English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line
34K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
53.8%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 54.3%.
Measured over 34K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 5.1 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 34K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 34K
- Best context
- 57.9% at 1200-1399 Bullet
- Worst context
- 49.7% at 1600-1799 Classical
- Average game length
- 35 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 94.9%
- Draws
- 5.1%
Best and worst are the strongest and weakest squares with at least 500 games behind them. The table further down shows every square, including thinner ones.
Where it holds · White score by rating × clock
Green is clearly ahead for White, grey is around even, red is behind. Tap a cell to measure there, and again to clear. It gets better as the rating rises: 44.3% at 0-999, 54.9% at 2500+.
| Rating | UB | Bulle | Blitz | Rapid | Class |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0-999 | — | ||||
| 1000-1199 | |||||
| 1200-1399 | |||||
| 1400-1599 | — | ||||
| 1600-1799 | — | ||||
| 1800-1999 | — | ||||
| 2000-2199 | — | ||||
| 2200-2499 | — | ||||
| 2500+ | — |
Expected score matrix by rating bracket and time control
- 0-999 rating, Bullet: 46.1% expected score (253 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 45.5% expected score (266 games)
- 0-999 rating, Rapid: 55.8% expected score (102 games)
- 0-999 rating, Classical: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, UltraBullet: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 52.0% expected score (254 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 54.3% expected score (767 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 52.1% expected score (264 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Classical: 36.7% expected score (6 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, UltraBullet: 30.0% expected score (1 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 57.9% expected score (641 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 55.9% expected score (1,531 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 55.7% expected score (723 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Classical: 44.9% expected score (18 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 54.0% expected score (782 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 54.8% expected score (2,323 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 53.8% expected score (2,132 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 55.1% expected score (135 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 53.4% expected score (1,441 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 53.2% expected score (2,675 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 52.9% expected score (1,797 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 49.7% expected score (629 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 52.2% expected score (710 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 51.3% expected score (2,409 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 53.1% expected score (1,319 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 60.6% expected score (121 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 52.6% expected score (1,211 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 53.8% expected score (2,693 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 51.2% expected score (1,253 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 47.7% expected score (42 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 51.4% expected score (1,503 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 57.5% expected score (4,052 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 55.2% expected score (282 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Classical: 58.0% expected score (11 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 56.6% expected score (510 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 54.7% expected score (606 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 63.1% expected score (33 games)
- 2500+ rating, Classical: 45.3% expected score (9 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 53.8% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 53.4% and 54.3% — from 34K Lichess games. Win rate, draw rate and loss rate come from games played December 2023 to November 2025.
How the figures are made
- Whose games these are
- 34K+ rated games played on Lichess (2023-12 to 2025-11). The games are Lichess’s and free for anyone to use. What is ours is the reading of them. Last rebuilt January 2026.
- Which games we count
- Rated games only — nothing casual.
- Both players within 200 rating points of each other. A mismatch tells you about the gap, not about the opening.
- At least 2 moves played.
- A game is filed under White’s rating.
- Why every number comes with a range
- A number off a few hundred games is a guess. The same number off millions is a fact. The range is what tells them apart, and it is what the lists rank on — so an opening cannot reach the top on a lucky run of forty games. The more games behind a figure, the narrower its range.
- How much we need before we say anything
- An opening page needs 100 games. A gambit needs 50 games before we will say where it stops working. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 53.8% (range, 90% confident: 53.4% – 54.3%) for White, based on 34K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line perform best?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line performs best at 2200-2499, where it scores 55.8% for White (5.8K games). It tends to score less at higher ratings as opponents know the theory better.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line better in blitz or rapid?
For White, Blitz (54.5%) outperforms Classical (51.6%). Choose your time control wisely.
How sharp is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line has a sharpness score of 94.9 (decisive), meaning 94.9% of games end decisively. Average game length is 35 moves.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 0-999?
At 0-999, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 47.4% (range, 90% confident: 44.1% – 50.7%) for White, based on 622 Lichess games. Average game length is 25 moves with a 1.8% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 53.3% (range, 90% confident: 51.0% – 55.6%) for White, based on 1.3K Lichess games. Average game length is 29 moves with a 2.4% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 56.2% (range, 90% confident: 54.7% – 57.7%) for White, based on 2.9K Lichess games. Average game length is 30 moves with a 1.9% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 54.3% (range, 90% confident: 53.2% – 55.4%) for White, based on 5.4K Lichess games. Average game length is 33 moves with a 3.2% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 52.8% (range, 90% confident: 51.8% – 53.8%) for White, based on 6.5K Lichess games. Average game length is 34 moves with a 3.9% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 52.2% (range, 90% confident: 51.0% – 53.4%) for White, based on 4.6K Lichess games. Average game length is 36 moves with a 5.2% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 52.9% (range, 90% confident: 51.7% – 54.0%) for White, based on 5.2K Lichess games. Average game length is 37 moves with a 6.1% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 55.8% (range, 90% confident: 54.8% – 56.9%) for White, based on 5.8K Lichess games. Average game length is 39 moves with a 7.8% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 55.7% (range, 90% confident: 53.3% – 58.1%) for White, based on 1.2K Lichess games. Average game length is 44 moves with a 14.2% draw rate.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet games, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 53.1% (range, 90% confident: 52.2% – 54.1%) for White (7.3K Lichess games). Draw rate is 4.2%.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz games, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 54.5% (range, 90% confident: 53.8% – 55.1%) for White (17K Lichess games). Draw rate is 5.4%.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid games, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 53.3% (range, 90% confident: 52.4% – 54.2%) for White (7.9K Lichess games). Draw rate is 5.1%.
What is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line win rate in Classical?
In Classical games, the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line scores 51.6% (range, 90% confident: 48.9% – 54.2%) for White (972 Lichess games). Draw rate is 6.4%.
Is the English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line a good opening?
The English Opening: King's English Variation, Four Knights Variation, Korchnoi Line is good for White with a 51.3% (range, 90% confident: 50.8% – 51.7%) win rate across all ratings. It performs best at 2200-2499. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.