Final position — Black is winning
English Opening: Opening Trap
Black wins in 4 moves with a decisive material gain. (Combe - Hasenfuss, 1933.??.??)
The moves
| 1. | c4 | c5 |
| 2. | d4 | cxd4 |
| 3. | Nf3 | e5 |
| 4. | Nxe5 | Qa5+ |
How the English Opening: Opening Trap works
The English Opening: Opening Trap is a classic chess opening trap arising from the English Opening. In this line Black wins decisive material by move 4, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.
The full sequence runs 1.c4 c5 2.d4 cxd4 3.Nf3 e5 4.Nxe5 Qa5+. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — White walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.
This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (Combe - Hasenfuss, 1933.??.??). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the English Opening: Opening Trap in the Trapsterapp to play it out on a live board, drill it in practice mode, and learn how to avoid it when it's set for you — along with the full library of chess traps and gambits, fully offline.