Black to move. Can Black win? 
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Evaluating and calculating a difficult endgame
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Black to move. Can Black win?
Win for black?
Could it be?
1… c2
2. Kxb4 Ke2
(if 2… c1Q then 3.Nb3+!)
3. Kc3 Kxf3
4. Kxc2 Kg4
5. Nd4 preventing the pawn advance
5… Kg5 bringing the second pawn into the mix forcing a win
J
hello J – your line contains a serious miscue:
as an answer to 3.Kc3 black could simply promote the pawn with 3… c1Q to win the game!
correct should be instead
3.Nb3 Kxf3
4.Kc3! (But NOT 4.Nd4+?? Ke4,5.Nxc2 f3 and the pawn promotes – indeed a win for black…)
and now 4…Ke3!
the only move to save a draw for black (e.g. 4…Kg2;5.Kxc2 f3, 6.Nd2 f2, 7.Kc3! +- … and the white king will be able to support the promotion of the pawn on a7).
5.Kxc2 f3
6.Nd2 f2
7.Kc3 Ke2 (the white king is tied to the defense of the knight and can not move up to support the pawn’s promotion – unfortunately the trick 8.Ne4 Ke3 [of course not 8…f1Q?? Ng3+ with a win for white], 9.Nxf2!? Kxf2, … fails due to a funny stalemate after the king’s race to 14.Kxa8 Kc7)
thus, me (in the first hour of evaluation and analysis) and my Fritz! (in a second hour of evaluation and analysis – i try to make some chess progress by using chess software :)) came to the conclusion, that the given position is a draw – best play for both sides assumed.
greetings to all
computer cannot see win for black
below is one of the variants (draw)
i guess computer is missing something 🙂
(engine used – rybka mp on dual opteron)
[FEN “n7/P5p1/6P1/2N5/1p3p2/1Kp2P2/3k4/8 b – – 0 0”]
[PlyCount “36”]
1… c2 2. Kxb4 Ke3 3. Nb3 Kxf3 4. Kc3 Ke4 5. Kxc2 Kf5 6. Kd3 Kxg6 7.
Ke4 Kg5 8. Kd5 Kf5 9. Kc6 Ke5 10. Kb7 Kd6 11. Nd4 Kd7 12. Nc6 Kd6 13. Na5 Kd7 14. Nc4 Nc7 15. Ne5+ Kd6 16. Nf7+ Kd7 17. Ng5 Na8 18. Kb8 Nb6 19. Nf3 =
hi! what about…
1…c2
2.Kxb4 Cc7
3.Cb3+ Ke3
4.Kc5 Kxf3
5.Kc6 Ca8
6.Kb7 Ke3
7.Kxa8 f3
8.Kb7 f2
9.a8-D f1-D
???
@susan: i know you are a very very busy person – and not anybody can be at several places at the same time … but sometimes the puzzles – and i like them very much! – on your bloggin’ site – especially the posted “solutions” – need sometimes professional commentaryd – not all bloggers use chess software – thus, not all solutions are “software made” – and a lot of solutions – in my opinion – are out of correctness – especially endgame studies … please please find a way to comment the solutions – not on seven move mate tasks – the results can always be reproduced by software – but on e.g. evaluation tasks!
to me and other non professional fans, enthusiasts, chess maniacs (no kids, no girls, no boys – but the elderly) it would be
1) a pleasure
2) a help
3) an honour
4) a great gesture
5) a stimulus
6) and at least – a chance to improve without an expensive coach …
sincerly, your Vohaul