Final position — Black is winning
Two Knights Defence: White Queen Trap
Black wins in 9 moves with a decisive material gain. (Armas - Hartung, 1988.??.??)
The moves
| 1. | e4 | e5 |
| 2. | Nf3 | Nc6 |
| 3. | Bc4 | Nf6 |
| 4. | d3 | d5 |
| 5. | exd5 | Nxd5 |
| 6. | O-O | Bg4 |
| 7. | Re1 | f6 |
| 8. | Nxe5 | Bxd1 |
| 9. | Nxc6+ |
How the Two Knights Defence: White Queen Trap works
The Two Knights Defence: White Queen Trap is a classic chess opening trap arising from the Two Knights Defence. 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 Nf6 4.d3 d5 5.exd5 Nxd5 6.O-O Bg4 7.Re1 f6 8.Nxe5 Bxd1 9.Nxc6+. 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 (Armas - Hartung, 1988.??.??). Recognising it early lets you either spring it as Black or sidestep it as White.
Practice this trap move-by-move
Open the Two Knights Defence: White Queen Trap 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.