Scotch Gambit: free opening course

Key ideas

• Develop first. The d4 pawn usually comes back later, and quick development matters more.
• Aim at f7. The c4 bishop, the queen and a knight on g5 can all attack it.
• Against ...Nf6, push e5 and chase the knight. Then Bb5 and Nxd4 win the pawn back.
• After ...Bc5, c3 opens lines. Taking twice on c3 walks into Bxf7+ and a queen check.
• Castle early and use the e-file. A rook on e1 often pins a black piece to its king.

The 6 variations in the course

• 4...Bc5 5.c3 Nf6 6.e5: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. c3 Nf6 6. e5 d5 … — Black guards the d4 pawn with the bishop. White offers another pawn with 5.c3. Black answers with the knight, and White pushes the e-pawn. After the trades on d2 White has more space and an easy game.
• 4...Bc5 5.Ng5: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bc5 5. Ng5 Nh6 6. Nxf7 Nxf7 … — White hits f7 at once with the knight and the bishop. Black guards it with the knight on h6. A series of trades on f7 follows. Then a queen check wins back the piece, and Black's king can no longer castle.
• 4...Nf6 5.e5 d5 6.Bb5 Ne4 7.Nxd4: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. e5 d5 6. Bb5 Ne4 … — Black develops the knight and attacks e4. White pushes the pawn to e5. Black hits back with 5...d5, and White pins the c6 knight with the bishop. White then wins back the pawn on d4 and chases the e4 knight with the f-pawn.
• 4...Nf6 5.e5 Ng4: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Nf6 5. e5 Ng4 6. O-O Be7 … — Black's knight jumps to g4 and attacks the e5 pawn. White castles and guards e5 with the rook. After the trade on d6 the e7 bishop is pinned, and White wins back the pawn on d4.
• 4...Bb4+ 5.c3 dxc3 6.bxc3: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Bb4+ 5. c3 dxc3 6. bxc3 Ba5 … — Black checks with the bishop. White blocks with the c-pawn and takes back on c3 with the b-pawn. The bishop must move again. White castles and gets fast development for the pawn.
• 4...Be7 5.Nxd4: 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Bc4 Be7 5. Nxd4 d6 6. O-O Nf6 … — Black plays the quiet 4...Be7. White simply takes back on d4. Both sides develop and castle. White has more space and easy play in the centre.

Traps you will learn (3)

• 5...dxc3? 6.Bxf7+ and Qd5+ — After 4...Bc5 5.c3 taking a second pawn looks greedy but natural. White sacrifices on f7, checks with the queen on d5 and wins back the c5 bishop. Black's king can never castle.
• 6...Ngxe5? and the e-file pin — After 5...Ng4 6.O-O, grabbing the e5 pawn looks free. But after the knight trade White's rook goes to e1 and pins the last knight. The f-pawn then wins it.
• 6...Be7? 7.Qd5 hits f7 — After 4...Bb4+ 5.c3 dxc3 6.bxc3 the bishop must move. If it drops back to e7, White's queen goes to d5 and threatens mate on f7. The only defence costs Black a piece.

How the opening courses work

Each course teaches an opening in a few main variations. For every move you read why it is played, which other moves are good, and which tempting moves are mistakes and why. Each course also shows the traps of the opening: the ones you can set and the ones to avoid.

After a lesson you play the moves yourself in a drill. The lines you learn go into your review, which brings them back when you are about to forget them (spaced repetition). 30 line courses add many short lines per opening, a few new ones a day, and every named opening, more than 3,800 lines, has a lesson of its own.