Scotch Game: Classical Variation
C45 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nxd4 Bc5
White scores 46.0% here across 449 club games, and no common reply does noticeably worse than the rest.
What White actually plays here
Across 449 games from a Lichess-derived book of club play, White scores 46.0% in this position. These are the replies people choose, and how each one works out.
| Reply | Games | Share | White scores | Verdict |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Nxc6 | 225 | 50.1% | 43.3% | holds up |
| Be3 | 158 | 35.2% | 47.8% | holds up |
| c3 | 37 | 8.2% | 52.7% | 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.
Related openings
- Scotch Game C45