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Fool's Mate -- The Fastest Checkmate in Chess

By , About.com Guide

4 of 4

Checkmate!
Fool's Mate -- The Fastest Checkmate in Chess

1. f3? e5 2. g4?? Qh4 mate!

Black finishes off the game with 2. ... Qh4#. White cannot capture the queen, cannot move his king to safety, and has no way to block the queen's attack. In just two moves, White finds himself checkmated!

This checkmate, of course, is simple to avoid. White's moves are very bad; they violate the basic opening principles of controlling the center of the board and maintaining king safety. Remembering those principles will help avoid opening disasters such as the Fool's Mate.

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