Ruy Lopez: Classical Variation
C64 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 Bc5
White scores 52.3% here across 672 club games — but the 27.8% who answer Bxc6 score 36.6%, 16 points worse.
What White actually plays here
Across 672 games from a Lichess-derived book of club play, White scores 52.3% in this position. These are the replies people choose, and how each one works out.
| Reply | Games | Share | White scores | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| O-O | 274 | 40.8% | 57.3% | holds up |
| Bxc6 | 187 | 27.8% | 36.6% | below the line |
| c3 | 144 | 21.4% | 62.5% | holds up |
| Nc3 | 39 | 5.8% | 57.7% | holds up |
"Below the line" means the reply scores at least three points worse than the position does overall. Replies played fewer than 25 times are left out: the sample is too small to read.
Is this costing you anything?
A table of averages cannot tell you whether you go wrong here — only your own games can. Opening Leak Lab reads your Chess.com or Lichess archive, finds the decisions you repeat, and checks each one against this book and a bundled Stockfish.