Study Puzzle of the Day 1/3/2021
Two similar lines, but only one of them works! White to move and draw (R. Reti, 1931) (First try to solve the study without moving the pieces!)
Continue ReadingTwo similar lines, but only one of them works! White to move and draw (R. Reti, 1931) (First try to solve the study without moving the pieces!)
Continue ReadingCan you find the winning trick? White to move and win (D. Petrov, 1964) (First try to solve the study without moving the pieces!)
Continue ReadingIn similar positions, White draws easily even if his rook is badly placed in front of the pawns, but only if his king is not too far away. Critical position is Minev study from 1986, which we will examine with colors reversed.
Continue ReadingConsidering that in similar position White saves himself by lateral checks, it is easy to conclude that he can draw only if there is enough space on the left side. In position shifted one file to the left, there is no salvation for White. It is concluded by Y. Averbakh 1984. White to move […]
Continue ReadingWhen the white king is behind enemy pawns backed-up by their king, White draws easiest if his king on the opposite flank from his black counterpart. There is no shouldering away motif and he is in time to help the rook fighting enemy pawns. The borderline case showed L. Prokeš in his study published […]
Continue ReadingHowever, if black king was only “one step” closer, White could not realize the idea from previous example. This was also discovered by L. Prokeš in a 1947. study.
Continue ReadingIn similar position with the black king cut-off, pawns on the edge cannot win even against very passive rook. This was discovered by I.Kling and B.Horwitz way back in 1851.
Continue ReadingC ) When White’s king is on c7, he can win even with a rook in front of the pawn because he needs one move less to reach critical square a3.
Continue ReadingB) With king on h5, White to move cannot win since Black gains a tempo attacking the rook.
Continue ReadingSimilar position with rook in front of the pawn is less favorable for White in case both kings are on the same side! That is confirmed by smaller winning area as we can see.
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