Philidor Defense: Philidor Countergambit

The Philidor Countergambit is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 f5, the most aggressive approach for Black in the Philidor Defense and Philidor's own original recommendation. It can lead to more open positions than the other lines, but it is often considered too risky and dubious.

History

Paul Morphy played 3...f5 several times in 1858, and it has also been played by David Bronstein, Jonathan Mestel, Tony Kosten and Hikaru Nakamura. Leading authorities have dismissed it many times, but it has made several comebacks and remains tricky to deal with over the board. As Moll writes, White is doing very well in most lines, yet even titled players can stumble against well-prepared opposition.

White's fourth move

White has several promising options: 4.Nc3, 4.Bc4, 4.dxe5 and 4.exf5. 4.Bd3 is weaker because of 4...fxe4 5.Bxe4 d5, winning a piece.

• 4.Bc4 is probably the most conclusive way to a clear advantage. Black's best reply is 4...Nc6, played by Morphy and already analysed in the Traitté de Lausanne of 1698; White should continue with the rare but strong 5.Ng5 Nh6 6.d5, gaining a clear space advantage.
• 4.Nc3, sometimes called the Zukertort Variation, also leads to an advantage for White.
• 4.dxe5 fxe4 5.Ng5 d5 leads to a very sharp position. The main move is 6.e6, the del Rio Attack, known since 1763.
• 4.exf5, the more positional choice, was regarded by Steinitz as the best continuation. After 4...e4 5.Ng5 Bxf5 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.f3 White is regarded as slightly better.

The numbers

On Lichess White wins 51.7% of the 333,755 games and Black 44.8%. The gap narrows as ratings rise: from 1800 up Black wins 45.5%. There are only 45 master games, too few to judge.