Caissa Codex
C65

Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Fishing Pole Variation

Chess diagram: Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Fishing Pole Variation after 4…Ng4

Type a move and press Enter: e4, Nf3, O-O, or from and to squares like g1f3 (e7e8q to promote). The board is also played with the mouse.

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Statistics from Lichess

55,863 games: White 52.2% / Draw 3.3% / Black 44.5%

The moves played next. Pick one to see it on the board.
Next moveGamesWhite / Draw / BlackW / D / B
34,37334K
6,3496,349
6,0376,037
3,7713,771
2,1422,142
1,6321,632
1,3311,331
3636

Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026

Engine evaluation

+2.04 White is clearly better

Even so, Black scores 46.1% here in practice: wins plus half the draws in rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500.

Best play: 5. h3 Nf6 6. Bxc6 dxc6 7. Nxe5 Nd7 8. Nc4 g5 9. d4 h5

Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.

Overview

Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Fishing Pole Variation (ECO C65, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Ng4 (4 moves).

In 55,863 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 52.2%, Black 44.5% and 3.3% were drawn. White's most played move here is 5. h3, in 62% of those games.

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How to play against the Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Fishing Pole Variation

5. d4 scores best for White: 61.7%, with White winning 60.1% and Black 36.8% of 6,037 games. The most played, 5. h3, scores 52.6% in 34K games, and 5. Bxc6 scores lowest: 46.8%. Stockfish's first choice is 5. 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

Other lines from the same position

Instead of 4…Ng4, the position after Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense also goes on to:

Cite this page

Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Fishing Pole Variation (C65)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-berlin-defense-fishing-pole-variation

https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-berlin-defense-fishing-pole-variation