Page 3 700 Opening Traps

Three Knights Defense

  

(1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3, without 3…Nf6)

The Three Knight Defense is less common than the Two Knights 

Defense and the Four Knight Defense, but it has a few traps of its own. 

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Nxe5 Nxe5 5.d4 Bxd4 6.Qxd4 Qf6 [6…d6 

is better] 7.Nb5 Kd8 8.Qc5 Nc6?? [if 8…Nh6 9.Qxc7+ and 10.Be3] 9.Qf8 

mate (Reti - Dunkelblum, Vienna 1914)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Nxe5 Bxf2+ 5.Kxf2 Nxe5 6.d4 Qf6+ 7.Kg1 

Nc6 8.e5 [better is 8.Nd5] 8…Nxe5 9.dxe5?? [9.Nd5 or 9.Qe1 are better 

choices] 9…Qb6+ and Black will checkmate the White King (Broehl - 

Balduan, Porz 1992)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Nxe5 Bxf2+ 5.Kxf2 Qf6+? [White saves 

a piece.  Black should just play 5…Nxe5] 6.Nf3 d6 7.Nd5 Qd8 8.d4 Be6 

9.Ne3 and White remains up in material (Bojadgieva - Salazar, Malta 1980)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 d6 4.d4 exd4 5.Nxd4 g6 6.Nd5 Bg7? [better 

would have been 6…Nf6] 7.Nb5 Rb8 8.Ndxc7+ Kd7?? 9.Qxd6 mate (T. 

Christensen - B. Jacobsen, Aarhus 1991)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 f5 4.Bc4 [4.d4 is the book line] 4…fxe4 5.Nxe4 

d5 6.Bb5 [perhaps 6.Nxe5 and 7.Qh5+] 6…dxe4 7.Bxc6+ bxc6 8.Nxe5 Qg5 

9.Nxc6 Qxg2 10.Rf1 Bg4 wins the Queen (Stulz - Wall, Internet 1996)

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 f5 4.d4 fxe4 5.Nxe5 Nf6 6.Bc4 d5 7.Nxd5 Nxd5 

8.Qh5+ g6 9.Nxg6 Nf6 10.Bf7+ Kd7 11.Qf5+ Kd6 12.Bf4+ Ne5 13.Qxe5+ 

and White will win more material (D. Michaelsen - F. Michaelsen, Germany 

1884)

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