Cor van Wijgerden

Learning chess

Manual for
independent learners

Step 6
Copyright© Cor van Wijgerden 2011

All rights reserved. No part of this publication may be reproduced, stored in a retrieval system
or transmitted in any other form or by any means without permission in writing from the
publisher.

ISBN I 0: 90-77275-92-4
ISBN 13: 978-90-77275-92-4

Information: www .stappenmethode . nl

E-mail: [email protected]

Publisher: Van Wij gerden

English translation: Ian Adams
Drawings: Rupert van der Linden
Cover design: Eric van der Schilden
Contents

Preface ..................................................................................................................... 4
Step 6.......................................................... . ............................................................ 5
I : King in the middle ................ ......................................................................... . .. 9
2: The passed pawn ...... ....................................................................................... 23
3: Strategy ............................................... ............................................. . .............. 36
4: Mobility ........................................................... ............................. . . . . . .............. 53
5: Draws .................................. ............................................................................ 65
6: The opening .................................................................................................... 77
7: Tactics ............................................................................................................. 88
8: Pawn endings .............. . ............................................................................. . ... IOI
9: Bishop or knight. ........................................................................................... 115
I 0: Attacking the king ......................................................................................... 130
I I : Endgame advantage ............................................ . . .. . ..................................... 142
12: Bishops .......................................................................................................... 155
13: Defending ...................................................... ............ .................................... 170
14: Rook endings ..................... . . . . ................................................ . . ..................... 184
The Step-by-Step Method ................................................................................... 200
Preface

The Step by Step learning system is a method of learning to play chess which
has been officially acknowledged by the Dutch Chess Federation. It has been
successfully adopted by many chess clubs and schools in the Netherlands,
Belgium, France, Germany, Switzerland and Austria. Slowly but steadily the
method is gaining popularity throughout the world.

The whole course consists of five manuals, specifically for chess teachers or
trainers (the first steps are also suitable for parents), and fifteen workbooks (3
for each step) which can be used by the students themselves.
This book appeared in 1 999 in Dutch. For the English translation the 3rd
revised and expanded edition from 20 l 0 has been used. It is advisable to go
through this manual in combination with the workbook for Step 6.

The manual for Step 6 differs in some respects from the previous ones.
Firstly, the target group has changed. This book is not a manual for trainers,
but a self-study manual for anyone interested, in other words for the
independent learner.
Secondly, Rob Brunia disappeared as a co-author. In the initial phase of
developing the method (we started in 1 987) we worked together closely. In
1 99 1 Rob's professional duties (he coached highly gifted children) compelled
him to end our cooperation. This was a pity, but not a real disaster, for the
essence of the method had been devised. While the whole method has been
extended and improved over the years, the nucleus has remained the same. At
the end of 2004 Rob approached me to re-start the cooperation. Unfortuna­
tely, this was not to be: on the 9th of January 2005, Brunia died of a brain
haemorrhage, at only 57 years old.

For the moment not all the books in the chess course have been translated
into English. 1 8 out of 26 are in English. You will find updated information
on our website at: www.stappenmethode.nl
For more information, please contact [email protected]

Cor van Wijgerden

Coevorden, July 20 1 1

4
Step 6

Working through this book in combination with the Step 6 workbook

which goes with it is only of any use if the first five steps have been
properly mastered and the level of you own games is up to it. Those who
have been working through the Steps with a good trainer have an advantage
here.
A good trainer has been insisting on the following four areas from the Steps
method:
• a lesson from the manual
• practice with the workbook
• a lot of practice in the form of games
• discussion I analysis of the games you played

We shall take as our starting point that you are going on to work
independently with Step 6. You still have a trainer? So much the better,
since he or she can offer help when you feel you need it.
What should you be expecting? The level of difficulty of the material is
once more a notch higher than in the preceding Step. Strategy is a subj ect
which wil l be dealt with in depth. It is a subj ect which is difficult for
everybody, as we always find, and above all the exercises in the workbook.
You will also come up against endgame exercises in many chapters. The
study of such exercises is particularly important for improving playing
strength. Tactics are dealt with in only one chapter.
The above mentioned areas are now considered in order.

Studying a lesson
Work through the lessons thoroughly. Studying chess books is very
different from reading comics. When you are playing through games and
game fragments make use of a real chess board and pieces. At the moments
when side lines are shown, start by analysing on your own (partly in your
head) and then compare your analysis with that in the book. You wil l learn
more that way than by playing through analyses, when you will be tempted
to imagine that you have understood everything. Pay particular attention to
the general rules which are laid down (e.g. on page 9). You can make good
use of such rules in your own games, even if the position is totally
different.

5
When you are studying a specific subject it is much more useful to
concentrate on it and learn how to master it than knowing a little about
various different subjects. That will not help you much in your own games.
World Champion Capablanca hit the nai l on the head : "I may not know a
lot, but I have mastered what I do know".

Solving the exercises

You should only look at the workbook in conj unction with the instruction
manual. If all you do is solving the exercises, then you are not working in
the best possible way.
After the heading 'WORKBOOK' every lesson contains indications as to
what you should pay attention to when solving the exercises. You can also
make good use of these solving strategies in your own games.

Playing
Try to play as many serious games as you can, best of all against stronger
players. But not only that, because winning is also important so that you
keep on enjoying your chess. Always analyse after each game with your
opponent, even if the latter is clearly weaker than you. After all, you
appreciate when a stronger player who has just defeated you over the board
takes !ime to look through the game with you. Explaining to a weaker
player what went wrong also has its good points.
Training games against friends are fun and are useful too. They bring you
more than spending a lunchtime playing rapid chess against each other
(though that too makes sense as long as the thinking time is at least 5 or I 0
minutes). These blitz games often lead to interesting positions which you
can analyse together.

Analysing your games

Get used to analysing all your games. With a good trainer, with a stronger
player or on your own. Of course a chess program on your computer can
also be helpful, but only after you have done the work; then you can com­
pare variations and check your analysis. Reading analysis while entering
your game into the computer does not make much sense. When you do this
the information does not get any deeper than into your short-term memory.
You will hardly be able to take i n new insights properly.

Improving you r playing strength

Thi s is the interesting section, because who would not want to become a
stronger player? After all the effort (study, solving exercises, playing,

6
 analysing) we expect to have learned to play better chess. I f your Elo
continues to rise (this should be by 5 0 to I 00 Elo per year), then you have
been studying effectively and there is no reason to change the way you are
going about studying chess. Unfortunately reality does not always come up
to expectations. You aren ' t making progress and so feel less inclined to
carry on your chess training.
You might come to the conclusion that you do not have enough talent, but
that is unlikely. I f you have reached Step 6, you should have no problems
adding a few more hundred Elo points to your rating. It is much more likely
that you have been studying inefficiently or even in the wrong way (for the
sake of simplicity, let us admit that the causes might lie on a personal
level).
From your rating you can more or less tel l what progress you are making.
However, becoming obsessed with the Elo rating is not a good idea. When
he introduced the system in 1 970, Prof. Arpad Elo took care to point out
that the rating represents an average taken over a specific period in time.
Points are of course lost after a defeat, but naturally that does not mean that
you have become a weaker player! Perhaps you learned a lot from your
defeat ("you lean the most from your losses ! ").
Playing better chess means above all making fewer and fewer mistakes.
The greatest profit lies in being able to eliminate one ' s own weaknesses.
You can only find your weaknesses by specifically looking for them. That
is more effective than buying yet another new book and working through it.
You make mistakes when playing games and solving exercises. They can
be of many different sorts, or perhaps it is always the same type of error
which keeps cropping up. For that reason it is useful to divide the mistakes
into groups. Give the mistakes a name (e.g. overlooking an X-ray defence),
and create a (coded) list. Over time you will build up a picture of which
m istakes you are making most often. A fifth mistake in visualisation is a
clear indication of a problem. Or you keep on missing a tactical exchange
of pieces? Pay a lot of attention to this subj ect and do some work on it. It
might be a good idea to get a lower Step out of your bookcase in order to
do so. There is no shame in that !
There can also often be problems of a mental or another nature. Resigning
too soon, over-confidence, being disappointed after a mistake, over­
estimating the opponent, stubbornness, bad time management and much
more can be holding you back. Everybody must decide for herself or
himself what i s important and so everybody should draw up his or her own
list.

7
Flick through this book and take a look at what you fancy and what you
think you can learn a lot from. The mistakes in your games will be a clear
indication of what subj ect you should be starting with.
The chapter on tactics is simple for those who have worked through all
three workbooks for each of the other Steps. The chapters on strategic
themes are relatively more demanding and require more of an effort. But a
real chess player will not be put off by them.

Have a lot of fun studying and solving the exercises ! The best of luck!

�o
DWEING

8
1 King in the middle

In the first chapter the most im­ White can exploit the position of
portant role is played by the unsafe the black king by means of a
position of the king. In the game knight sacrifice. As will become
which follows, the king remains on apparent, a king in the middle of
its own in the middle of the board the board will be in a much more
without a single defender near it. dangerous position than one which
has castled.
Rossolimo-Romanenko 10. Nd6+ exd6
Bad Gastein 1 948 It is better to decline the offer with
1 . e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 I 0 . . . Kf8, although White is then
.

g6 4. 0-0 Bg7 5. Rel Nf6 6. clearly better after l l . Ne4 b6 1 2 .

Nc3 Nd4? 7. e5 Ng8 8. d3 d4 because of his superior devel­
Nxb5 9. Nxb5 a6? opment.
I t is dangerous to have one of your 1 1 . Bg5!
opponent' s knights in your half of An over-hasty capture on d6 would
the board, so it is chased away. not achieve anything; White first
brings his bishop into play with
.I .t iV • �.I tempo in order to prevent Black
from interposing with f6 .
.t. .t. .t. .t. .t.. .t.
.t. .t.
llJ .t. �

So far Black has made several mis­

takes. He:
• has neglected the three golden
rules Black now has two squares for his
• has made a wrong exchange queen, each of which has its ad­
• has made an unnecessary pawn vantages and disadvantages.
move First there is the win after 1 1 . . ..

9
Qb6. White has the neat exchanges 1 7 . . . . Nh6, but then he i s mated
1 2 . exd6+ Kf8 1 3 . Re8+ ! ! Kxe8 on e7.
1 4. Qe2+ Kf8 1 5 . Be7+ Ke8 1 6.
Re l . The player with White has made
After this quiet attacking move, clever use of well-known attacking
there is no possible defence, e.g. rules:
after 1 6 . . . . Bf8 there is the deci­ • bring about access to the oppo­
sive 1 7 . Bg5+ Be7 1 8. Qxe7+ sing king
Nxe7 1 9. Rxe7+ Kf8 20. Bh6+ • bring up his pieces
Kg8 2 1 . Re8#. • · use a combination as a weapon

The continuation in the game is (attraction and discovered check)

very beautiful. • develop with tempo
1 1 . ... Qa5 1 2. exd6+ Kf8 13.
Re8+ Kxe8 1 4 . Qe2+ Kf8 Other useful rules which occur in
1 5. Be7+ Ke8 the next game fragment are:
• prevent the exchange of attack-
.I .i. • 'ii i. ing pieces
maintain the tension
' ' � ' .i. '
•

• provoke weaknesses
' � ' • keep the opposing king m the
� ' middle

1 6. Bd8+! !
The bishop move makes the alter­
native 1 6. Re 1 superfluous. This
move also wins: 1 6. . . . Qxe 1 +
(forced) 1 7 . Qxe 1 f6. Black has
sufficient material, but cannot
move: 1 8 . Bxf6+ Kf8 1 9. Bxg7+ Black is threatening to bring his
Kxg7 20. Qe5+ Nf6 2 1 . Qe7+ Kh6 king to safety by castl ing. The first
22. Qxf6, and Black is soon mated move is obvious.
after 2 3 . g4. 1. Rel
1 6 . ... Kxd8 1 7. Ng5 Black has five moves which are
Black resigned. The only way to worth considering. The first moves
defend against the mate on f7 is by are those which protect the bishop.

10
I) I. ... Qc7 White gets a serious advantage.
2) I . ... Nf5 Temporari ly, short castling is not
3) I . ... Qd7 possible and sometimes White has
4) I . ... Qc6 a check on h5 .
5) I . ... Kf8 2 . ... f6 3. Bf4 0-0-0
The king is not safe on the
Defence I queenside, but the alternatives are
t. ... Qc7 2. Bg5 no better: 3 . . . . Nc8 4. Qb3 ,
It is generally a good thing to pro­ fol lowed by 5 . Rad I or 3 . . . . Rd8 4.
voke a weakness, although the im­ Rad I , and Black goes down be­
mediate 2. B f4 also wins. After 2. cause of the pins .
... Rd8 3 . Rad I 0-0 (3 . . . . Kf8 4. 4. Rae l+ Kb8 5. Rcd l
Rxe7 Kxe7 5. Qg5+ Kf8 6. Bxd6+ White wins material .
Rxd6 7. Qe5 ! ) 4. Rxe7 Qxe7 5 .
Bxd6 Qf6 White has a technically Defence 4
won position. This move aims at exchanging off
2 . ... f6 3. Bf4 Rd8 4. Rad l the most important white attacking
Kf8 5. Nd4 piece.
White ' s advantage is decisive. 1 . ... Qc6 2. Qg5 !
White naturally avoids the ex­
Defence 2 change. In doing so he avoids a
I . ... Nf5 2. Re5 very nasty subtlety.
The knight on f5 must be done
away with. That is possible with 2.
g4. This move also wins but it
weakens the position of the king.
That does not matter here, but if
pieces can also do the attacking,
that is what should be done.
2 . ... g6 3. Bg5 Kf8 4. Rxe7 !
Nxe7 5. Bxe7+ Kxe7 6.
Qe5+ Qe6 7. Qc5+ Kf6 8.
Qc3+
White wins the queen.
An extra diagram for the tempting
Defence 3 looking move 2. Qe5?. This queen
I . . . . Qd7 2 . Bg5 move is very inaccurate, because
The white position is also very after 2 . . . . 0-0 ! White may not take
good after 2. Bf4 Nc8 3 . Qxd7+ on e7 on account of 3 . . . . Rae8.
Kxd7 4. Rae I . By provoking f6 2 . ... Qd7 3. Bf4

11
This i s a matter of taste. 3 . Qxg7 The best thing for Black now is to
0-0-0 4. Bf4 is also very good. castle short. He decides to strength­
3 . ... Kf8 4. Rxe7 Qxe7 5. en the d5-square first with Na6-c7
Qxe7+ Kxe7 6. Re l + Kd7 (or b4).
7. Rd l 9 . ... Na6?
White has a big advantage. The losing move ! The knight will
never leave a6.
Defence 5 10. Nxd5 exd5
Giving up the option of castling
and running away is always an
option.
1 . ... Kf8
The king move i s not difficult to
refute.
2. Bg5 f6 3. Rxe7! Kxe7 4.
Rel +
White wins.

The defender usually has only

himself to blame if his king has to
remain in the middle. Some typical 1 1 . e6! f6
mista kes were already mentioned Nor are other moves any better:
in the first game. Two other errors A) 1 1 . . . . fxe6 (now the weakness
you can fall into are: of the h5-e8 diagonal becomes
• not paying sufficient attention to apparent) 1 2 . Ne5 B f6 1 3 .
weak points in the position Qh5+ g6 1 4. Bxg6+ hxg6 1 5 .
• opening the position of your Qxg6+ Ke7 1 6. Qfl+ Kd6 1 7.
own accord B f4 Rh4 1 8. Bg3 Bxe5 1 9.
Bxe5+ Kc6 20. Rfc 1 +
It is well known that in the ope­ B) 1 1 . . . . 0-0 1 2 . exfl+ Rxfl 1 3 .
ning fl is a weak point. The dia­ Ne5 Rf6 1 4. Qh5 g6 ( 1 4 . . . . h6
gonal h5/e8 can also quickly be­ 1 5 . Bg5 ) 1 5 . Nxg6 with a
come weak, as can be seen from the winning attack.
following game. C) 1 1 . . . . dxe6 (simply costs a
piece) 1 2 . Qa4+ Kf8 1 3 . Bxa6.
Markovic-Radonjic, Cetinje 1 990 1 2 . Ne5 fxe5
1. e4 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 The game is also over after 1 2 . . . .

4 . d 4 cxd4 5 . NO e6 6. cxd4 0-0 1 3 . Nfl Rxfl 1 4. Qh5 .

b6 7. Nc3 Bb7 8. Bd3 Be7 9. 13. Qh5+
0-0 Black resigned.

12
In closed positions being behind in Grapperhaus-Franck
development is, generally speak­ A msterdam-Brussels 1 952
ing, not such a serious problem. It I. d4 e6 2. e4 d5 3. Nd2 Nc6
is logical that in such cases the ope­ 4. Ngf3 Nf6 5. e5 Nd7 6.
ning of the position would be fatal . Bb5 Ncb8
This retreat has often been played.
7. 0-0 c6?
A bit too adventurous. If Black
wants to drive the bishop away
' ' ' ' from b5, he must play 7 . . . . a6.
· � ' 8. Bd3 c5? 9. c4!
� i.. White reacts carefully; he increa­
ses the tension. The position i s
ttJ i.. ttJ �
now certain t o b e opened, Black
� � � VJ/i � � even helps this to happen.
@ n �
.I � .i. it' • .i. .I
Neuenschwander-Kindler
Bern 1 992
' ' � '''
Black i s well behind in develop­ '
ment. B lack wanted to exploit the ' ' �
cramped position of the bishop on � �
d3 .
i..
I. ... c5?
This threatens I . . . . c4, but � � ttJ
weakens d5. White exploits the ll i.. VJli
chance he has been offered and
opens the e-file with a sacrifice. 9 . ... dxc4?
2. Nxd5! exd5 3. e6 Ndf6 The knight on d2 is very badly
In such positions, returning the placed ! 9 . . . . Nc6 was better.
piece with 3. . .. Be7 is the best. 1 0. Nxc4 cxd4?
Though after that, B lack' s position Any developing move would be
is pitiful. better.
4. Ne5 1 1 . Bg5 Qc7 1 2 . N xd4 a6 13.
Black resigned. Nxe6!
The h5-e8 diagonal. The capture
In many openings one side can on e6 is followed by 1 4. Qh5+ and
rapidly fall behind in development, then mate.
as, e.g., in the fol lowing variation 1 3 . ... Qc6 1 4. Nd8!
of the French Defence. Not the strongest move (that would

13
be 1 4. Re l ! ), but aesthetically the O f course Vera opens up the posi­
most pleasing. Black resigned. tion immediately.
9 . ... fxe4 1 0. Nxe4
Of course, you are also behind in
development whenever you move
the same piece twice.

Vera - Romero Holmes

Leon 1 996
1 . d4 e6 2. Nf3 c5 3. c3 Nf6
4. e3 b6 5. Nbd2 Bb7 6. Bd3
cxd4 7. cxd4

1 0 . ... g6
Another pawn move, but even after
a normal move such as I 0 . . . . Be7
8 1 1 . Neg5 ! Nf6 1 2 . Ne5 Qc7 1 3 .
Nxh7 Rxh7 ( 1 3 . . . . Nxh7 1 4.
i.. 8 t:fj Qh5+) 1 4. Bxh7 B lack can soon
88 t:fj 8 8 8 strike his colours. I 0 . . . . Nc6 1 1 .
n i.. 'if @ l:I Neg5 Qc7 1 2 . Nxh7 costs him a
pawn.
A very quiet position, but not for The best thing would be to admit
long. We shal l see that even grand­ his mistake and to protect the king
masters can go against the simplest with I 0. . . . Nf6, but even then
opening principles. Black has a wretched position after
7 . Nd5?
••. 1 1 . Re l .
A foolish move, which can only be 1 1 . Bg5 Qc7
understood in combination with 1 1 . . . . Be7 is no real alternative :
the next move by Black. 1 2 . Nd6+ Kf8 1 3 . Nxb7 Qc7 1 4.
8. 0-0 f5? Qe2 Qxb7 1 5 . Qe5 fol lowed by
That was the idea: to maintain the Be4.
knight on d5 . But such an ope­ 1 2 . Re l
ration could only be j ustified if The move of a grandmaster. White
Black were allowed to make three entices a piece to c6. On move 1 5
moves in succession! But not when it will become clear what White ' s
his king is sti ll in the middle. plan i s .
9. e4 ! 12 . ... Nc6 1 3. Nf6+ Nxf6 1 4.

14
 Bxf6 Rg8 1 5. d5
The position is opened even more.
N ext came:
1 5 . ... exd5 1 6. Re l + Kf7 1 7.
Be5 Qd8 1 8. Ng5+
Black resigned.
'ii' CiJ fj, fj,
After 1 8 . . . . Qxg5 1 9. Qf3 Ke6 it is
not difficult to find 20. Bf6 (or 20. CiJ j,.
Bt't). fj, fj, � j,. fj, fj,
n n @
A PAWN SACRIFICE 1 1 . ... Ngf6
The unnatural move 1 1 . . . . Ne7 is
The player who is attacking can try strongly met by 1 2 . Ncb5 . White
to keep the opposing king in the recovers his pawn and has an
middle with a pawn sacri fice. By advantage after 1 2 . . . . Qxd2 1 3 .
sacrificing a pawn you are not Nxd6+ Kf8 1 4. Rxd2 .
banking on mistakes made by your 1 2 . e5!
opponent. You can aim for a pawn Black must not be allowed the
sacrifice for one of two reasons: chance to castle. White opens the
• to gain time position at the cost of another
• to open the position pawn.
12 . ... dxe5 13. fxe5 Nxe5
You always gain time i f your
opponent is out pawn-grabbing. .i
One of the pawns which i s most
lusted after in the opening is the
i .t i
one on b2 . 'ti i
'ti
Yudovich-Borisenko 'it' CiJ
Soviet Union 1 964
1 . d4 d6 2. e4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7
CiJ j,.
4. f4 c6 5. Nf3 Nd7 6. Be2 e5 fj, � � fj, fj,
7. 0-0 exd4 8. Nxd4 Qb6 9. .tI .tI @
Be3 Qxb2 1 0. Qd2 Qb4 1 1 .
Rad l 1 4. Nb3
"Gaining a tempo" with the rook This modest move is the best one.
by 1 1 . Rab 1 Qa5 j ust helps Black After 1 4. Nxc6 Black j ust plays 1 4.
to move his queen to a better . . . Nxc6, and after 14. Ne6 Bxe6
square. too d8 is protected. So White does

15
not have a winning discovered at­ 2 1 . ... Nxc5 22. Bd8+ Kb8
tack. 23. N xc5 Qd5 24. N a6+
The consequences of the cheekier bxa6 25. Qb4+
1 4. Bg5 are instructive. An active Black resigned.
move, but is it good for more than
a draw? 1 4 . . . . Nfd7 1 5 . Ncb5 (or
else B lack castles) 1 5 . . . . Qxd2 1 6.
Nc7+ Kf8 1 7 . Rxd2 Rb8 1 8.
Nde6+ Kg8 1 9. Nxg7 Kxg7 20.
Rxd7 Nxd7 2 1 . Rxf7+ Kxf7 22.
Bc4+ with perpetual check.
14 . ... Nfd7
B lack has no time for a developing
move. After 1 4. . . . Be6 1 5 . Bc5
Qh4 1 6. g3 Qh3 1 7. Qd6 Ng8 1 8 .
Bd4 the black position is threate­
ning to collapse. Marinelli-Krajina, Vinkovci 1 989
Playing for an exchange with 1 4. B lack has j ust taken a pawn on e4
. . . Nd5 fai ls because of the instruc­ ( . . . Qh4+ provides indirect protec­
tive subtlety : 1 5 . Nxd5 Qxd2 1 6. tion). White sacrificed it on pur­
Nc7+ Kd8 1 7 . Nxa8 ! The queen pose to gain time. The knight has
does not run away. After Bxa7 the to retreat, meaning that B lack can­
knight gets out via b6. not get away with his king.
Finally, 14 . . . . 0-0 is not a solution 1. Nf3 Nf6
of last resort either. Castling would Taking another pawn would be
be possible if Black could limit the crazy : 1 . . . . Nxc3 2. Qe5 0-0 3 . d5
damage to an exchange, but he will Na4 4. 0-0 Rf7 5. Bc2, and if the
not manage to do that: 1 5 . Bc5 knight moves, there follows Bb2
Qh4 1 6. Bxf8 Bxf8 1 7 . g3 with a with a win.
maj or advantage for White. 2. 0-0 Qe7
B lack is out of his depth for the Castling is bad on account of 3 .
rest of the game. Bh6 R f7 ( 3 . . . . Re8 4 . Bg5) 4 . Ne5.
1 5. Bc5 Qh4 1 6. Rf4 Qh6 3. Bg5 Rf8 4. Ne5 Qg7 5.
1 7. Ne4 Kd8 1 8. Be3 g5 1 9. d5!
Rf5 Qe6 20. Bxg5+ Kc7 2 1 . This creates a target on e6 and
Nbc5 opens l ines.
White moves on to the final offen­ 5 . ... Bc8
sive. The rook on f5 cannot be A strange move, but he cannot de­
taken: 2 1 . . . . Qxf5 22. Qd6+ Kb6 velop the knight on b8: 5 . . . . Na6
23. Rb ! + Ka5 2 5 . Bd2 mate. 6. Nxd7 Qxd7 7 . Bxf6 with a

16
decisive advantage. gets nothing in return for it.
6. dxe6 dxe6 7. Rad l Nfd7 White ' s pawn sacrifice is good.
The knight stil l cannot escape to The following variations prove it:
freedom: 7 . . . . Nbd7 8. Nxg6 hxg6 A) l . . . . exd5 2. Bxf5 , and without
9. Qxe6+ Qe7 1 0. Bxg6+ Kd8 1 1 . losing material White has good
Rxf6. attacking chances on account of
8. Nxg6 Rxfl + 9. Rxfl Qg8 the open e-file. The black king
1 0. Qh5 Nf6 l l . Bxf6 hxg6 is obliged to remain in the
12. Bxg6+ Kd7 middle.
Black resigned. B ) l . . . . Nxd5 2. Nxd5 cxd5 3 .
Bb5+ Kd8 4 . Nxf7+ Rxf7 5 .
In the following example White Qxe6 R f8 6. Rxd5+ Bxd5 7 .
employs the pawn sacrifice to open Qxd5+ Bd6 8 . Re6 with a big
files and diagonals against the advantage.
king. C) l . . . . cxd5 2. Bb5+ Kd8 3 .
Nxf7+ Rxf7 4 . Qxe6 R f8 5 .
Nxd5 , and here too White i s not
far from a win.
2. Bxe4 fxe4 3. dxc6 Bxc6 4.
Nxc6 Qxc6 5. Nxe4
White has a sound extra pawn .

