Chess becomes fun when you give a checkmate to the opponent player. Many times players try to win the game as fast as possible. The minimum number of moves required to checkmate the opponent, king, in chess is 2 moves. This type of checkmate is known as a fool’s mate.
Here are the moves to checkmate in 2 moves:
- White plays f4
- Black plays e6
- White then plays g4
- Black plays the queen to h4 and it’s a checkmate.
The notion for the 2-move checkmate is shown below.
- f4 – e6
- g4 – Qh4 #
In 2 move checkmate white can play g4 also as the first move and on the second move, he can play f4 or f3. The main idea is that after Qh4, the white king cannot be moved to any squares.
Check out the video that demonstrates how to checkmate in 2 moves.
Can White checkmate black in 2 moves?
It is not possible to create a 2-move checkmate to black from the start of the game. The least possible checkmate towards black is 3 moves.
Here is an example to checkmate black in 3 moves
- e3 – g5
- d4- f5
- Qh5#
Here the Qh5 creates a checkmate for the black since there is not legal squares on the chess board for the king to move out of the check or to defend it with any pieces. In real games, this type of checkmate happens rarely.
Only novice and beginner players who just start to play chess move on to these traps. In professional-level games, it’s literally impossible that players to get checkmate in 2 or 3 moves.
How to avoid 2 move checkmate or Fool’s mate?
To avoid checkmate in 2 moves make sure the king is safe and don’t move the pawns to g4 and f4 on the first 2 moves. While playing a chess game it is better to follow the opening principles so that you don’t trap into nasty checkmate positions.
Follow these points so that you won’t get a checkmate in 2 moves:
- Control the centre by playing e4 or d4
- Develop your minor pieces
- Castle the king as quickly as possible. King safety is very much important in a chess game.
- Don’t play g and f pawns to 4th rank at the start of a chess game.
Is it possible to win the chess game in 1 move?
It is possible to win the chess game in 1 move if the opponent resigns. However, it is impossible to create a checkmate in one move.
In Generation Cup 2022, 5 times world chess champion Magnus Carlsen resigned after his first move against Hans Niemann. The tournament was an online event.
