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Ruy Lopez · As White · updated October 2026

Play the Ruy Lopez like Oleksandr Bortnyk

A Ruy Lopez repertoire built from 86 of Oleksandr Bortnyk's public Chess.com blitz games. At every position you play the move Oleksandr Bortnyk chose most often. Where Oleksandr Bortnyk has fewer than 3 games, the course takes the other top-50 players' most played move, then Stockfish's. Learn a line on the board, then each position comes back in a short daily review until it sticks.

Not affiliated with or endorsed by Oleksandr Bortnyk or Chess.com.

  • Oleksandr Bortnyk was #44 in Chess.com blitz in October 2026 (3,202) and scored 65% against opponents averaging 3,072 in these games.
  • You play Oleksandr Bortnyk's own move in 25 of 40 positions.
  • The whole course is free, and it is updated monthly.

Free · first 5 lines need no account

Blitz rank

#44

Chess.com

Rating

3,202

Games

86

in this opening

Score

65%

in these games

Opponents

3,072

average rating

More about Oleksandr Bortnyk

Use arrow keys to navigate the board. Press Enter to select a piece, then use arrow keys and Enter to move. Press Escape to cancel a move.
Line 1 after 6 moves

Lines to learn

  1. Line 1 · 5% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Nd5

  2. Line 2 · 5% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bc5 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Nxe5 Bxf2+ 8.Kxf2 Qd4+ 9.Ke1 Qxe5 10.d3

  3. Line 3 · 5% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 b5 6.Bb3 Be7 7.Nd5

  4. Line 4 · 5% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Qe2 d6 5.d4 exd4 6.Nxd4 Bd7 7.Nxc6

  5. Line 5 · 5% at top level

    3…Bc5 4.O-O Nd4 5.Be2 d6 6.c3 Nxf3+ 7.Bxf3

  6. Line 6 · 5% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 d6 5.Nc3 Bd7 6.Bxc6 bxc6 7.d4 f6 8.Be3 Ne7 9.Qd3

  7. Line 7 · 4% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nge7 5.c3 Ng6 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4

  8. Line 8 · 4% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Be7 6.O-O b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 Bd7 9.axb5

  9. Line 9 · 4% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Be7 6.O-O b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 Rb8 9.axb5 axb5 10.d3

  10. Line 10 · 4% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Be7 6.O-O b5 7.Bb3 d6 8.a4 b4 9.Nd5 O-O 10.d4

  11. Line 11 · 4% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Qe2 Bc5 5.c3 Qe7 6.O-O

  12. Line 12 · 4% at top level

    3…Nf6 4.Qe2 a6 5.Ba4 Bc5 6.Bxc6

  13. Line 13 · 3% at top level

    3…f5 4.d3

  14. Line 14 · 3% at top level

    3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bc5 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.Nxe5 Bd4 8.Nf3

Ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. Learned lines join your daily review.

Oleksandr Bortnyk's main line in the Ruy Lopez, move by move

The most common line at top level: 3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Nd5.

  1. 3…a6 Reply · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games A common reply here is 3…a6. At top level, this comes up about 63% of the time.
  2. 4.Ba4 Your move · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games Oleksandr Bortnyk played 4.Ba4 in 54 games, scoring 66%.
  3. 4…Nf6 Reply · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games A common reply here is 4…Nf6. At top level, this comes up about 41% of the time.
  4. 5.Nc3 Your move · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games Oleksandr Bortnyk played 5.Nc3 in 24 games, scoring 69%.
  5. 5…Bb4 Reply · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games A common reply here is 5…Bb4. At top level, this comes up about 5% of the time.
  6. 6.Nd5 Your move · Oleksandr Bortnyk's games Oleksandr Bortnyk played 6.Nd5 in 3 games, scoring 33%.

Questions about this course

How does Oleksandr Bortnyk play the Ruy Lopez?
After 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5, Oleksandr Bortnyk's most common line is 3…a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bb4 6.Nd5. At top level it comes up about 5% of the time.
Is this Oleksandr Bortnyk's course?
No. ChessDrills builds it automatically from Oleksandr Bortnyk's public Chess.com blitz games.
What is this Ruy Lopez course based on?
86 of Oleksandr Bortnyk's Chess.com blitz games in the Ruy Lopez as White, against opponents with an average rating of 3,072. Oleksandr Bortnyk scored 65% in them.
How many lines does the course have?
14 lines covering 40 positions, ordered by how often they come up in top-level games. The first 5 lines need no account; saving your progress with an email unlocks the rest, free.
Who is Oleksandr Bortnyk?
GM Oleksandr Bortnyk was ranked number 44 on the Chess.com blitz leaderboard with a rating of 3,202 when this course was built.