Test for my readers…
by
kevinspraggettonchess
·
Published October 10, 2016
· Updated October 11, 2016
Can you solve this?
Every tournament player learns early on how to win the famous Lucena Position (below), perhaps the most important technique in all of Rook and Pawn endgame theory. Important because it occurs thousands of times every year! Just this past weekend, while playing in the French Team Championship, I witnessed this ending not less than twice on the very first day of play!
R7/2r5/8/8/8/8/1p1K4/1k6 b - - 0 1
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Now let me change something in the position above, by adding a pawn on b3:
R7/2r5/8/8/8/1p6/1p1K4/1k6 b - - 0 1
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HOW DOES BLACK WIN?
(Solution later today. Good luck!) SOLUTION!
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "R7/2r5/8/8/8/1p6/1p1K4/1k6 b - - 0 1"]
{[#] This is a neat little puzzle. The usual ‘Lucena’ method will not work here as the Black King can not go to b3 because it is occupied by a pawn. Hence another, completely different, method must be found}
1...Rd7+ 2.Ke2 Rd3!!
{[#] The first key move. The Rook offers itself to free the Black King. Unless one discovers the idea of sacrificing the Rook, Black would be unable to win this position by other means}
({Note:} 2...Kc2?! 3.Rc8+ Kb1 4.Ra8 {and Black is back to square one})
3.Rc8!? ( 3.Kxd3 Kc1 4.Rc8+ Kd1 ) Rc3!!
{[#] The second key move. The Rook offers itself once more to free the Black King. Now if the White Rook moves away the Black King can come out to c2}
( {Note:} 3...Ka2?! 4.Ra8+ Kb1 5.Rc8 {and Black faces the same problem of what to do} )
4.Rxc3 ( 4.Ra8 Kc2 ) Ka2!{Now the Pawn will promote} 0-1
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