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Playing this over the board, I would definitely play Ra7, and that was my first thought here, too. However, as I got into that line, it soon became apparent that g5 was a key move in most of the lines I looked at, and once I saw this, I realized that g5 can be played immediately, and is deadly to black:
1. g5!
The idea is to play Kg7 and march the f-pawn forward, but white must first close off the g-file by either advancing the g-pawn to g6 so that the king can guard it from g7, or force black to block his rook’s eyes on g7 from g2 by putting a black pawn on the file. If white tries 1.Kg7 immediately, black plays Rg2 and will force the white king back to f6. Continuing:
1. …..hg5 (h5 2.g6 Rg2 3.g7+-)
2. Kg7 Kd8
There is no defense, though white would need to choose carefully in some of the lines to avoid the draw. Black can’t advance the pawns fast enough for counterplay since white will play f7 with check. Eventually black has to give up the rook, and white’s rook has time to get back and defend the first rank- for example: [2. …g4 3.f6 Rf2 (or 3. …g3 4.f7 Kd8 5.f8Q) 4.f7 Rf7 5.Rf7 g3 6.Kf6! (6.Rf1?! Kd7 7.Rg1?! Kc6 8.Rg3? Kb5 with a likely draw) 6. …g2 7.Rg7 Kd8 8.Ke6 g1Q 9.Rg1 Kc7 10.Kd5+-]. Also, 2. …Re7 loses quickly to 3.Rxe7 Ke7 4.f6+. Continuing from move 2 above:
3. f6 g4
4. f7 Rf2
5. f8Q Rf8
6. Kf8 g3
7. Rg7 g2
8. Rg2 Kc7
9. Rg6
White wins, too, by just playing Ke7 here- black doesn’t have time to advance the pawn and the king at the same time before the white king closes the distance. Continuing:
9. …..a4 (Kb7 10.Ke7 wins)
10.Ra6 wins easily.
1. g5 hxg5
2. Kg7 Rf2
3. f6 g4
4. f7+ Kd8
5. f8(Q)Rxf8
6. Kxf8
1.g5 hxg5
2.Kg7 Rc2
3.gxh6 Rc6+
4.Kg7 Rc1
5.h7 Rg1+
6.Kf6 Rh1
7.h8:d+ Rxh8
8.Rb8+
1.g5 hxg5 2.Kg7 Kd8 3.f6 g4
4.f7 Kc8 5.Ra7 Rf2 6.f8=Q Rxf8
7.Kxf8 g3 8.Rxa5 Kd7 9.Kf7 Kd6
wow very hard problem Gord.B
g5 hxg5 and Kg7, f6…f8.
Kg7 is a logical idea, but black’s plan is Rg2 and Rxg4 giving black rook maximal activity to disturb f-pawn’s advancement. How to meet that plan?
I like the pawn sack to get a black pawn to hide behind:
1. g5!! hxg5 (seems enforced)
2. Kg7
and I simply can’t see how black stops the f-pawn from advancing now.
2. … g4 (only idea)
3. f6 Rf2 (g3? f7+ gives queen)
4. Rb8+! Kd7
5. f7 g3
6. f8=Q Rxf8
7. Kxf8 g2
8. Rb1 a4
9. Rg1 a3
10. Rxg2
1 – 0
1 g5 hxg5
2 Kg7 Rf2
3 f8
Followed by f7+, winning…
1. g5 hxg5
on other moves the g-pawn will walk through.
2. Kg7
and now the f-pawn will walk through. no way black can stop that.
greets, jan