Fool's Mate

I have been playing chess since sixth grade - you think I'd be better at it. One of my favorite openings involves something I used to think was called Fool's Mate. I checked today and found that it's correct name is Scholar's Mate. From Chess Corner:

Fool's Mate and Scholar's Mate are often tried on newcomers to the game.

Fool's Mate occurs when a player opens up his King to a fatal attack as shown in the following game:

1.f3 e5 2.g4 Qh4#

It is rarely a good idea to move the pawns on f2, g2 and h2 so early in the game as the King normally castles on this side and if the pawns have been moved, they can no longer offer him adequate protection.

The following game illustrates Scholar's Mate. This is a checkmate whereby the Bishop and Queen attack the weak f7 pawn. This pawn is weak because, in the starting position, it is only protected by the King.

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Qh5 Nf6 4.Qxf7#

Scholar's Mate is the most common trap a beginner falls into.