Final position — Black is winning
Giuoco Piano: Wins a Pawn
Black wins in 9 moves with a decisive material gain. (Greco, 1620)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Bc4 | Bc5 |
| 4. | c3 | Nf6 |
| 5. | Ng5 | O-O |
| 6. | d3 | h6 |
| 7. | h4 | hxg5 |
| 8. | hxg5 | Nh7 |
| 9. | Qh5 |
How the Giuoco Piano: Wins a Pawn works
The Giuoco Piano: Wins a Pawn is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Giuoco Piano. In this line Black wins decisive material by move 9, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.Ng5 O-O 6.d3 h6 7.h4 hxg5 8.hxg5 Nh7 9.Qh5. 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 (Greco, 1620). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Giuoco Piano: 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.