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Hole in Chess

In chess strategy, a "hole" is a square that can no longer be defended by pawns. These weak squares become perfect outposts for enemy pieces, especially Knights. This guide explains how to identify holes in your opponent's position and how to avoid creating permanent structural weaknesses in your own camp.

🕳️ Weakness insight: A hole is a permanent home for an enemy piece. Once you create one, you can't fix it. Learn pawn structure theory to stop creating holes in your own camp.
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A Permanent Structural Weakness

A hole is a square that your opponent can occupy safely because no pawn can ever drive them away.

📌 Definition: A hole is a square that can no longer be controlled by pawns.

Because pawns cannot move backwards, a hole is a permanent structural weakness.

A hole is a pawn-structure concept. It exists even if no piece is sitting on it. Often, the next step is that a piece (usually a knight) occupies the hole — and then it becomes an outpost.

Fast test
Pick a square. Ask: Can my pawns ever attack that square again?
If the answer is “no”, it’s (at least) a potential hole.

Examples with Pawn Structures Only

The examples in this section focus exclusively on pawn structures that create holes — without relying on tactics, attacks, or piece sacrifices. By stripping the position down to its structural essence, you’ll see how pawn moves alone can weaken key squares, restrict piece activity, and grant the opponent long-term outposts. These examples train your eye to spot holes early, before pieces even come into contact.

1) The Classic “Boleslavsky Hole” on d5

When Black has pawns on c5 and e5, the square d5 is no longer controlled by Black pawns. That square can become a permanent target — and a dream square for a white knight.

Why it’s permanent: pawns only attack forward diagonals. With pawns fixed on c5 and e5, Black cannot “reclaim” d5 with pawn control.

2) A Kingside Pawn Push Creating a Hole (f3)

When White pushes the g-pawn to g4, White permanently stops controlling the square f3 with that pawn. If other pawns can’t cover it either, a long-term weakness can appear.

This is why pawn storms have a cost: you often gain space but leave behind holes.

3) A Queenside Advance Creating a Hole (c4)

When Black advances the b-pawn to b2, Black no longer controls c4 with that pawn. If the b- and d-pawns can’t help, c6 can become a weak square to be occupied or attacked.

Many “holes” are created not by one move, but by a pawn chain committing to a direction.

Hole vs Outpost

Hole: a weak square caused by pawn structure (may be empty).
Outpost: a piece placed on a hole that cannot be chased away by pawns.

All outposts are holes — but not all holes become outposts.
♙ Chess Pawn Structures Guide
This page is part of the Chess Pawn Structures Guide — Understand pawn skeletons, weak squares, outposts, pawn breaks, exchanges, and long-term plans.
📖 Essential Chess Glossary
This page is part of the Essential Chess Glossary — A quick-reference dictionary of chess terms, jargon, and definitions — filter by category and understand commentary from beginner to advanced.