.I .t • .t .I
i � i i i
i � i
i 'ii'
Gdanski-Babula � t3J
Odorheiu 1 995
The advantage for the attacking
side when the king is in the middle
is that the pawns in front of the
king have already been advanced.
So the central pawns come much Wahls-Rajkovic
more quickly into contact with Bundes/iga 1 992
other pawns than is the case when l . ... b5
attacking a castled position. A normal move, you might think.
l. d5! Ne4 The bishop will have to give way
Black does not capture, but sacri­ and that will relieve the pin on the
fices a pawn himself, though he Nc6. B lack would have an excel-

17
lent position, if only White did not 9 . . . . h6 1 0. Bf4 d5 i s safer, though
have the following strong move: even then White is better.
2. c4! Qd6 1 0. Nxc3 Nc6 1 1 . Ne4
There are few alternatives: 2. . .. This sacrifices a second pawn. It is
Qxc4 3 . Bb3 Qb4 4. Bd2 winning unnecessary since B lack cannot
the queen. 2 . . . . bxc4 is followed by free his game either after 1 1 . Be3
3. Nc3 Qf5 (or 3 . . . . Qd6 4. dxc5 or after 1 1. Bf4.
Qxd l 5. Rxd l Bd7 6. Rxd7, and 1 1 . ... Nxe5 12. Nxe5
White is clearly better) 4. Ne5 Bd7 His position is already so good that
5. Bc2 Qf6 6. Ne4 winning. One White has a choice. 1 2 . Bf4 d6 1 3 .
player, who once underestimated Re 1 Qd8 1 4. Nxe5 dxe5 1 5 .
White ' s options, played the weak Qxd8+ Kxd8 1 6. Bxe5 also leads
2 . . . . Qd7 and resigned after 3 . to a big advantage. Despite the ex­
cxb5 Nxd4 4 . Ne5 change of queens the king 1s a
(Chrupov -Borisenko, Riumen; weakness in the middle.
Russian Championship 1 993). 12 . ... Qxe5 13. Re l Qa5
3. cxb5 Nxd4 4. bxa6+ Nec6 After 14 . . . . Qb5 1 5 . a4 ! Qb4 1 6.
5. Bf4 Qd5 6. Nxd4 cxd4 7. Bd2 Qb4 1 7. Ba5 White wins a
Nc3 piece.
Black resigned. 1 4. Bd2 Bb4
Or 1 4 . . . . Qf5 1 5 . Bc3 with the
Chapman-Hacche threat of 1 6. Bxg7.
Melbourne 2000 1 5. Nd6+ Ke7
1. e4 c5 2. NO a6
Players with B lack are hoping for j_ .i
3 . d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 N f6 5. Nc3 e5
.t. .t. � .t. .t. .t.
with a good version of the Svesh­
nikov. White steers the game into .t. 'ii ttJ .t.
the Alapin Variation, after which 'it'
a6 should be seen more as a loss of j_
tempo.
3. c3 Nf6 4. e5 Nd5 5. d4
�
cxd4 6. Bc4 Nb6 7. Bb3 e6 [}:, [}:,
7 . . . . d5 8. exd6 Qxd6 would be �
better. Now the bishop on c8 re­
mains a problem piece. 1 6. Re5 !
8. Bg5 Qc7 Chapman concludes the game in
After 8 . . . . Be7 9 . Bxe7 Qxe7 1 0. elegant fashion: I 6 . . . . Qxe5 1 7 .
Qxd4 the d6-square remains weak. Bxb4 allows a deadly discovered
9. 0-0 dxc3 or double check.

18
 1 6 . ... Nd5 1 7. Rxd5 exd5 • going hunting for pawns (or for
1 8. Qel + Kf6 1 9. Bxb4 other material).
White does not think things out • voluntarily opening up the posi­
any further, but goes for the simple tion.
win. 1 9. Bg5+ leads to mate.
1 9 . ... Qb6 20. Bxd5 But it is not correct to always j udge
Black resigns. as bad a position in which the king
i s stuck in the middle. Gauthier' s
From the examples it can be seen comments on the fol lowing game
that a king is worse positioned in are amusmg.
the middle than when it has cas­ (ChessBase C D-ROM from 1 999
tled. In the middle it is more vulne­ on the openings)
rable than on a wing:
• weakening the position by f6 is Euwe-Reti, A msterdam 1 920
far more serious than by h6. 1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4
• the central pawns have already Nf6 4. d4 exd4 5. 0-0 Nxe4
been advanced, so there 1s no 6. Rel d5 7. Bxd5 Qxd5 8.
pawn wal l. Nc3 Qa5 9. Nxd4 Nxd4 1 0.
• defending pieces can more Qxd4 f5 1 1 . Bg5 Qc5
easily be driven away by pawns.
• the opening of lines is simpler
.I .t
(the pawns in front of the king
'' '
have already been moved or
exchanged).
• it is easier for rooks to take part
in the attack.
• the king can come under attack

from three sides : from the

queenside, from the kingside or
through the centre.

It is usually the defender himself "White is following the stratq.,•y of

who is to blame. His mistakes: 'seizing the initiative', i.e.
• not paying attention to the three a) gaining time an<l
golden rules. b) dictating the course of the game.
• making the wrong exchanges Within three moves White will
(this costs time). achieve a series of strategic goals,
• allowing his opponent to gain whereas his opponent will have to
tempi. seek to <lefen<l himself.
• making unnecessary pawn moves. 1 2. Qd8+

19
A check always means that one has help, but it is the position which
a 'free' move. Black just has time to decides whether they should be
get to safety. applied or not.
1 2 . ... Kf7 In the game White ' s resistance did
White retains the initiative. not last for very long.
13. Nxe4
Black cannot follow any strategy of
.I .i.. 'iY .i. .I
his own, he is too fully occupied
with defence.
.t. .t. .t. • .t. .t.
1 3 . ... fxe4
Now the final piece is brought into
play.
1 4. Rad l
When you have the initiative, your
opponent is occupied with defence
whereas you can pursue strategic
objectives. Here White has achieved
four aims: 1 4 . ... Bd6
1. he has taken full possession of Black has even more options. That
the cl-file comes as no surprise, because
2. ALL his pieces are in play White simply does not have
'
3. he has hindered Black's develop­ enough attacking pieces.
ment and A move which i s not so spectacu­
4. he is threatening to win material." lar but j ust as strong is 1 4 . . . . Qe5
1 5 . g3 ( 1 5 . Rd5 Bd6 1 6. Rxe5
And that is the end of our quota­ Rxd8) 1 5 . . . . Bb4 1 6. Qxh8 Bxe l .
tion. Otherwise, the safe 1 4. . . . Qc6 is
I n your chess training you must worth considering ( intending to
always be critical and not simply play b6, to be able to develop the
believe what is on the printed page bishop on c8). White has insuf­
(even in this book there will be one ficient compensation for the piece.
or two mistakes ! ) . Finally the weaker 1 4 . . . . Bg4.
In the extract which has been Next comes 1 5 . Qxa8 Bxd l 1 6.
quoted there are things which may Rxe4 Bh5 1 7. Be3 Qxc2 1 8 . Rf4+
be true, but which do not apply to Ke7 1 9. g4. It is pretty improbable
this game. White is almost losing ! that White has enough compensa­
To mate an opponent you need tion for the piece in thi s variation.
pieces. White does not have 1 5. Qxh8 Qxg5 ! 1 6. f4
enough of those since Black still Euwe did not put up much more
has defenders. Rules are a good resistance. He was probably fed up

20
with his position. excellent strategic transition to the
According to the CD-ROM this middlegame, White is now in diffi­
move i s the scapegoat: " a bad culties because his early bishop
move, after which Black seizes the sacrifice has not yielded dividends
initiative and obtains an attack." and in addition to that he has just
1 6. g3 Qh5 1 7. Rd3 Bd7 would be made two bad moves. But Black has
slightly better, but even then Black to be careful."
is clearly winning. There was nothing better. Every
1 6. Qxh7 i s also more stubborn. move loses completely. After 1 7.
The endgame after 1 6 . . . . Bf5 1 7. Rf l Black plays 1 7 . . . . b6 with an
Rd5 Qxg2+ 1 8 . Kxg2 Bxh7 will go almost immediate win.
on for a bit but in the long run 17.... Bh3 1 8. Qxa8 Bc5+
Black will take the point. . 19. Kh l Bxg2+ 20. Kxg2
1 6 . ... Qh4 1 7. Rxe4 Qg4+
"Another bad move. Despite his White resigned.

21
WORKBOOK

The way to get the best out of this chapter is of course to use what you have
learned in your own games . For that reason, let us once more list the rules
of thumb for the attacking side:

• Bring your pieces into play.

• Create access to the opposing king.
• Use combinations as a weapon (the pin is particularly useful in this
respect).
• Avoid the exchange of your attacking pieces (though sometimes
exchanging queens is appropriate if by doing so you win material).
• Keep up the tension.
• Recognise positions where there are typical sacrifices (e6, b5, f7).
• Keep an eye out for the e8-h5 diagonal and the weakness of the t7-
square.
• Provoke (new) weaknesses.
• Keep the opposing king in the middle.
• Look for mating pattern s (e.g. a mate involving diagonals).
• If the king moves, it can no l onger castl e ! (You won ' t be the first person
who occasionally forgets this . )

Apply these rules when you solve the exercises too.

2: A ttacking the king - King in the middle: A
3 : A ttacking the king - King in the middle: B

Of course, this does not mean that the defender has absolutely no hope. He
must:
• Simply not open the position when he is behind in development.
• Escape with the king.
• Give up (or return) material.
• Watch out for tactical options which allow him to castle.
• Exchange off important attacking pieces.

22
2 The passed pawn

This chapter deals principally with The d-pawn has been intercepted,
the passed pawn. I t is sometimes so the a-pawn must make the run­
the hero when it manages to pro­ ning.
mote, but occasionally also the vil­ 1. a7 Be4
lain, when it has to be sacrificed Black can also start by g1vmg
for a small gain in material. We check: I . . . . Kg6+ 2 . Kg8 Be4 3 .
shall first take a look at the passed d7 Rd2, and now 4 . Bc2 ! interferes
pawn in the three phases of the one of the two defenders.
game. We shal l also be paying 2. d7 Rd2 3. Bd5!
particular attention to the struggle The bishop settles down on the
between a bishop or a knight and intersection point of the l ines of
passed pawns. the two black defenders. If the
rook takes on d5, then the diagonal
of the bishop is broken; if the
PASSED PAWNS IN THE EN DGAME bishop takes, then it is the rook
which is cut out of the play.
The best technique for promoting a In this example the bishop was
passed pawn is to eliminate oppo­ already in position to cut the lines
sing defenders. We already know of communication. The piece can
about capturing, chasing away, also be brought into play with
luring away, interfering and block­ tempo.
ing. Two of these forms are shown
in this study by Rinck (1 908) .

Rinck (1 9 1 5)
The passed pawns are temporari ly

23
powerless. The only normal move to defend
I. Ng4+ Kh5 against the mate on h I .
After I . . . . Kg6 one defender will 5. Bd3 ! !
be taken after the double attack 2 . What a move ! Each rook i s fulfil­
N e 5 + and 3 . Nxt3. ling its own task: defending against
2. Nf6+ Kxh4 3. Nd5 mate and against the passed pawn.
One of the pawns makes it After the capture on d3 one rook
through. will get in the way of the other:
5 . ... Rdxd3
Simple but nice examples. Or 5 . . . . Rcxd3 6. d8Q+ Rxd8 7 .
In the next example, White em­ Rh 1 + and then mate.
ploys this interfering of two lines 6. Rh l + Rh3 7. d8Q+
in copy-book fashion. Black is mated.

The double attack already proved

itself as a helper for the passed
pawn. In the next example it is the
discovered check which provides
the help.

Gorgiev (1 936)
In thi s position we shall be deal ing
above all with the conclusion of
the study. But let us take a short
look at how things reach that point:
1. d7 g2+ 2. Kxg2
Taking with the bishop surrenders The black queen is successfully
control of the d3-square: 2. Bxg2 stopping the c-pawn. White can try
Rd3 , and White can no longer win. to chase the queen away by
2 . ... Re2+ 3. Kf3 Rd2 bringing his own queen to d8, but
The passed pawn appears to be then Be6 is always a satisfactory
stopped. Now White pulls his defence. A more robust plan is
second trump from up his sleeve: required.
the bad placing of the black king. I. Qf3+
4. Kf4 Rc3 First White chases the king into the

24
I ine of fire of the bishop. Another nice diversionary move. I f
l. ... Kh2 2. Qf5! Black takes with his bishop then
Simple. After 2 . . . . Qxf5 3 . c8Q+ his own d5-pawn will be in his
White wins the queen; nor does 2 . way .
. . . Be6 3 . Qxe6 achieve anything. 2 . . . Bb7 3. Nd6+
.

Chess i s not that hard ! White wins.

Maksimovskikh, Supletsov (1 985) Troitzky (191 l)

This study involves luring away, I n the position in this diagram the
interfering and the double attack. passed pawn can stil l advance
The a-pawn is very strong, but it is without being disrupted. B lack has
also in danger. The black king i s no control over the squares the
not too fa r away. So any direct pawns can move to. That leads to
attempt to promote the passed another way to keep possible de­
pawn is doomed because the oppo­ fenders at a distance. So tempora­
sing king will intervene: 1 . Na4 rily the passed pawn can advance.
Kd8 2 . Nb6 Kc7 3 . a8Q Bxa8 4. 1. h6 e6
Nxa8 Kb7, and the knight is lost. The alternative 1 . . . Ba5 is refuted
.

White must fi rst gain some time. by 2. N f3 + Kc l 3 . N d4 Bc7 4.

1. Ba6! Bxa6+ Nc6 ! , and the h-pawn can no
It is clear that 1 . . . . Ba8 fails to 2 . longer be stopped.
Na4 Kd8 3 . Nb6. The move 1 . . . . 2. Ng4 Bb6
Bc6 is harder to refute: 2 . Nc4 ! Or 2 . . . . Ba5 3. N f6.
The only way: 2 . N a4? Kd8 3 . Nb6 3. Ne5 Bd8
Kc7 4. a8Q Bxa8 5. Nxa8+ Kb8 6. 3 . . . . Bxf2+ is no better: 4. Kh2 Bh4
Nb6 Ka7, and White is left with 5 . Nf3+.
too little material) 2 . . . . Kd8 3 . Na5 4. Nd7! Ba5 5. Nf6 Bc3
Ba8 4. Bb7 and wins. The bishop is on the correct dia­
2. Nc4 ! gonal, but unfortunately on the

25
wrong square. A simple knight
fork decides.
6. Ne4+
White wins.

Pinning the passed pawn is another

weapon for the defender. Some­
times it can be extremely annoy­
ing, but here White can remove
any option of a pin from the
position.
White can get a new queen, but
that would be a bad idea: I . c8Q
Bb7+ ! 2. Qxb7 Nc5+ 3. Ka7 Nxb7
4. Kxb7 g4, and White i s left
without a single pawn.
The same happens after I . Ka 7
Nd6 2 . Kxa8 g4 3 . Be8 Kf3 4. Bd7
h3 5. Ka7 Kxf2 . However, winning
a piece i s not enough; the win has
to come about via the c-pawn.
1. Bf3! Kxf3
After other moves Black loses
Afek (1 976) along nonnal lines: I . . .. Nd6 2.
Not only has the b-pawn been Bxa8 g4 3. Kb6.
prevented from promoting, but it i s 2. c8Q
now in fact in great danger. The White wins, because after 2 . . . .
solution is a pretty one. Bb7+ 3 . Qxb7 the knight is pinned.
1. Bg7! Rxg7 2. Nd4+ Unfortunately for B lack he also
The point of the bishop sacrifice; loses his bishop.
the king does not have a good
square : 2 . . . . Kd6 3. Nf5+ or 2 . . .
.

Kc5 3 . Ne6+. PASSED PAWNS IN THE OPENING

Sometimes one side manages to In the opening it is rare for a pawn

promote but immediately loses the to reach the opposing back rank.
new queen to a double attack. The opponent will have to con­
Nothing has been achieved. tribute significantly.
In the next example the pin plays There i s a famous example in the
again a role. following game, in which the

26
defender is eliminated by a queen
.I .t 'i¥ • .t .I
sacrifice
' ' ' ' ' '
Schuster-Carls, Bremen 1 91 4 � �
1 . e 4 c 6 2. d 4 d 5 3. Nc3 dxe4 i il,
4. Nxe4 Nf6 5. Ng3 h5 6.
Bg5 h4 7. Bxf6 hxg3 8. Be5
Rxh2 9. Rxh2 Qa5+ 1 0. c3

.l � .t
' '
8. cxd7+ Nxd7!
' White can now capture on g2 of
iV it, course, but after 9. Bxg2 the bishop
� on g5 will fall. White played 9.
Bxd8 and put off the loss for
�
another few moves.
� �
ll I n the following game too, the
player with White overlooked the
1 0 . ... Qxe5+ 1 1 . dxe5 gxh2 intervention of the queen.
Black promotes with the help of
the double attack by the rook Rusakov- Werlinski
pawn : threatening material and a Rostov 1 94 7
square. 1 . e 4 e 5 2. c 3 Nc6 3. d 4 Nf6
4. Bg5 h6 5. Bh4 g5 6. Bg3
Razuvaev-Kupreichik exd4 7. e5 dxc3 8. exf6 cxb2
Moscow 1 9 70 9. Qe2+
1 . c4 e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. Nf3 f5
4. d4 e4 5. Bg5 Nf6 6. d5?
It soon becomes apparent that this
move was inaccurate. The correct
move is 6. Nd2 .
6
• ...exf3 7. dxc6 fxg2
After 8. Bxg2 White will have a
pawn less. Of course, he had other
intentions. In his calculations he
had planned the in-between check.
The passed pawn i s not running
away.

27
White was already reckoning on have continued with 8. Nxc3 in
having an extra piece after 9 . . .. order to be able to play on.
Be7 I 0. Qxb2 Bxf6 I I . Nc3 . But 8. Be5? Rxa2 !
that is not how things happened. White resigned. After 9. Rxa2
9 . ... Qe7! 1 0. fxe7 Bg7! Black will be happy with his
The passed pawn will cost a great passed pawn and wins by 9 . . c2.
. .

amount of material. White resigned.

Terentiev-Ga/lagher PASSED PAWNS I N THE MIDDLEGAME

Liechtenstein 1 990
1 . d4 Nf6 2. Bg5 Ne4 3. Bf4 The passed pawn does not play such
c5 4. c3? an important role in the middlegame
Here White must play 4. d5 or 4. as in the endgame.
f3. It is remarkable how quickly We shall only consider examples
the move he played leads to little in which the passed pawn leads to
problems. a gain of material.
4 . ... Qb6 5. Qb3
After 5. Nd2 Nxd2 6. Qxd2 cxd4
White cannot real ly recapture on
d4. 7. cxd4 will be followed by 7 .
... e5.
s: . . . cxd4 6 . Qxb6 axb6 7.
Bxb8

Black i s threatening to take on h2,

but White diverts him enough with
his c-pawn.
1. Bxe6 fxe6
B lack' s position is not good
enough for him to counter­
sacrifice: I . . . . Nxh2 2. Qxt7+
White already has nothing better to Rxt7 3. Rxt7 Rxc6 4. Bc4, and
offer. After 7. cxd4 Nc6 the threat White wins.
is either 8 . . Nxd4 or 8 . . . Nb4.
. . . 2. Qxf8+ Rxf8 3. Rxf8+
7 . ... dxc3 ! Kxf8 4. c7
White is already worse. H e should The c-pawn decides matters.
28
 l . Qa5+ b6
• After I . . . . Qb6 2. Qxf5 Ne6 3. Re l
I. B lack loses his knight, whilst the
passed pawn survives. There is a
pretty refutation to the move which
was played.
2. Qxa7
Possible thanks to the mate on c8.
2 . ... Qel + 3. Rxel Rxa7 4.
Re8+
The point.
Getting a new queen by promotion 4 ... Rxe8 5. dxeSQ+ Kxe8
.

is a dividend of 8 points. That is 6. Rxa7

worth some preliminary investment! Black admitted defeat.
1 . ... Bh3+!
Preparation for a winning liquida­
tion. BISHOP AGAINST PASSED PAWNS
2. Kgl Qal 3. Qe2 c3 4. Kf2
Qxfl + 5. Qxfl Bxfl 6. Kxfl The bishop is a skilful defender
c2. when there are connected passed
Once more, the c-pawn is decisive. pawns. It can stop a whole row of
passed pawns. But stopping two
Sometimes a piece is sacrificed for passed pawns which are far apart is
a far-advanced passed pawn. The a different kettle of fish.
idea is to get it back with com­
pound interest. This works beauti­
fully in the following game frag­
ment:
Wolf-Grebnich, corr. 1 992

Moravec (1 950)
I magine the position without the
kings. Then the only square from
which the bishop can successfully

29
stop the pawns i s d3 . If it i s on any Firstly, an example in which the
other square, White will catch the king plagues the bishop. The com­
bishop out by a pawn sacrifice ! poser overlooked this possibility.
W ith the kings on the board, there The task: White to play and draw.
is an exciting struggle which Unfortunately that does not work.
leaves White in the end with the 1 . Kg l
upper hand. The best attempt. After I . Bc3+?
1 . a6! Ke4 2 . Kg l Kd3 Black wins pretty
It would be wrong to start with the easily.
other pawn : 1 . g6? Kh6 2. Kf6 Bd5 1 . ... Kd4
3. a6 Bc4 4. a7 Bd5 , and White It is too soon for I . . . . f2+. 2. Kxf2
does not have a good move. (2. Bxf2? a2) 2 . . . . Kd4 3. Bb4 !
1 . ... Bd5 (otherwise the bishop can no longer
A waiting move such as 1 . . . . Bg2 get on to the long diagonal: 3. Ba5?
is followed by 2. g6 Kh6 3. Kf6 a2 4. Bd8 Ke5 or 3 . Ke2? a2 4. Bh4
Ba8 4. g7 ! Bd5 5 . Ke5 Bg8 6. a7, Ke5 ) 3 . . . . a2 4. Bf8 and the
wmnmg. promotion does no more damage.
2. g6 2. Bh4 fl+!
Now it is the tum of the g-pawn. 2 . This is the move Prokes over­
a 7 ? would now b e bad: 2 . . . . Bb7 looked in his calculations. The
3. _!<. f6 Bd5 4. g6 Kh6 5. g7 Kh7, pawn sacrifice did not work on the
and White can no longer win. previous move, so why . is it all
2 . ... Kh6 3. Ke5! right now? Prokes only gives 2 . . . .
Things can stil l go wrong: 3. Kf6? Ke3 ( 2 . . . . Ke5 3 . Be l ! ) 3 . Kfl
Bc4 4. a7 Bd5 . with a draw.
3 . ... Bg2 4. Kf6 Bd5 5. a7 3. Kxf2 Ke5
White wins. This is the difference. Black twice
prevents the bishop from getting
on to the long diagonal. The king
can now arrive j ust in time.
4. Be7 a2 5. Bf8 Kf6
and Black gets a queen.

Keeping opposing pieces at a

distance is also an effective techni­
que in this type of endgame. I n the
next study the white king holds off
Prokes (1941) the black king.
30
 Black seems to manage it; 3. Kg6
is followed by 3 . . . . Bd5 !
3. d5!
The blockade of d5 will cause
Black severe problems.
3 . ... Kc5 !
A subtle try. Taking with the pawn
loses quickly after 4. Kg6. Unfor­
tunately for Black, after 3 . . . . Kxd5
4. Kg6 Ke6 5. Kg7 Lh7 6. Kxh7
Kf7 7 . d4 he will be in zugzwang.
Mees (1 940) 4. Kg6 Bxd5 5. d3
1 . Kc5! Here we can see the disadvantage
White has to play preci sely. The of 3 . . . . Kc5 . White wins.
obvious looking 1 . f6 Ba2 2. b4
Kd4 3 . b5 can be drawn by B lack,
but only with 3 . . . . Bd5 (3 . . . . Ke5?
4. Kc5 Bd5 5 . b6 and wins).
I . ... Ba2 2. b4 Ke4 3. f6
Ke5 4. b5 Ke6 5. ti Kxti
6. b6
The b-pawn gets through.

The one way for the bishop to fail

to stop a passed pawn is when its
diagonal is too short.
Lewitt (1 933)
At first glance it looks as though
White should be more than content
with a draw : I . Ke4 Bd8 2. Kf5
Bb6 3 . Ke4 with a repetition of
moves. But things work out
differently.
1. Ke4 Bd8 2. c5!
White creates a second passed
pawn, which Black may not take:
2 . . . . dxc5 3 . Kf5 .
2 . ... Bf6 3 . cxd6 a4
Pri nev (1 991) After 3 . . . . Kb6 the king rushes to
1 . Kg5 Be6 2. h6 Bg8 help the d-pawn : 4. Kf5 Bh8 5 .

31
Ke6. Kd8 too, there i s nothing more the
4. d7 a3 5. h7 a2 6. d8Q a l Q knight can do.
7 . Qa8+ 2. Kc7 Nb4 3. Kb6 Nd5+ 4.
The only way for White to win is Kb5 Nc7+ 5. Ka5
an X-ray check. The pawn is promoted.
7 • Kb5 8. Qxa l Bxal 9.
...

d4
The final joke.

KNIGHT AGAINST PASSED PAWNS

There is no way the knight can be

considered a hero when it comes to
stopping a passed pawn. On
account of its limited range, it can
happen that the knight cannot
sacrifice itself for the passed pawn. Moravec (1 938)
That is the case especially when 1 . d6!
we are dealing with a rook or a White correctly does not make a
kni t? ht pawn ! firm decision as to where his king
should go. That will depend on
where the knight moves to. After a
king move, Black can bring his
knight into the defence:
A) I . Kc6? Nd2 2 . d6 Nc4 3 . d7
Ne5+
B) I . Ke6? Nd2 2 . d6 Ne4 3. d7
Nc5+
C) I . Ke7? Nd2 2. d6 Nc4 3. d7
Ne5 4. d8Q Nc6+
D) I . Ke8? Nc3 2. d6 Ne4 3. d7
Nf6+
Halberstadt (1 938) E) I . Kc8? Nd2 2. d6 Nc4 3. d7
1 . Kb8! Nb6+
After other moves, the knight 1. ... Nd2
"triumphs": I . Kb6? Nd7+ 2. Kc7 Or 1 . . . . Nc3 2. Kc6 ! or I . . . . Na3
Nc5 or I. b8Q? Nc6+. 2. Ke6 !
1 . . . Nc6+
. 2. Kc7!
After I . . . . Nd7+ 2. Kc8 Nb6+ 3 . As can easily be seen, other moves

32
are unsatisfactory : 2 . Ke7? Nc4 3 .
d7 Ne5 4 . d8Q Nc6+ o r 2 . Kc6?
N c4.
2 . ... Ne4 3. d7 Nc5 4. d8Q+
Promotion follows with check!

Carlsson (1 9 75)
1 . Kb3
A logical move. The king must
help its pawn. l . Ka3 Nb6 would
be illogical, since the king can no
longer approach; as would be I .
Rinck (1 93 7) Kb2 Kf3 .
1 . Kd5 1 . ... Nb6!
Firstly, keep the opposing king at a Putting obstacles in the way of the
distance. After l . b7 Ne5+ 2 . Kd5 king so that it has to go the long
Nd7 3. Kd6 Nb8 4. Kc7 Na6+ way round.
Black draws. 2. Kc2 !
1 . ... Ne5 I s this deviation really necessary?
The g-pawn starts running and can Yes, after 2. Kb4? Nd5+ 3 . Ka5
no longer be stopped. Nxc7 4. b6 Ne6 ! 5. b7 there is a
2. g3+ Kf5 3. g4+ Kf6 draw after the knight fork 5 . . . .
Nor does 3 . . . . Kf4 stop the pawn: Nd8 6. b8Q Nc6+.
4. g5 ! 2 . ... Kf3 3. Kd3 Kf4 4. Kd4
4. g5+ Kf5 5. g6 Kf6 6. g7 Nc8 5. Kc5 !
B lack has to leave his knight in the Keeping the king a t a distance is
l urch. not necessary (the pawns have to
advance), and would even be
Have a look at the following posi­ wrong: 5 . Kd5? Kf5 6. Kc6 Ke6 7.
tio n and evaluate it with White to b6 Ne7+ 8 . Kb7 Kd7 9. Kb8 Nc6+
move. The study is a good exam­ I 0. Kb7 Na5+ 1 1 . Ka6 Nc6, and
ple of the possibilities available to White can make no further pro­
th e side with a knight. gress.
A simple win? No (to the simple) 5 . ... Ke5 6. b6 Ke6 7. b7
an d yes (to the win). wmmng.

33
And in conclusion a pos1t10n in White must play precisely. Taking
which the pawns are very close to on g6 would be stalemate. White
each other. Despite al l that, the has to start with a waiting move.
side with the knight will be left out 1. Ke6 Nf4+
in the cold because of the far ad­ The alternative 1 . . . Nf8+ 1s
.

vanced passed pawn. hopeless: 2. Ke7 Kg7 3. h6+.

2. Kd7!
Absolutely not 2 . Ke7 Nd5+ with a
draw. There will be no second
chance, because after 3. Ke6 Black
does not play 3 . . . . N f4+, but 3 . . . .
Nc7+.
2 • Kg7 3. Ke8 Ne6 4. Ke7
.•.

