Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line
23K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
White expected score · All ratings · All speeds
55.5%
the worst score you would still get, 90% confident. At best 56.1%.
Measured over 23K games at this level and clock.
A strong choice for White at this level and clock.
Outcomes for White
Draw 6.9 · Score = win + ½ of the draws · 23K games
- Rank among the families White can choose here
- not ranked — this is a variation, not a family
- Games in this context
- 23K
- Best context
- 61.2% at 1400-1599 Bullet
- Worst context
- 49.0% at 1400-1599 Blitz
- Average game length
- 38 moves
- Games that end decisively
- 93.1%
- Draws
- 6.9%
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.
Extra Analysis
Deep-dive datasets for this opening
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: 56.2% at 0-999, 59.9% 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: 65.7% expected score (24 games)
- 0-999 rating, Blitz: 46.6% expected score (13 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Bullet: 61.8% expected score (75 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Blitz: 57.1% expected score (55 games)
- 1000-1199 rating, Rapid: 73.1% expected score (5 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Bullet: 57.1% expected score (274 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Blitz: 56.0% expected score (290 games)
- 1200-1399 rating, Rapid: 49.1% expected score (51 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, UltraBullet: 61.5% expected score (16 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Bullet: 61.2% expected score (588 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Blitz: 49.0% expected score (1,149 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Rapid: 49.5% expected score (183 games)
- 1400-1599 rating, Classical: 68.2% expected score (4 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, UltraBullet: 46.0% expected score (11 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Bullet: 55.7% expected score (1,217 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Blitz: 53.7% expected score (2,471 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Rapid: 53.1% expected score (516 games)
- 1600-1799 rating, Classical: 47.9% expected score (22 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, UltraBullet: 50.0% expected score (4 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Bullet: 59.9% expected score (2,053 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Blitz: 54.3% expected score (3,524 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Rapid: 49.5% expected score (706 games)
- 1800-1999 rating, Classical: 59.5% expected score (30 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, UltraBullet: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Bullet: 57.2% expected score (2,968 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Blitz: 54.2% expected score (3,054 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Rapid: 55.6% expected score (330 games)
- 2000-2199 rating, Classical: 55.3% expected score (8 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Bullet: 59.0% expected score (2,077 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Blitz: 54.8% expected score (892 games)
- 2200-2499 rating, Rapid: 52.7% expected score (92 games)
- 2500+ rating, Bullet: 59.7% expected score (465 games)
- 2500+ rating, Blitz: 50.0% expected score (23 games)
- 2500+ rating, Rapid: 70.0% expected score (1 games)
Related Openings
Methodology
Across every rating and clock, the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line scores 55.5% for White — we are 90% confident the real figure is between 55.0% and 56.1% — from 23K 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
- 23K+ 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 at a rating before we will say whether it pays there. The chaos and trap lists need 500 games overall and 250 games at one rating or clock.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate?
Playing the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line, White wins 52.1%, draws 6.9% and loses 41.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.5%. It rests on 23K rated games from Lichess.
At what rating does the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line perform best?
The Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line performs best for White at 2200-2499, with an Expected Score of 57.6% (3.1K games) and the highest Floor of any rating with enough games to read.
Is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line better in blitz or rapid?
For White, the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line scores higher in Blitz: an Expected Score of 53.7% in Blitz (11K games) against 51.8% in Rapid (1.9K games).
How sharp is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line?
The Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line has a sharpness score of 93.1 (decisive), meaning 93.1% of games end decisively. Average game length is 38 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 1000-1199?
At 1000-1199, White wins 59.7%, draws 1.8% and loses 38.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 60.6%. It rests on 135 Lichess games, which average 29 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 1200-1399?
At 1200-1399, White wins 53.9%, draws 4.0% and loses 42.1%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.9%. It rests on 615 Lichess games, which average 31 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 1400-1599?
At 1400-1599, White wins 50.7%, draws 4.5% and loses 44.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.0%. It rests on 1.9K Lichess games, which average 34 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 1600-1799?
At 1600-1799, White wins 51.4%, draws 5.4% and loses 43.2%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 54.1%. It rests on 4.2K Lichess games, which average 36 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 1800-1999?
At 1800-1999, White wins 52.1%, draws 7.1% and loses 40.9%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.6%. It rests on 6.3K Lichess games, which average 38 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 2000-2199?
At 2000-2199, White wins 51.9%, draws 7.6% and loses 40.5%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 55.7%. It rests on 6.4K Lichess games, which average 39 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 2200-2499?
At 2200-2499, White wins 52.8%, draws 9.4% and loses 37.7%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 57.6%. It rests on 3.1K Lichess games, which average 41 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate at 2500+?
At 2500+, White wins 55.4%, draws 7.8% and loses 36.8%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 59.3%. It rests on 489 Lichess games, which average 44 moves.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate in Bullet?
In Bullet, White wins 55.8%, draws 5.2% and loses 39.0%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 58.4%. It rests on 9.7K Lichess games.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate in Blitz?
In Blitz, White wins 49.7%, draws 7.9% and loses 42.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 53.7%. It rests on 11K Lichess games.
What is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line win rate in Rapid?
In Rapid, White wins 47.0%, draws 9.7% and loses 43.4%. Counting a draw as half a point, that is an Expected Score of 51.8%. It rests on 1.9K Lichess games.
Is the Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line a good opening?
The Polish Opening: Rooks Swap Line is good for White. Across all ratings, White wins 52.1% of its games and loses 41.1%. It performs best at 2200-2499. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.