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Susan Polgar

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  1. PROF.S.G.BHAT Reply

    1.e7 Rd7
    2.e6 c5
    (2…. Rxe7 3.Rh8#)
    3.exd7+ Kxd7
    4.bxc5 dxc5
    5.Kf4 c4
    6.Ke5 c3
    7.Kf6 c2
    8.Rh8 Kc7
    9.e8=Q c1=Q
    10.Qb8+ Kd7
    11.Rd8+ Kc6
    12.Qd6+ Kb7
    13.Rb8+ Ka7
    14.Qb6#
    Black R moving along 8th rank on 1st move looks inferior but requires probe.

  2. Anand Gautam Reply

    1. e7! wins

  3. pht Reply

    My idea is to play:
    1. Kf4
    2. Kf5
    3. e7
    4. Ke6
    5. Rh8#

    What can black do against this?
    Playing d5 etc. is too slow.

    If black answers 1. Kf4 with 1. … Kf8? then white has the fork 2. e7+ and black looses rook directly. This is an important point here.

    So black can only delay the mate here by sacking rook on white pawn. E.g.:

    1. Kf4 d5 (too slow but what else?)
    2. Kf5! d4 (still nowhere to play rook or king)
    3. e7! Rd7 (by now quite enforced)
    4. Ke6! Rxe7 (only move against Rh8#)
    5. Rxe7+ wins.

  4. Consul Reply

    I had to persuade myself there was something really forcing. I wasn’t seeing any convincing plan. But
    1. e7 ensures White a clear win:
    after 1 .. Rd7
    2. e6 .. pawn move
    (2 .. Rxe7 3. Rh8#)
    3. exd7+ .. Kxd7 it’s an easy win.
    Another reply from Black might be
    1 .. Ra8, then:
    2. e6 .. Ra7 (trying to prolong the battle…)
    3. Kf4/g4 ..oohps, the WK is going to march towards f6 to protect the pawn and allow Rh8#. The BR can’t do anything to stop this plan, apart from Rxe7 which allows again mate in one move. Other escape squares for the rook allow a skewer (after e6 anyways), and a long work will snatch all the remaining black pawns. Let me analyse it more carefully.

  5. Consul Reply

    Then we were left with
    1. e7 .. Rc8
    2. e6 .. c5
    3. Rh8 .. Kxe7
    4. Rxc8 .. cxb4. Now, carefully:
    5. Kf4 threatening to protect the e6 pawn and stop the other pawns. The WK needs to take action at this point.
    5 .. Kxe6 5 .. b3 loses to Rc3, Rxb3, etc
    6. Ke4 the WK is in the square of all of the pawns and the Rook is well placed behind them, and in time for any manoeuvre.

  6. s.k.srivastava Reply

    1e7 rd7 2e6 rxp 3 Rh8 mate

  7. thomas John Reply

    Kf4

  8. Oleg Mezjuev Reply

    1. e7 Rd7 (1. … Rc8 2. Rh8+ Kd7 3. e6+ Kxe6 4. Rxc8 1-0) 2. e6 Rxe7 3. Rh8#

  9. Yancey Ward Reply

    First posted here August 5, 2010, and, according to my files, again last April.

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