The management from Chessville.com just sent me an interesting tidbid about this endgame. Most players actually have never faced this type of endgame in a rated game.
This is just a random B & N vs. K endgame. Can you checkmate within 50 moves without computer assistance? Have you ever had this type of endgame in an OTB game?
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
I couldn’t win this for love or money.
I read about the methods, but I never tried to memorize it, so I think I’m not capable to win it… unless it would be in 500 moves! 🙂
I’d be doubtful on my ability to do it reliably in under 50 moves.
I know the basic idea, and when you have to let the king off the side chasing to the right colored corner, but it comes up so rarely it is hardly worth practicing.
I’ve won KNN v KP several times, but only showing folk it can be done, and that was before the current strict 50 move rule.
I’ve been trying to practice this lomd of ending for about a week now in an attempt to improve my tactical and endgame skills. Haven’t done it in 50 moves yet.
Last year, André Viela (+- 2100) became Portugal U-18 National Champion after winning, in the final game of the final match, a Bishop and Knight vs King endgame.
It is a great way to win a decisive game. And that’s way i’m probably not ready for such big wins =D
I have seen this come up twice: once in a tournament and once in a simul against an IM.
Over 40 yrs ago I saw, as a young teen, what Tarrasch’s explanation about this ending and it’s never left. There are so many ideas to be learned and strengthened from it, although the ending itself has never popped up except in quick chess or blitz. I did steer a few opponents into the stronger side knowing that they would most likely fail with just a minute or two or three remaining.
I never encountered it in a game, but I learned how and practiced it against Fritz over and over; once you get the hang of it, it’s relatively easy, and is usually done in about 30 moves or so from any initial position. It’s also useful practice, because you learn the delicate art of coordinating the Knight and the Bishop. As opposed to, say, two Rooks against a King, or even one Rook, you have no “overkill” power here and have to make the best of your two minor pieces; every important square has to be defended at the right time by the right piece. But it’s great fun.
Here is a link with a nice explanation. It’s in French though:
http://www.fqechecs.qc.ca/index.php?typ=actu&type=5
Susan, I once had to win this endgame and made it in 44 moves! I am glad I read Capablanca’s books where he made us learn how to perform this checkmate. I was playing a master, I was an expert and he made me earn the point! I actually got applause when I succeeded from the onlookers.
To me the greatest World Champions of all time are Capablanca, Fischer and if I may so bold Morphy!
meuller’s endgame DVD shows one how to do this somewhat effortlessly using the “W” manuever. I took it on as a challenge and now can do it without much thought. The true value though is not actually doing this in a real game, but to get the practice coordinating B and N together.
I’ve practiced this ending a lot. Keeping it under 50 moves is doable (otherwise, the 50-move rule would be silly), but there are critical moments where improvising is not advisable. There are 4 basic phases: coordinate your forces, press the opposing king to the side, escort it to the corner opposite the bishop color, and then shoot it over to the same color corner for mate.
I’ve never encountered it in over-the-board play, but I seldom play over-the-board games.
Yes,
30 years ago, weeks after studying this endgame, I had the game against an older player who made me prove it. Good thing I remembered to chase the king to a corner of the same thing as the bishop.
A week after I learned B-K checkmate, I played it in an ICC game and won. Never seen it since.
When I play it quickly, I usally mate CM 8000 in 28 or 29 moves.
If you try it a couple of times it will be absorbed into your conciousness… There are a couple of ways for your opponent to escape from your W-maneuver with your knight, but when you know how to tackle that it’s easier than you think.
I used to play a lot of chess some 25 years ago. At the time I had the book’ ‘Chess Training by Nigel Povah’. In the book he gives two methods of forcing mate, one being the quickest and the other being the easiest pattern to remember. I practised the easy version until I was confident of being able to deliver mate, even with only a couple of minutes remaining.
I never once needed to use my bishop and knight mating skills (and I really wanted to do it in a serious game just once), but sods law dictates that had I not mastered it, it probably would have come up.
My friend can attest to the fact that I mated him from here in 22 seconds. We spent a week trying to get our time down, putting the pieces in the corners and the black king in the center. Once you force the position with the black king in the wrong corner, N a knight move away (checking) and K two squares diagonally from the corner it is mate in about 20 by force. I can do it in 7 seconds from there. I have little respect for masters that can’t do this. There is less theory to memorize than any sub sub sub opening variation they probably know.
I can do it with around 30 secs on the clock I think, but I have never once had to use it in a game, standard, blitz or bullet.
Never had it in a game, but can mate easily enough thanks to Mueller’s endgame DVD which showed me the way. And let me second Eric’s comments about it being worthwhile to learn not because of the mate itself, but because you learn how to coordinate the B and the N. That alone is enough of a reason to learn how to mate with B and N.
–Daniel J. Andrews
I am maybe a 1500 player. Dont know because I have never been rated.
But this endgame I could blitz. I will need 30-40 moves.
The first to do here is to get your own king into the center. It cant be stoped really because of the bishop. Then with your king in the center its time to move the bishop to your king. (Mostly I will let the king and bishop work close together to captur the center, but maybe not in this game.
From there you start the slowly prossess to move the enemy king off the center and into a corner. Any corner, but it can only be checkmated in 2 of them, but in the wrong corners you will be able to reorganise your pices.
I have ended up with this endgames some times, but that wasnt real because I had better ways to win the game.
I “play” it alot against myself when I am bored
This brings back some memories! I saw this in one of my first tournaments in 1970, when I was still unrated. I watched as a 1700 player failed to carry out the mate. I was so shocked by this that I went home and practiced the ending relentlessy until I was sure I knew it. But then it never came up…
Fast forward 37 years! In 1997 I reached this position:
White – Ke3, Nc4, Ba6
Black – Kd7, p’s f6,g7,h7.
I had six minutes on my clock (plus the five second delay) and had to win the pawns first and THEN do the mate. Happy ending (pardon the expression) though: I won the pawns in 17 moves and then carried out the mate (learned so long ago) in another 20 moves.
Anonymous Tuesday, January 29, 20087:24:00 PM CST here. Oops, that’s 27 years later, not 37. Math was never my strong subject …
Heh, heh. Reminds me of an old fantasy short story I read once. A student calls up a demon to help him with his geometry homework. The demon appears and the student begins,”I’ve never been very good at geometry.” “I’ll say!”, the demon responds, as it comes for him over the lines of the useless hexagram he’s drawn.
I actually know how to win a knight and bishop ending thanks to a Capa book (another blogger just mentioned)…I just beat my brother 2 days ago in one!…it took me 46 moves! I know the patten and can mate within 30 seconds if timed 🙂
Rated 1700 I can do it, but only if I have like 30 minutes left; but it is a somewhat useless knowledge since it never happens to me.