Now the knight is unfavourably

placed. The threat of 5. h6+ can no
longer be avoided.
4. ... Nf8 5. h6+ Kxh6 6.
Kxf8
Kulis (2000) White is winning.

WORKBOOK

4: Endgame - Passed pawn: A

5 : Endgame - Passed pawn: B
6 : Middlegame - Passed pawn: A
On these sheets it is often enough to eliminate the pieces which are holding
up the passed pawn. The ways to do this are old friends of yours : capturing,
chasing away, luring away, interfering and blocking. Try to advance your
passed pawn with tempo. You will gain a tempo by giving check (e.g. a
discovered check) or attacking something.
If it is not possible to promote the passed pawn like this, keeping the defen­
ders at a distance can be of further assistance.

7: Endgame - Pawn against knight: A

It is surprising how quickly a knight can get from one end of the board to
the other i f it can gain a tempo by giving a check. So choose the square for
your king with care. Sometime a pawn sacrifice enables you to block a
square which the knight needs in order to catch the passed pawn.

34
8: Endgame - Pawn against bishop: A
The bishop is in its element on an empty board. So, closing the diagonals
which the bishop needs by interfering or blocking a square it needs, are
very effective weapons when you are trying to promote a passed pawn.
Furthermore, holding off with the king is also a method which is frequently
to be found on the exercise sheets.

,�--
""-
�iiHrllffltint� Ah.--. to i y
" - l<.:i r pov
-. .- ....... . _

35
3 Strategy

According to the dictionary, "stra­ chess.

tegy" is the art of waging war, Cooperation is when :
targeted behaviour or the concep­ o pieces control the same squares

tion and carrying out of long-term (preferably a complex of squares

plans. That i s true for chess too · next to each other - Nc3 and Nf3
and is in all the manuals. Unfor­ control the whole centre)
tunately (or fortunately ! ) it is not o pieces support each other in
correct. Even grandmasters cannot attack
play a whole game based on a pre­ o pieces protect each other

conceived plan, for the simple o pieces divide the tasks amongst

reason that their opponent will each other

refuse to cooperate. o pieces do not get in each other's

Bronstein (who almost became way

world champion) once said: "In
chess there are no plans, only A piece is vulnerable whenever it
moves". H e is to some extent cor­ • can be attacked (it is either un-
rect. 1 n every position it is only protected or very valuabl�)
possible to plan a few moves • has few possible moves
ahead, at the most to conceive a • is fulfilling a particular function
plan . . • is working alone

What i s a good strategy?

• increase activity INCREASING ACTIVITY
• decrease vulnerability
You can increase the activity of
A piece is active whenever it your pieces in many different ways.
• has a lot of possible moves You can improve your position
• is attacking something (the king, j ust by attacking opposing pieces
material or a square) and controlling more squares in
• controls squares (in the centre or your opponent' s half of the board.
in the opponent' s half of the In thi s lesson we shall restrict our­
board) selves to the next three important
• is cooperating with other pieces methods:
It is certainly helpful to recapitu­ I . take care of your worst piece
late what cooperation means in (the piece which is doing least).

36
2. pay enough attention to your queen cannot achieve anything
best piece. after other moves. 1 . g4 is too
3. pay close heed to your oppo­ weakening: I . . . . f4 (or even I . . . .
nent' s weakest point. Qxc2 2 . Qe5 Qd2 ! ) . Also, after the
passive 1 . Bb 1 f4 the queen re­
I mprove the position of the mains shut in, and after 1 . Re2 Rd8
worst piece Black is once more threatening to
The art lies in choosing the piece take on c2.
that is achieving the least. In thi s 1 . . Kf7
..

position that is not s o difficult. Now the win is simple. Also, other
moves obviously Jose, but White
would have had to think hard for
his next move after 1 . . . . Rd8.
White wins with 2 . Bxh5 Rd2 3 .
Qg3 Rxb2 4 . Bxg6 ! (the other
bishop is now the hero) 4 . . . . f4 5 .
Bxh7+ Kxh7 6. Qh4+ Kg8 7 . Re7
or 7. Qd8+, and B lack must surren­
der his queen to avoid mate.
After 1 . . . . Ng7 2. b4 ! Qxb4 3 .
Bb3+ Kh8 4 . Qxc7 Qxe 1 + 5 . Kh2
Black is mated.
Kveinis-Kholmov, Batumi 1 991 2. Bxh5 gxh5 3. Re l
Two white pieces leap to the eye in Perhaps B lack had been hoping for
a positive way : the Re 1 and the 3 . Re5 Qc2.
Bb2. They are active. The white 3 . ... Re8 4. Qg3 Qxc l + 5.
queen, on the other hand, has a Bxc l Re l + 6. Kh2 Rxcl 7.
wretched position; the only square Qg5
it can go to is h 1 (of course, with B lack resigned.
the open black king position White
does not want to exchange queens A piece which is no longer doing
on e5 ! ). As soon as it becomes anything, is a loss of several points
active, the black king position can to the attacking forces. So mobi­
hardly be rescued. A small plan lising a piece with a pawn sacrifice
has been born : improve the posi­ is not such an unusual idea.
tion of the queen by getting rid of
the knight on h5. In the next position, from the game
1. Bd l ! A lzate-Arencibia, Cali 1 990, Black
The logical move. The bishop i s has three active pieces. Only the
under attack in any case. The knight on e7 i s not yet doing

37
anything to help. The first move square. In the next fragment White
comes as a surprise. manages to activate two of his
pieces.

.I. .I. •
' 'ii ' '
' 'ii .t .t '
' '
8 ltJ
8 � 8
8 £::. Vfil � £::. 8
ll 1:l @
A lzate-Arencibia, Cali 1 990
1. ... c5! Jbragimov-Holzke,
A strong pawn sacrifice. So strong Bundesliga 1 998
that White immediately made a Firstly, it is the tum of the bishop
mistake. He played 2. e5? and had on e2 (it is getting in the way of its
to give up a pawn after 2 . . . . Qf2+ ! own queen).
3 . Kxf2 cxb4 4. Ke3 Nf5+ 5 . Kd3 1. Bc4
Nxd4 . The question is, whether the White makes use of the possibil ity
activation of the knight j ustifies of a double attack with Nf5 if
the pawn sacrifice. B lack takes the bishop. It would be
2. dxc5 Nc6 3. Qc3 Qd4+ 4. too early to play I . Nf5 Bxf5 2.
Qxd4 Nxd4 exf5 e4 !
All Black' s pieces are cooperating, 1 . ... Rac8
White will have to watch out. A strange move. B lack wants to
5. Bb4 have the option of Nd4, but the
Probably the best move. After 5 . white queen wanted to leave its
B f4 B f3 6. B h 3 Ne2+ 7 . Rxe2 (7. position anyway.
Kfl Bxe4) 7 . . . . Rxe2 8 . c6 Rc2 9. 2. Qe2 b5 3. Bd5 c4 4. Qh5
c7 B g4 B lack has an advantage. The position of the white pieces is
5 . ... Bf3 6. Bh3 clearly an improvement on what
Black has only slight chances after we saw in the diagram.
6 . . . . Bh l or 6 . . . . g5 . J ust enough 4 . ... Qf8 5. Nf5 Bxf5 6. exf5
to play on a little. Be7 7. Be4
7. a4 seems to be even better, but
Sometimes you have to put more White had no problems winning
than j ust one piece on a better with thi s move.

38
A strong square for the moment on account of 4.
I n Step 5 the advantages of a strong Qc7.
square were pointed out in great 3 . ... h6 4. Rg2
detail : creating a strong square, Gurevich does not bother preven­
moving a piece to a strong square, ting Black ' s plan. He would do
supporting a strong piece and better to play 4. Kh I Ng6 5. Nc7
swapping off possible attacking (then the white knight at least
pieces. reaches the d5-square) 5 . . . . Rd6
(5 . . . . Be5 6. Nxe6 Bxh2 - without
check ! - 7. Nxf8 does not offer
any winning chances) 6. Nd5 Qd7
with better play for Black. The
options: Be5 I a4 and b5 with play
on both wings.
4 . ... Ng6 5. Qc7 Rxe2
Too greedy too soon. There is the
simpler 5 . . . . Nh4 6. Qxe7 Rxe7 7.
Rgf2 Be5 and the threat of Bg3
wins more material. In the game
White put up little resistance. He
Gurevich, M-Adams, Ostend 1 991 had certainly had enough of his
1. Na3 position and lost quickly.
The knight goes to the "strong"
square b5 . S ince it is going to be 9
pretty well on its own there, the
it' &
knight would appear to be some­
what out of the game. A better plan I. I. I.
might be I . Ne I , to swap off the l!i &
black knight. The latter knight ttJ ttJ
appears to be j ust as inactive, but
l!i
let us take a look at what happens
in the game ! l!i l!i 'iV l!i
1 . ... Re6 2. Nb5 g5 ! Il @
With a clear plan : Ne5-g6 is
he ading for a strong square and ]zeta-Shulman, Pamplona 1 995
B g 7-e5-f4, in order to swap off the B lack wants to play g5 to chase the
defending bishop. knight away from f4, so that his
3. Qh2 own knight on g7 no longer has to
White does not have many options, protect the e6-square. White is j ust
but this move prevents 3 . . . . Ng6 ahead of him by a nose.

39
 1 . Nc5! to resolve his doubled pawns.
It is no disgrace to want to achieve 1. b5! cxb5 2. axb5 a5
a strategic aim by tactical means. After 2 . . . . axb5 3. Rxb5 Kb7 4.
Now l . . . . g5 fails to 2 . Qxe5 Qxe5 Nd5 Qd7 5. Qb l White gets a
3. Ng6+ Kg8 4. Nxe5 dxe5 5. Nd7 strong attack thanks to the pressure
or 5. Rf6 with a big advantage. on b6.
1. ... Kh7 2. Nxb7 3. Nd5
2. Nce6 was also strong, but White The knight can no longer be driven
prefers to gobble up a pawn. away by a pawn.
2 . ... Rf8 3 . ... Qc5 4. c4 Ng5 5. Rf2
B lack cannot trap the knight. 2 . . . . Ne6 6. Qc3 Rd7 7. Rd l
a 5 is followed by 3 . Nd3 . White has to be on his guard
3. Na5 g5? against the exchange sacrifice on
This makes things easy for White. d5. That would be good after 7 .
After a move such as 3. . . . Qd7 Rd2 Rxd5 8 . exd5 Qxe3+ and 9 . . . .
White would have to work harder. Nc5 .
For the rest of the game Black was 7 . ... Kb7 8. d4 Qd6 9. Rc2
all at sea. exd4 1 0. exd4 Nf4 1 1 . c5
4. Nc6 Nxc6 5. dxc6 Qxe2 6. Nxd5 12. exd5 Qxd5 13. c6+
Nxe2 Re8 7. Nc3 Kg6 8. Kb8 1 4. cxd7 Qxd7 1 5. d5
Nd5 Nf5 9. Nxc7 Re4 1 0. Re8 1 6. d6 cxd6 1 7. Qc6
NdS Rxc4 1 1 . Rxf5 Black resigned.
Black resi gned.
Attack the weakest point
• .I. .i You must concentrate your activi­
ties on the part of the board where
i
-·��"--"r-
iV � i i
your opponent is not so strong.
i i i i
i .i. .I •
� � � .i i i
lb � � � i � �
� � i ..t ..t
lb i �
Capablanca-Janowski
� � �
St. Petersburg 1 91 4 �
Creating a strong square fo r the 'ii � @
knight on d5 is more important
than the fact that Black is allowed Karpov-Morovic, Las Pa/mas 1 994

40
White ' s position i s excellent; being centre and control of the b-file.
a pawn down is not so important. And yet the white position is much
Turning a good position into a won better; the knight can simply be
position is often difficult. Not for driven away and the black rooks
Karpov. He sees that the black cannot do any harm (the rook will
king position is his most vulne­ not achieve much on b2).
rable point. His rook which is
well-placed rook on e 1 must be
transferred to the h-fi le.
'it' i
1. Kg2
White is also better after other i
moves. He can recover the pawn i i0i �
with 1 . Bxf6 Qxf6 2. Rxd5 , but i0i i0i
when you are in a superior position
you should not voluntarily relieve
'if � i0i i0i
the tension. (You only do that tD @ i0i
when things are really good.) ll ll
1 . ... Re7
Not a great move. You would Dautov- Timoshchenko
rather expect the move I . . . . Nb5 , Erevan 1 996
but even then Karpov ' s plan is 1. f4
decisive: 2. Rh 1 g6 3 . Rh4 ! Logical .
(doubling is possible, because 3 . . . . 1 . ... Nf7
gxf5 is followed by 4 . Rh6). The After the better 1 . . . . Ng4 2 . Bg l
white attack is conclusive. e5 3 . h3 Nh6 4. fxe5 fxe5 5 . Be3
2. Rh l Rde8 Nf7 6. Rf6 White is also clearly
Black wants to prevent doubling better.
on the h-file. 2 . . . . Ree8 is followed 2. e5 !
by 3. Rh4. Opening the pos1t1on by ex­
3. Rh8+! changing pawns is the way to acti­
The queen reaches the h-file in vate the rooks. Even if it costs a
double-quick time thanks to the pawn.
power of attraction. 2 . ... fxe5
3 . ... Kxh8 4. Qhl+ Kg8 5. Black cannot avoid the capture.
Bxf6 Qxg3+ 6. fxg3 Re2+ 7. After 2 . . . . Qd8 White plays 3 . g4,
Kh3 gxf6 8. Kg4 so as to shut the knight in com­
Black resigned. pletely with 4. e6.
3. fxe5 Nxe5 4. Bh6 Qg4
In the next diagram Black' s posi­ White was threatening 4. Rxe5
tion looks pleasant; a knight in the dxe5 5. Qxe5 e6 6. Ne4 and wins.

41
The rook sacrifice on e5 also wins 1. ... Kf8 2. Bf5 Bxf5 3. Qxf5
after the move played. In the game If the king were on h8, f7 would
White played something quieter. now be hanging.
5. Rf4 Qh5 6. Rh4 Qf5 7. 3 . ... Rc7 4. Qh7 Ndb6?
Rfl Qc8 8. Rhf4 Qe8 9. Qal It is probably better to take on c5,
Rd8 1 0. Ne4 Nc8 1 1 . Ng5 though after 4. ... Nxc5 the
Nb6 1 2. Rfi Nbxc4 13. intermediate move 5 . Nh4 ! is
Rg7+ Kh8 1 4. Nfi+ strong.
Black resigned. 5. Qh8+
White collects a pawn. The
immediate 5. Nh4 ! Would be deci­
INCREASING VULNERABILITY sive: 5 . . . . Qf6 6. Nf5 g6 7. Ne6+
fxe6 8 . Qxc7 exf5 (8 . . . . Qxf5 9.
If there are no targets to attack, Qd8+) 9 . Ra7 . Now White had a
you can create some. long job ahead of him before he
won : 5 . . . . Ke7 6. Qxg7 Qg6 7 .
.i Qxg6 fxg6 8 . Kfl g5 9. Ra6 Kd6
I 0. Ne5 Nc8 1 1 . Ng4 h5 1 2 . Nh6
�
( 1 2 . Nf6 ! ) etc .
.t. 'iV
.t. tt:J .t. The most frequently employed
' i0i � i0i .t method of degrading the , oppo­
nent ' s position is to infl ict doubled
� i0i tlJ
pawns on him. Doubled pawns are
.tI � i0i i0i i0i especially weak if they are iso­
@ lated.

Lengyel-Kotov, A msterdam 1 968

White has an excellent position.
He is exerting pressure down the a­
fi le and has a good knight on c5.
Black ' s Nc4 is not in the game.
For the moment it cannot defend
the other wing. White takes advan­
tage of this . .
1 . Bh7+!
Before exchanging bishops White
weakens the black position with a
check. The king has to abandon the Gligoric-Smyslov, Warsaw 1 94 7
protection of either fl or h7. 1 . ... g5!

42
Black is also better after I . . . Qc2
. g 5 7. h4 is not good.
2. b4 Rfd8, but things are easier i f 6 . ... Kti 7. Rc3 Bc6 8. Rxe6
you have a specific target t o attack. Bd5
The weakening of the kingside is Black must surrender a pawn and
not so tragic as all that since his ends up in a losing rook ending.
opponent cannot exploit it. 9. Rd6 Rxd6 1 0. exd6 Bxb3
2. Qe3 Qxe3 3. fxe3 Rc2 1 1 . Rxb3 b6 1 2. Rc3 Kf6
White ' s predicament is a worrying 1 3. Rc7 Rd8 1 4. d7
one. He cannot avoid losing a White won the game effortlessly.
pawn.
4. Ne4 g4 5. Bxg4 Nxg4 6. The next game is the oldest in this
Rxd7 Rxe2 7. Rd2 Rxd2 8. book.
Nxd2 Nxe3
Now that he had the pawn, B lack
won after a long struggle .

.i .i @>
i i 'i\ i...-
i ---+.-- I
.t n i
� �
i..
ttJ n �
� � WI � � Bledow- Von lasa, Berlin 1 839
@ 1. dxe5 Nxe5
Black correctly takes with the
Portisch-Pomar, Malaga 1964 knight. After I . . . dxe5 2. Bxb6
.

White uses the battery on the c-file cxb6 3 . N bd2 the Nc6 is not so
to attack the black pawn structure. well placed.
1 . Nd5! Qxc2 2. Nxe7+ Kf8 2. Nxe5
3. Ng6+ fxg6 4. Bxc2 Ke7 5. Nowadays we would no longer
Bb3 ! make this sort of move. The weak­
Of course White does not play 5 . ness of the doubled pawns is now
Bxg6 to exchange h i s strong e­ limited. White must now leave two
pawn for the weak g-pawn. 5 . weaknesses on the board : 2. Bb5+
Rxd8 is also the wrong way : 5 . . . . Bd7 3. Bxb6 Bxb5 4. axb5 cxb6 5 .
Rxd8 6 . Bxg6 Rd l + and 7 . . . . Rd2 . Nbd2, followed by Nd4. I t will be
5 . ... Bd7 6. Rg3 ! difficult to push through d5.
This diverts the king, because 6 . . . . 2 . ... dxeS 3. Bxb6 cxb6

43
Now it is possible to live with the The motto is "Bring about weak­
doubled pawns. White can hardly nesses".
attack them. 1 . Bf4+!
4. Nd2 0-0 5. Qe2 Bd7 Following the check on b4, things
In the next phase of the game it go no further after 1 . . . . Kd7.
becomes clear that a lower rated 1. ... e5 2. Bd2 !
player (studying Step 6) would White has in effect "skipped a
then have been amongst the top move". Black has played e5 and
players in the world. has to play again. Now the check
6. Rad l ? Bxa4 7. b3 Bc6 8. on b4 is a threat, because Kd7 no
f4 Rad8 9. fxe5 Qxe5 1 0. longer achieves anything in view
Rf5 Qd6? 1 1 . e5 Qc5+ 1 2 . of Bh3+. With his next move,
Kh l Ne4? 1 3 . Nxe4 Rxd l + B lack makes space on e 5 .
1 4. Qxd l Bxe4 1 5. Rxf7! 2 . .. e 4 3. Bf4+! Ke7 4. Rc7+
Rxf7 1 6. Qd8+ Qf8 1 7. Rd7 5. Bh3 Rxc7 6. Bxc7
Bxf7+ Kxf7 1 8. e6+ Kg8 1 9. Nd7 7. Bxd7 Kxd7 8. Bxb6
e7 Winning a pawn. White won easily
Black resigned. with his connected passed pawns.

1. •
Well-protected pawns above all are
.i. i i i
an annoying hindrance for bishops.
When these pawns are enticed for­ 'it' .i. '
wards the pawn structure is often ' � A))
weakened. 8
8 {ij 8
8 8
@ rl

Shetty-Dreev, Calcutta 1 992

Black has the choice between
taking on b3 (with a better end­
game) and preventing castling. H e
decided o n the latter. The king is
less safe in the middle, and - what
is even more important - the rook
Vaganian-Dvoirys, Odessa 1 989 on h 1 remains passive.
White may be better but the ease 1. . . Qa6 2. Bh2
.

with which he wins is amazing. 2. Kd2, in order to be able to

44
develop the rook, would be a
courageous choice. After 2 . . . . N f6
3 . Bxf6 (forced, because after 3 .
Rhd I Ne4+ White cannot capture,
because Ba4 is possible) 3 . . . . Bxf6
4. Rhd 1 . In the game it becomes
clear that when you are "a rook
down" there is not much you can
do.
3 . ... Rfc8 3. Rd l Nf6 4. Nd2
Ne4 5. Ndxe4 dxe4 6. a3
Bd5 7. Nxd5 exd5 8. Kd2 Kooloos-Burg, B
Rc4 9. Re l Rac8 1 0. Rxc4 NBSB - 1 2 Championship
Rxc4 1 1 . Bg3 The white pawns on b3 and d3 are
After 1 1 . Re I Rxc I the queen weak. White played I . Qg3 , but
invades on fl . after I . . . . Nc5 she soon had to ad­
1 1 . ... Qc6 1 2 . Rbl Bg5 13. mit defeat. How can White solve
Ke t h5 1 4. h4 Bd8 1 5. Kfl the problem of the weaknesses?
Rc2 1 6. Kgl Be7 1 7. Rfl a5 1. Qxf5!
1 8. a4 Rd2 1 9. Rd l Qc2 20. At first sight taking on f5 does not
Qxc2 Rxc2 2 1 . Rb l f5 22. seem such a special move, since it
Kfl Kf7 23. Ke 1 Bb4+ 24. improves B lack' s pawn structure
Kft Ke6 25. Be5 g6 26. g3 and White loses the e4-square for
Kd7 27. Bf6 Kc6 28. Bd8 b5 her knight. These are the disadvan­
29. axb5+ Kxb5 30. b3 Ra2 tage, but there are also advantages
3 1 . Kg2 Bd2 32. Kfl Kb4 as we shall soon see.
33. Ke2 Bc3+ 34. Kfl Bb2 1 . ... gxf5 2. Ng3
White resigned. Suddenly White ' s knight becomes
active.
2 . ... f4
The only move to lead to anything
DECREASING VULNERABILITY like level play. We find thi s move
by the process of exclusion. 2. .. .
Pieces which have a task to fulfil Rhf8 looks logical , but after 3 . f4
are vulnerable. Think, for example, exf4 4. Bxf4 Nc5 5 . Nh5 Rt7 6.
about important defenders. Nxg7 Rxg7 7 . Bxh6. White is
The next position comes from a better. Black cannot give up the f5-
game that was played in the pawn.
Netherlands in a local champion­ 3. Ne4 Nf6
ship under 12. With level chances.

45
Tension is mostly advantageous Be4 8. Bd3 Bc5 9. Ne3 Qb6
for the attacking side. So it is a 1 0. Rfe l Rfd8 1 1 . Kh l Bxd3
good thing to force the opponent to Black decides to go for a lasting
release the tension. advantage and weakens the white
structure.
1 2. cxd3 Rac8 1 3 . Qf3 Qa6
1 4. Nc4 Qxa2 1 5. Qxb7 Rb8
1 6. Qc7 Rdc8 1 7. Qd7 Qxb3
1 8. Ne5 Qb7 1 9. Re l Rc7
20. Qa4 Qb4 2 1 . Qd l Qxf4
22. Rc4 Qg5 23. Qf3 Qxe5
White resigned .

.I � � .I .
� .i. .i. .t. .t.
Barda-Boleslavsky .t. .t.
Bucharest 1 953 8 .t.
It is unpleasant for Black to always .t.· 8 8
have to bear in mind the possibility
8 � 0:, 8
of Bxf6.
I . ... h6 2. Bh4 'Wi 8 8
Capturing suits Black : 2 . Bxf6 M 0J � � @
Bxf6 3 . Qxd6 Qb6+ 4. Kh I Qxb2 .
Now Black can l iquidate m Kapengut-Kholmov, Grozny 1 969
standard fashion. Both pawn structures have been
2 . ... Nxe4 3. Nxe4 weakened. The doubled pawns on
B lack ' s point can be seen after 3 . the c-file are very weak, above all
Bxe7 Nxc3, and the threatened if Black gets to play Nb7-c 5 .
fork on e2 forces the recapture on White deals with his vulnerable
c3 . White has the choice between points in instructive fashion.
losing a pawn after 4. Qxc3 or a 1. c5! dxc5
wrecked pawn structure after 4. After I . . . . Qxc5 2 . Nxe5 (or the
bxc3 . immediate 2 . Ba3 ) 2 . . . . Bxh3 3 .
3• ...Bxh4 4. Nxd6 Bf6 N f3 Black doesn 't get a look-in.
The black bishops are extremely 2. Bxa6 f6 3. Bd3 Nb7 4.
strong. It is nice to see how the Bh6 Rf7 5. Na3 Bf8 6. Be3
white pieces are left with fewer Ned6 7. Reh l Ra8 8. Nd2
and fewer options. Be8 9. Ndc4 Nxc4
5. Qf2 Qc7 6. b3 Be7 7. Nc4 White has a major advantage.

46
LIMITING ACTIVITY 26. h5
Black resigned.
Preventing opposing pieces from
reaching good squares is j ust as
useful as rai sing the level of your
own activity.

I. � I. •
' ' .i. � ·
' .i.
' 8 '
8
8 �
Dvoretsky-Polovodin
8 � � ltJ 8 8 Soviet Union 1 9 79
.tt n @ White soon regretted allowing the
black bishop on to g4. Black is
Ree- Torre, Wijk aan Zee 1 981 now so active that White can no
1. g4 ! longer develop naturally. I . h3 ! is
It is important for the knight not to required, after which White may
be allowed to get to f5 . The not be able to castle for the
weakening of the king position is moment but can at least develop
no longer a tragedy since Black his remaining pieces.
cannot exploit it. Play through the 1 . 0-0? Bg4 2. Rel Nd4 3.
following moves and above all look Re3 Nf6 4. a3
at the pathetic existence which can White takes action before Black
be enforced on a knight. completes his development with
1. ... Bf6 2. Bd3 Bxd3 3. e6, Be7 and 0-0. He is successful .
Qxd3 Qd7 4. h3 Bxb2 5. 4 . ... e6 5. b4 cxb4 6. axb4
Rah l Be5 6. Bxg5 Rfi 7. Bxb4 7. h3
Ne4 Raf8 8. Bh6 Qe7 9. Kg2 White must sacrifice a pawn, be­
Rxfl 1 0. Rxfl Rxfl 1 1 . cause 7. Rb l Bc5 8 . Rxb7 Nxf3+
Qxfl Kg8 12. a4 Ne8 13. 9. Rxf3 0-0 is very bad.
Qf5 Qfi 1 4. Qxfi+ Kxfi 1 5. 7 . ... Bxf3 8. Bxf3 Nxf3+ 9.
Kf3 Nc7 1 6. h4 Na8 1 7. a5 Qxf3 Qxf3 1 0. Rxf3 Be7
b6 1 8. Bd2 Nc7 1 9. Ng5+ I 0. . . . Rc8 looks like a normal
Kg7 20. axb6 axb6 2 1 . Ke4 move. As play continued, Black did
Bf6 22. Kf5 Bxg5 23. Bxg5 not always make the best moves
Kfi 24. Bd8 Na8 25. g5 Ke8 and the game ended in a draw.

