Should White play for win or draw? How should White proceed? This was an actual game that took place not long ago between 2 world-class GMs.
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Decision! Decision! Decision!
About Author
hmm does Rxg6+ work? Follow it with Nh6+ and Q#?
I looked a little deeper into my plan and found black can block the queen check with the rook. So after another look at it I found Ne7+! This forks the rook and king. Black I suppose could take with the queen but that leads to Rxg6+ and the black queen is a goner.
ne7+ kg7
nxr qxr a tie
1.Ne7+! Qxe7 2.Rxg6+ or 1… Kh8 or 1… Kg7 when White wins the Exchange with 2.Nxc8.
1.Ne7+ Kh8
2.NxR fails to
2… Nf3+ forking K and Q (If 3.RxN QxQ)
ne7+ kg7
qe5 wins with rg6+
if kh8
qe5 nc4
qc3 and discovery is deadly
Which game was this. I remember watching it live, but can’t remember who or where.
I examined Nh6+, Nd7+, Qh6, Rd6, Rxg6+ but didn’t see any forced wins, and White would have a hard time extricating his pieces from this position. I would go for the draw: 1.Nh6+ Kg7 2.Nf5+ Kh7… draw by repetition. If 1…Kh8 White wins with 2.Qxe5.
1.Nd7+ Qxd7 2.Rxg6 hxg6 3.Qxd7 wins, but can be refuted: 1…Kh7 2.Nxc7 Nf3+. 1.Rxg6+ fxg6 2.Nh6+ Kh8 3.Qxe5+ Qf6 also loses.
Tough position. I made some mistakes:
After 1.Nh6+ Kg7 2.Nf5+ Black won’t play 2…Kg8 (draw) but 2…Kh8 (black wins).
After 1.Ne7+ Kg6 White doesn’t play 2.Nxc7 Nf3+ (black wins), but 2.Qxe5 (White wins).
I was correct in at least one line: 1.Rxg6+ fxg6 2.Nh6+ Kh8 3.Qxe5+ Qf6 (black wins).
OK for 1.Ne7+, all the other White moves lose.
But after it’s still unclear: 1…Kh8! and after 2.Qxe5 Qc7! (2.Rf4!? f5!) White is forced to play 3.Qd4 Qc3! 4.QxQ RxQ.
So White can’t lose that, but the win could still be difficult…
Oh I just forgot: if 3.R+ f6!