adhere to the opening principle: "Develop knights before bishops." It was one of the workhorses in the family of the Open Game, at even the highest levels, until World War...

). After 5.Nc3 almost always played is 5...Bb4 6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.Bd3 d5 8.exd5 cxd5 9.0-0 0-0 10.Bg5 c6. After 5.Nxc6 bxc6 6.e5 Qe7 7.Qe2 Nd5 8.c4 is also very common. Where these main lines end, the first real opening decisions are made, which are too specific for this survey.

4...Qh4!?

Steinitz's

Wilhelm Steinitz

Wilhelm Steinitz was an Austrian and then American chess player and the first undisputed world chess champion from 1886 to 1894. From the 1870s onwards, commentators have debated whether Steinitz was effectively the champion earlier...

 4...Qh4!? almost wins a pawn by force, but White gets a lead in development and attacking chances as compensation. As of 2005, White's most successful line has been 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Be2 Qxe4 7.Nb5 Bxc3+ 8.bxc3 Kd8 9.0-0, when Black's awkwardly placed king has generally proven more significant than his extra pawn.

Scotch Gambit

Instead of 4.Nxd4, White has two ways to offer a gambit. The Scotch Gambit (which is the line recommended by GM Lev Alburt

Lev Alburt

Lev Osipovich Alburt is a chess Grandmaster and a well-respected chess writer. He was three-time Ukrainian Champion, and after defecting to the United States in 1979, became three-time U.S. Champion.-Career:...

 in his book Chess Openings for White, Explained) starts with 4.Bc4. Black can transpose into the Two Knights Defense

Two Knights Defense

The Two Knights Defense is a chess opening that begins with the moves: in the late 16th century, this line of the Italian Game was extensively developed in the 19th century....

 with 4...Nf6 or he can continue the Scotch with 4...Bc5 5.c3 and now 5...Nf6 will transpose into a safe variation of the Giuoco Piano

Giuoco Piano

The Giuoco Piano is a chess opening beginning with the moves:Common alternatives to 3...Bc5 include 3...Nf6 , 3...Be7 , or 3...d6 .-History:...

. Black can instead accept the gambit with 5...dxc3 but this is riskier because White will gain a lead in development. A possible continuation is 6.Nxc3 (the main alternative, favoured by Grandmaster

International Grandmaster

The title Grandmaster is awarded to strong chess players by the world chess organization FIDE. Apart from World Champion, Grandmaster is the highest title a chess player can attain....

 Sveshnikov

Evgeny Sveshnikov

Evgeny Ellinovich Sveshnikov is a Latvian, former Soviet International Grandmaster of chess, and a chess writer.-The player:...

, is 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Qd5+ followed by 8.Qxc5) 6...d6 7.Bg5 (7.Qb3 is dubious as 7...Qd7 8 Nd5 Nge7 9 Qc3 0–0 10 0–0 Nxd5! 11 exd5 Ne5 12 Nxe5 dxe5 13.Qxe5 Bd6 is good for Black, but 7.0-0 may also be good) 7...Nge7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Nd5.

Göring Gambit

The Göring Gambit is a relative of the Danish Gambit

Danish Gambit

The Danish Gambit, known as the in German, and the in Dutch, is a chess opening that begins with the moves:...

 that starts with 4.c3. White sacrifices one or two pawns in return for a lead in development, and typically follows up by putting pressure on f7 with Bc4, Qb3 and sometimes Ng5, while Nc3-d5 is another common motif. The Oxford Companion to Chess notes that the gambit was first played at high levels by Howard Staunton

Howard Staunton

Howard Staunton was an English chess master who is generally regarded as having been the world's strongest player from 1843 to 1851, largely as a result of his 1843 victory over Saint-Amant. He promoted a chess set of clearly distinguishable pieces of standardised shape—the Staunton pattern—that...

 in the 1840s, and the earliest game with it was probably played in 1843. The first game with the gambit accepted may be Meek vs Morphy, New York 1857. Carl Theodor Göring

Carl Göring

Carl Theodor Göring was a German professor, philosopher and chess master.In 1870, he took 3rd in the first Austrian Chess Federation Congress, held in Graz...

 introduced it into master play in 1872, but while Göring's name is most often associated with the one-pawn gambit (5.Nxc3) Göring invariably used the double-pawn gambit with 5.Bc4. The gambit has been played by Ljubomir Ljubojevic

Ljubomir Ljubojevic

Ljubomir Ljubojević is a Grandmaster of chess. He was born on November 2, 1950, in Titovo Užice, Yugoslavia . Ljubojević was awarded the International Master title in 1970 and the GM title in 1971. He was Yugoslav champion in 1977 and 1982. He won the 1974 Canadian Open Chess Championship...

