Pirc Defense: Kholmov System
1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Bc4
The Pirc Defense: Kholmov System is a chess opening classified as ECO B07, reached after 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Bc4. It is a line of the Pirc Defense. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 2,168 times by this move order. White won 49%, 5% were drawn and Black won 46%. The most popular continuation is 4… Bg7 (93% of games).
Engine evaluation: +0.27 (Stockfish, depth 50; best line 4… Bg7 5. h4 Nc6 6. Be2 e5 7. dxe5)
- ECO
- B07
- Moves
- 7 plies
- FEN
rnbqkb1r/ppp1pp1p/3p1np1/8/2BPP3/2N5/PPP2PPP/R1BQK1NR b KQkq - 1 4- PGN
1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6 4. Bc4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 755 | |
| 1500-1999 | 1,021 | |
| 2000+ | 392 | |
| All | 2,168 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 4… Bg7 | 2,021 (93%) | |
| 4… c6 | 61 (3%) | |
| 4… Nxe4 | 37 (2%) | |
| 4… e6 | 22 (1%) | |
| 4… Nc6 | 11 (1%) | |
| 4… a6 | 4 (0%) | |
| 4… Be6 | 4 (0%) | |
| 4… b6 | 2 (0%) |
Master games
404 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 45%, draw 15%, Black 40%). The strongest:
- GM Hikaru Nakamura (2745) – GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda (2730) 1-0 · chess.com Speed 2019 · 2019-12-04
- GM Narayanan S L (2618) – GM Onischuk, V. (2622) 1-0 · Titled Tuesday 15th Dec · 2020-12-15
- FM Havard Haug (2422) – GM Pouya Idani (2602) 1-0 · Titled Tue 21st Apr 2026 · 2026-04-21
- GM Alfonso Romero Holmes (2469) – GM Fernando Peralta (2556) 1/2-1/2 · 6th Rabat Blitz Marathon · 2015-05-16
- IM Adar Tarhan (2434) – GM Jergus Pechac (2522) 1-0 · 34th TCh-CRO Div 1b 2025 · 2025-11-22
Search all games of the Pirc Defense: Kholmov System and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- twirpx (2812) – NM manneredmonkey (2632) 1-0 · 2026-09-07 · 180 + 0s
- AcademiaPlazadeArmas (2530) – OliviaRodrigoFanboy (2586) 0-1 · 2026-09-04 · 180 + 0s
- Gligoric16 (2484) – El_Radar (2541) 1-0 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 0s
Comes from
Pirc Defense (3. Nc3 g6) 1. e4 d6 2. d4 Nf6 3. Nc3 g6
More Pirc Defense lines (all)
- Pirc Defense (1. e4 d6) B00
- Pirc Defense (1… d6 2. d4) B00
- Pirc Defense (2. d4 Nf6) B00
- Pirc Defense: Roscher Gambit B00
- Pirc Defense: 150 Attack B07
- Pirc Defense: 150 Attack, Inner Doll Defense B07
- Pirc Defense: 150 Attack, Sveshnikov-Jansa Attack B07
- Pirc Defense: Bayonet Attack B07
- Pirc Defense: Byrne Variation B07
- Pirc Defense: Chinese Variation B07
- Pirc Defense: Sveshnikov System B07
- Pirc Defense: Classical Variation (3… g6 4. Nf3) B08
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.