f7-square for Black). The reason is that removing any other pawn gives some compensation in the form of opening a file or diagonal for a rook, bishop, or queen. Odds of the move: The weaker player plays White. Two moves: The weaker player plays White and starts the game by making two moves. Pawn and move: The weaker player plays White; a black pawn (typically that on f7) is removed from the board. Pawn and two moves: The weaker player plays the first two moves, and Black's pawn on f7 is removed. Knight odds: One of the stronger player's knights is removed, usually the queen knight on b1 or b8. Rook odds: One of the stronger player's rooks is removed, usually the queen rook on a1 or a8. Rook and pawn: The stronger player's queen rook and f-pawn are removed. Two minor pieces: The odds-giver chooses which of their two knights and/or bishops to remove. Rook and knight: The stronger player's queen rook and queen knight are removed. Queen odds: The stronger player's queen is removed. Two rooks: Both rooks of the stronger player are removed. Queen and rook: The stronger player's queen and queen rook are removed. Queenside odds: All queenside pieces (not pawns) of the stronger player are removed. Strong king: The weaker player's king may move up to two squares in any direction in a straight line. Larry Kaufman writes that under the chess tradition of the 18th and 19th centuries, the handicap below knight odds was: Pawn and three moves: White plays the first three moves, and Black plays without the f7-pawn. In odds games with extra moves (pawn and two moves, pawn and three moves), the odds-receiver cannot move beyond the fourth rank with those moves. Otherwise, White could win immediately with 1.e3 2.Bd3 3.Qh5+ g6 4.Qxg6+ hxg6 5.Bxg6. Kaufman's list for the 1800s goes: draw odds (possibly two steps, depending on which colour the stronger player plays); pawn (f2); pawn (f7) and move; pawn and two moves (usually 1.e4); pawn and three moves (usually 1.e4 and 2.d4); knight (more often b1 than g1); knight and move (more often b8 than g8); rook (a1) with pawn on a3; rook (a1) with pawn on a2; rook and move (a8); and then the whole cycle could be repeated with an extra rook, with queen odds substituting two rooks. (According to Kaufman, queen odds is probably a larger