47
ACTIVITY AND VULNERABILITY passive bishop and the f-pawn
have disappeared. Both white
We shall now take a look at the rooks are much more active than
two main concepts in this lesson in the black ones and White clearly
two game fragments, one from a has an advantage.
game between young players and 1. ... Kh7 2. Qe5
the other from a game between This is now forced.
grandmasters. 2 . ... Qxe5 3. fxe5 Rff8?

i.
' • •
i. ' ' ' '

.t LS LS
.i, LS
LS LS LS 'WI
� n 1:

Mazajchik- Tan, M Mierlo 1 999 A weak move, but an instructive

White has the healthier pawn moment for us. White ' s e-pawn is
structure, but that is of l ittle help vulnerable (it cannot be protected
because he also has the weakest any more). However, Tan did not
pawn (on f4). If Black can manage play 3 . . . . Re6, because then the
to play Raf8, all his pieces will be white rook can invade via f7,
active. The white queen is very which, however, would have not
mobile and that is what White been at all dangerous. The rook on
must exploit. f7 doesn ' t have a seventh rank !
1. Qd4 Taking on fl and then 4 . . . . Kg7
Almost good. White gains time would, moreover, have also been
with the threat 2 . g5. There would better than the move in the game.
be the same idea after I . Qc3 ! . 4. Ba4 !
This move would have allowed Very good. The bishop is achie­
White to deal w ith some of his ving nothing from b3 and is
weaknesses. After the forced move activated.
I . . . . Kh7 we also see the second 4 . ... c5
aim of the queen move: the c-pawn It was time for the emergency
is pinned. So 2. Bxd5 Bxd5 3 . brakes : 4 . . . . Kg7 5. Bxc6 Rx fl + 6.
Rxd5 Rxf4 4 . Rfd I o r 4 . R e I . The Rxfl Rc8 7. Ba4 Bg2, and B lack

48
hangs on. 7 . ... Bd4 8. Qg3 Ng6
5. Bc6 Rxfl 6. Rxfl Rc8 The e5-pawn is also hanging.
6 . . . . Rg8 7. c4 Bg2 8. Rg l Bxh3 9. 9. c3 Bb6 1 0. d4
Rg3 Bfl 1 0. cxd5 is not much fun
either, but at least better than the
continuation in the game.
7. Bd7 Rg8 8. Rf7+
After some strong play, a mistake.
After 9. Be6 Rg7 I 0. Rf8 Black is
playing with a rook less : limit acti­
vity (5 points which are doing ab­
solutely nothing).
8 . ... Rg7 9. Rf8 Rg8 1 0. Rfl
Kg7
Things are roughly level . Black
went on to win this ending. A pawn sacrifice which Black does
not dare to accept.
I n the following grandmaster game 10 . ... 0-0
we see that White (who went on to What would come after 1 0. . . .
win the title) makes sure that all exd4? Perhaps 1 1 . f4, though 1 1 .
his pieces are active. He increases . . . c6! 1 2 . f5 dxc3+ 1 3 . Kh l Bc7
Black' s vulnerability by means of looks good for Black. After I 0.
small threats. The game is a joy to Rd I dxc3 1 1 . Nxc3 White has
behold. compensation.
1 1 . f4
Kamsky-Christiansen Very strong here. 1 1 . dxe5 would
St. Louis 2010 US-Championship not be good: I . . . Qe7 1 2 . Bf4 d6 ! ,
1 . e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 and B lack wins back the pawn ( 1 3 .
Bc5 exd6? Qxe4 ).
The Cordel Variation. 1 1 . ... exf4
4. 0-0 Nd4 5. Ba4 I n chess there is always a choice to
Not the main variation (that is 5 . be made. I I . . . . exd4 would be
Nxd4). The bishop move makes more dangerous: 1 2 . f5 Qf6 (or 1 2 .
sure that Black cannot for the . . . dxc3+ 1 3 . Kh l Bd4 1 4. Nxc3
moment play d6. Be5 1 5 . Bf2 Ne7 1 6. Bf4 Nc5 1 7.
5 . ... Nxf3+ 6. Qxf3 Ne7 7. Rae I with sufficient play) 1 3 . Kh I
Qc3 h6 1 4. cxd4 Bxd4 1 5 . Nc3 and
The queen move entices the bishop now 1 5 . . . . Be5 1 6. Nd5 . Black
on to d4, in order to win a tempo has to be on his guard, e.g. 1 5 . . . .
with c 3 . Bxc3 1 6. bxc3 Qa6? 1 7. Bxh6

49
Qxa4 1 8 . Bxg7 Kxg7 1 9. f6+ Kg8 2 1 . . . . c5 would be better. After
20. Qh3 winning. 22. Ng6 Qxg3 23 . hxg3 Rf6 24.
1 2. Bxf4 Nxf4 13. Qxf4 d6 Rxe6 Rxe6 2 5 . Bb3 Kh7 26. Bxe6
1 4. Nd2 Be6 1 5. Kh l c6 1 6. Kxg6 27. Bxf5+ White is a pawn
Nf3 up, but the ending with opposite
coloured bishops will be a hard one
to win.
22. Qh3 !
This forces the win of a pawn or
else Black must open up the b 1 -h7
diagonal .
22. ... f4 23. Qd3 Bf5 24.
Bb3+ Kh7 25. Qd2 g5

16 . ... h6?
A pawn move like this can create a
target to be attacked (though here
g2-g4-g5 hardly comes into ques­
tion) and weakens the diagonal b l ­
h7. White instructively exploits the
latter fact.
1 7. Bc2 Qd7 1 8. e5 dxe5?
Two alternatives: 1 8 . . . . d5 1 9. 26. g4 !
Nh4 gives White good attacking Even better than 26. g3, which
chances or 1 8 . . . . Bc7 (the best) 1 9. wins a pawn . The bishop has to
Qe4 g6 20. Qf4 Kg7 2 1 . Rae I and leave the diagonal on which its
White is somewhat better. H i s king is standing. The white queen
pieces are more active, but despite and bishop quickly take control of
the weakness on g6 the black the diagonal. Without the protec­
position is still solid. tion of its pawns the black king is
1 9. Nxe5 Qd6 20. Qg3 f5 exposed to the opposing pieces.
The only move to meet the threat 26. Bc8
•.•

of Rf6. A move such as 20 . . . . Bd8 Things go downhill after 26.

achieves little and after 2 1 . Rae I fxg3 27. Rxf5 Rxf5 28. Bc2 Rf8
and 22. Qd3 White ' s attack is still 29. Rf! or 26 . . . . Bg6 27. Nxg6.
strong. The same queen move will fol low
2 1 . Rael Bc7 other bishop moves: 27. Qd3 .

50
 27. Qd3+ Kg7 28. Bc2 Rh8 29 . ... Bxg4
29. Ng6 After 29. . . . Be6 the move 30.
Almost everything wins. Even the Nxh8 wins, but 30. Kg I Rhe8 3 1 .
exchange of queens with 29. Qg6+ Nh4 is the nicer variation.
Qxg6 30. Nxg6, since Re7+ threa­ 30. Re7+ Kf6 3 1 . Rxc7
tens. After the game move there is Rhg8 32. Ne5
also the threat of 30. Re7+. Black resigned.

WORKBOOK

9: Strategy - Mini plan: A

I 0: Strategy - Mini plan: B
1 1: Strategy - Mini plan: C
1 2: Strategy - Mini plan: D

How do you go about solving positions under the heading of "Mini plan".
Take a look at the strong and the weak points of the side which has the
move. Then you do the same for the opposing side.

Activating pieces
• move to a strong square
• develop
• centralise
• mobilise (bring them to where the action i s ! )
• attack pieces
• improve cooperation (attack together, cooperate in the control of adjacent
squares)

Limiting the activity of the opponent's pieces

• exchange of active (attacking) pieces
• restrict, trap, shut in (see also Chapter 4)
• tie down (give them a task to fulfil)
• maintain and increase tension

51
Limiting you own vulnerability
• improve your pawn structure (resolve doubled pawns)
• keep all your pieces protected or protect them even more
• resolve any weaknesses
• release the tension

Increasing you r opponent's vulnerability

• d egrade his pawn structure
• c reate targets to attack
• provoke weaknesses
• swap off good defending pieces
• build up the tension

52
4 Mobility

Every piece needs space. A piece 9. Qe2

can also be very active even if it A logical developing move, but a
cannot move, though that is quite a losing one ! The correct move i s 9.
rare occurrence. Pieces which have Ne3 .
little freedom of movement are in 9 . ... Qd6
danger of being trapped. Even in
the opening a piece can quickly .i • .i. .i
have problems. The position in the
I. I. I. I.
diagram arises from a Sicilian
Defence after the moves: 'if I. &
1 . e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 b6? &
4. dxc5 bxc5? 5. Qd5 [::, [::,
l2J �
8 8 l2J VJ/i 8 8 8
n � @ n
The bishop has no retreat square;
only the king can protect it, but
that costs material.
1 0. Kd2 Nxc4+ 1 1 . Kel Ne5
Black won effortlessly.

The rook on a8 can only be saved TACTICALLY TRA PPING A PIECE

by the sacrifice of a minor piece.
If you cannot trap a piece straight
White ' s setup was j ust as clumsy away, then a preparatory move can
in the following game. help.
The choices are well known :
Mabbs-Mohrlok, 1 959 • attracting
I. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4 • eliminating the defence
4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Bd3 a6 6. c4 • chasing
Nc6 7. Nc2 Qc7 8. Nc3 Ne5 • targeting
How can White protect c4? • clearing

53
It is useful to repeat everything at a nothing, White j ust takes, so B lack
regular time. So we give a sample takes the knight:
of every preparatory move.

Attracting
You can attract a piece go to a
square by an exchange or a sacri­
fice. This is a common preparatory
action.

1 . ... Bxf.3 2. Bxf.3 Nd4

Black wins the queen.

In this diagram White lures the

black queen into the trap.
1. e5 Bxe5 2. Rxe5 Qxe5 3.
Bf4
The queen has no more squares. I f
B lack does not take o n e 5 the
damage is limited to the loss of a
piece. Luring away
The piece which is to be i solated
Eliminating the defence does not immediately leap to the
Capturing, luring away, chasing eye. The queen is the unlucky one,
away, interfering and blocking are although for the moment it has five
the different preparatory moves to free squares and is not yet being
the el iminating of the defence. attacked. A knight sacrifice lures
the bi shop away from d3 :
Capturing 1 . Nxc4 2. Bxc4 Bb4
..•

In the next diagram the white The queen no longer has a free
queen has no squares to go to. The square. The bishop move clears the
immediate I . . . Nd4 achieves
. e-file.

54
 Chasing
.i .i • Attacking a piece with one which
i¥' .t. .t. i s worth less so that the first one
must move away is called "chasing".
� Chasing is the simplest of the pre­
paratory moves .
.t. 8
� 8
.I @i
8 8 8 8
.t. .t .t.
@ ll 1l
.t .t.
Interfering �
The white queen still has two l1::J 8
squares. With the rook on b8 it
would be deprived of b4. So now
�
the option of a capture on e5 must 8 8
be eliminated. �
1 . ... e4 2. fxe4 Reb8
The queen is lost. In this diagram the rook on e8 in
its own camp i s chased away and
.t trapped:
l . Nd6 Rf8 2. Be7
.t. .t
.t. .t. Targeting
A piece which is to be boxed in is
only able to go to a single square.

Blocking
The amusing thing about blocking
is that you force the opponent to
put one of his own pieces on a
possible escape square. After 1 . . . .

g 5 the queen can sti ll g o to h 5 . So

Black lures the white bishop on to
h5. Then "targeting" is the correct pre­
l. . Rh5 2. Bxh5 g5
.. paration, meaning that we deprive

55
it of its escape square with gain of The bishop on c4 makes space for
tempo. The previous move ( Rd I ) the knight to go there. At the same
was not a good one. Black' s next time the diagonal of the bishop on
move is only successful because of g3 is opened up. An alternative
that rook move. way to win material is 1 . Ng6 Rfe8
l. ... Bc2 2. Bxf7+ Kxf7 3 . Ne5+ Kg8 4.
This deprives the queen of the b3- Nc4.
square. Because of the attack on d 1 l. ... Rxfi 2. Nc4
White has to give up an exchange, White wins the queen.
since 2. Rd2 Nb6 would cost him
the queen.
PI ECES IN THE CENTRE
Clearing
Usually it is opposing pieces which Developing pieces into the centre
prevent a winning combination. But is good advice. I f, however, all the
sometimes one of your own pieces pieces follow this advice, the
gets in the way. The preparatory middle of the board will be over­
move called "clearing" involves re­ full. Above all in the opening or
moving your own pieces with tem­ the early middlegame if not many
po. The required gain of tempo is of them have yet been exchanged.
the result of an attack on the king, The pieces which are most affected
materi al or a square. are the knights. This is surprising,
but the eight squares they can
..t .I. .I. • move to are soon all occupied. The
fault lies with your own pieces and
.t ' ' the opponent' s pieces and pawns.
�
'1IV lb '-r--',-- .I. .I. .
� �� � � l. l. l. '1W l. l. .i. I.
lb � '
---�--
� �
�
Black has j ust captured on f5 with
lb � �
the e-pawn, not suspecting that his � �
queen on a5 is in danger. It sti ll �@
has two squares to which it can
move. Bohm-Korchnoi, Moscow 1 9 75
l. Bxfi+ White did not pay enough attention

56
to the l imited freedom of move­ been played after this game.
ment of his Ne5 . He overlooked
the simple win of a piece.
1. Bxb6 axb6 2. f4

.t .i.
fj, � •....•___,_
.__ __
�
fj, tD fj, fj,
tD fj, fj, .i. fj,
l:I .i. 'iV n @

Gheorghiu- Wirthensohn
Biel 1 982
1 . Bxd5 Bxd5 2. e3
In this diagram White has chased The knight cannot go to e6 because
the knight away from f6 by e4-e5 . of 3. e4 winning the bishop.
The black knight boldly went to
e4. The knight has nowhere to
retreat to any more, but since it
could exchange on c3 Black was EARLY QUEEN SORTIES
not aware of any danger. That was
his mistake. Attacking with the strongest piece
1 . Na4 Qb4 2. f3 as soon as possible is a favourite
The knight i s lost. pastime of many chess players.
Because of the way it moves com­
Escape squares can also be un­ bining that of many pieces, the
available for tactical reasons. The queen can display great activity,
next game fragment shows that but that also makes it the most
that is even harder to see. White (a vulnerable piece. It is difficult to
Rumanian G M with an Elo of 2550 strike a correct balance between
at the time the game was played) activity and vulnerability.
overlooks the win of the piece. Sometimes a queen can be quite
I n the next diagram White played alone and surrounded by enemy
I . Bb2, and the game ended in a pieces and yet create confusion in
draw. A surprising exchange could the enemy camp; at other times
have won it. This trick sti ll pops up there seems to be no danger in view
regular! y. There are at least I 0 and yet within a few moves the
examples in the database that have queen has been captured !

57
In the next game the queen is on take on b2, even if it is a good
the go very early. move" (Grandmaster Gligoric).
1. e4 d5 2. exd5 Qxd5 3. Chasing and luring away can soon
Nc3 Qa5 4. Nf3 Bg4 5. d4 make an end of the queen :
Nc6 6. h3 Qh5? 1 . Nc4 Qc3
There is the same result after I . . . .
Qb4 2 . c 3 Qxc3 3 . Re l Qb4 4 . Rb l
Qc3 5 . Rb3 .
2. Rb 1 Bf5 3. Bd3 Bxd3 4.
·c xd3 d5 5. Rb3.

In the workbook you have the

chance to win twelve queens on b2
or b7.

The way White traps the queen in

the next game is impressive.
White can ignore the pin on the h­
file: Razvaliev-Kolikstein
7. hxg4 Qxh 1 8. Ne4 Tashkent 1 9 72
Or 8. � e2 and the threat of 9. Ng3 1 . d4 d5 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 Nf6
cannot be met. 4. Nf3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3
Bd6 7. e4 dxe4 8. Nxe4
Nxe4 9. Bxe4 Nf6 1 0. Bc2
Qa5+ 1 1 . Bd2 Qh5 1 2. h3
0-0

.I .i.
� � ''
� tf:j �
� 'if � tf:j � � �
ll � � �

Glienke-Ehrke, Bundesliga 1 992

Most queens rush in the opening to
gobble up the b7 /b2 pawns. Some­
times taking this pawn is good, but
sometimes it isn ' t. In any case, it i s White to play and win.
almost always dangerous. "Never 13. Ke2 !

58
Usually not a good move i n the then the white king cannot get at
opening or the middlegame. How­ the knight. First of all White must
ever the move effectively protects control a4 in another way.
the rook on h I . 1 . Nb6 f5 2. Kc3 Nd l + 3.
1 3 . ... e5 Kd2 Nf2 4. Ke2 N h l 5. Kfl
Black must surrender a piece to The knight is caught. The win is a
save his queen. mere question of technique.
1 4. g4 Bxg4 1 5. hxg4 Qxg4 5 . ... f4 6. Kgl Ng3 7. hxg3
1 6. Qg l Qe6 1 7. Rxh7 fxg3 8. Nd5 Kfi 9. Nf4
exd4+ 1 8. Be3 Nxh7 1 9. White wins.
Bxh7+ Kh8 20. Qhl g6 2 1 .
Bxg6+ Kg7 22. Qh6+ Kf6 Other combinations can help you
23. Bf5+ with trapping a piece. The double
There is an even quicker win by attack i s particularly well suited to
23. Qg5+, but Black resigned after depriving piece of squares.
the move played in any case.

TRAPPING IN THE ENDGAME

Of all the pieces, the knights are

the simplest to trap, almost always
in a corner or on the edge of the
board.

Thanks to the knight fork White

can trap the black queen.
1 . Rc8
The queen cannot take. Attracting
is a main weapon.
The variations are simple.
A) l . . . Qa5 2. Ra8
.

B ) l . . . Qxh4 2. Rc4+ Qxc4 3 .

.

Nb6+
The black knight has gone astray. C) l . . . . Qd7 2. Nb6+
White has to keep the knight
trapped and then to capture it. l . In the next example the knight fork
Nc3 would be clumsy, because gets help from the X-ray check.

59
 'it' � K
.i. .t. .t. .t.
-...��
....�
.t. .. �
.t.
� �
tfj
� � �
@
Reti (1 922) Kupreichik-Szabo, Hastings 1 982
White wins a in very nice fashion. 1 . cxd4 2. cxd4 Nc6 3. d5
•••

1. Rxcl Qd5+ Nb4 4. Bb3

Or l . . . . Qxc I 2. Nb3+; l . . . . Qd2 The knight is actively placed on b4,
2. Nb3+; l . . . . Qd6 2. Nb7+; l . . . . but it is also vulnerable because it
Qd4 2. Nb3+; I . . . Qd8 2 . Nb7+.
. does not have a retreat square. The
2. e4 Qe5 only move here was 4 . . . . bxa4, but
Or 2 . . . . Qa2 3 . Ra ! ; 2 . . . . Qa8 3 . Black did not see the danger
Ra ! +; 2 . . . . Qc6 3 . Nb3+. commg.
3. Ra t + Qxal 4 .. 0-0 5. a5!
. .

Or 3 . .� Kb4 4. Nd3+; 3 . . . . Kb6 4.

. The knight cannot be saved . . Black
Nd7+. tried
4. Nb3+ 5 . •.• Qc8 6. BgS QcS 7.
Be3
and then resigned.
ENCIRCLING

When you isolate a piece it will be

taken; a piece which is encircled is
not yet lost, but it has no more
moves and not much activity. It
will remain passive for quite a �
while.
� tfj tfj i., � �
Our first example shows a piece
being encircled, which leads to it � iV � i.,
being isolated. Black was once one � .tI @
of the strongest non-Russian players
in the world, but here he decided on Smyslov-Rohde, New York 1 989
a wrong plan. A knight on the edge of the board

60
can only go to one of four squares. Black has already sacrificed a pawn
It can quickly be deprived of them for the strong e5-square. Now he
by its own or by opposing pieces. sacrifices a second pawn in order to
White cleverly exploited the posi­ shut the bishop in on h2 for the rest
tion of the knight on h5 and played of the game.
the strong move: 1 . .. f3 ! 2. Bxf3 NeS 3. Be2
.

1 . es g4
White is now threatening to isolate Only the move f4 (which does not
the knight with 2. g4. The threat work without allowing Black to get
can only be met by accepting other a strong passed pawn) lets White
disadvantages. get some breathing space for his
After the counter-attack 1 . . . . Bf5 bishop.
2. Nc5 Qxe2 3 . Nxe2 the bishop i s 4. Bgt cS
very unfortunately placed o n f5 . I f H uman beings would play 4. . . .
space i s created fo r the knight, that N f3 + 5 . Bxf3 Rxf3 , with an ad­
leads to a very cramped position : vantage for Black. The move
1 . . . . Bh8 2. g4 Ng7 3 . Ne4 Nd7 4. played costs another pawn after 5 .
Bg5 , and White is clearly better. dxc6 bxc6 6. 0-0-0 Be6 7 . Qxd6
Black resorts to an exchange Qg5+. B lack won the game. In the
sacrifice which offers him no great final position the bishop was still
prospects. on g l .
1 . ... Rxd3 2. Qxd3 Qxd3 3.
Rxd3 BxeS 4. Ne4 BfS S.
Bd4 Bxe4 6. Bxe4 Bxd4 7.
Rxd4 Nf6
White won without any problems.
.t. .t.
8 8 8 8
8 ttJ 8
.t. 'Jjj 8 � 8
8 .t.
�---'��
n .tI w
8 8 .t.
Misanovic-Zhu, Kishinev 1 995
ttJ In this game between two ladies
8 8 'J/li � 8 White i s clearly better. M isanovic
� @ decided on a plan, in which the
knight on b8 is shut in (and thus
Speelman-Kasparov also the Ra8). She accepted the
Madrid (rapid) 1 988 fact that B lack got a protected

61
passed pawn. Black is worse. She may no longer
I. dxe5 dxe5 2. b5 Qxa3 3. castle (the king has already moved),
Nxe5 Qe7 4. Nf3 meaning that the king cannot find a
4. Ng4 a4 (what else?) 5. e5 Bxg2 safe haven anywhere. Black' s last
6. Nf6+ gxf6 7. exf6 Qxe l + 8. move (Qe7-h4) is pretty much a
Rxe l Rxe l + 9. Kxg2 Nd7 1 0. blunder (Kf8 was better). Be­
Qxd7 looks very good, and White coming active when in the inferior
. . .

1s wmnmg. position is a well-known mistake.

4 . ... a4 5. Nd4 a3 6. Nf5 I . Bg5 Qh5 2. g4
Qe5 7. Qg5 g6 8. Rd8 Nd7? The weakening is not important.
After 8 . ... f6! Black can still hang on. The h3-pawn is well protected by a
9. Rxd7 Qxf5 1 0. exf5 rook. The big advantage of the
Rxe l + 1 1 . Bfl a2 1 2. Rd8+ pawn move is that the white queen
Re8 13. Rxe8+ Rxe8 14. is no longer tied to the defence of
Qc l Ra8 1 5. Qa l gxf5 1 6. the bishop and can become active.
c5 2 . ... Qh7 3. Qa5 Kd7
1 6. Bg2 is better, so as to follow B lack' s position is hopeless (White
the plan in the game after the ex­ is clearly far superior i n material
change of bishops. on the queenside ).
16 . ... Bd5 1 7. cxb6 cxb6 1 8. Other ways of protecting the rook
B g_2 Bxg2 1 9. Kxg2 Ra3 20. are no better: 3 . . . . Rd7 4. b4 or 3 .
Kfl f6 2 1 . Ke l Kf7 22. Kd l . . . Rc8 4 . Qb4. I n both cases B lack
Kg6 23. Ke t Ra5 24. h4 h5 has to give up a pawn with f6.
25. Kc2 Ra3 26. Kb2 Ra5 4. Re l Rhc8 5. Rdc3
27. Kc3 Ra3+ There is nothing wrong with 5 . b4,
Black surprisingly achieved a draw. but the pawn move w i l l stil l be
there . . .
• .i 5 . ... Qh8 6. b4 Ra8 7. Qc5
Qf8 8. Qxf8 Rxf8 9. b5
' .i ' '
Peng resigned after ten more
' .t ' ' moves. Despite this, she went on to
· � win the title, thus becoming D utch
� � � 'it' Women ' s Champion . In 20 1 1 she
won her thirteenth titl e !
� n �
vw � � Jn many opening variations a piece
l:t @ ends up cut off from the play .
In the Slav Black ' s l ight-squared
Sziva-Peng, Rotterdam 1 999 bishop often lands up on g 6 and
(Dutch Women 's Championship) spends half the game staring at i ts

62
own pawn on f7 and the white he provokes b3 . H e wants to
pawn formation on f3 and e4. control the b-file after Qb6, so
Many top players such as Anand whether he likes it or not White
and Kramnik play this variation has to chase away the rook.
and they manage to bring this 20. a3 Rb7
piece back to life. It is often better to go all the way
In the g3 -variation of the King ' s back to b8. Then the knight can at
Indian with Nc6, the black knight least retreat to the b7-square
frequently has to go to the a5- (although the future is not all that
square. Sometimes the knight is rosy for it there either).
there from the beginning right till 2 1 . h4 h5
the end of the game. If you play Black prevents h5, Kg2, Rh I with
openings like this, take special care an attack. That will take some
to bring the relevant piece back time, so the problem with the
into the game. kn ight has higher priority. 2 1 . . . .
Ba4 is worth considering, s o a s to
Addison-Mednis, New York 1 962 play Nb3 and swap off the knight.
US Championship The knight itself is not the only
1 . d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. g3 Bg7 4. problem; the fact that the queen
Bg2 0-0 5. Nc3 d6 6. Nt3 Nc6 has to protect the knight should not
7. 0-0 a6 8. d5 Na5 9. Nd2 c5 be underestimated. White cannot
1 0. Qc2 Rb8 1 1 . b3 b5 12. avoid 22. Rb I and exchanges sim­
Bb2 Bd7 13. RJbl Qc7 1 4. plify things for the defending side.
Nce4 Nxe4 1 5. Bxe4 Bxb2 1 6. 22. Bc2 Qb6
Rxb2 bxc4 1 7. bxc4 Rxb2 1 8. Black works with a threat (Qb2),
Qxb2 Rb8 1 9. Qc3 which can easily be dealt with.
23. Rb 1 Qd8 24. Re 1 Qb6
i. 25. Bd3 Qd8 26. f4
White has been able to make a few
'ti' .t i i ,___.,_.
__ .. moves for free and things are now
' ' becoming serious. White has a free
� i 8 hand on the kingside. The weake­
8 � ning h5 has made the advance f5
much stronger. Black no longer
'iV 8
puts up any real resi stance.
8 tfj 8 8 8 26 . ... Bg4 27. Rfl Qb6 28.
� @ f5 gxf5 29. Bxf5 Bxf5 30.
Rxf5 f6 3 1 . Rxh5 Kf8 32.
1 9 . ... Rb4 Qd3 Ke8 33. Rh8+
F i rs tly, Black plays very cleverly : Black resigned.

63
WORKBOOK

1 3 : Mobility - Trapping: A
1 4: Mobility - Trapping: B
Look for the piece with little or no freedom of movement and try to trap it.
Start with a preparatory move:
• attracting
• chasing
• targeting
• clearing
• eliminating the defence

1 5 : Mobility - Trapping (queen b2/b 7) : C

The queen is to be cut off. Sometimes it can only escape by giving up
material. Work with preparatory moves.

1 6 : Mobility - Trapping (double attack) : D

Thanks to a double attack the piece which is to be trapped is deprived of
many squares. The first exercises are perhaps difficult, but when you under­
stand how the exercises work, then the solutions will no longer be a
proble m.
_

Anand

64
5 Draws

There are different ways for a

game to be drawn. In previous
steps we have already dealt with:
• insufficient material for mate
• too small a material advantage
to win
• stalemate
• perpetual check
• perpetual attack
• by agreement
In this lesson three new methods
will appear: 1 . .. g5
.

• fortresses If B lack allows White to play g5

• repetition of moves he has no hope: I . .. . Kb4 2. g5
• the 5 0 move rule Kc4 (2 . . . . Ka4 3. Bc3) 3. Ka3 Kd3
4. Kxb3 .
We shall deal with more difficult 2. Bxg5 Kd4 3. Bf6+ Ke4 4.
examples in the methods you g5 Kf5 5. Kxb3 a l Q 6. Bxal
already know. Kxg5
White has insufficient material left
to del iver mate (or more elegantly :
INSUFFICIENT MATERIAL "he has no mating potential").

Taking your opponent' s last pawn

is a good strategy for achieving a
draw.

You cannot win with j ust a single

bishop on the board. So Black
must win the g4-pawn in the
diagram in the next column. The
queenside pawns have to help him
do so by luring the king and the
bishop away. The only way for that
to work is with a pawn sacrifice. Vinichenko (1 988).

