8/1p6/p1k1p3/2P2pp1/1PK3P1/P3P3/8/8 w – – 0 0
This endgame brilliancy was sent in by young Eve Zhurbinskiy. She is White and Samuel Chatsky is Black.
It is White to move. How do you assess the position? How should White proceed? This is a very good endgame to study from.
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
White has to lose.
White should win this.
One approach is to position pawns on b5 and c5, poised to force a promotion, with another pawn on e4 protecting their flank, while the White king enters Black’s position on the king side.
Here’s a line:
1. a4 fxg4
2. b5+ Kc7
3. Kd3 g3
4. Ke2 g4
5. Kf1 axb5
6. axb5 Kd7
7. Kg2
Now White will get the g pawns and work against the e pawn, forcing Black to keep an eye on the b and c pawns. Playing e4 in response to … e5 protects the b and c pawns.
jcheyne
Very interresting ending, i think black have to keep the Q-side open..
What happens after:
1.a4 b6!??
2.b5+ axb5+
3.axb5+ Kc7
It doesn’t look easy to win for white, i think i’d rather take black here..Or i’m totaly wrong hehehe 🙂
-Crik
After
1. a4 b6
2. b5+ axb5+
3. axb5+ Kc7
I think I’d play 4. c6. I don’t see how Black protects the e, f, & g pawns from White’s king while also preventing White’s c pawn from promoting.
jcheyne
I agree that 1.a4! with the idea of creatinng a passed pawn on the queen side while marching the king toward the king side and fetch black’s pawn. I don’t see how can prevent this from happening.
let’s say,
1. a4 fxg4
2.b5+ kc7
3.kd3 e5
4. e4! (not 4.ke2 e4! 5.kf2 kd7
6.Kg2 axb 7. axb ke6 and black wins)
and black king has no option but to wait and watch white’s king grab everything.
Well done Jcheyne and Henryk!
I have not succeeded solving. I have found nice lines that in some cases only work. But an overall solution I failed to find.
Just to give you a notion of the amount of work and brain energy I have “wasted” on this, I am going to paste all of the lines I checked . Have fun going through this 🙂
1. gxf5!
( 1. a4 fxg4 ( 1… f4 2. b5+ axb5+ 3. axb5+ Kc7 4. exf4 gxf4 5. Kd4 e5+ 6. Ke4
White wins ) 2. Kd3 ( 2. b5+ Kc7 3. Kd3 g3 4. Ke2 g4 5. Kf1 axb5 6. axb5 Kd7 7.
Kg2 Kc7 8. Kxg3 Kd7 9. Kxg4 Kc7 10. Kf4 Kd7 11. Ke5 Ke7 12. c6 bxc6 13. b6 (
13. bxc6 Kd8 14. Kd6 e5 15. e4 Kc8 16. c7 Kb7 17. Kd7
White wins ) 13… Kd7 14. e4 Kc8 15. Kxe6 Kb7 16. Kd7 c5 17. e5 c4 18. e6 c3
19. e7 c2 20. e8=Q c1=Q 21. Qe4+ Kb8 ( 21… Ka6 22. Qa4+ Kb7 ( 22… Kxb6 ) )
( 21… Kxb6
= ) 22. Qe5+ Kb7 23. Qd5+ Kb8 24. Qd6+ Kb7
white wins ) 2… g3 3. Ke2 Kd5 4. a5 Kc4 5. Kf3 Kxb4 6. Kxg3 Kxa5
Black wins )
( 1. e4 f4 2. Kd4 ( 2. Kd3 e5 3. a4 b5 4. axb5+ axb5 5. Ke2 Kd7
Draw ) 2… e5+ 3. Kd3 Kb5
Black wins )
1… g4!
