The Evans Gambit - A Sea Captain's opening

Unlike many openings named after the places where they were first studied, the Evans Gambit is named after Captain William Davies Evans (1790-1872).

Evans was not a professional chess player but a Welsh sea captain. He learned chess at the relatively late age of 28 while serving on steamships between Great Britain and Ireland. He discovered the gambit around 1824 and played it for the first time during a recorded game in 1827 in London against Alexander McDonnell resulting in a win by checkmate in 20 moves!

The Evans gambit is not common among the top levels but it is one of the most winning lines among beginners and intermediate players. It is an aggressive opening where White throws the b pawn overboard only to ram into the opponent faster!

So if you are ready to bet a b pawn you can beat your opponent in 20 moves this opening is made for you.

Starting position

The Evans Gambit follows the Giuoco Piano, the most popular variation of the classic Italian Game. It is an aggressive alternative to the Giuoco Pianissimo that is, as it names indicates, very slow and therefore completely opposed to our Evans Gambit in its playing style.

It starts after the following moves:

Here Black can still deny it into an Evans Gambit Declined, but we will focus on the accepted gambit as it is played by Black in 66% of the games under 1400 elo.

So after Bxb4 we play c3 attacking the adventurous bishop and Black has two main options to retreat while keeping their bishop somehow active: Ba5 or Bc5. At that stage you will face one of these two moves in 86% of your games.

We already notice a practical advantage for White in this position with a 54% winning rate. The draw rate is only 3%, as announced this is a risk and reward opening, draw is not really an option when you are a Welsh Captain!

The most common Bc5 gives us a clear advantage

Bc5 is by far the most common Black answer, with a solid 61% occurrence! And this is great news for us as White winning rate jumps to 57% from that position. Let's now see how to convert these games.

We answer with d4 attacking the bishop that just moved. In 93% of games, Black takes the pawn, and White here shouldn't miss the chance! Here White takes the pawn back in 57% of the games, but if we instead castle, the winning rate skyrockets to 63%, due to a clear development advantage.

In this position it is very tempting for Black to go for a third pawn, the game statistics speak for themselves, this is played in 70% of the games under 1400 elo. But Black is digging its own grave doing this because we have a deadly tactical sequence to punish this pawn hunger.

We start with the beautiful Bxf7+ sacrificing our bishop, Black does not have much choice but to take the bishop. We are two pawns and a bishop down it is now time for revenge, after Qd5+ forking the king and the bishop, Black ends up in a difficult position expressed by the very low 29% win rate.

After Ke8 played in 80% of the games, we will wait before taking the bishop back and play the more precise intermediary move Qh5+. It will force Black to defend with their pawn g6, introducing a weakness opening the longest black bishop diagonal before losing their black bishop. With that intermediary move, White win rate surges to 77%. Black is already almost cooked!

An example of continuation is, after we take back the bishop Black tries to develop their white bishop and we already win material using our queen to attack the stuck rook.

How to dominate against the alternative Ba5

Now that we know how to crush our opponent if they play Bc5, let's see how to play against the alternative Ba5 played in 1 out of 4 games.

Black has a 47% winning rate on this position, but with a good preparation we can turn this in our favor. Here we play d4 with the same idea as in the Bc5 line to develop and take the center. We trade material for instant activity.

And same as in the previous line, it is too tempting for Black to take a second pawn. Under 1400 elo exd4 is played in 82% of the games!

Again we keep the same logic and castle, leaving a third pawn hanging! Now Black has different options, but beginner and intermediate players trend to take pawns when given, without thinking about the potential development costs.

Three pawns down? No problem!

In 50% of the games Black plays dxc3 and we are now three pawns down but now ready to setup our deadly attack. We play Qb3 forming a battery with our queen and bishop and threatening the f7 pawn.

The winning rate already jumps to 61%, the black queen has to defend the attacked pawn and there are only two options: Qe7 or Qf6.

Qe7

On Qe7 our idea is to take the black pawn with Nxc3 and when Black retakes with Bxc3 we take back with our queen Qxc3 and our goal will now be to prevent Black from castling using our development advantage.

A common way this game can continue is for example:

Ending up with a strong advantage on a position that has a solid 76% win rate.

Qf6

If Black plays Qf6 we cannot take back our pawn as the black queen is now defending it.

So instead we will start by chasing the queen away with Bg5. The only reasonable move to keep the f7 pawn defended is Qg6 and we can now eat the c3 pawn with Nxc3. After Bxc3 we take back with the queen Qxc3 and we are left with:

In this position we want to apply the same pressure but we cannot use our black squares bishop to block our opponent from castling so after the common Nge7 it is a good idea to capture the knight with Bxe7.

A standard way this game can continue is:

Leaving us with a strong attacking position highlighted by the 65% winning rate.

Alternative lines

If Black does not want to eat the third pawn we are offering (maybe because they start to feel like something is wrong) and plays a passive move like d6 we will want to apply the same pressure as we have seen above like the queen battery in b3. We also have the possibility to capture the d4 pawn and play around our advanced central pawn duo.

There is one last tricky line we need to investigate, after Black plays Nf6 we need to be very careful, 87% of the players are playing a move that leaves black with an advantage. We want to play the very rare but powerful Ba3. The purpose of this move played on only 4% of the games is to prevent Black from castling.

Of course, Black wants to castle to protect the king, and that's why 66% of the time Black plays the natural d6 to try to block the bishop.

Now it is time for the move that wins the game: e5 sacrificing the pawn to deny your opponent the possibility to castle! It is not a common move with only a 33% play rate, but it totally changes the dynamic of the game and scores a 61% win rate.

After dxe5 (52% play rate) Black is in a very difficult position, with Qb3 the attack is too strong and Black can try to defend with Qd7 but it is already too late as we easily will be able to bring more attacking pieces like our rook.

A possible continuation is:

And there it is—a crushing victory in just 17 moves, proving that the Captain's gambit is just as deadly today as it was in 1827! Can you spot the mate in 5?

Ready to set sail?

The Evans Gambit is more than just an opening; it’s a statement, a mindset, a lifestyle! By throwing your b-pawn overboard, you aren't just losing material—you are buying time, space, and a terrifying attacking initiative.

Remember the Captain’s lesson: don't be afraid to sacrifice for the sake of the attack. Whether they retreat to Ba5 or Bc5, you now have all the tools necessary to navigate these troubled waters.

Fair winds and happy hunting oh captain my captain—may your victories be swift and your checkmates be many!