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Final position — Black delivers mate

Ruy Lopez

Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate (Chris Yinger–Ben Tyner)

Black wins in 10 moves by checkmate. (Chris Yinger - Ben Tyner, Orlando 1996)

The moves

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d3 Bd6 6.Bg5 O-O 7.d4 Bg4 8.dxe5 Bxe5 9.Qxd8 Raxd8 10.Nxe5 Rd1#
1.e4e5
2.Nf3Nc6
3.Bb5Nf6
4.Bxc6dxc6
5.d3Bd6
6.Bg5O-O
7.d4Bg4
8.dxe5Bxe5
9.Qxd8Raxd8
10.Nxe5Rd1#

How the Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate (Chris Yinger–Ben Tyner) works

The Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate (Chris Yinger–Ben Tyner) is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Ruy Lopez. In this line Black delivers checkmate on move 10, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from White.

The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Nf6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.d3 Bd6 6.Bg5 O-O 7.d4 Bg4 8.dxe5 Bxe5 9.Qxd8 Raxd8 10.Nxe5 Rd1#. 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 (Chris Yinger - Ben Tyner, Orlando 1996). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.

Practice this trap move-by-move

Open the Ruy Lopez: Back-Rank Mate (Chris Yinger–Ben Tyner) 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.

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