Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation
Encyclopedia
The Ruy Lopez, Exchange Variation is a variation of the Ruy Lopez
chess opening
that begins with the moves:
Black may recapture on c6 with either pawn
; though 4...bxc6 is playable, 4...dxc6 is almost always chosen at master
level. Black has gained the bishop pair at the cost of a weakened pawn structure
, due to his doubled pawns
on c6 and c7. In the Exchange Variation
, by exchanging the 'Spanish Bishop', White aims to reach an endgame in which he has the superior pawn structure, which may become an important factor, thus Black is compelled to strive for an active position, generally avoiding piece exchanges.
classifications for the Exchange Variation. ECO code C68 covers 4...dxc6, with White's response of 5.d4 or 5.Nc3 to either capture. White should not capture with 5.Nxe5 as 5...Qd4 forks the knight
and pawn, thus regaining the material, leading to positions where White has forfeited his structural advantage – the compensation for ceding the two bishops. Black has a variety of playable responses to the popular 4...dxc6 5.0-0 (The Barendregt Variation, which Bobby Fischer
played with success). White now threatens to play 6.Nxe5 because the sequence 6...Qd4 7.Nf3 Qxe4, to regain the pawn, here fails to 8.Re1 pinning
and winning the queen
. ECO code C69 examines these responses to 5.0-0: 5...Qf6, 5...Qe7, 5...Bd6, 5...Bg4 or 5...Qd6 (all directly defending the e5 pawn, except 5...Bg4, an indirect defence of the pawn). The moves 5...Be6, 5...Be7, and 5...Ne7 are less common moves which have never achieved popularity. The idea behind these moves is that if White plays to win a pawn with 6.Nxe5, 6...Qd4 7.Nf3 Qxe4 is again playable, as the bishop on e6 or e7 blocks the e-file. ECO code C69 treats the variations arising from the continuation 4...dxc6 5.0-0 f6 6.d4, with Black responding 6...exd4 or 6...Bg4.
with 9...Qh2# or 9...Qh1#. After 8...Qh4, if White tries 9.f3, trying to escape via f2 after a queen check, Black simply replies 9...g3, and White has no way to avoid mate.
After 6...h5, the most common continuation is 7.d3 Qf6 8.Nbd2 Ne7 9.Re1 Ng6 and now an interesting line is: 10.hxg4!?. After 10...hxg4, 11.g3! offering back the piece (White should not try to hold onto the knight, as it would be similar to the position after 7.hxg4?? hxg4). After 11.g3 gxf3 12.Qxf3, White is safe and has a better pawn structure in the middlegame and endgame.
The second move against 5...f6 6.d4 is 6...exd4. White should play 7.Qxd4, offering a trade of queens which Black should take or else he is clearly worse. After 7...Qxd4 8.Nxd4 c5 9.Nb3 (9.Ne2 is another line; however Fischer often preferred 9.Nb3) and White will develop freely by developing their bishop to e3, their b1 knight to c3 or d2 depending on the position and bringing one of their rooks to d1, usually the rook on f1.
The move 6...exd4 is not the best move. White captures the pawn back with 7.Qxd4 and stands clearly better. An example of a massacre where Black is on the losing side is as follows: 7...f6 8.Nc3 Bg4? 9.e5! attacking the g4 bishop with the queen and the d6 bishop with the pawn. Black fought back with 9...Bxf3, but White played 9.exd6 and Black cannot capture the pawn because their bishop on f3 is hanging. Black played 9...Bh5 10.Re1+ Kf8 11.Qc5, attacking the bishop on h5 while threatening dxc7 discovered check
, winning the queen. Black played a few more moves until resignation
.
The move 6...Bg4 is the better move in this line. White has a couple of possible moves, but the best line is 7.dxe5 Bxf3 8.Qxf3 Bxe5. Numerous trades have occurred, so White is satisfied.
. Max Euwe
gave the pure pawn ending (without pieces – see diagram) resulting after the exchange of White's d-pawn for Black's e-pawn as a win for White, and the winning procedure is detailed in .
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...