65
Two knights are not enough to win outwit his opponent:
either. Unfair, but it allows some 1. f6 gxf6
pretty liquidations. After I . . . . g6 2. Ne5 Rxd2 3 . Nxg6
How can White give up his rook Rf2 4. Ne5 Rxf6 5. Kc2 the posi­
for the two pawns? As long as they tion i s also drawn.
remain a duo, the white king can­ 2. Ng5 Rxd2 3. Ne4
not get at them. A surprising rook The point behind the white pawn
sacrifice enables White to make sacrifice. The only way for Black
the pawns harmless: to protect his pawn is by means of
1 . Rd3 ! exd3 2. Kd2 a check.
Both pawns fall. A knight needs 3 . ... Rd l + 4. Kc2 Rfl
three moves to protect a square And on fl the rook is badly placed
which is diagonally two squares for another reason. Any other rook
away from it. move would be met with 5. Nxf6
and a theoretical draw.
In a position with only a rook 5. Ng3+ Kg2 6. Nxfl Kxfl 7.
against a bishop or a knight, the Kd3 Kf2 8. Ke4
amount of material is again too White wins the pawn.
small. In such positions it is pos­
sible to deliver mate, but with We already know about the wrong
correct play such positions are bishop from Step five. For that
drawn� We are talking about theo­ reason we shall only look at a
retical drawn positions. single example. There are another
twelve examples in the workbook
for the real fans.

Mesman (1 98 7)
White must surrender a mmor
piece. His real problem is of Krikheli (1 983)
course the black pawn. The player B lack has j ust given an extremely
with White knows a subtle way to annoying check from d 5 .

66
 1 . Kxc3 ! White must get rid of the rook
This costs a piece, but I . Ka3? Be4 without affecting the present
2. b6+ Ka6 3 . Nb4+ Kb5 costs the "stalemate position" of his king.
whole point. . We call a rook which is being
1 . ... Rc4+ 2. Kd3 Rxc2 3. sacrificed like this a "rampant
Ra6+! rook".
Well worth seeing. Black has to
take and thi s turns the b-pawn into The squares which the queen is
a worthless rook pawn. controll ing (above all on the d3-h7
3 . ... bxa6 4. b6+ Kxb6 5. diagonal) must be avoided.
Kxc2 White has two checks. The wrong
The king reaches the safe corner. choice would be I . Rh3+? Kg6 2.
Rg3+ (or 2. Rh6+ Kg7, and there
STALEMATE is already no longer a good check)
2 . . . . Kf5 3. Rf3+ Ke4 4. Re3+ (or
In the ending the defender can 4. Rf4+ Ke5) 4 . . . . Kd4, and White
sometimes save half a point by has run out of useful checks.
stalemate. Think for example of the So the other check is correct. The
endgame of queen versus pawn. It drawing variation speaks for itself:
is a draw with rook pawns or 1 . Rc7+ Kg6 2. Rc6+ Kf5
bishop pawns on account of the 3. Rc5+ Ke4 4. Rc4+ Kd3
possibility of stalemate. 5. Rc3+ Kd2 6. Rc2+ Kd l
It i s usually easy to bring about a 7. Rd2+ Kel 8. Re2+ Kfl
stalemate if your king can no 9. Rf2+ Kgl 1 0. Rg2+ Kh l
longer move. You then have to 1 1 . Rh2+ Kgl 1 2. Rh l + !
find a clever way to get rid of the K x h l stalemate
other pieces you still have.
•

Korolkov (1 961)
Lomax "Rampant queens" are not interes-

67
ting (it is easy for a queen to simpler.
sacrifice itself), and other pieces 1. Rd8+ Kh7 2. Rh8+ Kxh8
are almost never "rampant" pieces 3. Ng6+ fxg6 4. Qa8+ Kh7
- apart from a few exceptions. In 5. Qg8+ Kxg8 stalemate
this position there is a "rampant The king must take the rook and
knight". the queen; there are no other
The white king is already "stale­ options. Black has to take the
mated". All that has to be done knight on account of the double
now is to let the knight and pawn attack.
be captured.
1. Nc6+ Ke8
After I . . . . Kc8 2. d7+ Kxd7 (2 . . . .
Kc7 3 . d8Q+ Kxc6 4 . Qd5+) 3 .
Ne5+ fxe5 i t is already stalemate.
2. d7+ Kfi 3. Nd8+ Kf8
3 . . . . Ke7 4. Nc6+ leads to a repe­
tition of moves.
4. Nxe6+ Kfi
Or 4 . . . . Ke7 5. d8Q+ Kxe6 6.
Qd5+.
5. Nd8+ Ke7 6. Nc6+ Kxd7
1: Ne5+ In positions in which the king sti ll
The double attack comes to his aid. has sufficient available squares,
7 . ... fxe5 stalemate usually occurs out of a
It has worked: White is stalemated. clear blue sky. White goes about
setting up a stalemate position with
the requisite sacrifices.
1. Rxd4+ Rxd4 2. h7
The order of moves i s important;
playing 2. c3+? First loses in view
of 2 . . . . Kxc3 3. h7 Rh4, and the
threat of mate prevents the promo­
tion.
2 . ... Bxh7 3. c3+ Kxc3
stalemate

In the diagram on the fol lowing

The only way to get rid of minor page the king still has six squares
pieces is by a double attack. available to it. Not for long, three
Giving away major pieces i s much moves to be precise.

68
 After the capture of the rook, White
is stalemated. So Black must move
his d-pawn.
3 . ... d5 4. Rh2
White goes back and forward like
this with the rook so that e2 would
be protected by Black after the
rook is captured.
4 . ... d4 5. Rh5 d3 5. Rxh6+
Forced, in view of the threat 6 . . . .
d2+, but also good.
Tresling (1 9 1 2) 5 . ... Kxh6 stalemate
1 . c6 dxc6 2. Rh3 Rxh3 3.
f8Q+ Bxf8 stalemate
PERPETUAL CHECK

This is a way to draw which often

crops up as early as the middle­
game (sometimes even in the ope­
ning).

White stil l does not have a perpe­

tual check. Unfortunately Black can
interpose with his queen on h6.
"Winning the queen" l i ke this is
not enough for White since the
pawn ending does not offer the
slightest whiff of a chance. H i s Zachodjakin (1 983)
salvation w i l l b e the cramped posi­ 1 . Ne6+
tion of his own king. It has j ust one Forces the king to the edge of the
single move: capture on e2 . board.
White achieves his goal with sub­ 1 . ... Kh6 2. Rf6+ Kh5 3.
tle play. Rg6 !
1. Rg2+ Kh7 2. Rh2+ Qh6 Shuts the king in for good.
3. Rh5 3 . ... Qd7

69
The ending after 3 . . . . Qxg6 4. perpetual check.
Nf4+ Kg5 5 . Nxg6 Kxg6 6. Ke4 is 4. Qb5+
drawn .. The players agreed on a draw.
4. Nf4+ Kh4 5. Ng2+
White gives perpetual check.

Right after the opening in the next

game, White sacrificed a piece for K '
a dangerous attack. Black stood up �
to it solidly and it seemed in the ·n l!J
position in thi s diagram that he
l!J l!J
would have the better of things.
But White pulled the emergency n l!J
cord and bailed out with a per­ �� @
petual check.
Kopaev- Vistaneckis
.i. K Soviet Union 1 949
Black' s attack on the king gives
·� ' '
him compensation for the pawns
ll � i he has sacrificed, but unfortunately
' l!J his queen has run out of squares.
l!J l!J Searching for a way out, the player
with Black found the following
l!J
variation :
l!J l!J I . ... Qfl +
iV �@ I . . . Nxe3 2 . fxe3 Qfl + 3 . Kh2
.

Rxe3 looks pretty, but 4. Qg4

Tiviakov-Milov, Groningen 1 998 spoils his fun.
1 . Rxd7+ 2. Kxfl Nxe3+ 3. Ke2
A knight which is close to its king Forced. After 3. Kg ! Nxd l Black
is a very good defender against wins a piece.
attacks by a queen. A rook 1s a 3 . Nc4+ 4. Kfl
..•

much worse defensive piece. Once again the only move. 4. Kd3
1. ... Rxd7 2. Qb6+ Kc8 3. Nxb2+ would be bad.
Qc5+ Kb8 4 . Ne3+
••.

A rook move is of no more help: 3. Black gives perpetual check .

... Rc7 4. Qf8+ Kd7 (4 . . . . Kb7 5.
Qb4+ Kc6 6. Qb6+ Kd7 7 . Qe6+ I s it now the case that B lack is
Kd8 8. Qg8+ with a draw) 5. Qf7+ lucky to be able to draw, or can
Kc8 6. Qe8+ Kb7 7. Qb5+ with White esteem himself lucky that

70
the black king does not happen to
be on h8? In that case Black wins
with I . . . . Nxe3 .

As soon as a drawing mechanism

runs along less usual lines, even
grandmasters can make mistakes .

.i .i. •
'
Cjj � .l
· � � Black can try I . . . . Rh8 but this
.i. � move does not win either: 2. Bb2
Qe2 3. Bg7+ Kh5 4. Rd5+ Nf5 (4.
l:I . . . Nxd5 5. Qxd5+ Kg4 6. Qg5+
� - � Kf3 7. Qg3+ Ke4 8. Bxh8 or 4 . . . .
.i rl: @ Kg4 5 . Rg5+ Kxf4 6. Rg3 wins for
White) 5. Rxf5+ gxf5 6. Qf7+ Kg4
Osmanagic- Gligoric 7. h3+ Kg3 8. Qb3+ with perpetual
Sarajevo 1 963 check.
Of course, Black has an advantage. 2. b5 Qe2
The knight sacrifice on e6 i s born After 2 . . . . Qd l + 3. Rx.d i Rxb7
of despair. Black thought: I can 't Black is no better. The rook must
take the knight, but I can capture keep an eye on Black' s b-pawn.
the bishop. 3. Rxh7+ Kxh7
1. ... Qxe2? The alternative 3 . . . . Rxh7 4. Bf8+
Black retains an advantage after 1 . Kh5 5 . Qxh7+ Kg4 6. Qxg6+ can
. . . Rxfl + 2. Bx fl Re 1 . Now comes only be more favourable for White .
the sort of queen sacrifice that one 4. Qxc7+ Kg8 5. Qd8+ Kh7
doesn't see every day. 6. Qd7+ Kh8
2. Qxg6+ fxg6 3. ti+ Kh7 4. White must take the perpetual
Rh3+ Bh6 5. Ng5+ Kg7 check.
Black has to accept a draw, be­
cause 5 . . . . Kh8? 6. Rxh6+ Kg7 7.
Rh7+ Kf8 8 . Ne6+ Ke7 9. f8Q+ PERPETUAL ATTACK
Kxe6 1 0. Re7# would be even
worse. There is hardly any difference be­
6. Ne6+ Kh7 7. Ng5+ tween perpetual check and a per­
White achieves a draw. petual attack. The perpetual attack

71
is directed not at the king but at With a perpetual attack.
another piece. That may not have
quite the same degree of com­ White drew in similar fashion in
pulsion, but often enough it leads the following diagram.
to the saving of hat f a point.

White keeps on attacking the

Pogosjants (I 964) bishop. You could call it perpetual
The task based on the diagram persecution.
states "White to play and draw". I. c3 Bf8 2. Ke8 Bg7 3. Kf7
White has the active rook on g3 to Bh8 4. Kg8 Bf6 5. Kf7 Bd8
,
thank for his salvation: 6. Ke8 Ba5
I. Nc3+ For a short time it seems to get
After this check, it becomes clear away from the king.
that B lack' s moves are limited. 7. b4 Bc7 8. Kd7
The king cannot go to c5, d4 or d6 But not for long. It is obvious that
on account of a knight fork and e5 the bishop cannot escape.
i s j ust as impossible i n view of the
X-ray check on c7.
I . ... Ke6 2. Ne2 ! REPETITION OF MOVES
Nor can the rook do what it would
like to. The white pawns are in­ Neither player can play for a win.
directly protected by a knight fork. A repetition of moves i s l ike a
For the same reason, the squares perpetual attack. One example
f3, g2 and g6 are taboo. should suffice.
2
• ... Rg5 3. Bd2 Rc5 I n the diagram on the next page
Nor is there much space on the White is a piece up, but with his
fifth rank. last move Black has set up an
4. Bb4 Re5 5. Bc3 Re3 6. almost winning pin. The queen
Bd2 Re5 7. Bc3 cannot move because of the mate

72
on g2 . White will now have to starve your opponent out (see the
come up with a colossal move to following section on the "50-move
trump his opponent. rule").

•
' .i.
£::,

Ulrich-Spengler, Berlin 1 948 Two fortresses. In each half of the

1. Rb5! board the side with the bishop
This counter-attack on the queen cannot win. Stalemate will come to
appears to win on the spot. There the aid of the weaker side.
is no way the queen can simul­
taneously protect the rook and On the left White plays Kd2-c I (or
against the mate on b7. to d I ). Black can only prevent thi s
1. ... Re8! with Ke2 but that leads t o stale­
B lack saves himself with this mate. Letting the king escape to a I
intermediate move. Apart from the i s useless. Stalemate remains the
mate on e I the rook on b5 is also problem.
hanging. White has only one single
move. After I . Kf6 B lack plays on the
2. Rb l Rg8 right I . . . . Kf8 ! (and not I . . . .
And we are back to the original Kh8? 2 . Kf7#) and White cannot
position. make progress.
Extra pawns on the board (left a3 I
a4 and right g5 I g6 + f4 /f5 ) do
FORTRESSES not change the assessment. The
positions are and will remain a
An excellent drawing weapon is draw.
known as the "fortress". You re­
treat into a position which cannot be In the next two examples White
stormed, just like a fort. Unlike in draws thanks to this type of
medieval warfare, it is impossible to fortress.

73
 Although it is Black ' s move, he
cannot prevent White from con­
structing a fortress.
1 . ... Be3+ 2. Kh l h3
After 2 . . . . g3 there is a draw both
after the capture and after 3. h3 .
The extra h-pawns do not make
any difference. After 2 . . . . Kfl 3 .
h3 ! gxh3 4 . gxh3 K f2 5 . Kh2 Bf4+
6. Kh l Kg3 the h-pawn does fall,
but B lack has the wrong bishop.
Grin (1 988) 3. gxh3
1 . g4 ! Black can no longer win.
White would be too late after I .
Kfl ? Kc4 2 . Ke I Kd3 .
1 . ... Bxg4
The bi shop must keep the e2-
square under control, or else the
king gets to c I : I . . . . Be8 2. Kfl
Kc4 3. Ke2 .
2. f3 ! Bxf3 3. Kf2 Kc4 4.
Ke3 '
White has only one goal : the c ) ­
square. So not 4 . Kxf3? Kd3 .

In the next diagram too, the white In these two positions the material
fortress cannot be taken by storm. superiority of the queen is not suf­
icient. Normally the material dif­
erence on the left would be enough
to win. The white king cannot get
in any closer. Black plays back and
forward with Ka7-b8 or Bb7-a8
according to where the queen is.
Black is not put in zugzwang.
I n the right half, once again the
king cannot penetrate. With this
difference in material there are
numerous possible fortresses. The
rook is good at keeping the king at
Cozio (1 766) a distance.

74
We can find a nice practical exam­ 7. Ra8+ Kd7
ple of a fortress in the next diagram. There is not much the rook can do
on its own without the help of the
king .
.i. •
THE 50-MOVE RULE

You cannot forbid your opponent

from playing on and trying to get a
win. So that games are not allowed
to go on for ever and ever, a rule
was introduced that al lows a draw
to be claimed if:
Black seems to be in a bad way; in • for 5 0 moves no pawn has been
any case he will lose a pawn. moved
1 . . . Rxc4+! 2. bxc4 Ke8
. and
3. Rh8+ Kd7 4. Ra8 Bd8 • for 50 moves no piece has been
5. Ra7+ Bc7 6. Kd3 Kc8 captured.

WORKBOOK

1 7 : Draw - Perpetual check: A

There i s no perpetual check without a check! So make sure that you attack
the opposing king and that you do not let it escape. Deprive it of its escape
squares.

1 8 : Draw - Stalemate: A
When your king can no longer move, you can give away pieces. Sometimes
you have to do it in such a way that the final escape squares are taken away
from your own king. A pin can be used to "stalemate" mobile pieces.

1 9: Draw - Defending against a passed pawn: A

On this exercise sheet you are asked to draw. Choose the route the king
should take so that it is threatening to catch up with the passed pawn while
at the same time working away at building a "stalemating net".

20: Draw - Fortress ?: A

l s the position drawn because there is a fortress? Yes or no. If you find that

75
there i s not really a fortress, then indicate how one side wins. Some of the
positions are pretty nasty.

2 1 : Draw - Insufficient material: A

Take the final pawn so that the opponent no longer has enough material to
win. Choose the route for the king with great care; don 't let it be body­
checked (or shouldered off).

22: Draw - Wrong bishop: A

Remember that when the opponent has the wrong bishop you must get the
defending king into the comer. Some useful tips are:
• exchange all the pieces
• exchange or take all the pawns which are not rook pawns
• tum knight pawns into rook pawns (make them into worse pawns, i.e.
rook pawns)
• waste no time on captures, the king must get i nto the comer
• lure the opposing bishop away in order to get rid of any possible barrier.

. ;. . . . . ..

��;i���

76
6 The opening

All the chapters in this book are Many books are very good, but
appropriate for those who have some are unbelievably bad. Chess
reached approximately the level of books are pretty expensive, so take
Step 6. This chapter is aimed advice from your trainer. He or she
above all at ambitious players who certainly has his or her own library.
want to develop further and who do The same goes for DVDs about
not want to remain stuck on a openings. They vary enormously in
rating of 2000. It i s tempting to go quality. There are excellent ones
into the opening a lot, because we with proper explanations, but there
have to deal with it in every game. is also trash. Ask your trainer for
Unfortunately those who study advice !
purely the opening do not learn Video presentations are more for
well enough how to play chess. fans than for serious study. sta
Viewing video presentations takes
time and simply seeing material is
OPENING STUDY not enough to enable you to learn
very much. You must be actively
You require help from books and a involved in your learning
trainer.
Never learn an opening from a

�
book which only contains varia­ MAIN LINES
tions and evaluations along the
lines of ::!; + �- Nor a e books Every opening has important varia­
which simply contain ju gements tions - the main lines. Thousands of
such as "White i � slightl better" games have already been played
any more appropnate. with these, and the books devote
umpteen pages to these main lines.
Choose a book which deals with So perhaps you would l ike to avoid
the ideas behind the opening and the main lines. Do not do so.
which gives whole games : Grandmasters play main lines be­
• ' Winning with . . .' cause they are usually the best ones.
• 'Play the . . .
' Later you will have to play the
• 'Understanding the . . .' main line in any case. Then it will
• The opening guide to . . . ' cost you a lot of time to learn it. At
• 'Beating the . . .
' a high level an opening error ts

77
frequently punished. Start doing 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3
that. The opponents you are playing Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6.
against for the moment will still Nf3 Nbd7 7. 0-0 e5
make a mistake somewhere during
the course of the game.

A NEW OPENING
'
What do you need to know? F irst­ t3J t3J t3J
ly, you should get to know the
ltJ ltJ
ideas behind the opening you are
studying. That is easy to say, but � t3J t3J t3J
somewhat difficult to achieve. You �� n @
will get help with that from books
and your trainer. The book may 8. dxe5 dxe5
state "B lack is better". That can The pawn structure has now been
mean that he has chances of an fixed for a long time. White has
attack on the king. An unsus­ weakened the d4-square and
pecting player who does not realise Black ' s short-term plan is more or
that may continue enthusiastical ly less laid down : a knight should go
playing' on the queenside. The to d4. White did not put up a fight
·

result will be that White, two against that.

moves after the end of the 9. b3 c6 1 0. Qc2 Re8 1 1 .
variation in the book, will already Ba3 Bf8 1 2. Bxf8 Nxf8 13.
be better. In many openings the c5 Bg4 1 4. Nd2 Ne6 1 5. f3
pawn structure is quickly fixed. It Nd4 1 6. Qd3 Be6
is very important to study games B lack has an excellent position on
with that same pawn structure. account of his knight. White now
When people began to play the blundered with 1 7. f4; his move
King ' s I ndian Defence, many did not take into consideration that
players sti ll did not know how they B lack would simply give up his
should go about matters. knight with 1 7 . . . . Nxe2+.

Wolthuis - Euwe, Maastricht 1 946 Games like this in which the diffe­
I n 1 946 Euwe was one of the rence in level is large are particu­
strongest players in the world. larly well-suited to use as model
Wolthuis was a very good amateur games, because they are extremely
player of quite high strength whose instructive. The mistakes made can
particular forte was tactics. be recognised. In the games

78
between the likes of Kramnik and Hojland-Ligterink
Anand it is hard to discern which Leeuwarden 1 9 79 Dutch ch
mistakes have been made. 1 . c4 Nf6 2. d4 e6 3. g3 c5 4.
During the Groningen Open of d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3
1 998, Daniel Stel lwagen was g6 7. Bg2 Bg7 8. Nt3 0-0 9.
drawn against Tea Lanchava. She 0-0 a6 1 0. a4 Nbd7 1 1 . Nd2
is a specialist of the Four Pawns Re8 1 2 . Nc4 Nb6
Variation in the King ' s Indian.
You should never attack your .i .t it' .i •
opponent at his or her strongest
point. In an earlier game she had
• • .t •
captured on e5 in a different · � • � ·
variation. Fortunately for Daniel • t3J
she did the same thing again. He t3J �
was aware of Euwe ' s plan.
� t3J
Lanchava-Stellwagen t3J t3J t3J .i. t3J
Groningen 1 998 ll .i. � jl @
1 . d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7
4. e4 d6 5. Be2 0-0 6. Nt3 The opening is called the Benoni .
Nbd7 7. 0-0 e5 8. dxe5 dxe5 B lack has a simple plan. Attack on
9. b3 c6 1 0. g3? Re8 1 1 . the queenside, and above all the
Net ? Nc5 1 2. t3 Qd4+ bishop on g7 will be of particularly
The knight no longer has to go to good service. It is a pity that White
d4. The check wins material . has the centre, but then you can ' t
13. Qxd4 exd4 1 4. Ba3 Nfd7 have everything.
B lack is even better after 1 4 . . . . The knight on c4 has already
Bh3 1 5 . Bxc5 Bxfl . moved a Jot. Taking on b6 is obvi­
1 5. Na4 Nxa4 1 6. bxa4 d3
1 7. Nxd3 Bxal 1 8. Rxa f5
1 9. Nf2 b6
l ous, and then the tempo winning
a4-a5 . Wrong thinking. Black has
no room for four minor pieces. It
White went on to put up a s bborn makes it harder to manoeuvre.
defence, but Black won after a 13. Nxb6
long struggle. The correct move is the "daft" 1 3 .
Na3 , in order to return to c4 after
In certain openings the ideas are 1 4. a5 .
not so obvious. Sometimes even 1 3 . ... Qxb6 1 4. a5 Qc7 1 5.
strong players do not know these Bd2 Bd7 1 6. h3 b5 1 7. axb6
ideas. For example, take a look at Qxb6 1 8. Qc2 Bb5 1 9. Be3
the next game. Nd7

79
All the black pieces are taking part playing different openings. There
in the struggle. Black has the ad­ is also the advantage that players
vantage because of his strong can find out what opening their
pressure on the queenside. opponents play. You can always
rely on your old lines whenever you
are playing against an expert who
PRACTISING A NEW OPENING knows a specific variation back­
side foremost.
New variations should be tried out
in less important games, not in the
youth championship. You can as KEEP WORKING ON OPENINGS
preparation play training games
against club colleagues, your trai­ Opening theory changes. New
ner or the computer. These can moves are found and evaluations
also be rapid or even blitz games. of positions are revised. That
Make a note of which variations happens to a greater or lesser de­
cause you problems. gree depending on the opening. It
is only in openings which involve
a lot of forced variations that a
AN OPENING REPERTOIRE single move can tum the whole
line on its head (e.g. in the Dragon
You wilk gradually find weapons Variation of the Sicilian Defence).
against all openings and know what A lways being up-to-date I s too
you have to play. Write down all much work for a single person.
the variations which you play, or Work in cooperation with your
enter them into your computer and trainer or club colleagues.
look through them on a regular
basis. You soon forget a variation After a game, always look at the
which you have never faced over theory in a book. I mportant ques­
the board. tions you should ask yourself are:
• To what extent was the variation
It is a nice thing to know your familiar?
openings well, but . . . hold on to • What does theory have to say?
your hat - the Russian grandmaster • How were things five moves
and trainer M ichalschichin recom­ later?
mends young players to change
(gradually ! ) their repertoire every Analysing your games once more
two years. You have to get to know with your trainer or with another
very different sorts of position and strong player is very important so
you will learn that more easi ly by as to learn to play better chess.

80
TYPICAL COMBINATIONS Here we shall look at some exam­
ples from the Sicilian Defence
Few opening books pay much at­ with Nxe4. It is B lack' s move and
tention to typical combinations. try to solve them. The answers you
will find at the end of this chapter .
.1 •
' i .i. i These combinations are standard.
The next position comes from a
i .i. & '
game by Tiviakov, an expert in the
if & Dragon Variation.
lZJ 8 8 8
lZJ � 8 .I it' . .I
8 8 8 VJ!/ ' ' .i. i i ..t i
@ I1 � M & i & i �
a

.I it' .I •
.i. i i ..t i
.......,__,_i & '
&
lZJ 8 8
Motylev- Tiviakov, Petersburg 1 998
lZJ � 8 The first move we shall look at is
8 8 8 VJ!/ 8 l . ... Nxe4. B lack played l . . ..
* n � n Bxh6 2. Qxh6 Nxd4 and did win
b the game, but the question
remains: why not 1. ... Nxe4 2.
Nxe4 Bxd4 3. c3 .
Now a black piece is in danger, but
B lack seems to be able to save the
day with 3 . ... Qa5 4. Kb l Be6 5.
a3 ( 5 . b4 Nxb4 6. cxb4 Bxa2+, and
8 White is mated) 5 . ... Be5 6. f4 Bf5
lZJ � lZJ 7. Bd3 Bxe4 8. Bxe4 Bf6, and
White has too little compensation.
8 8 8 VJ!/ � 8 8 8
Trust the play of grandmasters, but
* .tI n don ' t believe all they say.
c

81
In the Sicil ian Defence the bishops The answers you wi I I find at the
end up on g5 and e7 : the result is a end of this chapter.
battery which Black can some­
times exploit. How is Nxe4 to eva­
luate? It is Black ' s move. TYPICAL IDEAS

Openings often fol low a certain

pattern : White attacks on the king­
side, Black on the queenside. In
the King ' s Indian Defence things
are exactly the other way round.
CiJ ['::,
CiJ ['::, I n the three games which follow,
Black plays inaccurately. He de­
['::, ['::, ['::, i.. ['::, ['::,
parts from theory. So the players
ll iV @ I;I with White have to rely on their
d own strength, though the essence
of the opening does not change
significantly. It is important to
know the typical ideas in the
open mg.

Lasker.Em-Pirc, Moscow 1 93 5
l . e4 c5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. d4
cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6
6. Be2 e6 7. 0-0 a6 8. Be3
Qc7 9. f4 Na5?
e
In the Sicilian Black plays on the
queenside. But here he does so
prematurely. Black is not yet de­
veloped and his king is still in the
middle. Perhaps Pirc (who was
then one of the strongest chess
players in Yugoslavia) underesti­
mated his opponent, who may have
been a former world champion but
was nevertheless 66 years old.
1 0. f5
The correct plan. Black wastes time
f and White must open up the position.

