1.0K games from Lichess · Updated January 2026
At all ratings, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 53.8% expected score for White (we're 90% confident it's between 51.4% and 56.2%), based on 1.0K Lichess games.
Deep-dive datasets for this opening
Declines with rating: 60% → 29%
Best in Blitz (45%), worst in Classical (15%)
Click any cell to filter. Green = above 50%, Red = below 50%.
| 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
The Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 40.9% (90% CI: 38.4%-43.4%) win rate for white, based on 1.0K rated games from Lichess.
The Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid performs best at 2200-2499 Elo with a 51.5% win rate for white (353 games). Win rate tends to decline at higher ratings as opponents know the theory better.
Blitz (45.1%) outperforms Bullet (29.3%) by 15.8%. Choose your time control wisely.
The Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a sharpness score of 74.2 (drawish), meaning 74.2% of games end decisively. Average game length is 52 moves.
At 2000-2199 Elo, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 52.5% (90% CI: 45.3%-59.6%) win rate for white, based on 129 Lichess games. Average game length is 45 moves with a 5.7% draw rate.
At 2200-2499 Elo, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 51.5% (90% CI: 47.1%-55.8%) win rate for white, based on 353 Lichess games. Average game length is 45 moves with a 7.5% draw rate.
At 2500+ Elo, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 29.4% (90% CI: 26.1%-32.9%) win rate for white, based on 496 Lichess games. Average game length is 60 moves with a 46.3% draw rate.
In Bullet games, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 29.3% (90% CI: 24.1%-34.7%) win rate for white (195 Lichess games). Draw rate is 53.2%.
In Blitz games, the Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid has a 45.1% (90% CI: 42.1%-48.1%) win rate for white (734 Lichess games). Draw rate is 15.2%.
The Ruy Lopez: Closed, Smyslov-Breyer-Zaitsev Hybrid is statistically balanced with a 40.9% (90% CI: 38.4%-43.4%) win rate across all ratings. It performs best at 2200-2499 Elo. Your results depend on your rating, time control, and how well you know the typical plans.