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. Bb5 a6
- 4. Bxc6
Black may recapture on c6 with either pawn
Pawn (chess)
The pawn is the most numerous and weakest piece in the game of chess, historically representing infantry, or more particularly armed peasants or pikemen. Each player begins the game with eight pawns, one on each square of the rank immediately in front of the other pieces...
; though 4...bxc6 is playable, 4...dxc6 is almost always chosen at master
Chess master
A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he/she can usually beat chess experts, who themselves typically prevail against most amateurs. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context....
level. Black has gained the bishop pair at the cost of a weakened pawn structure
Pawn structure
In chess, the pawn structure is the configuration of pawns on the chessboard. Since pawns are the least mobile of the chess pieces, the pawn structure is relatively static and thus largely determines the strategic nature of the position.-General observations:Weaknesses in the pawn structure, such...
, due to his doubled pawns
Doubled pawns
In chess, doubled pawns are two pawns of the same color residing on the same file. Pawns can become doubled only when one pawn captures onto a file on which another friendly pawn resides. In the diagram, the pawns on the b-file and e-file are doubled...
on c6 and c7. In the Exchange Variation
Exchange variation
In chess, an exchange variation is a type of opening in which there is an early, voluntary exchange of pawns or pieces. Such variations are often quieter than other lines because the early release of tension minimizes the possibility of surprise tactics or sharp, forcing lines, particularly where...
, by exchanging the 'Spanish Bishop', White aims to reach an endgame in which he has the superior pawn structure, which may become an important factor, thus Black is compelled to strive for an active position, generally avoiding piece exchanges.
ECO codes
There are two ECOEncyclopaedia 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...
classifications for the Exchange Variation. ECO code C68 covers 4...dxc6, with White's response of 5.d4 or 5.Nc3 to either capture. White should not capture with 5.Nxe5 as 5...Qd4 forks the knight
Knight (chess)
The knight is a piece in the game of chess, representing a knight . It is normally represented by a horse's head and neck. Each player starts with two knights, which begin on the row closest to the player, one square from the corner...
and pawn, thus regaining the material, leading to positions where White has forfeited his structural advantage – the compensation for ceding the two bishops. Black has a variety of playable responses to the popular 4...dxc6 5.0-0 (The Barendregt Variation, which Bobby Fischer
Bobby Fischer
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer was an American chess Grandmaster and the 11th World Chess Champion. He is widely considered one of the greatest chess players of all time. Fischer was also a best-selling chess author...
played with success). White now threatens to play 6.Nxe5 because the sequence 6...Qd4 7.Nf3 Qxe4, to regain the pawn, here fails to 8.Re1 pinning
Pin (chess)
In chess, a pin is a situation brought on by an attacking piece in which a defending piece cannot move without exposing a more valuable defending piece on its other side to capture by the attacking piece...
and winning the 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...
. ECO code C69 examines these responses to 5.0-0: 5...Qf6, 5...Qe7, 5...Bd6, 5...Bg4 or 5...Qd6 (all directly defending the e5 pawn, except 5...Bg4, an indirect defence of the pawn). The moves 5...Be6, 5...Be7, and 5...Ne7 are less common moves which have never achieved popularity. The idea behind these moves is that if White plays to win a pawn with 6.Nxe5, 6...Qd4 7.Nf3 Qxe4 is again playable, as the bishop on e6 or e7 blocks the e-file. ECO code C69 treats the variations arising from the continuation 4...dxc6 5.0-0 f6 6.d4, with Black responding 6...exd4 or 6...Bg4.
5... Bg4
The most aggressive move against the Barendregt Variation is 5...Bg4. After 6.h3, Black has a few possibilities such as 6...Bh5 or 6...Bxf3, but the most modern and active variation is 6...h5. White cannot take the bishop with 7.hxg4 because Black plays 7...hxg4, attacking the knight. If the knight moves, 8...Qh4 threatens checkmateCheckmate
Checkmate is a situation in chess in which one player's king is threatened with capture and there is no way to meet that threat. Or, simply put, the king is under direct attack and cannot avoid being captured...
with 9...Qh2# or 9...Qh1#. After 8...Qh4, if White tries 9.f3, trying to escape via f2 after a queen check, Black simply replies 9...g3, and White has no way to avoid mate.
