Philidor Defense: Lion Variation, Lion's Claw, with Bc4 and h6
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Statistics from Lichess
61,839 games: White 49.0% / Draw 4.8% / Black 46.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 16,11216K | ||
| 14,23514K | ||
| 10,96711K | ||
| 6,2476,247 | ||
| 5,4735,473 | ||
| 3,5503,550 | ||
| 885885 | ||
| 836836 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 29, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.48 White is slightly better
Best play: 7. h3 O-O 8. a4 Re8 9. Re1 exd4 10. Qxd4 Nc5 11. Bf4 Ne6
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Philidor Defense: Lion Variation, Lion's Claw, with Bc4 and h6 (ECO C41, Open Games) is a variation of the Philidor Defense: Lion Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 Nbd7 5. Bc4 Be7 6. O-O h6 (6 moves).
In 61,839 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 49.0%, Black 46.2% and 4.8% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. Re1, in 26% of those games.
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How to play against the Philidor Defense: Lion Variation, Lion's Claw, with Bc4 and h6
7. a4 scores best for White: 54.6%, with White winning 52.1% and Black 42.8% of 6,247 games. The most played, 7. Re1, scores 52.9% in 16K games, and 7. dxe5 scores lowest: 49.3%. Stockfish's first choice is 7. h3.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: White's wins plus half the draws, in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500. How to play against other popular openings
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Philidor Defense: Lion Variation, Lion's Claw, with Bc4 and h6 (C41)”. Lichess data as of 29 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/philidor-defense-lion-variation-lions-claw-with-bc4-and-h6