White to move. How should white proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
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Difficult real game tactic
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White to move. How should white proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
1. Rg3
if 1… Qe7 2. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Re7 2. Rh2, Qh2 3. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Qh1 2. Kf2 Qh2 3. Rg2 Qh4
4. Kg1
1. Rg3
if 1… Qe7 2. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Re7 2. Rh2, Qh2 3. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Qh1 2. Kf2 Qh2 3. Rg2 Qh4
4. Kg1
1. Rg3
if 1… Qe7 2. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Re7 2. Rh2, Qh2 3. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Qh1 2. Kf2 Qh2 3. Rg2 Qh4
4. Kg1
1. Rg3
if 1… Qe7 2. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Re7 2. Rh2, Qh2 3. Qh6 and Qf6
if 1… Qh1 2. Kf2 Qh2 3. Rg2 Qh4
4. Kg1
You probably mixed up this easy one with the difficult one!
1. Kd1
Kf1 is the only other legal king move and it allows …Qh3+
After that if black moves 1. …Qe7 to defend then checkmate is
2. Qxh5+ Qh7
3. Qxh7+ Kxh7
4. Rh2#
If black plays 1. …Rg8 Then white plays 2. Qh6#
If black tries to check white after 1. Kd1 with either knight or queen, white can easily capture and go forward with mate.
Any other moves from black and white can play 2. Qg7#
Have I missed anything?
White would love to have a move where he isn’t under check since he has a forced win of black’s queen for a rook. So, how should he deal with the queen check he is facing at the moment? There are several moves available, but the simplest looking to me is to block the check with Rf2 since this prevents any knight checks on the next move, leaves open the option of Rg5 (why you don’t block with Rg3), and most importantly, allows a subsequent Rf1 to block a check from h1:
1. Rf2 Re7
Is there another defense? Everything else looks like mate to me since white has two mating moves- Qg7 and Qh6. If black tries 1. …Qe7, white still plays Qh6, but then follows with Qf6 to eventually mate with Qg7. Continuing:
2. Rg5
This move has two purposes- threatens Rh5 winning, and it blocks black queen’s eye to f6 so that black cannot protect h5 with Rh7. The best attempt at a defense I see is to try for the perpetual starting with Qh1:
2. …..Qh1
3. Rf1! Qh4 (Re3 worse)
4. Kd1! Nc3 (Nb2 5.Bb2 wins)
5. Kc2 Nd4
If Qh2, white just takes at c3 and the bishop guards d2. Also, if Na1, white again captures at c3 to win the tempo he needs. Probably best is to just take at g5 immediately, but that concedes immediately:
6. ed4
Kc3 wins, too, but I am pretty sure white need not worry about Re2 since he can just take at c3 with impunity. I don’t see how black can prevent the mate without giving up the queen.
The difficulty is finding the exact right first move for white, who is in check by the way. A number of lines look like they can transpose to the correct one, but not all, I think.
Ted, if you are so smart, tell us the winning line, or do you ignore being in check 🙂