White to move and win. No computer please 🙂
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Bishop and Pawn endgame
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White to move and win. No computer please 🙂
f4 a3
e6 Ke6
Be5 a2
B*d4
bc7 and white wins.
Move the e6 pawn..
if black captures the e-white pawn.
move f2-f4 and protect the free e5 squares!
…a3, white occupies the be5
then a2, bd4 and black cannot promote pawn!
if black refuse to capture the e6 and tries to queen at the same time.
… a3
e7 , a2
e8(Queen), a1(Queen)
Qe4+ , Kg5
be7+ , Kh5
Qg6 mate!
Hey Susan I am gonna recycle One of your jokes!
it is kuku time!!!
kuku mon:
isn’t it simpler, Qg6 mate straight away?
1.e6 a3
2.e7 a2
3.e8=Q a1=Q
3.Qg6#
Yay, I think I got this one.
1. e6 de
2. f4 a3
3. Be5 a2
4. Bxd4
Actually this is the same as the first anonymous solution except the move order but I think both ways are ok.
At first I thought 1. f4 didn’t work because of 1… Kxf4, but that loses immediately to 2. e6+.
According to my calculations Be7 and white wins!
The solution is unique.
1. e6 dxe6 2. f4 a3 [or any other move] 3. Be5 a2 4. Bxd4
The first move 1. f4? does not work because of 1 … Ke6! and then the a-pawn is going to become a queen.
8/1p1p2K1/2pB4/2P1Pk2/p1Pp4/3P4/5P2/8 w – – 0 1
yuly: If f4 Ke6 Kg6, the black king gets mated, or should I get a coffee?
I looked at 1.e6 first but then thought I had to play f4 first. Now I can’t tell why anymore, so it probably doesn’t matter.
1.e6 is wrong. The move leads to a draw only:
1.e6? dxe6 2.f4 a3 3.Be5 a2 4.Bxd4 Kxf4 5.Kf6 e5! with a draw, for example 6.Bxe5+ Ke3 7.Ke6 Kxd3 8.Kd7 Kxc4 9.Kd6 Kb4 10.Bg7 Kb5 followed by 11…b6
also wrong is 1.Kf7
1.Kf7? a3 2.Ke7 a2 3.Kxd7 a1Q 4.e6 Qe1 5.e7 Qe6+ 6.Kd8 Qf6 7.Kd7 Qe6+ with a draw because 6.Kc7?? Kg6 7.Kd8 Kf7 8.f4 b6 9.f5 Qf6 10.Kc7 bxc5 11.Bxc5 Ke8 will even lose this
The only way to win, is to follow the recommendation of tfk:
1.Be7! a3
2.Bf6 a2
3.e6! dxe6 (3…a1Q 4.exd7 Qg1+ 5.Kf8 Qg6 6.d8Q Qxf6+ ( 6…Qh6+ 7.Bg7 Qf4 8.Qf6+) 7.Qxf6+ Kxf6 8.Ke8 with an easily won pawn endgame)
4.Bxd4 e5 ( 4…Kg4 5.Kf6)
5.Bb2 Kg4
6.Kf6 Kf3
7.Kxe5 Kxf2
8.d4+-
This one drives me nuts. Everything draws so far.
Susan might be wrong.
But so far on her puzzles she has not been wrong.
Then I get to thinking.
An idea comes to me. Be7
This is the only possible new move. There are no other legal moves left.
So if Susan is right and there is a win for white then it must come from Be7.
I do not know if Be7 is correct or not. But it is an interesting move.
I played it out (with me as White) in one shot against a fellow player (instead of the computer) and here is how our game ended up:
1.Be7 a3
2.Bf6 a2
3.e6 dxe6
4.Bxd4 e5
5.Bb2 e4
6.dxe4+ Kxe4
7.Ke6 Kf3
8.Kd6 Kxf2
9.Kc7 Ke3
10.Kxb7 Kd3
11.Kxc6 Kxc4
12.Kd6 Kb3
13.Bg7 Kc2
14.c6 Kb1
15.c7 a1=Q
16.Bxa1 Kxa1
17.c8=Q Kb2
18.Qc4 Kb1
19.Kc5 Kb2
20.Kb4 Kb1
21.Kb3 Ka1
22.Qc1#
1-0
Nice win for Rook House.
I played it over and feel it was well done. Now if only I could play so well in a real game otb.
