Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Pillsbury Variation
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Statistics from Lichess
22 games: White 63.6% / Draw 4.5% / Black 31.8%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1919 | ||
| 22 | ||
| 11 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 30, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.32 White is slightly better
Best play: 9... O-O 10. Re1 Re8 11. Qc4 Nc5 12. Ba3 Ba6 13. Qg4 d5 14. Nc3
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
Overview
Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Pillsbury Variation (ECO C67, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Rio de Janeiro Variation, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Nf6 4. O-O Nxe4 5. d4 Be7 6. Qe2 Nd6 7. Bxc6 bxc6 8. dxe5 Nb7 9. b3 (9 moves).
In 22 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 63.6%, Black 31.8% and 4.5% were drawn. Black's most played move here is 9…O-O, in 86% of those games. That is too few games for the percentages to mean much.
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Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Ruy Lopez: Berlin Defense, Pillsbury Variation (C67)”. Lichess data as of 30 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-berlin-defense-pillsbury-variation