( 1… exf5 2. Kd4 f4 3. e4 g4 4. Kd3 g3 ( 4… Kd7 5. a4 Ke6 6. a5 Ke5 ( 6…
Kd7 7. e5 Ke6 8. b5 axb5 ( 8… Kd7 9. c6+ bxc6 ( 9… Kc7 10. cxb7 Kxb7 11.
bxa6+
White wins ) 10. bxa6 Kc7 11. e6
White wins ) 9. c6 bxc6 10. a6
White wins ) 7. b5 axb5 8. c6 bxc6 9. a6
White wins ) 5. Ke2 Kd7 6. a4 Kc6 7. a5 Kb5 8. e5 Kc6 9. e6 Kc7 10. e7 Kd7 11.
b5 axb5 12. c6+ bxc6 13. a6
White wins )
2. Kd3
( 2. fxe6 g3 3. e7 Kd7
Black wins )
( 2. f6 Kd7 3. Kd3 ( 3. e4 e5 4. Kd5 g3 5. Kxe5 g2
Black wins ) 3… e5 4. Ke2 Ke6 5. f7 Kxf7 6. a4 Ke6 7. Kf2 Kd5 8. Kg3 Ke4 9.
Kxg4 Kxe3 10. a5 Kd4 11. b5 Kxc5
Black wins )
( 2. e4 g3 3. f6 Kd7
Black wins )
2… g3
( 2… exf5! 3. a4 ( 3. Ke2 Kb5 4. e4 fxe4 5. Kf2 Ka4 6. Kg3 Kxa3 7. Kxg4 Kxb4
8. Kf4 Kxc5 9. Kxe4
Black wins ) ( 3. e4! g3 4. Ke3 g2 ( 4… fxe4 5. Ke2 g2 6. Kf2
Black wins ) 5. Kf2 g1=Q+ 6. Kxg1 fxe4 7. Kf2 Kd5 8. Ke3 Kc4 9. Kxe4 Kb3 10.
Kd5 ( 10. Kd3 Kxa3 11. Kc3 Ka4 12. Kc4 Ka3 13. b5 axb5+ 14. Kxb5 Kb3 15. Kb6 (
15. Ka5 Kc4 16. Kb6 Kb4
= ) ) 10… Kxa3 11. Kc4 Ka4
= ) 3… Kd5 4. a5 g3 5. Ke2 Kc4
Black wins )
3. Ke2 g2
4. Kf2 g1=Q+
5. Kxg1 exf5
6. Kf2 Kd5
( 6… b6 7. cxb6 Kxb6 8. Kf3 Kb5 9. Kf4 Ka4 10. Kxf5 Kxa3 11. e4 Kxb4 12. e5
White wins )
7. Kf3 Ke5
8. a4 Kd5
9. Kf4 Kc4
10. Kxf5
White wins
after
1.a4 Kd7!
white has nothing …
e.g.
2.b5 Kd8!
3.Kd3 (what else? 3.bxa6 will lose as well as 3.e4)
3… a5 and the game is drawn
thats’s my assessment: Draw
Greetings!
Gosh,Egaion, you really went overboard on this 🙂
Considering you’re first line(I only had time evaluating this line, though):
1.gxf5 exf5
2.b5+ black doesn’t really have to take with axb5 but simply plays 2…kc7! The point is that now white can’t play 3. b6 or 3. axb6 since
3. b6 kc6 and black wins since white has to take care of black g pawn and it will leave his c-pawn hanging.
and if,
3.axb bxa and the same thing happens since white’s c-pawn is lost and black then is able to play g4 later on where black has to stand on guard since he can’t take the black f-pawn without letting black’s g-pawn from promoting.
Another line that white could try on your 1.gxf5 line could be:
1.gxf5 fxg
2.b5+ Kc7
3.a4 g4
4.kd3 but then black simply plays axb!
5.axb kd7
6. e4 (forced ’cause then black just plays ke6,kd5 and white b,c pawns fall) g3
7.ke3(or ke2) fxe4 and white is in stalemate
8. ke2(or ke3) Ke6
9. kf1 (forced since 9.c6 bxc 10.b6 ke7 and black gets to b8 on time) e3!
And white loses since any king move would let either the e or g pawn queen so white is forced to play either 10.b6 or c6, either of them losing too.
to vohaul, in your line:
1.a4 kd7
2.b5 kd8
white plays
2.e4! (this move is important since it controls the d5 square later on)
2…… fxg
3.kd3 and white wins just march his king to the g-file and takes both pawns where black sit there and watch
if 2……ke7
3.exf gxf
4, kf6 and c6! wins
or
4……g5
5. kd3 and white reach the g1 square on time.
BTW, Egaion, in your other main line, there is a simpler win for white.
1.gxf g4
2.f6! kd7 (not 2….g3 3.f7 g2 4.f8(Q) g1(Q) 5. Qd6 # or Qc8#)
3.kd3 and white wins.
