Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense 6. Bb3 d6
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Statistics from Lichess
331,484 games: White 54.3% / Draw 4.9% / Black 40.8%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 131,412131K | ||
| 70,98371K | ||
| 39,65640K | ||
| 34,09034K | ||
| 29,68830K | ||
| 12,34512K | ||
| 5,1325,132 | ||
| 4,3314,331 |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.47 White is slightly better
Best play: 7. c3 Be7 8. d4 O-O 9. h3 exd4 10. cxd4 d5 11. e5 Ne4
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
Rating changes little here: Black scores 45% under 1400, 43% at 2200 and up (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 78K | |
| 1400–1799 | 222K | |
| 1800–2199 | 187K | |
| 2200 and up | 15K | |
| Masters, over the board | 146 |
Master games
- Tal, M. – Petrosian, T. V.
- Swiercz, D. – Efimenko, Z.
- Movsesian, S. – Kuzmin, G. P.
- Chandler, M. G. – Romanishin, O. M.
- Najer, E. – Makarian, R.
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
Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense (ECO C78, Open Games) is a variation of the Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 a6 4. Ba4 Nf6 5. O-O b5 6. Bb3 d6 (6 moves).
In 331,484 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 54.3%, Black 40.8% and 4.9% were drawn. White's most played move here is 7. Re1, in 40% of those games.
It continues into one named variation, Ruy Lopez: Rabinovich Variation.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 6…d6
7. c3 scores best for White: 60.1%, with White winning 57.9% and Black 37.7% of 71K games. The most played, 7. Re1, scores 56.0% in 131K games, and 7. d4 scores lowest: 51.1%. Stockfish's first choice is also 7. c3.
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
Popularity by year
This line is played less than half as often as in 2016: 0.0093% of Lichess games in 2025, down from 0.02%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.02% | 7,134 |
| 2017 | 0.022% | 12,044 |
| 2018 | 0.019% | 15,020 |
| 2019 | 0.017% | 21,634 |
| 2020 | 0.016% | 46,229 |
| 2021 | 0.013% | 51,093 |
| 2022 | 0.012% | 46,182 |
| 2023 | 0.012% | 46,732 |
| 2024 | 0.011% | 38,128 |
| 2025 | 0.0093% | 32,186 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.0091% | 10,009 |
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. “Ruy Lopez: Morphy Defense (C78)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/ruy-lopez-morphy-defense-3