Final position — White delivers mate
Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate
White wins in 10 moves by checkmate. (D'Agostino - Apodaca, Internet 1996)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Bb5 | a6 |
| 4. | Ba4 | b5 |
| 5. | Bb3 | Nf6 |
| 6. | O-O | Nxe4 |
| 7. | Nxe5 | Nxe5 |
| 8. | Qh5 | Bd6 |
| 9. | d4 | Nc6 |
| 10. | Qxf7# |
How the Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate works
The Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Ruy Lopez. In this line White delivers checkmate on move 10, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 b5 5.Bb3 Nf6 6.O-O Nxe4 7.Nxe5 Nxe5 8.Qh5 Bd6 9.d4 Nc6 10.Qxf7#. 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 (D'Agostino - Apodaca, Internet 1996). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as White or sidestep it as Black.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate 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.