82
 1 0 . ... Nc4 1 1 . Bxc4 Qxc4 Na5 9. f4
1 2. fxe6 fxe6 We have reached by transposition
the same position as i n the Lasker
game, which I knew from the
books by H ans Bouwmeester. This
game would be the deciding one in
the championship of the Rotterdam
and I was secretly hoping for 9 . . . .
Nc4 (I had absolutely nothing
against an easy victory . . . ). Van
Baarle made a different move and I
started to brood. I looked above all
at those variations which might
allow the rook sacri fice on f6.
13. Rxf6! 9 . ... b5 1 0. f5 Nf6 1 1 . fxe6
This appears simple, but Lasker fxe6
had to calculate two variations
accurately. The game continuation • .t �
and an alternative on move 1 7.
i i
1 3 . ... gxf6 1 4. Qh5+ Kd8
1 5. Qti Bd7
It is hard to say what is simpler for
White to find. The refutation of {fj £::.
this move or that of 1 5 . . . . Be7.
{fj �
White wins with 1 6. Nf5 Qc7 ( 1 6.
. . . Re8 1 7 . Nxd6) 1 7. Na4 ! £::. £::. £::. � £::. £::.
1 6. Qxf6+ Kc7 1 7. Qxh8 � 'iV � @
Bh6 1 8. Nxe6+
A pretty intermediate move. White 12. e5 !
gobbles up a pawn and seizes the 1 2 . Rxf6 gxf6 1 3 . Qh5+ Kd8 1 4.
d5-square for his knight. Qf3 Rg8 is much less clear.
18 . ... Qxe6 1 9. Qxa8B+ 20. 12 . ... dxe5 13. Rxf6
Kh l Here there i s an equally good
Black resigned. alternative. Jan Smeets suggested
1 3 . Bh5+ Nxh5 1 4. Ndxb5 axb5
Van Wijgerden- Van Baarle 1 5 . Nxb5 and this variation wins
Rotterdam 1 9 70 despite White being a rook down.
I. e4 c5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. NSf3 1 3 . ... exd4
d6 4. d4 cxd4 5. Nxd4 e6 6. It was easy to see 1 3 . . . . gxf6 1 4.
Be3 a6 7. Be2 Qc7 8. 0-0 Bh5+ Ke7 1 5 . Nf5+ exf5 1 6. Nd5+.

83
 14. Bh5+ g6 1 5. Rxg6! hxg6 the previous games at the back of
1 6. Bxg6+ Ke7 1 7. Bg5+ our mind, we immediately think of
Kd7 1 8. Qxd4+ Qd6 1 2 . fxe6 Bxe6 ( 1 2 . . . . fxe6 1 3 . e5 ! )
After 1 8 . . . . Bd6 White wins mate­ 1 3 . Nxe6 fxe6 1 4. e5 . After 1 4 . . . .
rial with 1 9. Qg7+ Kc6 20. Qxh8. d 5 1 5 . Rf4 Qc6 1 6. Qg4 g 6 1 7. Rf2
1 9. Qxh8 Qc5+ 20. Kh l 0-0-0 1 8 . Ne2 White has as good
Qxg5 2 1 . Qxf8 Qxg6 22. as won. Nunn chooses a strange
Rd l + Kc6 23. Qd6+ Kb7 move and Sokolov j ust as remark­
able a reply .
� .i. 12. Qg4 h5
This game belongs in the chapter
•
"Typical ideas" and this position is
' particularly suited to that. The
Jai i queen sortie to g4 is played in
many openings. A stereotypical re­
action to it is to sacrifice the g7-
CD pawn with 1 2 . . .. Nf6 1 3 . Qxg7
t!J t!J t!J Rg8 1 4. Qh6 e5 1 5 . Rad ! (with
ll advantage according to Nunn in
lnformator) 1 5 . . . . b5 ! , and Black
24. Nd5 has sufficient compensation.
Without this twist, White would 13. Qf3 Bf6
only have perpetual check: 24.
Qe7+ Kb8 25. Qd6+. � • Jai �
24 . ... Rb8 25. Qb6+
It is mate next move.
' '
i i .i..
.__.�-'..--

And surprisingly, Andrei Sokolov t!J '

too (who, nota bene, once reached
the quarter-finals of the WCh)
made a decisive mistake.

Nunn Sokolov,A, Dubai 1 986

-

1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cxd4
4. Nxd4 Nc6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Almost the losing move. After 1 3 .
Be2 d6 7. Be3 Qc7 8. f4 Na5 . . . N f6 there is not much on.
9. 0-0 Nc4 1 0. Bxc4 Qxc4 Nunn ' s variation is not total ly con­
1 1 . rs Be7 vincing: 1 4. fxe6 ( 1 4. Rad I Bd7)
After 1 1 . . . . N f6 we end up in the 1 4 . . . . fxe6 1 5 . Nce2 and now
Lasker game. With the ideas from simply 1 5 . . . . 0-0.

84
But the rest is convincing enough. 1. ... Nb4? 2. Re l Nxd3?
14. fxe6 fxe6 1 5. e5 dxe5 1 6. More wasted time. White was not
Ne4 Qc7 1 7. Qg3 Ne7 1 8. yet threatening to move his bishop
Rad l h4 19. Nxf6+ gxf6 20. away. He wants to go to b l , but
Qg7 Rf8 2 1 . Rxf6 Rxf6 22. that is fol lowed by the capture on
Qxf6 Qd6 23. Bg5 exd4 24. c4.
Rxd4 Nd5 25. Rxd5 3. Qxd3 dxc4 4. Qxc4 Be7
Black resigned. On account of the wrong ex­
change, Black has not yet made
any further progress with his de­
OPENING RULES velopment. White makes short
work of him.
A good opening move is almost 5. Bc7 Qe8 6. Nb5 Nd5 7. e4
always a move with a piece which White won easily.
is not yet developed. Of course
moving the same piece twice is not The next diagram occurs after the
always forbidden. Common sense moves:
must tel l you whether the move is 1 . d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3
good or bad. I n our first example it Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f3 0-0 6. Be3
would be a pure waste of time. e5 7. Bd3

.i •
i .i. i
� ----�-
' �·
.i. i '
8 � 8 8 8
ttJ � 8 ttJ tt:J ..t � 8
8 8 8 8 8
n @ n 'iY @

Crakanthorp-Gundersen An unfortunate move. The d4-

A ustralia 1 923 pawn is no longer protected by the
Black is slightly behind in devel­ queen.
opment. One useful move would 7 . ... Ng4!
be I . . . . a6 to prepare captures on Black moves the same piece twice,
c4 and b5 . Instead of that B lack which is good here. After 8 . fxg4
speculates on the possibility of exd4 B lack i s already better. His
gaining the two bishops. bishop on g7 has become stronger.

85
On the exercise page for this lesson developing move. It is sometimes
there are twelve positions in which good to move the same piece twice,
you are asked to suggest a good sometimes not.

WORKBOOK

23 : Opening - Which developing move?: A

Choose the best move from those under the diagram. Indicate why it is best
and why the other moves are not so good.

TIPS

All tips from this chapter and a few more are l isted again:
1 . Study games by (grand)masters in the early stages of the opening.
2. Choose a recognised specialist as your model. Players from the past
like Gligoric or Nunn (King ' s Indian), Korchnoi or Uhlmann (French)
or modern ones like Gelfand (Sicil ian Naj dorf), Karj akin (Ruy Lopez),
Kramnik (Catalan), Svidler (Grilnfeld), Radj abov or Nakamura (King ' s
Indian).
3 . Play training games with your openings.
4. Don ' t play openings which are real ly unsound.
5 . Play main lines a s well a s less usual variations.
6. W ithout proof, do not believe everything you read in books.
7. Find your own innovations !
8 . Do not j ust abandon a variation if you lose with it a couple o f times.
9. Play the fashionable openings, but respect the old ones which are out of
fashion.
1 0. Analyse your openings with other players.
1 1 . Get to know typical combinations which occur in an opening.
1 2 . Collect a lot of short wins (or losses) in your variation.
1 3 . In your opening, don ' t j ust look at the good alternatives; also look at
why other moves are not so good.
1 4. Play according to sound opening rules, but also be brave enough to
deviate from them.
1 5 . Study the strategic characteristics of an opening (which pieces to ex­
change, strong squares, pawn structures, etc.).
1 6. As soon as you leave theory in a game you must above all make sound

86
 moves (make sure all your pieces are involved).
1 7 . Borrow or buy a good opening book. You cannot learn openings from
the Encyclopedia which contains only moves and symbols for evalu­
ations.
1 8 . Do not j ust play games with "your own" openings; also play games
with other openings.
1 9. After every game, look at what theory has to say.

Answers from pages 8 1 and 82.

a) I . . . . Nxf3 2 . Nxf3 Nxe4 3. Qd3 Nxc3+ 4. bxc3 Bxc3; 0- 1
b) I . . . . Nxf3 2 . Nxf3 Nxe4 3 . Nxe4 Rxb2+ 4. Kc l Rb l +; 0- 1
c) I . . . . Nxe4 2 . Nxe4 Qxa2 3 . c3 Qa l + 4. Kc2 Nb4+ 5 . cxb4 Qxb2+ 6.
Kd3 Qb3+ 7 . Nc3 B f5#
e) I . ... Nxe4 2 . Bxe7 Nxc3 3. Bxd8 Nxd l 4. Rxd l Kxd8 5 . 0-0 Bd7 6. Nb3
Kc7 (Black i s better)
e) I . . . . Nxe4 2. Bxe7 (2. Nxe4 Qb4+) 2 . . . . Qf2#
f) I . . . . Nxe4 2. Nxe4 Bxh4 3. Nxd6+ Qxd6 4. Bb5+ Ke7; 0- 1

A NEW OPENING

87
7 Tactics

In previous steps tactics were dealt into question?

with in some detai l. • Check the move you want to
The following combinations, divi­ make.
ded into five mam groups, were
discussed: You will find a simple example in
• mate the next position.
• double attacks
• pins •
eliminating defenders
' ' '
•

• draws (see Chapter 5 )

The workbook fo r Step 6 contains

hundreds of combinations. I t 1s
important to keep going back to
practise them.
When you are solving the com­
bination, finding the solution is all
very well, but thinking in the cor­
rect way is equally important. Many players with B lack would
Always start by asking the im­ retreat the knight which is being
portant question : what is going on attacked. Thinking: a pity, my
in this position? attack is over, perhaps I ' ll be
Sometimes you recognise the posi­ luckier next time. They don ' t find
tion and the solution comes to you the weak point in the opposing
straight away, but usually you defence because they are not
won ' t find the best move imme­ looking for it. They will not find
diately. You have to get used to not the winning continuation till later
trying out every possible move. In when they are going over the game
such cases try using the following with their trainer! Squares around
solving strategy: the king are a difficult target to
• In the position, what targets are attack (here for example the pawn
there to attack? on d3). The only way to attack it
• What are the options to exploit would be 1 . . . . Rf3, but the g-pawn
this? is getting in the way of that move.
• Which candidate moves come I n addition the white king and

88
queen are ripe for an attack by the There is a back rank mate lurking
knight. Unfortunately the g-pawn in this position. The immediate
is again the culprit since it is pre­ capture on fl does not achieve
venting a knight fork. That brings much. Amusingly, fl must first be
us to the idea that a piece should protected so that the combination
be put on f3 anyway, despite can be successful :
everything. After 1 . . . . Nf3+ 2. 1 . Qc7!
gxf3 Rxf3 there is the saving 3. I . . . . Ra8 is followed by 2. Rb8+;
Qe2, but 1 . Rf3 leads to a win of
•.• after I . . . . Re8 White captures on
material for Black. fl.
Let ' s check things through again : 1 . ... Rf8 2. Qxf7+ Rxf7 3.
2. gxf3 Nxf3+ and then 3 . ... Nxel Rb8#
is OK. The intennediate move 2.
c4 is followed by 2. ... Qb4+ 3. � •
Kd l Rxd3+ (with check).
.t ' �
Jl
MATE 'if '
.t. 8 i.. 8 llJ
It is important in mating combina­
8 .i. 8
tions that you know the motif.
What should immediately catch ' 'iY @
your eye is that the opposing king
is in danger. Knowing a lot of
mating patterns is a serious plus. In this pos1t10n too, a back rank
But when there i s a mate in the mating motif catches the eye. After
offing, other mating patterns can I . Ng6+ Kg8 ! There is no winning
occur. continuation. The second mating
pattern to be considered is the mate
with bishop and knight.
The solution i s worth seeing.
White delivers mate in four with :
1 . Re8+ Bxe8 2. Qg6! Bxg6
3. N xg6+ Kg8 4. Bd5#

A clever way to deprive the oppo­

sing king of squares is by block­
mg.
We will see a smothered mate, but
not by a knight as usual .

89
 Double attacks : pieces
If there is a knight in play then you
can be looking out for pieces of your
.i. opponent which are within the range
' of the knight.

1 . Rg7+ Kxh8
After 1 . . . . Kf8 Black is mated with
2. Qb4+ Ke8 3 . Qe7 .
2. Qg8+ Nxg8 3. Rxh7+
Nxh7 4. g7#

There may be a knight on the

DOUBLE ATTACKS board, but a knight fork is not yet
on the cards. In such situations
Double attacks can b e sub-divided preparatory moves are especially
as follows : useful. White wins by twice cha­
• pieces (queen, knight, etc. ) sing a piece away and by twice
• discovered attack luring a piece on to a square.
• X-ray attack 1 . Bh6+ Kg8 2. Nf6+ Kh8 3.
If a double attack does not work Re8+ Rxe8 4. Bg7+ Kxg7 5.
straight away, a preparatory move Nxe8+
can be played (attracting, elimi­ The booty has almost been taken.
nating a defender, chasing away,
targeting or clearing). n
The search strategy goes as
.I , .
fol lows:
• king (check ! ) I:f. '
• material
--+ unprotected llJ
--+ insufficiently protected
--+ p rotected piece of greater
�
value � � @
• i mportant square (e.g. mate) .I

90
In this position, B l ack thought that The queen can do a lot on its own.
he had prevented the threatened Even setting up a double attack.
mate (Ng6 and Rh8) by playing
. . . Rb I to attack the white rook. He
may not be mated, but Black soon
runs out of material !
1 . Ng6 Rxb6 2 . Nf8+ Kg8 3.
Nxd7+ Kt7 4. Nxb6

Grooten-Hertneck,
Dortmund 1 984
All the queen needs are a king and
an unprotected piece.
1. Qxc6 Rb8 2. Qd6 Ra8 3.
Qd5 Rb8 4. Qe5 Ra8 5.
Dvizov (1 9 76) Qe8+ Kh7 6. Qe4+
S ince knight forks are so much White wins a rook.
fun, let ' s look at another example.
B lack has two queens, but not for
much longer.
1 . Ne2 !
One of the knights first lures a
queen on to e2 . Black has to take .t.
the knight ( I . . . . Qxf2 2. Nxf2 t3J t3J
mate). It is important for f2 to con­
tinue to be protected. After I .
lZJ � �
Ng3+ Kg l 2. Nce2+ Kxf2 3 . Nxc l t3J t3J t3J lZJ t3J t3J
White does win a queen, but he ll � \t> �
loses.
1 . ... Qxe2 2. Ng3+ Zlochevsky-Petakov, 1 988
The second knight move chases The pieces for the twofold attack
the king on to a fatal square. on h6 would be in the wrong order
2 . ... Kgl 3. Nxe2+ Kxf2 4. after 1 . Qe3+. By adjusting his aim
Nxcl White sets up a double attack.
White wins easily. 1. Bg5 Qd7 2. Qe3+ Kt7 3.

91
 Bxh6 start. It is tempting to go for the
White wins a knight. first target that comes into one ' s
mind with I . B f5+ Kh7 2 . Bxb l +
Double attacks: discovered attack (threatening mate). After 2 . . . . g I Q
The nastiest of double attacks is White has not much more than
the discovered attack (including perpetual check. With a l ittle pre­
also discovered check and double paration, White can come up with
check). another better targeted battery on
the b-file.
1. Be6+ Kh7 2. Bg8+ Kh8 3.
Bb3+ Kh7 4. Rxb7+ Kh8
The battery has been set up. A
target for the bishop i s easy to find.
5. Rb8+ Kh7 6. Bg8+.

The most difficult discovered

attacks can be found in positi­
ons where no battery is present.
There i s no particular search
strategy.
1. Bg2 In the following diagram we see
White prepares the battery. The an easy example where the batte­
queen can pack its bags : ry needs to be set up.
A) I . . . . Qe5 2 . Nb4+ Kb8 3 . Nc6+
B) I . . . . Qh7 2. Nf6+
C) I . . . . Qd4 2. Ne7+ Ka7 3 .
Nc6+.

Zappas (1 9 72)
1 . Bd5 d l Q 2. Rd6+
It would be wrong to play 2. Rh6+
Qxd5+ or even 2 . . e6.
. .

The battery is clear from the very 2 . .. Kh8 3. Rd8+ Kh7 4.

.

92
 Bg8+ Kh8 5. Rxd l
� 9
The queen i s lost.
i .i. i
Double attacks: X-ray ' ' 'S\ i
An X-ray attack is when you attack IS\ cj '
a piece which i s so valuable that it
cj cj
absolutely must move out of the
attack, which allows you to capture t2J
a piece which had originally been cj cj 'WI
behind it. Firstly, let ' s deal with an It �
X-ray check.
1 . .. . Ncxe4 ! 2. Nxe4 Nxe4 3.
Qxe4 Bf5
Black wins material.

The X-ray effect of pieces which

move in a straight line can also be
used in a different way .

•
' ' ' ' '
IS\ K .i. i
Massman (1 9 1 7) '
1 . Bc5+ Bxc5 cj
If he declines the sacrifice B lack is
actually mated: I . . . . Kc7 2 . Qe7+
cj 'WI � cj � cj
Kc8 3. Qxe6+ Kc7 4. Qd6+ Kc8 5 . � cj �
Qxc6+ B c 7 6. Qe8+. The bishop i s
now blocking the c5-square. White
simply has to chase the king on to 1 . ... Nxb4 2. cxb4
the fatal square. Not taking costs a piece: 2. Qe2
2. Qd8+ Ke5 3. Qh8+ Rxe3 3. Qxe3 Nxc2 4. Qe8+ Bd8
White wins the queen. 5. Qxf7.
2 . . . . Rxe3
The X-ray attack is often directed The rook is protected by the X-ray
against high-value pieces, such as effect.
the queen and the rook. In the
following position they are both on Mixed double attacks
the same diagonal : The double attacks in Step 6 are

93
often based on more than one 1 . ... Qa8
motif. No other move can save the queen :
A) 1 . . . . Qb8 2. f3+ Ke5 3 . Qg3+
B) I . . . . Qe7 2. f4+ Kxe4 3. Qe l +
C ) I . . . . Qc7 2 . f3+ Ke5 3 . Qg3+
D) l . . . . Qc5 2 . f3+ Ke5 3. Qxc5+
2. f4+ Kxe4 3. Qg2+
This X-ray check decides matters

PINS

There are three aspects of the pin:

• the pin
Gurvich (1 955) • the attack on a pinned piece
To win here, you need to employ a • a pinned piece is not a good de­
discovered attack, a discovered fender.
check and a knight fork.
1. d4+! cxd3 The pin
After I . .. . Kxd4 or I . Kb4 a The search strategy for the pin
knight fork is decisive. itself is actually the most difficult.
2. Kd7+ Kb6 3. Nd5+ There is as yet no pin, so one has
White wins the queen. to look for pieces on the same line.

.I •
.i. i. '
' 'ii' i i ttJ i
' ' �
� · � �

Kakovin (1 95 7) White exploits the knight fork to

The discovered attack and the X­ set up a winning pin.
ray check assist each other. 1. Qf3!
1 . Qgl ! After I . Nxe7+ Rxe7 2. Qf3 Black
An extraordinari ly beautiful move ! defends with 2 . . . . d5 . It is clear

94
that after I . . . . Rxf3 2 . Nxe7+ Kf7 The pin is already in force; now
3. Nxc6 White wins a piece thanks the pinned piece simply has to be
to the double attack by the knight. attacked a second time.
The only way for Black to defend The knight on b5 is the sacrificial
the knight is I . . . . d5, but then too lamb. It is remarkable that there is
the knight fork helps : 2. Qxf7+ and only a single winning move !
3. Nxe5+. 1 . Rtb l !
A pin against a line piece i s a
discovered attack for the opponent.
After I . a4? Nd4 or I . Rab i Nc3
White draws the short straw.
1 . ... Rb8 2. a4
' This move wins now. There i s no
� 8 .t 'if longer a mate. The king can go to
fl .
8 0,
8 8 8 \JJ!i :t. � 8 A pinned piece is not a good
jl � @ defender
A piece which is pinned cannot
Preparatory moves are also an op­ carry out its tasks as well as it
tion when pinning. B lack achieves should.
a winning pin by attracting and
clearing a square.
1 . ... Rxe3 2. Qxe3 Nxc2 3.
' .i , .
Rxc2 Bd4
Black wins. ' i 'if '
0,:t i '
Attacking a pinned piece 8 8 � 8
WI 8 8
.i 8 8
' n @

A difficult example. There is still

no sign of a pin. The rook on e5
seems to have got lost, but for the
moment White does not have to
fear f6. However, because of the
position of the rook White will
lose the exchange. Black strikes

95
with two attracting moves. defender in the next position.
1. ... Nd2 2. Qd l Nc4 ! 1. Qxc8+ Rxc8 2. Rxe7+
The unexpected point. The white Kd8 3. Rxg7+ Rxg5 4. Rf8#
queen is now no longer protected.
3. Rxc4 Qxe5 Capturing + material
B lack wins material.

'i¥ i .
ELIM INATING A DEFENDER
· � ·
This combination often appears in ttJ n I.
practical play. There are five forms l::i l::i
of it:
l::i � l::i
• capturing
• chasing away l::i l::i
• luring away 'iV @ ll
• interfering
• blocking The rook on h5 i s protected by the
The function of a defender is to knight on f6. That' s all we need to
prevent material loss or to guard know.
against mate. The search strategy 1 . Nxg6 fxg6 2. Rxg6+ Kf7
consists of, looking for an impor­ 3. Rxf6+
tant defensive piece. Then the so­
lution is often not far away with Luring away + mate
one of the five methods mentioned.

Capturing + mate

Defending pieces can be lured away

by an exchange or a sacrifice.
The mating pattern with bishop
It won ' t take you long to find the and knight after Bf6 stands out.

96
Now I . Qxe5 is unfortunately met opposing piece gets in their way.
with I . . . . Qxe5, So the queen on
c7 must be lured away. .i •
1 . Rxb7 Qxb7 2. Qxe5+
.t. .t. it' .i 1l .t.
Thi s is capturing + mate.
2 . ... Nxe5 3. Bf6# .i. .t.
.t. .i. �
Luring away + material ..t .t. ..t
This sort of combination does not
8 8
occur so much at a high level. It is
either too obvious or too hidden. 8 8 ll 8
@
•
1 . Be6!
.t. .t.
Other moves are insufficient: I .
Bxe5+ Qxe5 2 . Qh6 Rxf7 3 . Bxf7
Rc8 4. Bxg6 Qg7 or I . Rxe7 Qxe7
2. Qxe7 Rxe7 3. Rd8+ Kg7 (not 3 .
. . . Be8 4. Bg5) 4 . Rg8+ with a
draw.
After the bishop move B lack can
lay down his arms. H i s bishop is
no longer protected.
The possible gain of material has
first to be found. After I . . . . Nxf2 In the next position too, a quiet
White unfortunately takes the pawn move i s enough to force
queen. H owever, this idea draws White to capitulate . .
attention to the role of the rook as
a defender. • .I
1 . .. . Nxe5!
.i. .t.
Of course.
2. dxe5? � .t.
Other moves are better, but in each 'it'
case Black wins material. .i
2 . ... Bxf2+! 3. Rxf2 Qxd l +
..t
Interfering 8 8 ll 8 8
Pieces which move in straight l ines ll @
like the queen, rook and bishop are
powerless if one of their own or an 1. ... e5

97
There is no effective defence to 2 .
. . . Qxh2+ and 3 . . . . Rh4#.

Blocking
Blocking is particularly wel l suited
above all to mating the opposing
king. You force an opposing piece
on to the escape square(s) which
you cannot control with your own
pieces.
Blocking is the finest form of Somov-Nasimovitch (1 93 7)
eliminating the defence. That's why At first glance White has too little
we give three examples. Judge for material to del iver mate. With the
yourself. help of a discovered attack White
manages to lure the black queen on
to a bad square.
1 . f3+ Qxf3 2. Qd3+ Kd5 3.
e4+ Qxe4 4. Qc4+ Kc6
Oder 4 . . . . Kd6 5. dxc5+ Kc6 6.
Qxe4+
5. d5+ Qxd5 6. Qa6#

Dvizov (1 9 76)
1 . Bd4+
White employs a sacrifice to entice
a queen on to the long diagonal.
1 . ... Qxd4 2. Qf8+ Ke5 3.
Qh8+
The aim of the bishop sacrifice now
becomes clear. In order not to end Kasparian (1 939)
up in a hopeless endgame, Black This is the end of a study. White
has to interpose his queen on f6, but has j ust got a queen, but now the
in doing so he blocks the only struggle begins in earnest. The first
escape square. move is the simplest of all (it would
3 . Qf6 4. Qh2#
... not be out of place in Step I ! ).

98
 l . Rd l Rg2 because after I . . . . Ke6 things can
Difficult. Black is threatening mate go no further. White cannot bring
in two ways. his rook into the attack. White can
2. Qa3+ Ra2 3. Rd2 ! lure the queen away with his rook,
This is the move which makes the but then the ranks of the attacking
study so unmissable. White can army have been considerably
only win with a queen sacrifice. thinned out. However, that surpri­
After a move such as 3. Qc5 ? Rh2 singly leads to a solution.
(but not 3 . . . . b2+? 4. Kd2+ b 1 Q+
5. Ke l ) 4. Rd2 Rh l + 5. Rd l Rh2
White achieves no more than a
repetition of moves.
3 . ... Rxa3
Transposing to a rook versus pawn
is not enough. White wins accor­
ding to the method we saw in Step
5 : 3 . . . . b2+ 4. Qxb2+ Rxb2 5 .
Rxb2 a 3 6. Rb l + ! Ka2 7 . Rb8 Ka i
8. Kc2 a2 9 . Kb3 Kb l 1 0. Ka3+
4. Rb2 ! Ra2
There is nothing else. Bent 2003
5. Rb l # 1. Rg5+ Qxg5
Forced, but the queen is very un­
I n the final position (diagram next favourably placed on g5.
column) we have a combination in­ 2. Qa8+ Ke6
volving luring away and blocking. Or 2 . . . . Ke5 3 . Qe4#.
The black queen has the d8-square 3. Qe8+ Kf5 4. Qe4#.
under control. That is preventing A nice study.
an immediate win with I . Qa8+,

WORKBOOK

24: Double attack - Knight: A

26: Double attack - Discovered attack: A
2 7 : Double attack - Queen: A
First of all become acquainted with the position. Look for:
• targets to attack (king, material, square)
• a battery

99
To solve each task correctly, you almost always need a preparatory move.
Which move is best suited for that role? You have the choice between
eliminating a defender, chasing a piece away, targeting and clearing.

2 5 : Eliminating of the defender - luring away + mate: A

2 8 : Eliminating of the defender - Interfering: A
29: Eliminating of the defender - Blocking: A
First take a calm look at the characteristics of the position. Look for the
important defender and eliminate it. Once more, if you have to, use a
preparatory move.

30: Pin - Mix: A

Look for opposing pieces which are on the same line and set up a winning
pm.
If there i s already a pin, then you can attack the pinned piece another time
or take advantage of the l imited defensive capabilities of the piece which is
pinned. With pins too, you often require a preparatory move.

1 00
8 Pawn endings

You already know a whole lot king has to defend these squares.
about pawn endings. To freshen up After Kxc6 this can only be done
this knowledge a little, it is a good from the c4-square. So the defen­
idea to take another look at the re­ sive strategy is clear: get to c4 !
minder Endgame strategy from 1 . Kf2 !
Step 4. The king must not allow itself to
Well-known themes which will be kept at a distance by I . Kf4?
crop up agam are: Kd4 2. Kf3 Kc5 3 . Ke3 Kxc6 4.
• key squares (Steps 3 and 5) Kd4 Kb5 , and B lack is occupying
• shouldering off (Step 3 ) a key square.
• rook pawn (Step 3 plus) 1 . .. Kd4 2. Ke2 Kd5 3. Kd3
.

