Across 17,423 Lichess games between players rated 900 to 1700 (September 2026 data), your opponent scores 52.5% against the Winawer Variation. With your bishop pins the c3 knight to the king. That knight can no longer take back on e4, so the e4 pawn has no real defender and your opponent must deal with it at once. Strong players lock the center with 4. in 2 of every 3 games; at your level, only 1 in 4 do.
Lichess games from September 2026 (30,577,162 rated 900 to 1700) and 31,791 over-the-board games rated 2300+ from the last 12 months. Data updated: October 14, 2026.
26 named lines in this family; 1 with their own page.
The opening's share in each Lichess rating band.
Your opponent's fourth move is where your level parts ways with the strong players. Among online players rated 2200 or more, 4. comes in 2 of every 3 games, and 4. in 12 of every 100. At your level 4. drops to 27 of every 100, with 4. (20) and 4. (19) close behind. Against 4., strong players answer in 7 of every 10 games. At your level 43 of every 100 do, and 1 in 4 trade straight away with . After 5., taking with is the norm higher up, in 8 of every 10 games. At your level your opponent scores 59 of every 100 against it, and 50 against .
| Move | Lichess 900–1700 | White's score | Online, 2200+ | Over the board, 2300+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 26.9% | 55.7% | 66.5% | 82.5% | |
| 20.2% | 52.3% | 1.6% | no data | |
| 19.1% | 50.7% | 10.7% | 5.6% | |
| 13.1% | 55.4% | 3.5% | no data | |
| 6.9% | 47.8% | 3.3% | no data | |
| 3.5% | 54.5% | 11.7% | 12.0% |
| Move | Lichess 900–1700 | White's score | Online, 2200+ | Over the board, 2300+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 43.0% | 51.8% | 71.5% | 75.1% | |
| 24.8% | 60.4% | 0.2% | no data | |
| 16.1% | 53.9% | 17.9% | 5.2% | |
| 9.5% | 57.0% | no data | no data | |
| 3.9% | 61.1% | no data | no data | |
| 0.8% | 43.1% | no data | no data | |
| no data | no data | 5.1% | 15.5% | |
| no data | no data | 4.8% | 4.1% | |
| no data | no data | 0.4% | no data |
| Move | Lichess 900–1700 | White's score | Online, 2200+ | Over the board, 2300+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 53.0% | 56.7% | 81.6% | 86.6% | |
| 23.1% | 50.6% | 1.5% | no data | |
| 6.7% | 49.5% | 0.2% | no data | |
| 5.7% | 46.0% | 13.0% | 13.4% | |
| 4.4% | 42.5% | 1.4% | no data | |
| 2.8% | 41.9% | 2.2% | no data |
| Move | Lichess 900–1700 | White's score | Online, 2200+ | Over the board, 2300+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 59.2% | 58.7% | 82.5% | 85.2% | |
| 21.1% | 49.7% | 3.1% | no data | |
| 16.0% | 55.3% | 14.4% | 14.8% | |
| 3.8% | 62.1% | no data | no data |
| Move | Lichess 900–1700 | White's score | Online, 2200+ | Over the board, 2300+ |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 100.0% | 58.7% | 100.0% | 100.0% |
The strong players' line is 4. 5. 6. 7. . It is a deal: you give your dark-squared bishop for the c3 knight, leave your opponent with two pawns on the c-file and go after the center from the queenside, and in return your kingside gets weaker.
With 4. your opponent closes the center and grabs space. The e5 pawn covers f6, so your g8 knight will come out via e7 instead. Your answer is to hit the base of the chain: attacks d4, the pawn holding up e5, which at that moment only the queen defends. 5. puts the question to the b4 bishop. You can drop back with , which keeps the pin, and strong players pick it in 14 of every 100 games. The main choice is : after 6. your opponent has pawns on c2 and c3 and the bishop pair.
The bill comes due on g7. The bishop that left f8 was the piece guarding that pawn, and once it is traded it can never come back. brings the knight out on the square e5 does not cover, and 7. goes straight for g7. does not defend it. It hits back instead: your queen eyes e5, which only the d4 pawn supports, and waits for the c-file to open. If your opponent grabs the pawns with 8. 9., you play : the c-file opens and your queen and the d4 pawn both hit c3. This is the Poisoned Pawn Variation, and 10. brings the knight over to cover c3.