I think my rating is going up since reading these blogs and working the problems.
1. Be7 is indeed correct (my first instinct had been Kf7, which only draws). White still tries to give up his e pawn to stop black’s a pawn and with white’s pawn still on f2, black’s king is slowed down enough that he is unable to draw as after 1. f4 or 1. e6. If instead black does not take white’s e pawn and queens his a pawn, he cannot stop white’s pawn and remains a bishop down without any compensation.
1. Be7
(1. f4 a3 (1… Ke6 2. Kg6 a3 3. f5#) 2. e6 dxe6 3. Be5 a2 4. Bxd4 Kxf4 5. Kf6 e5 6. Ba1 Ke3 7. Kxe5 Kxd3 8. Kd6 Kxc4 =)
(1. Kf7 a3 2. Ke7 a2 3. Kxd7 a1=Q 4. e6 Qe1 {22} 5. e7 Qe6+ 6. Kd8
Qf6 7. Kc7 Qg6 8. Kd7 =)
1… a3 2. Bf6 a2 3. e6 a1=Q
(3… dxe6 4. Bxd4 +-)
(3… Kxe6 4. Bxd4 Kf5 5. Kf7 Kf4 6. Ke7 Kf3 7. Kxd7 Ke2 8. f4 Kxd3 9. Ba1 Ke4 10. Kc7 Kxf4 11. Kxb7 Ke4 12. Kxc6 Kd3 13. Kd5 +-)
4. exd7 Qg1+
(4… Qa8 5. d8=Q +-)
5. Kf8 Qg6 6. d8=Q Qxf6+
(6… Qh6+ 7. Bg7 Qf4 8. Qf6+ Kg4 9. Qxf4+ Kxf4 10. Bxd4 +-)
7. Qxf6+ Kxf6 8. Ke8 Ke5 9. Kd7 Kf4 10. Kc7 Kf3 11. Kxb7 Kxf2 12. Kxc6 Ke3 13. Kd5 Kxd3 14. c6 Kc3 15. c7 d3 16. c8=Q d2 17. Qh3+ Kc2 18. Qh2 Kc1 19. Qxd2+ 1-0
Probably I’m wrong but why not play 1. Kh6! if black plays a3 then 2. e6! and now 2. – de6: than 3.Be5, Ke5: 4. Kg5 and 5. f4#.
Or if 2. -, Ke6: than 3. Kg6 and 4. f4 5. f5#.
2. – a2 3. e7, a1Q 4. e8Q should also be won easily. Black’s King ist still in danger of being mated and Qh1+ is no solution because of whites counter check Qh5+ with force of exchange of queens.
I’ve got no board to replay my suggests so perhaps I oversee some defendings for black.
Meanings?
Greetings,
Jochen
@jochen – a very interesting line! but after 1.Kh6 black would play the simple 1…Kg4 and after 2.f4 a3! (of course not 2…Kxf4?? 3.e6+) the position transposes to some draw lines given above.
Greetings
I been thinking back!
Maybe black can win with a defence in Ke4
and protecting the d4 pawn!
the a pawn cannot be stop!
Hey Vohaul,
thanks for answering.
After 1. Kh6, Kg4 I’d also play 2. e6. Now a3 is no good idea, because white mates black king once more just in time.
e6-e7-e8Q-Qh5#.
So black has to play 2.-dxe6 and now again Be5 next to Bxd4 should win.
Am I wrong? Why is this position line (I hope this is the correct word for remis)?
Greetings,
Jochen
@jochen
after
1.Kh6 Kg4
2.f4? the position transposes to a draw line already given… 🙂
but your
1.Kh6 Kg4
2.e6! dxe6
3.Be5 Kf3
4.Bxd4 does also win!
thus: the puzzle has two solutions 1.Kh6 AND 1.Be7
to be honest – your solution Kh6 pleases me much more than mine. all this pawn – mates are fantastic and nice! simply great!
greetings
Hi,
thanks again for your answer! 🙂
I’d like to know where this position comes from – I don’t think, that it’s out of a real game (looks to constructed to me…) but with two solutions it is no study as well….
Perhaps Susan tells us a bit about it and also which solution she was thinking of.
But in either case it was an interesting puzzle and perhaps I’m going to show that to the “Schachjugend” in my club.
Big thanks to you, Susan, for the learning effect.
Greetings,
Jochen