• pawn races (Step 5 ) Kxc6 4. Kc4

• breakthrough (Step 5) White achieves a draw.

Seizing a key square often depends

KEY SQUARES on a single tempo.

The first diagram provides you

with a simple example of key
squares.

Mees (1 939)
Surprisingly, the immediate promo­
tion to a queen achieves nothing: l .
b8Q? Rb6+ 2. Qxb6 Kxb6 3 . Kc4
Black is ready to win the pawn on Kc6 4. Kd4 Kd6 5. Ke4 Ke6 6.
c6. The key squares for the c7- Kf4 Kf6 7. Kg4 Kg6 with a draw.
pawn are b5, c5 and d5. The white The correct move is:

IOI
 1 . b8N+ Quite certainly not 4. Kb3? Kc5 5 .
By underpromoting, White "loses" d 6 ( 5 . Kc3 Kxd5 6. Kd3 Kc5 7 .
a move. Kc3 c 6 is bad too) 5 . . . . Kxd6 ! 6 .
1. ... Kb6 2. Nxc6 Kxc6 3. Kc4 Kc4 Kc6 and wins.
If in the starting position the pawn 4 . ... cxd6 5. Kb3
were on g4, then promoting to a B lack cannot seize a key square.
queen would be the only correct
way: I . b8Q Rb6+ 2. Qxb6+ Kxb6 In the case of doubled pawns, the
3. g5 , and the king is outside the side with the pawns can always
square of the pawn. occupy a key square (the rear pawn
will provide the tempo move). In
the following pos1t1on, Black
would usually be in the driving
seat:

Duclos (1 903)
White has a weak d-pawn. That
can be seen in the variation I . Kc4
Ka5 2. Kb3 b5 3. axb5 Kxb5, and
Black wins after 4. d6 cxd6 5. Kc3 Zinar (1 985)
Kc5 6. Kd3 Kd5 . In thi s variation 1 . f5
b3 is the wrong square for the In a game you would make this
white king. That leads us to the move without a great deal of
correct solution. thought, even if you had not yet
1. Kb3 ! seen the correct continuation.
I . Ka3 ? Ka5 leads to the variation However, White has no chance
described above. after I . Kf3 Ke6 2. Kg4 Kf6 3 .
1 . . .. Ka5 Kg3 Kf5 4 . K O g 5 5 . fxg5 Kxg5 6 .
Or I . . . . b5 2. Kb4 ! bxa4 3. Kxa4 Kg3 , and after the tempo move 6 .
Kb6 4. Kb4 or if absolutely neces­ . . . g 6 White can resign.
sary 4. d6. 1. ... g5 2. Kf3 Ke5 3. Kg4
2. Ka3 b5 3. axb5 Kxb5 4. Kf6 4. Kh5!
d6! This subtle stalemate idea saves

1 02
White. I f the whole starting posi­ 1. Ka l l Kb3
tion were moved one file to the After I . . . . c2 2. b3+ ! Kb5 (captu­
left, then White loses. ring means stalemate) 3. Kb2 Kc5
4 . ... Kxf5 4. Kxc2 Kd4 5. Kd2 White is sti ll
White is stalemated. After any other j ust in time.
move, the position is also drawn. 2. Kb l Kc4
The key squares for pawns on the A check achieves nothing: 2 . . . .
fifth rank or higher (on the fourth c2+ 3 . K c I Ka2 4 . Kxc2, and there
for Black) are tricky. The three is nothing left for B lack to try.
squares directly in front of the 3. Kc2
pawn are key squares. That means On each occasion White makes the
a particularly difficult task for the only move. 3. Kc I would lose: 3 .
defending side. . . . Kd3 4 . bxc3 Kxc3, and the king
I n the following diagram White 's is on a key square.
position does not inspire much in 3 . ... b3+ 4. Kc l
the way of confidence. Or 4. Kb l Kd3 5 . bxc3 .
4. ... Kd3 5. Kb 1 Kd2 6.
bxc3 Kxc3 7. Ke t b2+ 8.
Kb l Kb3 stalemate

SHOULDERING OFF

I n pawn endings the king is the

most important piece.

Grigoriev (1 925)
Almost every move loses:
A) I . Kb l ? Kb3 2. Kc l c2 3. Kd2
Kxb2
B) I . bxc3? bxc3 2. Ka i Ka3 3 .
Kb l Kb3 4. Kc ! c2
C) I . b3+? Kb5 2. Kb ! Kc5 3. Kc2
Kd4 4. Kc I c2 (leads to the
winning of the pawn; b3 is a
key square ! ) 5 . Kxc2 Ke3 6. I f you can keep it out of active
Kc l Kd3 7. Kb2 Kd2 8 . Kb ! play, then you have achieved
Kc3 9. Kc l Kxb3 something. The way to do this is

1 03
known as "shouldering off'. When Moravec (1 952)
shouldering off is used, the strug­ White ' s task is clear: take the b7-
gle for the key squares becomes pawn and hang on to his own
somewhat harder to calculate out pawn. In order to manage that, he
in advance. must first keep the black king at a
This position is won for White, but distance.
he should not strike too soon. After 1. Kg3
the immediate 1 . b4 Black draws On its way to the b-pawn the king
with I . .. . a5 ! Nor does I . Kb6 of course bars the way to its
achieve anything; after 1 . . . . Kd5 2 . counterpart.
b 3 Kd4 White cannot take a6 1 . ... Kfl 2. Kf3 !
without losing the b-pawn. White A bad miscalculation (since it
has to start with a tempo move. loses ! ) is 2 . b6? Ke2 3. Kf4 Kd3 4.
1. b3 ! Ke5 Kc4 5 . Kd6 Kb5 6. Kc7 Ka6.
By advancing his b-pawn by one The black king must first of all be
square, White solves his problems. kept on the back rank. If it i s
Black does not have a good wai­ allowed o n t o the second rank at
ting move. this point, then that throws away
1 . ... Ke5 the win: 2. Kf4 Ke2 3 . Ke4 Kd2 4.
Nor are other moves any better. Kd4 Kc2 5 . Kc4 Kb2 6. b6 Ka3 7.
After 1 . . . . Kd7 the move 2. Kb6, Kc5 Ka4 8 . Kc4 ! , and White has to
wins and 1 . � · ·a5 2. Kb5 leaves take a draw.
Black j ust as little hope. 2 . ... Ke l 3. Ke3 Kd l 4. Kd3
2. b4 Kc l
Now i s the correct time. The black The other side i s no more helpful
king does not have a useful move. to him: 4 . . . . Ke l 5. b6 Kf2 6. Ke4.
Working with zugzwang is a valu­ 5. Kc3 Kb 1 6. b6! Ka2
able technique in pawn endings. 7. Kb4
White seizes b7.

THE ROOK PAWN

The rook pawn is the weakest

pawn on the board. It is annoying
to be left with a rook pawn in a
pawn ending. The chances of a win
are relatively slight, because there
are only two key squares (b7 and
b8 for the white a-pawn).

1 04
Shouldering off the enemy king is 2. g4 Kd7 3. Kh3 Ke7 4.
more of less the only weapon. Kxh4 Kf6 5. Kh5 Kg7 6.
For the defending side a rook pawn Kg5
often offers the chance of an es­ White wins.
cape. An effective weapon is to
reach the corner with the king, Calculating far enough in advance
shutting in the opposing king in the is the key to pawn endings.
corner or downgrade a knight pawn
into a rook pawn.
Keeping an eye open to these pos­
sibilities is the watchword in this
position.

Grigoriev (1 925)
Black needs six moves to advance
his a-pawn, to capture the a2-pawn
and to occupy a key square with
Kb2 . White ' s task: to play Kc2 on
The danger for White would lie in move 6. From c8 there are many
the advance of the (h5-h4 ). After different routes the king can take
he takes it, his g-pawn becomes a in order to reach c2 on the sixth
rook pawn and he can say goodbye move . . . but only if the black king
to his chances of winning. So the were not on the board. White has
wrong way to go would be I . Kf4 to choose his route in such a way
h4 2. gxh4 Kd8 . The black king is that the king does not lose a single
in the square of the pawn and very move on its j ourney.
quickly reaches f8 . The g-pawn is 1 . Kd7!
of course the better pawn. White Certainly not I . Kc7? a3 2. Kd6
wins by gaining a tempo. Kd4 ! , and White is shouldered off
1 . Kg2 h4 and will be one tempo short.
I . . . . Kd7 is j ust as little use. White 1 . ... a3 2. Ke6! Kd4 3. Kf5
wins the h-pawn with 2. Kh3 Ke6 Kc3 4. Ke4 Kb2 5. Kd3
3. Kh4, and after taking on h5 the Kxa2 6. Kc2
king is on a key square. He has achieved his aim.

1 05
 t . Kd8! In this position it would appear it
It is striking how often the king be a bonus to have the move. So it
has to go to the "wrong" side in may seem, because White to move
pawn endings. It is normal to head would Jose and Black to move
towards the pawns and not away would not win !
from them. The white king has to
choose the quickest route to fl . White to move:
Not I . Kf8?, because that costs 1 . Ke3
time: I . . . . h4 2. Ke8 (nor is there Or I . a4 Kc4 2. Ke3 Kb4 3. a5
any hope after 2. Kg7 Kf5 3 . Kh6 Kxa5 , and Black avoids being left
Kg4 4. Kg6 !_(f3 5. Kg5 h3) 2 . . . . with a rook pawn. On his next
h3 ! and wins (not 2 . . . . Kf5? 3 . move he occupies a key square and
Ke7 Kg4 4 . Kf6 K f3 5 . Ke5 ! ) in doing so makes sure of the
1 . ... Kf5 2 . Ke7 h4 3 . Kd6 point.
Kg4 4. Ke5 Kh3 5. Kf4 1. ... Kc4 2. Ke4 b5!
Kxh2 6. Kf3 The only move, but it wins. White
That i s exactly how White holds has no useful move.
the draw. The position which has
now arisen occurs frequently. The Black to move:
black king can shoulder off the 1 . ... Kc4
white one, but after 6 . . . . Kg l 7. Nor is there a win after 1 . . . . b5 2.
Kg4 the h-pawn is lost. Ke3 Kc4 3. a4, when the rook
pawn saves White.
A king must get to its pawns as 2. Ke5 b5 3. Kd6 Kb3 4.
quickly as possible. That is mainly Kc5
true, but there are some excep­ White manages to share the points.
tions. Pawn endings are sometimes
extremely deceptive ! Have a look
at the next example.

1 06
PAWN RACES because White promotes with
check.
Both sides have passed pawns. The 3. Ke5 Kg6
competition to see which of them Once again advancing is not good
will reach the opposing back rank on account of an X-ray check: 4.
first is known as a pawn race. c5 h4 5. c6 h3 6. c7 h2 7. c8Q h l Q
In this example both pawns have 8 . Qg8+.
the same distance to cover, but it is 4. Ke6 Kg7
White ' s move. For a third time, moving the h­
pawn forward falls down on
account of an X-ray check: 4 . . . . h5
5. c5 h4 6. c6 h3 7 . c7 h2 8. c8Q
h l Q 9. Qg8+.
5. c5!
Even shouldering off cannot con­
tinue for ever. B ut absolutely not
5. Ke7? h5 with simultaneous
promotion. After the pawn move
White gets there first.

Which pawn must run is the theme

Moravec (1 953) of the next position.
1 . c4
Black has the choice of going with
the h-pawn or else stopping the c­
pawn. First, the pawn gets going:
1.•.• h5 2. c5 h4 3. c6 h3 4.
c7 h2 5. c8Q h t Q
Simultaneous promotion, but in
view of the bad position of his
king, Black loses anyway.
6. Qg8+ Kh3 7. Qh7+ Kg2
8. Qg6+ Kft 9. Qf5+ Kg2
1 0. Qg4+ Kh2 1 1 . Kf2
White wins, because he will mate Hostan (1 933)
in a few moves. Which pawn should White ad­
vance? Logical ly, it appears to be
Now let's try with the king: the a-pawn, because the black king
1 . ... Kg4 2. Ke4! Kg5 is outside the square of the pawn.
Advancing with 2. . . . h5 fai l s As is so often the case in pawn

I 07
endings, appearances can be decep­ way to win this one is instructive.
tive. I . a4? f5 2. gxf5 gxf5 3 . a5 f4 1. Ke4
4. a6 f3 5 . a7 f2 6. a8Q fl Q. Firstly the black king must be
Advancing the other pawn first is lured further away from the square
correct. of the pawn.
1. c4! Kxg4 1. ... Kg4 2. a4 f5+ 3. Kd3 !
The king moves into the square of This is the move which detennines
the c-pawn. Rushing forward with the win: out of the check, sti ll in
the f-pawn is now hopeless, be­ the neighbourhood of the f-pawn.
cause the c-pawn will promote 3 . .. f4 4. a5 f3 5. a6 Kg3 6.
.

with check: I . . . . f5? 2. gxf5 gxf5 a7 f2 7. Ke2

3 . c5 f4 4. c6 f3 5 . c7 f2 6. c8Q+. The coup de grace. The black king
2. a4 ! is enticed on to g2 so that White
White ' s play appears i llogical, but will promote his pawn with check.
B lack has serious problems. Ad­ 7 ... Kg2 8. a8Q+
.

vancing with the h-pawn achieves

nothing since the new queen on a8 A straight line is the shortest dis­
is controlling the h I -square. So, all tance between two points. That
that is left is the f-pawn. goes without saying . . . but not on
2 • f5! 3. c5 f4 4. c6 f3 5. c7
... the chess board. On an empty
f2 6. c8Q+ board there are 393 different ways
White promoJes with check and for a king to get from e I to. e8 in
has a simple win. seven moves !
Diagonally is j ust as quick as in a
straight line. I n a race that throws
up a host of new possibilities.

Grigoriev (1 938)
At first glance, this race will end in
a draw. It may be White ' s move,
but the black pawn will gain a The white king is outside the
tempo with the check on f4. The square of the h-pawn. But, no

1 08
kidding, it can still stop the pawn ! clusion.
I. Kb3 h5 2. Kc4 h4 3. Kd5 2. Kg5 a5 3. Kf6
This move threatens mate in two. With the double threat of 4. Kf7
B lack must prevent this. (even winning) and the capture on
3 . ... Kd7 4. Ke4 e5 (with a draw).
The danger has been averted. With 3 . ... Kg8 4. Kxe5
his king inside the square of the The king is now in the square of
pawn White will win easily. The the pawn.
white king march is named after
Reti, the player who in our first
chapter defeated Euwe with a dou­
ble rook sacrifice. The name of the
king march with a double purpose
is the Reti manoeuvre.

Moravec (1 952)
The d-pawn is in danger and
requires help. Unfortunately the
white king is very far away from
the battlefield.
1. Kg4
Gorgiev (1 9 71) There is no hope after I . d4 Kb5 2.
The a-pawn is outside the range of Kg4 Kc4, and the pawn falls.
the white king. The white pawns 1. ... b5
do not appear as strong as in the White also gets there in time after
previous diagram. Nevertheless, I . . . Kb5 2. Kf5 Kc4 3. Ke5 Kd3
.

White can draw with the help of (3 . . . . b5 4. d4) 4. Kd5 .

the Reti manoeuvre. 2. d4 b4 3. d5 Kb5 4. d6!
1 . e5 fxe5 Necessary. The king may not go
Black can also try I . . . . Kg7, but on to f5 on account of the
that leads after 2. Kg4 getting into promotion on b l with check: 4.
the square of the a-pawn) 2 . . . . a5 Kf5 b3 5 . d6 b2 6. d7 b l Q+.
3. Kf5 fxe5 (now Black has to 4 . ... Kc6 5. Kf5!
capture, or else White will even The king move as a double goal :
win ! ) 4. Kxe5 to the same con- get into the square of the pawn and

1 09
help its own pawn. BREAKTHROUGHS
5 . ... b3
Or 5 . . . . Kxd6 6. Ke4 Kc5 7. Kd3 . Forcing the creation of a passed
6. Ke6 b2 7. d7 pawn by a pawn sacrifice is called
The draw has been secured. a breakthrough.

Positions with a Reti manoeuvre

always appear surprising to us. They
contradict our conceptions invol­
ving distance in daily life. B ut a
tempo can also be gained without
"Reti".

When there is a pawn majority,

there is usually no need for a
breakthrough; the pawns advance
towards their goal (with the candi­
date passed pawn in front !). So
why is a breakthrough necessary in
thi s position? The reason i s that the
f5-pawn (the candidate) is too
Zinar (1 986) close to the opposing king. The
1. Kd6 "real" candidate is the h-pawn.
The black king is lured one square 1. g5
further away from the square of the White has to prevent the interven­
pawn. An important tempo, which tion of the black king. After 1 . h5
B lack will later be short of for a Kd6 2 . g5 Ke7 he has missed the
wm. wm.
The immediate 1 . Kc5? is insuf­ 1. ... hxg5 2. f6!
ficient: I . . . . e5 2 . Kxb4 e4 3 . Kc3 A necessary pawn sacrifice. After
e3 4. Kc2 Kf3 5. a4 e2, and Black 2. h5 Kd6 3 . f6 Ke6 4. fxg7 Kf7 5 .
wins. h 6 g4 6. Kg2 e4 the game is drawn.
I . . .. Kf5 2. Kc5 e5 3. Kxb4 Nor is 2. hxg5 Kd6 of any use.
Kf4 4. Kc3 Kf3 5. Kd2 Kf2 2 . ... gxf6 3. h5
6. Kd3 Kf3 7. Kd2 The pawn runs through without let
It has not turned into a rac e.
or hindrance.
1 10
A breakthrough is much more than
just a pawn sacrifice and the ad­
vance of another pawn. We can see
that from the next position.

Simoni (1 949)
1 . h4 Kd4
Black must get after the h-pawn
here, because 1 . . . . Kb3 fai ls to 2.
Kb l .
Based on De Feijter (1 940) 2. h5 Ke5 3. d4+!
(without b7 2 . h5 wins as well) The king being on e5 is very much
I . f5 gxf5 2. Kb3 ! in Black' s way. Without the king
It i s logical that the king must first Black would be able to reply e5
stop the f-pawn. But it is remarka­ and there would be no chance of a
ble that this king move is the only successful breakthrough. That can
way to do so. The "nonnal" move also be seen if White first advances
2. Kb4 is not enough after I . . . . f4 the h-pawn: 3. h6 Kf6 4. d4 e5,
3 . Kc3 Kxb5 4. h5 c5 5 . h6 f3 6. and Black wins.
Kd2 c4 7. h7 c3+, when Black also 3 . ... cxd4
collects a queen. The black pawns After 3 . . . . Kf6 too, White forces
on the queenside appear to be through a winning passed pawn by
harmless, but they can get there in 4. e5+ dxe5 5. dxc5.
time thanks to the gain of a tempo 4. h6 Kf6 5. e5+
by the check. The winning breakthrough. The c­
2 . ... f4 3. Kc2 ! pawn gets a free run.
The same story. The king must 5 . dxe5 6. c5 e4 7. c6 e3 8.
. ..

remain as far away as possible c7

from the black pawns to avoid a White wins.
check. The black passed pawns are not
3 . ... f3 4. Kd l dangerous.
Only now is the king safe from a
check by the c-pawn. It can get no It is useful to recognize break­
further than c3, and White wins. through patterns.

111
Horning (2004) Bergdahl (1 955)
On the right we have a well-known The position after l . a5 h5 2 . Kf2
formation. White starts with : g5 i s a draw. Neither side can
1 . h5! make progress. White can secure
It seems as if the chance for a the point with a fantastic break­
breakthrough will not go away, but through.
I . Kd3 even loses: I . . . . b3 2. Kc3 1. g4 ! fxg4
b2 3. Kxb2 Kd4 ! (and not 3 . B lack must take. After 1 . . . . a6 2.
Kxc4 4. h 5 Kd4 5 . g 5 Kxe5 6 . bxa6 Kc7 3 . gxf5 gxf5 4. Kf2 Kb6
gxh6 Kf6 7 . Kc3 winning.) 5. Kg3 White wins hands down.
1 . ... Kd4 2. g5 Kxe5 3. gxh6 2. e4
Kf6 Or first 2. a5 g3 3. e4 !
The rest is a question of technique. 2• •••dxe4 3. a5!
White first makes sure that Black No other order of moves is possible,
does not get a protected passed because 3. d5? Kd6 simply loses.
pawn. 3 . ... h5
4. c5! e5 5. Kd3 After 3 . . . . Kc7 the move 4. d5
White stil l cannot allow e4. Any wms.
other move loses. 4. a6!
5 . ... c6 6. Kc4 e4 7. Kxb4 e3 Necessary. After 4. d5 h4 5. a6 h3
8. Kc3 6. b6 h2 7 . Kg2 e3 8 . bxa7 e2
and White wins. Black also gets a queen.
4 . ... Kc7 5. d5 h4 6. d6+!
First take a good look at the next Kxd6 7. b6
position. Try to find the solution A lovely study. White wins.
on your own.

1 12
WORKBOOK

3 1 : Pawn endings - Key squares: A

The king still has to seize the key squares. That can be done with the help
of the fol lowing rules:
• do not give ground too eas i ly
• work with zugzwang
• make a careful choice about pawn moves from their starting squares (one
square or two)
• watch out for a possible change of file on the part of the knight pawn (a
rook pawn has only two key squares)

32 Pawn endings - Key squares: B

On this page the king has to defend the key squares. I f you defend correctly
you have good chances. Watch out for the following possibilities:
• changing the situation regarding the key squares by means of a pawn
sacrifice, which pushes the key square one rank forward
• shouldering off the opposing king
• preventing your own king from being shouldered off
• moving a pawn towards the edge (a rook pawn has only two key squares)
• making use of stalemate

33 Pawn endings - Key squares: C

Shouldering off and shouldering off again. In order to keep the opposing
king at a distance, the route your king follows is important. Which is the
best route for it to choose? I n addition, you must prevent your king from
getting stuck in the comer. Watch out for zugzwang.

34: Pawn endings - Race: A

3 5 : Pawn endings - Race: B
I f the pawns are to be involved in a race, you must take a good look at the
starting position to work out what will happen.

The following are options for you in pawn endings:

• aim to promote with check (promote the correct pawn)
• get your king into the square of the opposing pawn (think out what is the
correct route, perhaps you can employ the Reti manoeuvre)
• keep the opposing king at a distance (shoulder it off)
• help your own pawns

1 13
• makes use of preparatory moves (luring away, clearing, bringing about a
change of file, avoiding check)

After the promotion you will either have queen against queen or queen
against pawn.
• Queen against queen (make use of tactical tricks: mate, winning the queen,
X-ray check or exchange queens to liquidate back to a won pawn ending)
• Queen against pawn (a rook pawn or a bishop pawn on the last rank but
one usually means a draw)

3 6 : Pawn endings - Breakthrough: A

Create a passed pawn by means of a breakthrough. Watch out for passed
pawns which your opponent creates. A void them winning a tempo by
check. You can keep the opposi ng king out of the square of the pawn by
setting up a barrier.

Kasparov

1 14
9 Bishop or knight?

Apart from the question "How • flexible

many moves ahead do you calcu­ --+ attacks other pieces without
late?" one of the most popular them being able to attack it in
questions which grandmasters are return
asked is "Which is stronger, a --+ can attack both white and black
bishop or a knight?". The correct squares
answer to both questions is: "That
depends on the position." Time for examples. The study of a
Some characteristics of these pieces, lot of extracts from games will
which are each valued at three help you better understand the
points, are : values of knights and bishops.

The bishop
• a piece which moves quickly
• it can control both wings simul­
taneously
• high level of mobility across the
whole board
• total mobil ity : 32 squares
• does not like fixed pawns
• flexible
--+ can make waiting moves
--+ can make a move and sti ll be at-
tacking the same square as be­ Hutchings-Keene
fore Woolacombe 1 9 73
Both sides still have a bishop and a
The knight knight. The black bishop looks
• a slow piece strong, but Black sti ll exchanges it
• can only work on one wing at a off.
time 1. ... Qf6 2. Rd l Bxf3 ! 3.
• its mobi lity strongly depends on Qxf3 Qxf3 4. exf3 Nc6
its position The plan becomes clear. The
• total mobility: 64 squares knight gets a very strong square on
• can j ump over other pieces, so d4.
fixed pawns do not bother much 5. dxc5?

1 15
A terrible move. Opening the b-file nal. Before it is too late, White
suits only B lack . 5. d5 Nd4 6. Bg2 arranges for Black to put a pawn
i s much better, even if Black is on the said diagonal too.
wel l placed with his central knight. 1. Bxc5!
5 . ... bxc5 6. Bg2 Rb8 7. Rd2 An exchange which caused a lot of
Rb3 8. Kd l Ke7 9. f4 Nd4 discussion at the time. Petrosian
1 0. Ke t h5 1 1 . h4 Rhb8 1 2. himself was very proud of this
Bfl ? move.
Also not the best of moves. After 1. ... dxc5 2. Bb5!
1 2 . Rhd I Black still has to work Black sti ll has a knight, which of
hard for the point. course must not be allowed to
12 . ... Rf3 ! reach d6 under any circumstances.
Neatly clearing a square. The 2 . ... Bb7
threat is a fork from b3 . The bishop exchange on d7 also
1 3. Kd l Rxa3 ! has disadvantages. Of course,
White resigns. 1 4. bxa3 ( 1 4. Rxd4 Black can exchange a knight on c4
Ra l +) is followed by 1 4 . . . . Rb l # or f5 , but he will then be left with a
A bishop cannot do anything very bad black-squared bishop.
against fixed pawns. If too many 3. Ne2 Ne8 4. Bxe8 Rxe8 5.
pawns are fixed on the same colour Nc4 Ba6 6. Qb3 Qf6
as the bishop, then the bishop is I n bad positions really bad moves
said to be "bad'� . occur frequently. Not everyone has
the capacity to wait passively. The
position after 6 . . . . f6 7. Ng3 Bf8 8.
0-0-0, moreover, is not much fun
either. White is ready to deploy his
' passed pawn with d5-d6.
' � � · 7. Re l Bf8 8. Ng3 Bc8
� · � 8 . . . . Qf4 is a vain hope: 9. Kf2
Bxc4 I 0. Rxc4, and the queen has
� �
to retreat ( l 0 . . . . Qd2+? 1 1 . Ne2
lt:J � and 1 2 . Rd I ).
�@ 9. 0-0 Rd8
Black has lost the thread. He
Petrosian-Schweber would be better setting up extra
Stockholm 1 962 protection for all his weak points
There i s a bad bishop on g7. It is (a5 , c5, e5, h6) - for example, put­
doing nothing, and all over the ting the queen on d8 and the king
board it comes up against its own on h7. White will not have much
pawns, except on the a7-g l diago- trouble col lecting the whole point

1 16
at the appropriate time with Kg2, (that demands accurate play).
Rfd l , Qe3, followed by Nf5 and 1 . ... dxe4 2. Kf2 Qd5 3. g4 !
d6. The knight and bishop are standing
1 0. Kg2 Ra7 1 1 . Rf2 Kh7 around a bit uselessly. Because the
1 2. Rfc2 Qa6 knight is stronger, White does not
Black is fed up waiting. have to fear a transition into the
13. Nxe5 endgame.
White won. 3 . ... Kh7 4. Kg3 ! Qc4 5.
Kh4 Qc2 6. h3 Qc4 7. Kh5
I f the opponent has a bad bishop, Kg8 8. Kg6 Kf8 9. Qxh6+
exchanging off all the other pieces Black resigned.
is a good strategy. The power of
the knight will be seen all the more
clearly in the direct confrontation .

