The Scotch Game [C45] by Abby Marshall The topic for this month is White's alternative to 5.Be3 in the Scotch Game after Black plays 4...Bc5. 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 The Scotch Game. 4...Bc5 I always played ...Nf6 against most anything 1.e4 e5: The Italian, the Ruy Lopez, and the Four Knights. This move engages the pieces in the center right away. I preferred to maintain this tension. 5.Nxc6 This is the main focus for this month. 5.Be3 This is the main line, which we will be eschewing in favor of looking at the less popular alternatives. 5...Qf6 6.c3 Nge7 7.Bc4 0-0 Black will relocate the c6-knight to e5-g6. Maybe we will look at this in a future … [Read more...]