After 1.e4 d5 2.exd5 Qxd5 3.Nc3 the black queen has to move again. The main line is 3...Qa5, where she keeps an eye on the c3 knight and the e1-a5 diagonal, and Black follows with ...Nf6, ...c6 and ...Bf5 or ...Bg4. White is a little ahead in development and tries to make the queen's position on a5 uncomfortable.
By far the most common mistake in our data is a pin that does not hold. After 3...Qa5 4.Nge2 Nf6 5.h3, Black plays 5...Bg4?? anyway, and 6.hxg4 takes the bishop for nothing: the knight on e2 does not need the pin. The same idea catches the bishop in many other move orders. Before playing ...Bg4, check whether the knight you are pinning is really stuck, and whether h3 can simply take.
A second pattern is a queen trap. After 3...Qd8 4.d3 c6 5.Qf3 the white queen controls the f-file, and 5...Bf5?? walks into 6.Qxf5: the bishop moved to a square the queen already covers. The third frequent mistake comes after 3...Qa5 4.d4 Nf6 5.d5: developing with 5...Nc6?? puts the knight where the pawn can take it, and 6.dxc6 wins a piece.
The modern Scandinavian with 2...Nf6 has its own trap. After 3.c4 c6 4.Nc3 Bg4 5.Qa4 the queen looks along the a4-e8 diagonal, and 5...b6?? loses on the spot to 6.dxc6: the pawn on c6 and the queen work together against the black king. These are all one-move tactics, which is why the puzzles below are good training for both sides of the Scandinavian.
| Mistake | Side | Count | Avg loss |
|---|---|---|---|
| 5.Bg4 | White | 171 | 6.7 pawns |
| 5.Bf5 | White | 74 | 6.2 pawns |
| 5.b6 | White | 62 | 21.2 pawns |
| 5.Nc6 | White | 57 | 5.2 pawns |
| 5.Be6 | White | 51 | 4.1 pawns |