At your level hardly anyone gets there: fewer than 3 of every 100 games that reach make it to 6.. What you will face is 4., 4. and 4., which together make up more than half your games. Against 4. and 4., take with : you remove the e4 pawn before it can advance to e5 and kick a knight on f6. Against 4., recapture with , which opens your c8 bishop's diagonal all the way to h3.
| Move | Strong games | Chosen by |
|---|---|---|
| 9,827 | 66.8% | |
| 6,526 | 71.6% | |
| 4,632 | 81.7% | |
| 3,762 | 82.6% | |
| 3,107 | 100.0% | |
| 3,078 | 51.9% | |
| 2,066 | 59.0% | |
| 1,147 | 42.9% |
After 4., hands over the bishop before your opponent has spent 5. asking for it. After 5. 6., nothing guards g7, and costs you the right to castle. The better move is . It is only an imprecision, but at your level it gets punished: you score 40 of every 100, against 48.
25 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 0.8 pawns of advantage. It scores 39.6%; scores 48.2%.
Against 4., invites 5., hitting the knight. After 6. the queen threatens g7, and your bishop comes back with to cover it, so two pieces are home again. The right move is . At your level opponents often do not punish it: you score 47 of every 100, about the same as with .
17 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 1.9 pawns of advantage. It scores 46.8%; scores 46.5%.
After 4., brings your queen out early. The pinned knight cannot take it, but 5. defends d4, and after 6. 7. the king steps off the diagonal and the pin is gone. Then comes . Play instead, which frees your c8 bishop. It is an imprecision: you score 45 of every 100, against 51.
20 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 0.7 pawns of advantage. It scores 45.0%; scores 50.9%.
4. blocks the diagonal, so the c3 knight defends e4 again. If you reply , 5. attacks it. After 6. your knight hits d2 and c3, but 7. pulls the bishop back and you go on with against e5. The better move is . You score 45 of every 100, against 52.
11 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 1.1 pawns of advantage. It scores 44.6%; scores 51.8%.
Against 4., parks the knight in front of the c7 pawn, which can no longer go to c5 to attack d4. After 5. 6. 7. , only your knight is hitting d4, and your opponent has gained space on the kingside. Play . You score 41 of every 100, against 46.
12 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 1.1 pawns of advantage. It scores 41.3%; scores 46.5%.
After 4., blocks the c7 pawn just when the c5 break is your plan. After 5. the knight goes back with to clear the pawn's path, but after 6. 7. you have lost two tempi. The better move is . It is an imprecision: you score 43 of every 100, against 48.
10 in 100 play it in this position. It gives away 0.6 pawns of advantage. It scores 43.0%; scores 48.2%.
| White | Black | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 7,223 | ||
| 2,086 | ||
| Not castled | Not castled | 2,010 |
| Not castled | 1,963 | |
| Not castled | 1,927 | |
| 876 |
| White | Black | Games |
|---|---|---|
| 65 | ||
| Not castled | 41 | |
| 30 | ||
| Not castled | Not castled | 28 |
| Not castled | 22 | |
| 16 |
1. 2. 3. 4. · 4,282 amateur games · 90 over the board
4. locks the center and takes f6 from your knight; your opponent scores 56 of every 100.
1. 2. 3. 4. · 3,322 amateur games · 2 over the board
4. breaks the pin, so the knight guards e4 again. Your opponent scores 53 of every 100.
1. 2. 3. 4. · 3,178 amateur games · 13 over the board
4. opens the center and your opponent scores 51 of every 100; recapture with .
1. 2. 3. 4. · C15
466 amateur games · White's score: 52.1%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C15
238 amateur games · White's score: 56.5%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. · C17
148 amateur games · White's score: 55.1%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C17
139 amateur games · White's score: 51.1%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. · C17
127 amateur games · White's score: 42.9%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. · C15
109 amateur games · White's score: 60.6%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. · C19
86 amateur games · White's score: 50.6%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C18
33 amateur games · White's score: 72.7%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. · C18
31 amateur games · White's score: 45.2%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C18
24 amateur games · White's score: 62.5%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. · C18
23 amateur games · White's score: 63.0%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C15
13 amateur games · White's score: 53.8%
1. 2. 3. 4. · C16
12 amateur games · White's score: 41.7%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. · C18
8 amateur games · White's score: 87.5%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C17
6 amateur games · White's score: 66.7%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. · C18
3 amateur games · White's score: 66.7%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C15
2 amateur games · White's score: 100.0%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C15
1 amateur game · White's score: 100.0%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. · C18
1 amateur game · White's score: 100.0%
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. · C15
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. · C17
1. 2. 3. 4. 5. 6. 7. 8. 9. 10. · C18