Van Geet Opening: Hector Gambit
1. Nc3 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Bc4
The Van Geet Opening: Hector Gambit is a chess opening classified as ECO A00, reached after 1. Nc3 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Bc4. It is a line of the Van Geet Opening. Black is to move.
In 12.6 million rated Lichess games (blitz and slower), this position was reached 18 times by this move order. White won 56%, 0% were drawn and Black won 44%. The most popular continuation is 3… Nf6 (83% of games).
Engine evaluation: −0.90 (Stockfish, depth 32; best line 3… Nf6 4. d4 Nc6 5. Be3 a6 6. a3)
- ECO
- A00
- Moves
- 5 plies
- FEN
rnbqkbnr/ppp1pppp/8/8/2B1p3/2N5/PPPP1PPP/R1BQK1NR b KQkq - 1 3- PGN
1. Nc3 d5 2. e4 dxe4 3. Bc4
Analyse with Stockfish · Board image (SVG) · Open on Lichess
Results by rating
| Average rating | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 0-1499 | 2 | |
| 1500-1999 | 4 | |
| 2000+ | 12 | |
| All | 18 |
Most played moves
| Move | Games | White / draw / Black |
|---|---|---|
| 3… Nf6 | 15 (83%) | |
| 3… Bf5 | 1 (6%) | |
| 3… e5 | 1 (6%) | |
| 3… e6 | 1 (6%) |
Master games
8 over-the-board games are classified under this line (White 50%, draw 0%, Black 50%). The strongest:
- IM Florian, Dr. Grafl (2343) – IM Rudik Makarian (2544) 0-1 · Titled Tue 7th Oct 2025 · 2025-10-07
- IM Florian, Dr. Grafl (2343) – FM Vjacheslav Weetik (2423) 0-1 · Titled Tue 7th Oct 2025 · 2025-10-07
- IM Florian, Dr. Grafl (2343) – IM Frode Elsness (2418) 1-0 · Titled Tue 30th Sep 2025 · 2025-09-30
- IM Florian, Dr. Grafl (2343) – CM Famil Kishiev (2338) 1-0 · Titled Tue 11th Nov 2025 · 2025-11-11
- IM Florian, Dr. Grafl (2343) – FM Nikita Shandrygin (2209) 0-1 · Titled Tue 11th Nov 2025 · 2025-11-11
Search all games of the Van Geet Opening: Hector Gambit and its sub-variations
Highest-rated Lichess games
- Tabunok (2297) – chvogel (2312) 0-1 · 2026-09-06 · 180 + 2s
- Pemered (2290) – albertus123456 (2318) 1-0 · 2026-09-03 · 300 + 0s
- Tabunok (2298) – Jhony52 (2291) 0-1 · 2026-09-05 · 180 + 2s
Comes from
Van Geet Opening 1. Nc3
More Van Geet Opening lines (all)
- Van Geet Opening: Battambang Variation A00
- Van Geet Opening: Billockus-Johansen Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Damhaug Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Dougherty Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Dunst-Perrenet Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Düsseldorf Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Gladbacher Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Hergert Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Hulsemann Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Jendrossek Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Kluever Gambit A00
- Van Geet Opening: Laroche Gambit A00
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.