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..Qg7! (immune because of Rxf1#)
and Rxf6 will follow since white has to meet the mate threat at g2
1…Qg7! 0-1
There seem to me to be only 3 possibilities which avoid getting mated. Don’t have a board in front of me to play around with, so this is what I think just staring at the position.
The first is RxB, which looks great, because it displaces the white rook if he recaptures — except that the queen protects against a back rank mate on d1. That would have been perfect if not for the square being covered.
The second is sacking the Bish with Bxg2+, exposing the white king, but I don’t see the follow-up afterward.
The third is Qd3, protecting against Qb6+ which would be mate otherwise, while attacking the rook. This attacks and defends while gaining a tempo, and since I can’t see the tactics through on the other two moves, which involve sacrifices, I’d play this move intuitively.
Qg7
Both sides are threatening mates. Obviously the white bishop can’t move while black has to guard for Qg4.
I don’t think Qc6 works.
Qc6 Qg4+ Kf7 (Kh7 Qf5#) Bh4+ Ke8 Gg6#
Never mond I just saw Qg# right away if black leaves the 7th rank 🙂
That gives the the hint. How about Qg7 double attack on the bishop and the g2 pawn. There’s no defense that doesn’t at least lose the bishop
D7 to D2, D2 to G2
White has an attack going (2. Qg6+ is a strong threat) but has a weak back rank. I looked at 1. … Rf6 for a while before realizing that the White queen covers d1 so 2. … Qd1# is not a threat.
Then I saw that the Bf6 is pinned against the Rf1. This suggests 1. … Qg7, covering g6, attacking the Bf6 for a second time, and most importantely threatening 2. … Qxg2#.
White has various ways to stop the mate (2. Qe2, 2. Qh3, 2. Rf2, 2. Rf3, 2. Rg1) but they all allow Rxf6. In some variations White gets the check 3. Qe8+ but then the attack dries up.
Qg7! 0-1
Qg7
Qg7 and it’s all over for white
Qg7 threatening taking the white bishop and mating.
Putting the valuable queen in apparent danger isn’t easy to imagine.
1 … Qg7 if 2. BxQ, RxR#
if 2. Qe2, RxB
1….d7-d2 leads to 2.Qg6#
From Spain…
1)…,Qg7! +-
1)…,Qg7
2)Qe2,Rf6 +-
1)…,Qg7
2)Bg7,Rf1++
Greetings from Spain.
Qd7-g7.
Have to act quickly because of White’s threat of Qg6+, leading to checkmate. No time for moves like 1…. Qc6. However, it looks very drawish after
1…. Bxg2+
2. Kxg2 Qc6+
3. Kh3 Rxf6
4. Rxf6 Qxf6
5. Qg4+ Kh7
6. Qe4+ Kg7
7. Qg4+ Kh8
8. Qc8+
There’s has to be some way to bring in the back-rank mate idea for Black, but 1…. Rxf6? is no good, since the White queen covers the d1 square. (Otherwise, Black could
checkmate White, after 2. Rxf6 with 2….. Qd1#.)
OK. There is a way to combine the back-rank mate idea, AND defend against Qg6+ and Qxh6, AND threaten mate on g2. Black can play 1…. Qg7, because the White bishop is pinned due to the back-rank mate on f1.
So:
1…. Qg7
And there is no way to defend against the 2 threats:
2….. Qxg2#
2…. Rxf6
It looks like the best White can do is:
2. Qe2 Rxf6
3. Rxf6 Qxf6
4. Qxc4+ Kf8
and Black should win.
I like 1 … Qg7, threatening 2 … Rxf6 and 2 … Qxg2#. 2 Bxg7 is met by 2 … Rxf1# and I don’t see a way for White to avoid losing a piece.
–gb
Tommy K. says:
Sam, …Qd2 does threaten
mate by Qxg2, but white can
play 2.Qg6#
I think 1….Qg7 also threatens
mate by Qxg2 and threatens to
win the bishop. If white plays:
2.Bxg7 Rxf1#
Black will take the bishop if
white protects the mating square
g2, i.e.
2.Qh3 Rxf6 or
2.Rf2 Rxf6 or
2.Rg1 Rxf6 or
2.Qd2 Rxf6
and black is a piece ahead and
still has a strong attack.
Oh, and after 1 … Qg7, you can meet the tricky 2 Qf3 with 2 … Rxf6, winning a piece right away (3 Qxf6?? Qxg2#). I think 2 … Bxf3 3 Bxg7 Bxg2+ 4 Kxg2 Rxf1 5 Kxf1 Kxg7 is a winning endgame for Black, but White might escape with a draw.
–gb
1. … Qg7
1… Bxg2+
2 Kxg2 (what else ?)
2… Qc6+ winning the bishop
I guess there’s far better, but that’a all I found
1. Qg7, threatening both mate and the bishop and defending from all checks. The white bishop of course is pinned.
From Spain…
1)…,Qg7! +-
Winning the bishop
The puzzle has been solved, but I just wanted to tell TVTom @9:22 why 1… Qd3 is a blunder leading to a forced checkmate:
1… Qd3
2. Qg4+ Kf7
3. Qg7+ Ke6
4. Qe7+ Kd5
5. Qd7+ Kc5 (5… Ke4 6. Qe6#)
6. Be7+ Qd6
7. Qxd6+ Kb5
8. a4+ Kxa4
9. Qb4#
Thanks, John. Yeah, I would have lost that game. I totally missed …Qg7!! Didn’t even see that the Bish was pinned to the Rook. I missed it when I was assessing what I thought were the only 3 candidate moves. A one-mover puzzle to which I was blind. Will have to save this one and show it to friends.