Caro-Kann Defense: Hector Gambit
1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3 dxe4 4. Ng5
The Caro-Kann Defense: Hector Gambit is a chess opening classified as ECO B10, reached after 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3 dxe4 4. Ng5. It is a line of the Caro-Kann Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 68 times by this move order. White won 38%, 5% were drawn and Black won 57%. The most popular continuation is 4… Nf6 (68% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.16 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 4… e5 5. h4 h6 6. Ngxe4 Be6 7. b3)
- ECO
- B10
- Moves
- 7 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/pp2pppp/2p5/6N1/4p3/2N5/PPPP1PPP/R1BQKB1R b KQkq - 1 4- PGN
1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3 dxe4 4. Ng5
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 6 | |
| 1500-1999 | 42 | |
| 2000+ | 20 | |
| All | 68 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4… Nf6 | 46 (68%) | |
| 4… Bf5 | 9 (13%) | |
| 4… f5 | 3 (4%) | |
| 4… e6 | 3 (4%) | |
| 4… f6 | 2 (3%) | |
| 4… h6 | 2 (3%) | |
| 4… e5 | 1 (1%) | |
| 4… Bd7 | 1 (1%) |
Master games
14 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 29%, draw 28%, Black 43%). The strongest:
- IM Mikael Nouro (2297) – GM Arturs Neiksans (2554) 0-1 · TCh-FIN 2026-27 · 2026-09-12
- GM Jonny Hector (2493) – FM Jan Lundin (2245) 1-0 · Vasteras Open 2015 · 2015-09-27
- IM Chris W Baker (2237) – FM John R Richardson (2277) 1/2-1/2 · 4NCL Div 2 2023-24 · 2024-02-11
- Michael Grove (2119) – FM Tom O`Gorman (2368) 1/2-1/2 · 4NCL Online S2 Div1 2020 · 2020-10-20
- FM Niilo Man Nissinen (2273) – CM Hugo Bocquenet-Drouode (2154) 0-1 · Titled Tue 26th May 2026 · 2026-05-26
Search all games of the Caro-Kann Defense: Hector Gambit and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- chess10723 (2309) – Tender-bey (2366) 1-0 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 2s
- chess10723 (2315) – Feofanov_Vladimir (2329) 1-0 · 2026-09-03 · 180 + 2s
- CM Daniel_ChessTraining (2337) – Dario_venezuela (2301) 1-0 · 2026-09-02 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Caro-Kann Defense: Two Knights Attack 1. e4 c6 2. Nc3 d5 3. Nf3
More Caro-Kann Defense lines (all)
- Caro-Kann Defense (1. e4 c6) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (1… c6 2. Nc3) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense (2. Nc3 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (1… c6 2. c4) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack (2. c4 d5) B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Modern Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Open Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Pseudo-Scandinavian B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Accelerated Panov Attack, Van Weersel Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Apocalypse Attack B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation B10
- Caro-Kann Defense: Breyer Variation, Stein Attack B10
Opening names and moves from the Lichess openings dataset; statistics from the Lichess open database, 2026-09 (CC0), sample of 12.6 million games, bots excluded; evaluations from Lichess cloud analysis (all CC0). Master games from The Week in Chess #920–#1664 by Mark Crowther, used with permission.