, David Bronstein

David Bronstein

David Ionovich Bronstein was a Soviet chess grandmaster, who narrowly missed becoming World Chess Champion in 1951. Bronstein was described by his peers as a creative genius and master of tactics...

, Frank Marshall, and Jonathan Penrose

Jonathan Penrose

Jonathan Penrose, OBE is an English chess player, emeritus Grandmaster, and International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster who won the British Chess Championship ten times between 1958 and 1969. He is the son of Lionel Penrose, a world famous professor of genetics, and brother of Roger Penrose...

. In casual games Alexander Alekhine

Alexander Alekhine

Alexander Alexandrovich Alekhine was the fourth World Chess Champion. He is often considered one of the greatest chess players ever.By the age of twenty-two, he was already among the strongest chess players in the world. During the 1920s, he won most of the tournaments in which he played...

 often transposed to it via the move order 1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3 dxc3 4.Nxc3, when ...Nc6 for Black and Nf3 for White often followed. In general, the opening is unpopular at master level but is more popular at club level. It is recommended to study the Göring Gambit in connection with the Danish.

4...d5

Black can equalise by transposing to the Danish declined with 4...d5, when the critical line runs 5.exd5 Qxd5 6.cxd4 Bg4 7.Be2 Bb4+ 8.Nc3 Bxf3 9.Bxf3 Qc4 (or 6...Bb4+ 7.Nc3 Bg4 8.Be2 Bxf3 9.Bxf3 Qc4, leading to the same position), often referred to as the Capablanca Variation in view of the strength of Black's concept in the game Marshall-Capablanca, Lake Hopatcong 1926. This line (which can also arise from the Chigorin Defense

Chigorin Defense

The Chigorin Defense is a chess opening named for 19th century Russian grandmaster Mikhail Chigorin. An uncommonly played defense to the Queen's Gambit, it begins with the moves:The Chigorin Defense is a chess opening named for 19th century Russian grandmaster Mikhail Chigorin. An uncommonly...

 to the Queen's Gambit), forcing White to either exchange queens or forgo the right to castle

Castling

Castling is a special move in the game of chess involving the king and either of the original rooks of the same color. It is the only move in chess in which a player moves two pieces at the same time. Castling consists of moving the king two squares towards a rook on the player's first rank, then...

 with the risky 10.Be3, deters many players from employing this gambit. Equal endgames result after either 10.Qb3 Qxb3 11.axb3 Nge7 or 10.Bxc6+ bxc6 11.Qe2+ Qxe2+ 12.Kxe2 Ne7. If Black avoids steering for Capablanca's ending, e.g. with 6...Nf6 or 7...0-0-0 in the above lines, then White obtains good piece play in return for the isolated d-pawn. White can deviate with 6...Bg4 7.Nc3, with the idea of meeting 7...Bb4 with 8.a3 (or 6...Bb4+ 7.Nc3 Bg4 8.a3) or the rare 5.Bd3, neither of which promise an advantage but which avoid those endings.

Other ways of declining

Black can also decline with 4...Nf6, transposing to a line of the Ponziani Opening

Ponziani Opening

The Ponziani Opening is a chess opening that begins with the moves:The opening is now considered inferior to 3.Bb5, the Ruy Lopez, and 3.Bc4, the Italian Game, and is accordingly rarely seen today at any level of play. Black's main responses are 3...Nf6, leading to quiet play, and 3...d5, leading...

