Skip to main content

Most of us connect chess with long hours of intense mental battles. On average, a chess game takes hours before reaching its conclusion. In televised events, you may have witnessed two contenders struggling to find the lethal move that would finish off the game.

But most often than not, chess games take long, tedious hours to see the end. So, when you know the title of today’s topic – ‘How to Win Chess in 3 Moves’, you must have a sense of disbelief. Even though it is rare, there is a way of finishing a game of chess early.

A popular method applied by several chess players worldwide is the ‘Scholar’s Mate’, which allows a chess player to beat their opponent in only four moves. Then there is the ‘Fool’s Mate’ that takes only two actions to finish a game. This article will discuss how chess players can defeat their rivals by applying only three moves.

Can you win chess in three moves? Two methods exist by which a person can win a chess game in three movements. The first takes the help of a capture, and the second does not require a capture. We shall take each of them individually for closer perusal.

Once you are thorough with both the techniques on ‘How to Win Chess in 3 Moves’, you will undoubtedly become a more dangerous chess player than many would be afraid to take on!

How to Win Chess in 3 Moves

To win a chess match in just three moves playing white, one has to start by moving the e-pawn to the e4 square/tile. In reply to this, let us presume black would play its e-pawn to e5. Subsequently, white responds by moving the queen piece to the h5 block.

After that, black would commit a blunder by moving its king to the e7 block. At this juncture, it is up to the white chess player to take advantage of the situation and deliver a checkmate by capturing the black pawn stationed at e5. This would mean that the black king would have no place to go and be comprehensively cornered.

Recommended Read: Chess Notation – The Language Of Chess

For the realization of this gameplay, it will take the player handling the black pieces to commit fatal errors during the match. So, whenever you compete against anyone, look for the loopholes in your rivals’ decision-making, and jump onto opportunities when you can see you can make the most of the errors they committed.

The method discussed above revolved around the procedure to checkmate black in three moves by capturing a rival piece. In this section, we shall look at another way to achieve checkmate in three great movements. Here too, white will grab a black piece to win the match.

The second technique through which white can checkmate black in three moves depends on the creation of weak squats around the black king following poor decision-making. It all begins when white plays e4 and black responds with f5.

The second round of moves sees white capture the black pawn at f5. Balck then plays its g-pawn to g5, thus causing a big opening in front of its unguarded king. The alert white chess player then grabs the excellent opportunity presented to them by playing the white queen to square h5. 

The moment this takes place, white checkmates the black king. While playing actual games, remember that it can be deadly to open up your king early on in a game. If you commit grave eros like the one we have seen here, a clever opponent will instantly go for the kill at your expense.

A great idea would be to focus on your centrally placed pawns at the beginning of a chess match. Most chess pundits would agree that taking control of the central squares at the outset of a chess match can go a long way in ensuring that the end victory is yours.

Playing the pawns positioned in the flanks of your board at the start will open up your king to imminent threats from your opponent.

Recommended Read: 10 Fastest Chess Moves To Win

Best Way to Win Chess in 3 Moves

The third way white can play to win a chess match after just three rounds is again dependent on a set of poor moves from the side of black. Whereas the first two methods we have discussed above focused on checkmates reached after captures, the current formula does not involve the capture of a chess piece at all.

Here too, the failure of the chess player handling black pieces to decide on effective early moves leads to their quick downfall at the hands of an alert white player. Black would make the mistake of moving the pawns on the king’s side at the very outset of the match and thereby almost invite white to attack its unguarded king.

In this gameplay technique, the white queen again comes into prominence by providing the final death stroke to the black king. 

To better understand this method, let us follow the steps one by one from the start. At first, white goes with the popular e-pawn to e4 move. Black makes the first mistake here by moving its f-pawn to f6. White then plays its d-pawn to d4.

At this point, black again makes the fatal error of judgement and plays its g-pawn to g5. This move is known in chess parlance as a ‘blunder’. As soon as black plays this move, an alert white immediately removes its queen from the starting position and places it on h5. The black king gets checkmated instantly as it does not find any space to run away.

Recommended Read: 4 Most Aggressive Chess Openings That You Should Know

The situation is such that no other black piece could also come to the rescue of their beleaguered king. White ends the run of black at a lightning pace, even without needing to capture a rival piece. This is the best way to win chess in 3 moves if applied correctly.

How to Win chess in 3 moves: Afterthought

Now that we have discussed the theme for today – ‘How to Win Chess in 3 Moves’, it is time to understand that this style of play is typical at the beginner level. There are several occasions when well-known chess professionals have made blunders during a match, thus handing away the game to their rivals.

As a chess player learning the tricks of the trade, you should always keep an eye out for any potential chess blunder your opponent commits during a match and be ready to leap onto it.

In chess, it is crucial to remain fully alert all the time. You never know when your opponent will open up their kingside by a lapse of judgement. In those opportune times, your task would be to strike your rival’s king with the all-powerful queen.

Recommended Read: Smartest Chess Middle Game Strategies


To know about techniques you can use to checkmate your opponent in 4 moves, check out the blog by clicking on this link. All said and done, you will need a grand chessboard to practise the moves you have learned in this piece. Visit the SquareOff website to select from an exquisite range of highly-rated match boards.

Recommended Read:

  1. Top 10 Chess Openings For Black
  2. 7 Tips On How To Get Better At Chess
  3. How to Win Chess Games