Final position — White is winning
Three Knights Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice
White wins in 9 moves with a decisive material gain. (Broehl - Balduan, Porz 1992)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Nc3 | Bc5 |
| 4. | Nxe5 | Bxf2+ |
| 5. | Kxf2 | Nxe5 |
| 6. | d4 | Qf6+ |
| 7. | Kg1 | Nc6 |
| 8. | e5 | Nxe5 |
| 9. | dxe5 | Qb6+ |
How the Three Knights Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice works
The Three Knights Game: Bxf2 Sacrifice is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Three Knights Game. In this line White wins decisive material by move 9, punishing a natural-looking but losing idea from Black.
The full sequence runs 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Nxe5 Bxf2+ 5.Kxf2 Nxe5 6.d4 Qf6+ 7.Kg1 Nc6 8.e5 Nxe5 9.dxe5 Qb6+. 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 (Broehl - Balduan, Porz 1992). 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: Bxf2 Sacrifice 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.