Final position — White is winning
Three Knights Game: Wins a Pawn
White wins in 8 moves with a decisive material gain. (Unknown - Van Mil, Eindhoven, 1973)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Nc3 | Nf6 |
| 4. | Bb5 | Nd4 |
| 5. | Nxe5 | Qe7 |
| 6. | f4 | Nxb5 |
| 7. | Nxb5 | d6 |
| 8. | Nd3 | Bg4 |
How the Three Knights Game: Wins a Pawn works
The Three Knights Game: Wins a Pawn is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Three Knights Game. In this line White wins decisive material by move 8, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Nf6 4.Bb5 Nd4 5.Nxe5 Qe7 6.f4 Nxb5 7.Nxb5 d6 8.Nd3 Bg4. Each move looks reasonable, which is exactly why the trap is so effective over the board — Black walks into it while trying to play "normal" developing moves.
This pattern is well known from master and correspondence play (Unknown - Van Mil, Eindhoven, 1973). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as White or sidestep it as Black.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Three Knights Game: Wins a Pawn 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.