After 6...h5, the most common continuation is 7.d3 Qf6 8.Nbd2 Ne7 9.Re1 Ng6 and now an interesting line is: 10.hxg4!?. After 10...hxg4, 11.g3! offering back the piece (White should not try to hold onto the knight, as it would be similar to the position after 7.hxg4?? hxg4). After 11.g3 gxf3 12.Qxf3, White is safe and has a better pawn structure in the middlegame and endgame.
5... f6
A move that was popular amongst masters during Fischer's reign and is still popular today is 5...f6. White's most active and modern approach to this defense is 6.d4, after which Black had two options: 6...Bg4 and 6...exd4. The move 6...Bg4 can be met also by two options: 7.dxe5 and 7.c3. On 7.dxe5 Qxd1 8.Rxd1 fxe5, White cannot take the e5 pawn with the knight because the knight is pinned by the bishop. However, multiple trades have happened, making the position closer to an endgame, which is beneficial for White because he has the better pawn structure.The second move against 5...f6 6.d4 is 6...exd4. White should play 7.Qxd4, offering a trade of queens which Black should take or else he is clearly worse. After 7...Qxd4 8.Nxd4 c5 9.Nb3 (9.Ne2 is another line; however Fischer often preferred 9.Nb3) and White will develop freely by developing their bishop to e3, their b1 knight to c3 or d2 depending on the position and bringing one of their rooks to d1, usually the rook on f1.
5... Qd6
The move 5...Qd6 is very similar to 5...f6. White will play 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 c5 8.Nb3 Qxd1 9.Rxd1 reaching a position basically with White achieving an extra tempo of the rook on d1. Also, Black's pawn is now on f7, not f6.5... Bd6
The other main move in the Barendregt Variation is 5...Bd6. White again goes 6.d4, where Black can play either 6...exd4 or 6...Bg4.The move 6...exd4 is not the best move. White captures the pawn back with 7.Qxd4 and stands clearly better. An example of a massacre where Black is on the losing side is as follows: 7...f6 8.Nc3 Bg4? 9.e5! attacking the g4 bishop with the queen and the d6 bishop with the pawn. Black fought back with 9...Bxf3, but White played 9.exd6 and Black cannot capture the pawn because their bishop on f3 is hanging. Black played 9...Bh5 10.Re1+ Kf8 11.Qc5, attacking the bishop on h5 while threatening dxc7 discovered check
Discovered attack
In chess, a discovered attack is an attack revealed when one piece moves out of the way of another. Discovered attacks can be extremely powerful, as the piece moved can make a threat independently of the piece it reveals. Like many chess tactics, they succeed because the opponent is unable to meet...
, winning the queen. Black played a few more moves until resignation
Resignation
A resignation is the formal act of giving up or quitting one's office or position. It can also refer to the act of admitting defeat in a game like chess, indicated by the resigning player declaring "I resign", turning his king on its side, extending his hand, or stopping the chess clock...
.
The move 6...Bg4 is the better move in this line. White has a couple of possible moves, but the best line is 7.dxe5 Bxf3 8.Qxf3 Bxe5. Numerous trades have occurred, so White is satisfied.
Endgame
If White can exchange all pieces, he has a big advantage in the endgame, due to the pawn structurePawn structure
In chess, the pawn structure is the configuration of pawns on the chessboard. Since pawns are the least mobile of the chess pieces, the pawn structure is relatively static and thus largely determines the strategic nature of the position.-General observations:Weaknesses in the pawn structure, such...
. Max Euwe
Max Euwe
Machgielis Euwe was a Dutch chess Grandmaster, mathematician, and author. He was the fifth player to become World Chess Champion . Euwe also served as President of FIDE, the World Chess Federation, from 1970 to 1978.- Early years :Euwe was born in Watergraafsmeer, near Amsterdam...
gave the pure pawn ending (without pieces – see diagram) resulting after the exchange of White's d-pawn for Black's e-pawn as a win for White, and the winning procedure is detailed in .