White to move. What should White do? No computer please!
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Halloween Trick or Treat Puzzle
About Author
White to move. What should White do? No computer please!
nh6+,kh8
NXp+, Kf8
Qe5 and forced exchange of queens and added pawn
white has easy won game now
nc3 blocks it and mate ensues…
better yet just take with the queen check, take with knight, and then it will be simple ending
“No computer please!”
Steve Rosenberg visits this blog?
The simple h3 is the best I could come up with.
Nevermind. Doesn’t work.
Isn’t Ba6 a good option?
Ba6 loses to Ne3+ followed by mate
f3 looks good – it protects e4 and black will run out of checks soon, leaving white a piece up
Yeah… I can’t see a refutation for f3 either. Nice puzzle.
Then f3 is probably the only option
I am not sure about runing out of checks soon…. I think it’s draw.
Q:g7+ and after exchange of queens and loosing knight win with extra pawn in B vs. N ending…
Taking at g7 and trying to win the ending up a pawn will be difficult. Black has a q-side majority which will distract white, and if all pawns end up on one side the knight will be better than the bishop.
Instead, the cold-blooded (like Hallowe’en!) f3 looks strong. e.g. … Nc3+, Kf2 Qb2+, Ke3 Nd1+, Kd3 and run the king to a6 and eat black’s pawns. The knight is too far away anymore to cause trouble and the lone queen is not enough.
ok I see black is about to mate so either white has to have check on every move resulting in mate or a way out of his own mate – ouch.
Nh6+
if Kf8…
Qd6+ and mate follows on Qe7 or Qd8
If Kh8 [stubborn of course]
Nh7+ Kg8 [force]
Nh6+
If Kh8 white can draw w/perpetual check.
If Kf8 then again Qd6+ and mate at Qe7 or Qd8
I hope this is right I am tired and did not use computer.
I’m not so sure about f3:
f3, Ne3
Ke2, N:f5
B:f5 (otherwise the bishop gets lost)
… Qd4+
and now I would like to see the white king to get out of the checks, e.g.
Ke2, Qc4+
Ke3, Qc1+
Kd4, Qc5+
Kd3, Q:a3+
computers would not go for the move Qxg7 which loses a knight for a pawn but i think it is simplest. Nh6+ only perp check because king hides at h8.
in endgames with pawns on both sides a bishop owns (pwnz) a knight. so white’s 4-2 majority on kingside and longrange bishop against split blk pawns is decisive.
How about f4…
1.Nh6+ Kh8 2.Nxf7+ Kg8 3.Nh6+ Kh8 4.f3,
[4.f4 Ne3+ 5.Kf2 Qf1+ 6.Kxe3 Qc1+ 7.Kd3 Qxa3+ 8.Kd4 Qc5+ with perpetual check]
[4.h4? Ne3+ 5.Kh2 Nf1+ and black wins;]
[4.Kf1? Nc3#]
4…Ne3+ 5.Kf2 Nf5 6.Nxf5 Losing the bisschop isn’t a problem with the treat of a checkmate on g7.
[6.Bxf5?! this seems to end in a perpetual check indeed 6…Qb2+ 7.Ke3 Qc1+ 8.Kd4 Qc5+]
6…Qb2+ 7.Ke3 Qc3+ 8.Kf4 Qc7+ 9.Kg4 Qxc8 10.Kh3 Qd7
[10…g6? 11.Qe5+ Kg8 12.Qg7#]
11.Qxg7+ Qxg7 12.Nxg7 Kxg7 13.Kg3 and the endgame is easy for white 🙂
MD
whenever you see a 13 move variation formatted according to computer PGN protocol, you know it is computer output and not typed by hand.
whenever it was a computer line given by MD, it must have been “crafty”, because it is wrong…
1.nh6+ kh8
2.nxf7+ kg8
3.nh6+ kh8
4.f3 qd4+(!) – and NOT 4…ne3+…
5.kf1 ( 5.kh1 nf2+ 6.kg1 nxe4+ -+)
5…qd3+
6.ke1 qe3+
7.kxd1 qd3+ with perpetual
I do not have the answer to the puzzle yet, it is anything, but not easy 🙁
1.f3 Ne3+
2.Kf2 Nxf5
3.Bxf5 Qd4+
4.Ke2 Qc4+
5.Ke3 Qc1+
6.Kd4 Qc5+
7.Kd3 Qxa3+
8.Ke2 Qb2+ =
1.Nh6+,Kh8
(if …Kf8;2.Qd6+,Ke8;3.Qd7+,Kf8;4.Qf7#)
2.Nxf7+,Kg8
3.Qe5! and black must exchange queens or be matted, leaving enough material for a confortable winning end game.
