Scotch Game: Göring Gambit
The Göring Gambit is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3: in the Scotch Game White offers a pawn instead of recapturing on d4. Read the guide
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Statistics from Lichess
2,831,628 games: White 55.2% / Draw 4.0% / Black 40.7%
| Next move | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| 1,799,1561.8M | ||
| Scotch Game: Scotch Gambit, Göring Gambit Declined | 326,312326K | |
| 172,536173K | ||
| 167,884168K | ||
| 161,740162K | ||
| 116,901117K | ||
| 19,96620K | ||
| 19,53320K |
Rated Lichess games between players rated 1600 to 2500, from the Lichess opening explorer, updated Nov 9, 2026
Engine evaluation
−0.11 The position is about equal
Best play: 4... dxc3 5. Nxc3 Bb4 6. Bc4 d6 7. Ng5 Nh6 8. O-O O-O 9. Nd5
Stockfish 19, depth 30, after the line's last move. Scores are in pawns, from White's side.
By rating
The stronger the players, the worse this line does for White: White scores 55% under 1400, 52% at 2200 and up and 50% in master games (wins plus half the draws).
| Players | Games | White / Draw / BlackW / D / B |
|---|---|---|
| Under 1400 | 720K | |
| 1400–1799 | 1.8M | |
| 1800–2199 | 1.6M | |
| 2200 and up | 184K | |
| Masters, over the board | 736 |
Master games
- Nepomniachtchi, I. – Grischuk, A.
- Ivanchuk, V. – Sjugirov, S.
- Nisipeanu, L. – Eljanov, P.
- Ljubojevic, L. – Portisch, L.
- Can, E. – Wang, Y.
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
Description
The Göring Gambit is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.c3: in the Scotch Game White offers a pawn instead of recapturing on d4. It is a delayed version of the Danish Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.c3), into which it can transpose. White gives up one or two pawns for a lead in development.
Origins
Howard Staunton was the first to play it at a high level, in the 1840s, and the earliest game with it was probably played in 1843. The first game with the gambit accepted may be Meek–Morphy, New York 1857. Carl Theodor Göring brought it into master play in 1872. Alexander Alekhine, Frank Marshall, David Bronstein, Ljubomir Ljubojević and Jonathan Penrose have all played it.
The idea
White usually puts pressure on f7 with Bc4 and Qb3, sometimes adding Ng5, and the knight jump Nc3–d5 is another common motif.
Main lines
- 4...dxc3 5.Nxc3: White gives only one pawn. Black's most critical reply is generally considered to be 5...Bb4: after 6.Bc4 d6 7.O-O Bxc3 8.bxc3 Nf6 White does not get enough compensation. Black's main alternative, 5...d6, usually leads to complications and roughly equal chances.
- 4...dxc3 5.Bc4: White offers a second pawn. After 5...cxb2 6.Bxb2 Black, unlike in the Danish proper, cannot safely answer 6...d5, and play often continues 6...d6.
- 4...d5, declining, is seen as a strong way for Black to equalise. The critical line runs 5.exd5 Qxd5 6.cxd4 Bg4 7.Be2 Bb4+ 8.Nc3 Bxf3 9.Bxf3 Qc4, often called the Capablanca Variation after Black's play in Marshall–Capablanca, Lake Hopatcong 1926. White must exchange queens into an equal ending or give up castling with the risky 10.Be3, and this line keeps many players away from the gambit.
- 4...Nf6 transposes to a line of the Ponziani Opening. 4...d3 declines too, but after 5.Bxd3 White has a strong lead in development.
The numbers
On Lichess White wins 55.2% of the 2.8 million games and Black 40.7%. Below 2200 White wins 53 to 56%, and from 2200 up the margin shrinks to 48.8% against 44.3%. In 736 master games over the board the two sides are level: White won 31.1%, Black 31.2%, and 37.6% were drawn.
Suggest an improvement or report a mistake
How to play against the Scotch Game: Göring Gambit
4…d5 (Scotch Game: Scotch Gambit, Göring Gambit Declined) scores best for Black: 50.6%, with Black winning 47.6% and White 46.5% of 326K games. The most played answer, 4…dxc3, scores lowest: 40.4% in 1.8M games. Stockfish's first choice is 4…dxc3.
Main answers: those played in at least 5% of these games. Score: Black'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
The Scotch Game: Göring Gambit has gained ground since 2016: 0.14% of Lichess games in 2025, up from 0.11%.
Numbers by year
| Year | Share of games | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 2016 | 0.11% | 40,389 |
| 2017 | 0.11% | 60,939 |
| 2018 | 0.11% | 84,628 |
| 2019 | 0.1% | 126,154 |
| 2020 | 0.095% | 278,333 |
| 2021 | 0.091% | 357,111 |
| 2022 | 0.096% | 360,632 |
| 2023 | 0.1% | 390,723 |
| 2024 | 0.12% | 441,402 |
| 2025 | 0.14% | 475,861 |
| 2026 (Jan–Apr) | 0.15% | 160,086 |
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)
Sources
- History and theory: adapted from the Wikipedia article Scotch Game, version of 2 November 2026, under CC BY-SA 4.0.
- Results: Lichess opening explorer, figures collected from September to November 2026.
Cite this page
Caissa Codex. “Scotch Game: Göring Gambit (C44)”. Lichess data as of 9 Nov 2026. https://chesscodex.org/openings/scotch-game-goring-gambit