@henryk – complete nonsense! 🙂
1.a4 Kd7!
2.e4?? fxg
3.Kd3 Kc6 -+ black is completely winning
1.a4 Kd7
2.b5 is the only move to fish in muddy waters …
2… Kd8! clears it all!
3.e4? f4! and black is completley winning
It is a draw! There is no winning solution for white … No way out! 🙂
Greetings
btw – @henryk again you may have overseen the fact, that in my line black bewares to play fxg …
To vohaul:
Well, after a4 and b5 black have his king in d7..
White palys Kd4. If black takes on g4, white can still go with Kd3 infont of the two g pawn and win.
If black plays another king move, then g:f5 e:f5, Ke5 g4, Kf4 followed by e4… Then both f and g pawns of black are captured…
In the mean time, black king cannot leave the control of a possible c-passed pawn.
i think black has a winning situation here!
jb.
I don’t think it’s so simple.
The only chance I see for black is something along the following lines: 1.a4 b6!? (1.-Kd7?! 2.b5 followed by 3.Kd4) 2.cb6 Kb6 3.Kd4
Kc6 4.gf5 ef5 5.Ke5 g4 6.Kf4 Kd5
followed by Kc5. Or 4.Ke5 fg4 5.Ke4e5 6.Kd3 Kd5 etc.
Or 2.b5+ ab5 3.ab5+ Kc7 4.c6 Kd6 and I don’t see how white can make progress (5.Kd4 e5+, or 5.Kc3 Kc7
6.Kd4 Kd6).
thor
Correction:
1.a4 b6!? 2.cb6 Kb6 3.Kd4
Kc6 4.gf5 ef5 5.Ke5 g4 6.Kf4 Kd5
followed by Kc4. Or 4.Ke5 fg4 5.Ke4e5 6.Kd3 g3 (not 6.-Kd5? 7.e4+)
7.Ke2 Kd5 followed by Kc4
thor
This is a draw:
1.a4! Kd7! 2.b5 Kc7! Black should play passive to hold the position.
3.Kd3 Kc8 4.Ke2 Kd8 and so on.
@ vohaul
in your line you said that:
1.a4 kd7
2. b5 kd8
an you claim that white has nothing.
I happen to disagree with you in here.
2.kd3 kd7
3.ke2 kd8
4.kf3 kd7
5.gxf! exf
6.e4 f4 (forced)
7.e5 and black can’t stop white from playing 8.c6 bxc6 b6 where black can’t stop both e and b pawn from promoting.
check the line and you will see.
The idea proposed by henryk looks great, and also applies to the 1.a4 b6 line:
2.b5+ ab5 3.ab5+ Kc7 4.c6 Kd6 5.Kd3 Kc7 6.Ke2 Kd6 7.Kf3 Kc7 7.gf5 ef5
8.e4 f4 9.e5 Kd8 10.e6 winning.
If instead 8.-fe4 (hoping for a stalemate thanks to white’s c pawn), white would clear off the k’side pawns, move his king to e6, and eventually play 1.c7.
So, my assessment is back to +-
thor
And once again I change my mind to =.
1.a4 Kd7 2.b5 ab5 3.ab5 Kd8 4.Kd3 Kd7 5.Ke2 Kd8 6.Kf3 Kd7 7.gf5 ef5 8.e4 fe4 (not f4??) 9.Ke4 Ke6=
Similarly 3.Kd4 Kd8 4.Ke5 fg4
5.Ke4 e5 6.Kd3 g3 (not giving white time to play e4) 7.Ke2 e4 8.Kf2 Kd7 =
@henryk – i’m a little confused by your line … is it
3.kd3 (after 2.b5) or is it 2.kd3 ?
1.a4 kd7!
2.kd3 kc6 =
with draw
1.a4 kd7!
2.b5 kd8
3.kd3 a5!
and there is nothing for white!
e.g.
4.ke2 kc7
5.e4 f4 =
greetings – there is NO win for white … 🙂
@petros – very nice idea with 3.kd4 and a good practical approach but black won’t play e.g. 3…e5+?? (with a loss) but simply 3…kd7 instead
e.g.
4.gxf5 exf5
5.ke5 g4
6.kf4 axb5
7.axb5 ke6 =
greetings