King's Gambit Declined: Keene's Defense 2…Qh4+ 3. g3
Play any move on the board to explore from there, or step through the line with ‹ › and the arrow keys.
Statistics from Lichess
616,046 games: White 54.1% / Draw 3.3% / Black 42.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| King's Gambit Declined: Keene Defense | 339,212339K | |
| 215,229215K | ||
| 45,35945K | ||
| 8,6588,658 | ||
| 3,9263,926 | ||
| 1,1761,176 | ||
| 562562 | ||
| 533533 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.95 White is better
Best play: 3... Qe7 4. Nc3 exf4 5. d4 fxg3 6. hxg3 Nc6 7. Bg2 d6 8. Nh3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for White: White scores 57% under 1400, 51% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 365K | |
| 1400–1799 | 596K | |
| 1800–2199 | 281K | |
| 2200 and up | 7,436 | |
| Masters, over the board | 56 |
Master games
- Andersson, U. – Keene, R.
- Stocek, J. – Vokac, M.
- Rodriguez Vila, A. – Spangenberg, H.
- Sorokin, M. – Sorin, A.
- Vouldis, A. – Plachetka, J.
Rated blitz, rapid and classical Lichess games by rating band, and over-the-board games of players rated 2200+ from the Lichess masters database, updated Sep 27, 2026
Overview
King's Gambit Declined: Keene's Defense (ECO C30, Open Games) is a declined gambit in the King's Gambit Declined: Keene's Defense, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. f4 Qh4+ 3. g3 (3 moves).
In 616,046 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 54.1%, Black 42.7% and 3.3% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 3…Qe7, in 55% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, King's Gambit Declined: Keene Defense.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
Write a description or report a mistake
How to answer 3. g3
The most played answer, 3…Qe7 (King's Gambit Declined: Keene Defense), also scores best for Black: 47.2%, with Black winning 45.4% and White 51.0% of 339K games. Of the main answers, 3…Qd8 scores lowest: 41.7%. Stockfish's first choice is also 3…Qe7.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Popularity by year
This line has lost ground since 2016: 0.021% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.036%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.036% | 12,971 |
| 2017 | 0.032% | 17,544 |
| 2018 | 0.027% | 21,287 |
| 2019 | 0.027% | 34,036 |
| 2020 | 0.025% | 72,663 |
| 2021 | 0.024% | 92,728 |
| 2022 | 0.024% | 88,388 |
| 2023 | 0.023% | 87,912 |
| 2024 | 0.022% | 80,227 |
| 2025 | 0.021% | 74,015 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.021% | 22,744 |
Share of rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500 (blitz, rapid and classical) that reach this position, by year; 2026: January to April. Which openings are rising and falling
Variations (1)
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “King's Gambit Declined: Keene's Defense (C30)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/kings-gambit-declined-keenes-defense-2