. The continuation 5.e5 Ne4 was endorsed by Dangerous Weapons, 1.e4 e5 (Everyman Chess, 2008) but Tim Harding

Tim Harding (chess)

Timothy David Harding is a prolific chess player and author with particular expertise regarding correspondence chess. He published a correspondence chess magazine Chess Mail from 1996 to 2006 and has authored "The Kibitzer," a ChessCafe.com column from 1996...

 considers 5...Nd5 a better try for equality, when White can continue 6.Bb5 a6 7.Ba4 Nb6 8.Bb3, 6.Qb3, 6.Bc4 or 6.cxd4. Another possibility is 4...Nge7 intending 5...d5, when the critical continuation is 5.Bc4 d5 6.exd5 Nxd5 7.0-0. According to IM John Watson

John L. Watson

John Leonard Watson is a chess International Master and author.Watson was born in Milwaukee and grew up in Omaha, Nebraska. He was educated at Brownell-Talbot, Harvard, and the University of California at San Diego, where he took his degree in engineering...

 Black may be able to equalise with 7...Be7. However, declining with 4...d3 allows White some advantage after 5.Bxd3 d6 6.Bf4 Be7 7.h3 Nf6 8.Nbd2 Bd7 9.Qc2 according to Batsford Chess Openings 2.

One-pawn gambit: 4...dxc3 5.Nxc3

If Black accepts the gambit with 4...dxc3, White can commit to sacrificing only one pawn with 5.Nxc3. Black's most critical response is generally considered to be 5...Bb4, when White does not get enough compensation after 6.Bc4 d6 7.0-0 Bxc3 8.bxc3 Nf6!, when 9.Ba3 Bg4 is insufficient and 9.e5 Nxe5 10.Nxe5 dxe5 11.Qb3 (11.Qxd8+ Kxd8 12.Bxf7 Ke7 is also good for Black) 11...Qe7 12.Ba3 c5 does not give enough compensation for two pawns. White can deviate with 7.Qb3, when the old main line runs 7...Qe7 8.0-0 Bxc3, and here 9.Qxc3 gives White good compensation. Thus both John Watson and USCF master Mark Morss recommend 7...Bxc3+, in order to meet 8.Qxc3 with 8...Qf6! when White loses too much time with the queen. Thus White often continues 8.bxc3 when 8...Qe7 9.0-0 Nf6 can be met by 10.e5 (transposing back to lines arising from 7.0-0 Bxc3 8.bxc3 Nf6 9.e5, though these are insufficient for White) or the relatively unexplored 10.Bg5. Other deviations for White include 7.Ng5 and 6.Bg5.

Black's main alternative is 5...d6 which usually leads to complications and approximately equal chances after 6.Bc4 Nf6 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.Ng5 Ne5 9.Bb5 c6 10.f4, or 7.Ng5 Ne5 8.Bb3 h6 9.f4. 5...Bc5 is also playable, transposing to the Scotch Gambit after 6.Bc4 but cutting out the Bxf7+ possibility. 5...Nf6 6.Bc4 can transpose back to 5...d6 lines after 6...d6, or Black can attempt to transpose to 5...Bb4 lines with 6...Bb4 but this allows 7.e5 d5 8.exf6 dxc4 9.Qxd8+ Nxd8 10.fxg7 Rg8 11.Bh6.

Double-pawn gambit: 4...dxc3 5.Bc4

Alternatively White can transpose into the Danish by offering a second pawn with 5.Bc4 cxb2 6.Bxb2, an approach which John Emms considers far more dangerous for Black. If Black does not accept the second pawn with 5...cxb2, then White can avoid Black's most critical response to 5.Nxc3 (5...Bb4 6.Bc4 d6). For instance, after 5...d6, White's best is 6.Nxc3, transposing back to the 5.Nxc3 d6 line. 5...Nf6 6.Nxc3 transposes to the 5.Nxc3 Nf6 line, 5...Bb4 is well met by 6.0-0 or 6.bxc3 (transposing to the Scotch Gambit), 5...Bc5 also transposes to the Scotch Gambit while 5...Be7?! (which is well met by 6.Qd5) transposes to the Hungarian Defense.

Thus Black's most critical response is to take the second pawn with 5...cxb2 6.Bxb2. Unlike in the Danish proper, having committed the queen's knight to c6 Black cannot safely meet 6.Bxb2 with 6...d5. Instead, play often continues 6...d6 7.0-0 Be6 8.Bxe6 fxe6 9.Qb3 Qd7 or 7.Qb3 Qd7 8.Bc3 Nh6. 6...Bb4+ is the main alternative for Black, whereupon an approach with queenside castling is considered dangerous for Black, e.g. 7.Nc3 Nf6 8.Qc2 d6 9.0-0-0.