As already mentioned this line doesn’t work. 3.. Nc3#
The knight blocks the a1-h8 diagonal so it’s mate..
+1.84 advantage for white with 1. f3
anonymous computer
nh6+ kh8
nxf7+ kg8
h4 +++++
white is a pawn and a piece up winning end game.
@last anonym – oh NO…
1.nh6+ kh8
2.nxf7+ kg8
3.h4?? ne3+
4.kh2 nf1+
and white loses his queen and his knight,too (because 5… nxg3 is check) … black is clearly better then … :))
I would go for the ending after:
1. Qxg7+ Qxg7
2. Nxg7 Kxg7
3. Ba6
Now the Black Knight seems to be trapped…
is kf1 out of the question?
yes – @last anonym – because of
1.kf1?? nc3#
:))
what are you all guys discussing?
the very first comment shows the solution…
@last anonym – are you
a) a moron
b) a troll
c) or analphabetic?
[quote]
nh6+,kh8
NXp+, Kf8
Qe5 and forced exchange of queens and added pawn
white has easy won game now
[/quote]
is simply refuted by:
1.nh6+ kh8
2.nxf7 kg8
3. qe5???
3…. nc3 MATE
learning to read is the first step to achieve masterhood … dear anonym
nh6+ kh8
qe5
Yeah, sure… and Nc3++ 😀
Clearly Black’s threat of Ne3 discovered mate also attacks f1, so White can’t play Ba6 or Qd3 because they don’t protect that square enough. I keep thinking there must be a solution with a bishop check on e6, but White’s Knight is always on f7 when Black’s King is on g8. No solutions thus far, but if there is some sort of forcing continuation that leads to a check on a white-squared diagonal, White’s attack should come first.
1. Qxg7 Qxg7
2. Nxg7 Kxg7
3. Bd7 Nc3
4. f3 +-
or
3… Nb2
4.Bb5 +-
Could you Susan just give the solution, please ? 😉
It seems there is no other line that choosing a winner endgame (no other tactical tricks available) because the discovered check by the black Knight at d1 is very powerfull.
So… I will go for:
1.Qxg7+ Qxg7
2.Nxg7 Kxg7
having now a 4:2 pawn advantage and mobile majority on the kingside we have to look to reposition Bishop back to play and blockade black´s queenside majority for a while:
3.Ba6
with the plan:
4.f4 then 5.Kf1 and King goes to d4 with a great endgame position.
The variation starting with 1.f3 is out of my analysis because to probe that a King journey to Ka6 and taking the a7 and b6 pawns is possible…hmmmm very difficut for me. Maybe intuition comes in hand… but intuition comes when “she” wants…
well, my pick is Qg7 I wouldn’t call it +-, but white does have a good chance
1. f3 Be3 2 Kf2 Nxf5 3 ef (or 3.Qb8 with a perpetual) Qb2 4. Ke3 Qc3 5. Ke4 Qc4 (4… Qxc8 5. f6!) with a perpetual: 5. Kf4 Qd4 6. Kg5 h6#
anothe option is 1. Nh6 Kh8 (1… Kf8 2. Qd6 +-) 2. Nxf7+ Kg6 3. f3, which also give white a better endgame
I have a variation which was not mentioned before:
1. Nh6+ Kh8
2. Nxf7+ Kg8
3. Nh6+ Kh8
4. h3
And now black is in trouble. White’s threatening Be6 followed by Qb8. The white king has the h2 square.
I do not see how to defend as black.
“I have a variation which was not mentioned before:
1. Nh6+ Kh8
2. Nxf7+ Kg8
3. Nh6+ Kh8
4. h3
And now black is in trouble. White’s threatening Be6 followed by Qb8. The white king has the h2 square.
I do not see how to defend as black.”
4. … Ne3+
5.Kh2 Kf1+
and white loose his Queen.
The correct answer is Qxg7.
playing f3 results in a draw.
playing Nh6 results in draw also.
1.Nh6+ (bad to play Kf8 getting mated) Kh8. (2.f3 here leads to a draw after Ne3+) 2.Nxf7+ Kg8+ 3.Nh6+ (Kf8?? mated again) Kh8. white gets draw by rep.
1.f3 Ne3 2.Kf2 Nxf5 3.Bxf5 Qd4+ 4.Ke2 Qb2+ 5.Ke3 Qc1 6.Kd4 Qc5
The king will never get out of check.
1.Qxg7 Qxg7 2.Nxg7 Kxg7. White should be better. extra pawn also