Scotch Game 3. d4 exd4
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Statistics from Lichess
40,254,982 games: White 51.9% / Draw 4.9% / Black 43.2%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| C45 | 25,520,51825.5M | |
| Scotch Gambit | 10,737,17710.7M | |
| Göring Gambit | 2,614,9582.6M | |
| 1,048,9641M | ||
| Relfsson Gambit | 165,780166K | |
| 54,71955K | ||
| 53,71454K | ||
| 11,48211K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Oct 31, 2026
Engine evaluation
+0.09 The position is about equal
Best play: 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nxc6 bxc6 6. Bd3 d5 7. Nc3 Bb4 8. exd5 cxd5
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 46% under 1400, 48% at 2200 and up and 48% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 18.5M | |
| 1400–1799 | 36.1M | |
| 1800–2199 | 19.6M | |
| 2200 and up | 1.9M | |
| Masters, over the board | 23K |
Master games
- Carlsen, M. – Nakamura, H.
- Vachier Lagrave, M. – Carlsen, M.
- So, W. – Carlsen, M.
- Carlsen, M. – Aronian, L.
- Radjabov, T. – Carlsen, M.
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 26, 2026
Overview
Scotch Game (ECO C44, Open Games) is a variation of the Scotch Game, reached after 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 (3 moves).
In 40,254,982 rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, White won 51.9%, Black 43.2% and 4.9% were drawn. White's most played move here is 4. Nxd4, in 63% of those games.
It branches into 4 named variations; the most played are Scotch Game: Scotch Gambit and Scotch Game: Göring Gambit. In all, 54 named lines continue from it.
Written from the Lichess opening list and explorer. Know this line well? Write about it.
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How to answer 3…exd4
4. c3 (Göring Gambit) scores best for White: 57.4%, with White winning 55.3% and Black 40.6% of 2.6M games. The most played answer, 4. Nxd4, scores lowest: 53.5% in 25.5M games. Stockfish's first choice is 4. Nxd4.
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 holds steady at about 1.6% of Lichess games a year since 2016.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 1.5% | 551,807 |
| 2017 | 1.6% | 854,261 |
| 2018 | 1.5% | 1,196,827 |
| 2019 | 1.5% | 1,901,028 |
| 2020 | 1.5% | 4,522,575 |
| 2021 | 1.5% | 5,926,387 |
| 2022 | 1.5% | 5,682,227 |
| 2023 | 1.6% | 5,859,152 |
| 2024 | 1.6% | 5,722,903 |
| 2025 | 1.6% | 5,576,560 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 1.6% | 1,783,311 |
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 (4)
Transpositions
All 54 named lines that continue from here
No line matches.
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Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Scotch Game (C44)”. Lichess data as of 31 Oct 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/scotch-game-2