.i. 'it'
•
.t. .t.
.t. ltJ .t. 8 .t.
8 8 �
8 �
8 8 Timman-Jvanovic, Bugojno 1 984
� @ White would benefit from the ex­
change of his white-squared bish­
Nikolic-Soppe, Novi Sad 1 990 op. Timman turns this desired ex­
1. Lxe4 change into reality in an instructive
In this example most of the black way.
pawns are fixed on white squares. 1. Qh6!
This means that White can become To h5 with tempo. The threat of 2.
the lord and master of the black Nxe5 prevents the move f5 .
squares. To do so, White can aim 1 . ... Qc5 2. Qh5 Rdf8
for the exchange of the queens and The d5-pawn is indirectly pro­
of his bishop for the knight. tected. 2 . . . . Qxd5 is followed by 3 .
1 . Bxe4 Bf5 Qc5 ( 3 . . . . Qc6 4 . Bxd7 Rxd7
Of course, this exchange also has 5. Nxe5) 4. Bxd7 Rxd7 5. Nxe5 .
disadvantages. Black obtains a pro­ 3. Bf5 Bxf5 4. Qxf5
tected passed pawn (not so bad), and White has achieved his strategic
the black queen can become active goal : his knight is much stronger

1 17
than the bishop. Before Timman A centrally placed knight which is
brings his knight to the strong e4- well protected can also be stronger
square, he demonstrates the skill of than a bishop.
a real grandmaster. He improves 1 . ... Bxc3
the position of his rooks, protects A surprising exchange. Black is
his g-pawn and makes an air-hole playing for a strong knight on e4.
for his king. Combinations along the long white
4 . ... Bd8 5. Rfl Rhg8 6. g3 diagonal help him achieve this.
Rg6 7. a3 Qc4 8. Rd3 Qc8 9. 2. Bxc3 Ne4 3. Bd2
Nd2 The bishop has to retreat, because
Only now does the knight go to e4. 3 . Bb2 Ng5 is an immediate loss.
9 . ... Qxf5 1 0. Rxf5 Rg5 1 1 . 3 . ... f5 4. cxd5
Rdf3 Rxf5 1 2 . Rxf5 Kc7 13. White must open the long dia­
Ne4 Be7 14. g4 h6 1 5. c3 gonal . Taking on f5 is not so good:
Kd7 1 6. h3 Bg5 4. Qxf5? Nxd2 5 . Rxd2 dxc4+.
Black does not fancy the role as 4 . ... Rxd5 5. Be3 Rc3 6.
the sacrificial lamb. He prefers to Rxd5 Qxd5 7. Rd l Qe6 8.
try to create counter-chances with Rd8+ Kh7 9. Rf8 Nf6 1 0. b4
a pawn sacrifice of his own. Rb3 1 1 . a5 bxa5 1 2. bxa5
1 7. Nxg5 hxg5 1 8. Rxg5 Rc8 Ra3
1 9. Kc2 Ke7 20. h4 Kf6 2 1 . B lack quickly decided the game in
Rf5+ Kg7 22� g5 Rc5 23. b4 his favour.
Rxd5 24. h5 a5 25. h6+ Kg8
26. bxa5 Rc5 27. Rf6 Rc6
28. Kb3 e4 29. g6 fxg6 30.
Rxg6+ Kh7 3 1 . Re6
Black resigned .

.i .i
�
' '

Morozevich-Bagirov, Moskau 1 995

It is high time to take a look at
positions in which the bishop is the
better piece.
Hort- Tai, Havanna 1 966 1. Bel

1 18
 1 . Bd2 ! i s more accurate. B lack Something has gone wrong i n
will then have to play exactly as he White ' s position : pawn structure, a
did in the game. The difference pawn down and a weakened pawn
will become clear later. position. On the other hand he has
1 . ... Nc6 2. Qd5+ Kh8 an enormous plus point: the bishop
Forced : 2 . . . . Rt7 3. Rxf7 winning on g2 . It is only good because the
a piece. black king is unfavourably placed
3. Bb2 Rad8? on a7 making it a target for the
A better defence would be 3. . . . bishop (with the help of the queen
Rg8 4 . Rxf5 Rae8 (but not playing of course). There are books which
for exchanges with 4 . . . . Rab8? 5 . eval uate the position as won for
Bxg7+ Rxg7 6. Rxb8+ Nxb8 7 . White, but that is going a bit too
Rf8+ Rg8 8 . Rxg8+ Qxg8 9 . Qe5+ far.
Qg7 I 0. Qxb8+, and B lack has 1. c4 Ne7?
exchanged too many pieces) 5 . A remarkable mi stake on the part
Rft7 Re7 ! White is better. This of Flohr, who was known as a
defence would not exist with the good defensive player. The knight
bishop on c3 ( 4. Rc7 then wins at has to go to f6. First of all to
once since the knight cannot go to prevent the loss of the t7-pawn,
b4). After the move which fol­ but also to limit the activity of the
lowed, White wins material. g2-bishop with e5-e4. After I . . . .
4. Rxg7 Rxd5 5. Rxg6+ Nd4 Nf6 2 . Q f3 Qc8 ! 3 . a 5 e 5 4. Qe3
6. Rg4! (or 4. axb6+ Rxb6 5. Rxb6 Kxb6
A pretty final move, attacking a 6. Qb3+ Ka5) 4 . . . . Qc7 5. c5 Rd l +
pinned piece and exploiting the 6 . Kh2 b5 B lack can sti ll hang on.
fact that "a pinned piece is not a 2. Qf3 Qc6
good defender". B lack resigned. Black also loses after 2 . . . . Nc6 3 .
a 5 bxa5 4 . Qe3+ Ka8 5 . Rb6.
3. Qxn Qc5+ 4. Kh2 Rd 1 5.
Re3
5 . h4 is also good enough.
5 . ... b5 6. Qxe6 Nc8 7. a5
Qc7
Black has more or less given up
hope: 7 . . . . Qxc4 does not lose so
quickly.
8. Qe4 Qb8 9. Qg4
9. Qc6 would lead to mate in six
moves but B lack resigned anyway.
Po/etaev-Flohr, Moscow 1 95 1 He will lose even more material.

1 19
I n such positions chance plays a Black can activate his rook with I .
large part, so you have to keep on . . . Rd7 and by means of an ex­
evaluating every position afresh. I n change on d I he will deprive
thi s last position, the bishop on g2 White of the h I -square for the
does not offer enough compensa­ other rook. Black is not worse after
tion for the disadvantages; the 2 . hxg6 Rx.d i + 3 . Qxd l (or 3 .
other pieces must also be able to Rxd l hxg6 4 . Rd6 Qh l +) 3 . . . .
do their bit. There is nothing on if fxg6 4. Qd6 b4 5 . Be5 Nd7, and
the a6 -pawn were on a5 (meaning the bishop has to move off the dia­
that a4-a5 i s no longer possible). gonal, before it can become a
dangerous piece.
In this example the bishop com­ After I . . . . b4 the game did not last
pensates for the material deficit, for long.
but no more than that. . 2. hxg6 hxg6
Taking the bishop is not possible
because of 3. gxf7+ and then mate.
3. Rd6 Kh7
Nor can the game be saved after
the better move 3 . . . . c4 4. Qxb4.
4. Qc4 !
B lack resigned.

Zaitsev-Spassky, Rostov 1 960

The bishop is of course very strong
on the long diagonal, but in certain
cases it can be chased off it. An
additional disadvantage of White ' s
position is the insecure position of
his king.
1. h5 Utemov-Belikov, Smolensk 1 992
The bishop requires help, so White The bishop on e2 is fulfilling a
must open the h-file. useful function: defending f3 . B ut
1. ... b4? that does not make the bishop a
A good defensive strategy, as we good one. White played to activate
shall learn in Chapter 1 3 , is to ex­ his bishop.
change off attacking pieces. 1. f4 exf4?

1 20
A bad move. B lack would do bishop.
better to play for an exchange of 1. ... b5
queens with I . . . . Qb5 . There i s no Tai had already written down the
real way forward for White after 2. move I . . . . Qxe5 (which would not
Bd I Nd7 3. f5 Kh8 . be allowed nowadays), but j ust in
2. Rgg l ? time he found 2. Rd2 ! And the
White misses the chance t o make a win!
hero of his bishop. He would win I . ... Nxe5 would be better: 2 . Rd2 !
with 2. Rgxf4 Rxf4 3. Bg4 ! Rxfl (2. Rc7 a5) 2 . . . . Rc8 3 . Re2 (3 .
(or 3 . . . . R8f7 4. Rxf4 and 3 . . . . f4?? Ng4) 3 . . . . Nc6 4. Qxe6 fxe6
Rxg4 does not work i n view o f 4 . 5. Rxe6 with more or less a level
Qh8+ Kxh8 5 . Rxf8#) 4 . Be6+ game. Compare the difference in
R I f7 5. Qg7 mate. activity of White ' s pieces in this
In the game the bishop arrived too position with what happened in the
late. game.
2 . ... Qb5 3. Bg4 Qb3+ 2. b3 Qxe5 3. Qxe5 Nxe5 4.
Black won quickly. Rc7 f6 5. Rxe7 Rd7
The rook can stil l be chased away,
.I • but thanks to the weakness on b5
the rook will be able to seize the
' ' ' '
seventh rank again.
' 'it' · � 6. Re8+ Kf7 7. Rb8 Rd5
!::, 8. Rb7+ Nd7 9. Rxa7 g5 1 0.
� � f4
White can still j ust free the bishop.
!::,
10 . ... Kg6 1 1 . fxg5 fxg5 1 2.
!::, !::, jl !::, !::, Ra6+ Kf7
@ Now after 1 3 . Kh2 Black would be
fighting for a lost cause. However,
Keres- Tal, Piirnu 1 9 71 Keres played I 3 . Kf2, after which
The bishop on h6 i s strong, as long Black got counter-chances with I 3 .
as the queens and rooks remain on . . . Nc5 . The game ended in a draw.
the board. Threats of mate limit
B lack' s options. Without the maj or In I 989, at the age of I 4, Sofia
pieces, the pawn on e5 is weak, Polgar stunned the chess world by
because protecting it with f4 has a her performance in a tournament in
negative effect on the bishop. Rome. She scored 8Yi out of 9.
In the game, Black ran into pro­ The game on the next page i s from
blems on account of the coopera­ thi s tournament. In their annota­
tion between the white rook and tions to the game the Polgar sisters

121
point out that White has a decisive are too passive. White can choose
advantage. That very much over­ a slower way of going about things
estimates the power of the bishop. with for example 1 . Rd3 , but the
continuation in the game is much
better. White uses his bishop in a
bri lliant way.

.I � .I •
· � '
' it' i '
'
� � � �
� � �
Sofia Polgar-Palatnik, Rome 1 989 � �
Black has j ust taken a pawn on b6. l:t ll @
On account of the bad position of
the black king, the white bishop is Taimanov-Hort, Tallinn 1 9 75
very strong (the fact that the white 1 . e5!
pawns are on black squares i s a White does not bother about
pity, but not a catastrophe). dogma. The fact that Black gets
Nevertheless the bishop cannot do the d5-square for his passive
more than compensate for the knight is as nothing compared to
material deficit. the increased activity of the
1. e6 f6? bishop.
A bad move. Black can swap off 1 . ... fxe5
the white bishop at the cost of an Black would love to keep the long
exchange: 1 . . . . Nd5 2. ext7 Qxd6 diagonal closed, but I . . . . Ne8 2. f5
3. fxg8Q+ Kxg8, and Black is and 3 . e6 would be too high a price
better. In the game White remains to pay.
with a bishop up. 2. Bxe5 Nd5 3. Qb2 Qf7 4.
2. e7 Qe8 3. Qf8 Nd5 4. Nh5
Rxd5 Rxf8 5. exf8Q+ Qxf8 With the benefit of hindsight eve­
6. Bxf8 rything seems so simpl e ! A weaker
White won the endgame with no player would first consider 4. Nf5 ,
problems. but after 4 . . . . Ne6 5 . Nxh6 Qg6
Black suddenly gets counterplay
In the next fragment, White is and White ' s advantage has to a
clearly better. The black knights large part disappeared.

1 22
 4
• Rg8 5. f5 b6
•.• all tucked up. The double attack
The move 5 . . . . Ne3 fails to several has a decisive role to play in this.
refutations. There is the simple 6.
Qc I and the more difficult but
better 6. Rd6 Kh7 7. Bxg7 Rxg7 8 .
Rg6 ! winning (thanks t o the knight
on h5). The text move not only
contributes to the improvement of
the black position but shows that
Black does not intend to stand idly
by, move his knight to c7 and then
hope.
6. Rfe l Nb7
This hastens the end, but after 6 . . . .
Kh6 there is the decisive 7. Bxg7+ Mugnos (1 95 7)
Rxg7 9. Rd5 . The bishop still has six free
7 . Qcl Kh7 8 . Qxc6 squares. It will not be left with a
B lack resigned. single one of them.
1. Kb2 Bd l
The best. After 1 . . . . Ba4 2 . Nxe6
ENDGAMES Kxd7 3. Nxc5+ or I . . . . Bf5 2. g4
Bxg4 3 . Nt7 Kxd7 4. Ne5+ the
In the endgame the bishop can bishop is lost more quickly.
better deploy its power since the 2. Kc l Be2
board is no longer so full. A knight fork will also decide
Important factors are: matters if it goes to another square:
• the number of fixed pawns on 2 . . . . Bg4 3 . Nt7 or even 2 . . . . Bh5
the same colour of square as the 3. g4 Bg6 4. Nxe6 Kxd7 5 . Nf8+.
bishop 3. Kd2 Bfl
• the bishop' s activity (can the Or 3 . . . . Bxc4 4. Nt7 Kxd7 5 . Ne5+.
bishop attack pawns or restrict 4. Kel Bg2
the mobility of the knight?) The win after 4 . . . . Bd3 is one you
have come to know: 5. Nt7 Kxd7
The knight is stronger 6. Ne5+.
Despite its limited range the knight 5. Kf2 Bhl 6. Kgl
should not be underestimated when For a change, not a knight fork but
it comes to corralling a bishop. It the bishop is totally dominated.
cannot do the job alone, but good
cooperation between queen, knight The number of studies deal ing
and passed pawn can have a bishop with the theme of the domination

1 23
of the bishop by the knight i s large.
Here are another two nice exam­
ples.

Kasparjan (1 95 7)
The white knight is not i n danger.
After the capture on e4 the h-pawn
gets through. The c-pawn must con­
Kopac (1 943) tinue to control the d3-square. So
Firstly the knight must stop the the king must move, so as to stop
bishop getting on to the long the a-pawn.
diagonal. 1 . Kc l
1 . Ne3 ! The correct route. After I . Kc3 a3
Threatening to win by 2 . a7. 2 . Kb3 Kxe4 3 . h6 Bc4+ Black is
1. ... Be8-
out of the woods.
c6 i s the only square from which 1 . ... a3 2. Kb l a2+ 3. Ka l !
the bishop can stop the pawn. On He must not capture, since the
any other square the knight would black bishop will be able to be
get in the way, e.g. 1 . . . . Bg6 2. saved with tempo (check on c4).
Nd5+ Kd4 3. a7. 3 . ... a4 4. Kb2 a3+ 5. Ka l
2. Nd5+ Kb3 Total domination. After a king
Alternatives all end up with a move the h-pawn gets through.
decisive knight fork: 2 . . Kd3 3 .
. . After every "safe" bishop move
Ne7 B h 5 4 . Nc6 B f3 5 . Ne5+ o r 2 . the bishop is lost to a knight fork.
. . . Kd4 3 . Ne7 B h 5 4 . Nc6+. It is striking that the bishop cannot
The main variation follows the move to any one of six different
same lines. squares.
3. Ne7 Bh5 4. Nc6! Bf3 5.
Nd4+ Cooperation between king and
The bishop i s lost. knight is necessary in order to be
able to promote a passed pawn
In the next study the knight is ex­ safely. There are certain tech­
tremely wel l placed in the centre. niques which the side with the

1 24
knight must know. diagonals (a7-b8 being particularly
Chasing away and interposing are bad) and those diagonals which are
the weapons. too short because one of your own
pawns is in the way.
White achieves nothing by win­
ning a pawn : 1 . Ne6? Be7 2. Nxg7
Kg4 with a draw. But he does with
a pawn sacrifice.
1. f6!
Possible thanks to the king being
on g3 ( I . . . . Bxf6 2 . Ne4+).
1 . .. gxf6 2. Ne6 Be7 3. Nd4
.

Bd8
The threat is 4. Nc6, and in view of
the position of the king, Black
1. Nc7 Kb4 cannot lengthen the diagonal for
1 . . .. Bb8 loses more quickly : 2. his bishop with 3 . . . . f5 4. Nxf5+.
Kb6, followed by 3. Na6 and 4. 4. Nc6 Bc7 5. Kb7
Nc7. The bishop has to give up on d8.
2. Nb5 Bb8 3. Kb6 Kb3 4. Together the king and knight can
Nc7 Kc4 5. Na6 Bg3 6. Nc7 deprive the bishop of four squares.
Bf2+ 7. Ka6 That i s enough.
The promotion i s guaranteed.
When there are pawns fixed on
squares of the same colour as the
bishop, driving the defending king
' '
away is a useful technique.

Neustadtl (1 904)
A maj or problem for the bishop
when stopping a passed pawn i s
being o n too short a diagonal .
Among these are the really short I n general one can say that limiting

1 25
the opponent' s options is more im­
portant than winning a pawn. Em­
phasis on generally !

1 . Kd6
After I . Nb6 Be8 2. Kb4 Kf7 3 .
Nxa4 Ke6 Black gets a draw.
1 . ... Bf5 2. Ke7 Be4 3. Nf4
Bf5 4. Ne6+
B lack can never liquidate to a
pawn ending because of White ' s
advantage in space. Horwitz, Kling
4 . ... Kg8 5. Kf6 Bc2 6. Nf4 The following variation speaks for
Kh7 7. Kf7 Bb3+ itself.
After 7 . . . . Bd l 8. Ne6 Bh5 9. 1 . Bb3 Ka6 2. Bf7 Kb5 3.
Nf8+ Kh8 1 0. Kf6 too, the g-pawn Be8+ Ka5 4. Bd7 Ka6 5. Bf5
is lost. Ka5 6. Bg4 Kb5 7. Be2+
8. Ne6 Bc4 9. Kf6 Kg8 1 0. Kc5 8. Bc4
Nf4 Kh7 1 1 . Nxg6 The desired zugzwang position.
Now he has the pawn, but White The king has to leave the pawn to
stil l has to play accurately. its own devices or the knight has to
1 1 . ... Kg8 12. Ne7+ Kh7 1 3 . abandon the b7-square.
g6+ Kh8 14. Kg5 Kg7 1 5. 8 . ... Nc6 9. b7
Nf5+ Kg8 1 6. Kh6 Black has no move left.
Now the win is not difficult any
more.

The bishop is stronger

The bishop can keep the knight
under control by limiting its mobi­
l ity.
In order to have firm control over
it, a bishop always has to be two
squares away from a knight. A
white bishop on d5 dominates a
black knight on a5 .
In this type of ending zugzwang is Tal-Murey, Tel A viv 1 990
an important weapon. A bishop F ixed opposing pawns on the same
can easily lose a move by triangu­ colour of square as the bishop are
lating. welcome targets.

1 26
 1 . Bf3 Nc5 2. b4 Nd3 3. b5! 1 . Kg3 g5 2. e5!
The danger for the side with the White unexpectedly manages a win­
bishop is that too many pawns will ning breakthrough. B lack must take,
disappear on one wing with the otherwise White gets a protected
result that a passed pawn cannot be passed pawn (or captures on d6).
created there. After 3. Bxb7 Nxb4 2 . ... dxe5 3. d6
White ' s advantage has disappeared Not 3. Be4 Ng6, and Black
into thin air. escapes.
3 . ... axb5 4. Bxb7 Nc5 5. a6 3 . ... Kf6 4. Be4 Ke6 5. Kg4
Nxa6 6. Bxa6 b4 7. Bc4+ The loss of the knight can no
Kf6 8. Kf2 Ke5 9. Bal? longer be prevented after 6. Kxg5 .
An inaccuracy. The correct thing
to do is to first activate the king Chapter 1 2 is about bishops. They
with 9. Ke3 ! are awarded the labels "good" or
9 . ... Kf5? "bad".
Of course, the king had to go to e4.
1 0. Kf3 Ke5 1 1 . g4 d5 1 2. h4 In no way did the previous position
d4 13. Bc4 appear to be won for White. The
B lack resigned. next position, on the other hand,
appears to be absolutely a win for
White. The bishop shuts off the
knight on the edge for good. We
• shall see.
i

A quick glance at the diagram i s

enough t o work out that Black i s
better: distant passed pawn, better
knight (the e5-square is waiting for
it). Only the subtle point that the 1 . Be4 Ke7 2. Kxc5 Ke6
knight is on the edge of the board The only move. The defender has
(apparently of no great importance), to play to free his knight. That will
turns the evaluation on its head. only work i f he can chase the
White is winning ! bishop away. Getting the knight

1 27
away safe and sound is of course Or 3 . Kb6 Ke5 , and after a bishop
an illusion, since White will then move the knight can simply stop
exchange it. the pawn.
There i s no hope after 2 . . . . Kd7 3 . 3 . ... Kd6 4. Kd3 Ke5 5. Ke3
Kd5 Kc7 4 . c 5 Kd7 5 . c6+ Kc7 6 . Ke6 6. Kd4 Kd6 7. c5+
Kc5 Kc8 7 . Kd6 Kd8 8 . c7+ Kc8 There is no way White can make
9. Kc6, and thi s is usual ly stale­ any progress without this move.
mate, but here it is mate in one 7 . ... Ke6 8. c6 Kd6 9. Kc4
move. Nf5
3. Kd4 Draw.

WORKBOOK

3 7 : Strategy - Knight against bishop: A

On thi s exercise page the knight is the superior piece. You have to ensure
that remains the case by :
• placing the knight on a strong square
• fixing opposing pawns (by exchanges, advancing your own pawns or by
forcing the opponent' s pawns to advance)
• exchanging pieces (above all the "other" bishop)
-

3 8 : Bishop v. knight endings - Technique: A

4 1 : Bishop v. knight endings - Technique: B
The passed pawn does not have an exercise page to itself, but it plays an
important part in many positions. Good strategies are:
• restricting the mobility of the knight (trapping it)
• making sure the opponent does not get rid of his weaknesses
• creating a passed pawn
• promoting the passed pawn (keeping the knight at a distance and elimi­
nating the defence)

3 9 : Knight v. bishop endings - Passed pawn: A

40: Knight v. bishop endings - Technique: A
The side with the knight must:
• promote the passed pawn (eliminate the defence)
• make use of double attacks
• chase the bishop on to a short diagonal
• fix weak pawns
• fix pawns on the same colour of square as the bishop

1 28
• sacrifice the knight so as to create two passed pawns which are as far
apart as possible

42 : Knight v . bishop endings - Defending: A

On this exercise page the side with the knight draws. I t is helped by:
• stalemate
• the sacrifice of the knight, so as to get rid of all opposing pawns
• a double attack by the knight
• a fortress
• the wrong bishop

1 29
 10 Attacking the king

For most of us winning as a result 1 4 . ... h6

of an attack is the most satisfying Black has no choice. After 1 4 . . . . g6
way of deciding a game. 1 5 . Rad ! Bd7 1 6. Ne5 Re8 1 7. Qf4
In Step 4 we dealt with the most White wins material. The game
important rules for an attack: move is weakening and it becomes
• bring up your pieces apparent that the white attack is
• get access to the king already strong enough to al low him
• eliminate defenders to breach the opposing king posi­
• deliver mate tion with a piece sacrifice.
1 5. Bxh6! gxh6 1 6. Qxh6
In our first game we shall test
whether these rules stil l apply in
Step 6.

Geller-Papapavlou
A msterdam 1 950
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nc3 d5
4. Nf3 c6 5. e3 Nbd7 6. Bd3
Bd6 7. e4 dxe4 8. Nxe4
Nxe4 9. Bxe4 Nf6
B lack would be better aiming for
e5 and leaving the knight on d7.
1 0. Bc2 0-0 1 1 . 0-0 c5 1 2. With his three attacking pieces,
Bg5 cxd4 White has the black position well
A weak exchange. It allows White in his grip. H e may not be able to
to bring his queen into the attack win immediately, but there is
with no effort on his part. It is nothing Black can do.
pleasant when your opponent helps 16 . ... Qa5 1 7. Ng5
you assemble your pieces ! An important position. Because of
1 3 . Qxd4 Be7 1 4. Qh4 the possibi lity of Bh7+ and a dis­
Gel ler will have thought: with a covered check, Black cannot leave
decisive advantage. Anyone who anything unprotected on a white
has reached the level of Step 6 square. In addition, not only must
should in future find carrying out t7 remain under the protection of
such an attack pretty easy. the rook (or else there fol lows

1 30
Bh7+ and Nxf7+), but so must e6 first sight, is played for a reason. It
under that of the bishop (or else prevents 1 1 . Bg5, because then
there fol lows Bh7+, B f5+ and Black must still weaken his king
Nxe6). For mate, White will have position, but he will do so with the
to bring up another piece into the tempo winning l l . . .. h6. The
attack, but that takes him a little sacrifice seen in the previous game
time. So the prevention of any achieves nothing: 1 2 . Bxh6 gxh6
counterplay by B lack is important. 1 3 . Qxh6 Bf8.
17 . ... e5 1 8. Bh7+ Kh8 After IO . . . Re8 White 's best move
.

1 9. Be4+ Kg8 is 1 1 . Re l , after which he is much

White now has the time to bring up better, e.g. 1 1 . . . . b6 1 2 . Bg5 h6 1 3 .
more pieces. Bxf6 Bxf6 1 4. Qe4 Bd7 1 5 . Ne5 .
20. Rael Bg4 2 1 . Re3 Rad8 1 1 . Bg5 g6
22. Rg3 Rd4 23. Ne6
Black resigned.

We saw in this game the bringing

up of pieces, the creation of a
breach in the castled position and
the finishing off of the game.
There was no example of the
elimination of defenders, because
there were no defenders . . . .
The next game will make u p for
that.
1 2 . c4!
Dobias-Podgorny, Prague 1 952 This attacking move i s a prepara­
1 . e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. N c3 dxe4 tion for the elimination of B lack's
4. Nxe4 Nd7 5. Nf3 Be7 6. best defensive piece, the bishop on
Bd3 N gf6 7. Qe2 0-0 8. 0-0 e7. The pawn move also prevents
Nxe4? 1 2 . . . . Nd5, which Black would
A bad exchange. White can now play to try and exchange pieces.
transfer his queen to the kingside Neither 1 2 . Ne5 Nd5 1 3 . f4 f6 1 4.
with tempo. B lack's position is Bxg6 hxg6 1 5 . Nxg6 Ne3 with
passive, but 8 . . . . b6 i s playable. complications, nor 1 2. Be4 Rb8
9. Qxe4 Nf6 1 0. Qh4 b6 1 3 . Ne5 Nd5 1 4. f4 give White less
B lack wants to develop but his advantage.
king is already in danger. He 12 . ... Bb7 13. d5!
should perhaps have played I 0 . . . . The point of 1 2 . c4. Sooner or later
Re8 . This move, though strange at B lack must take.

131
 13 . ... exd5 1 4. Rfe l ! has already been very much
With the threat o f taking on e7. weakened and concentrate on the
Black delays the decision by finishing of the game.
means of a pawn sacrifice, with
which he could exchange some
attacking pieces .
14
. •.. h6 1 5. Qxh6
After 1 5 . Bxh6 Ne4 1 6. Qf4 Bd6
Black again has counter-chances
15 . ... Ng4 1 6. Qh4 Bxg5 1 7.
Nxg5 Nf6 18. Qh6
This excludes the possibility for
Black to bring in another defender
with 1 8 . . . . Kg7 and 1 9 . . . . Rh8.
Another good attacking move is
1 8 . Re3 , but only if you have seen B lack's king pos1t10n is totally
that 1 8 . . . . Kg7 can be followed by shattered. The white queen is
1 9. Bxg6 ! . After 1 9 . . . . Rh8 (nor is ideally placed, but to win it
1 9 . . . . Kxg6 20. Rg3 Kf5 2 1 . Re l requires help. Which of the other
an alternative) there follows 20. three pieces should be drafted in?
Qg3 . After the text move there is The bishop i s out of the question;
also the strong threat of 1 9. Re3 . after I . Bg5 Qf8 Black brings his
1 8 . ... d4 1 9. Re6! queen into the defence with tempo.
White can also win with 1 9. Be4 The rook appears to be the correct
c6 (the only move) 20. Bd3 piece, but there is a problem with
(threatening 2 1 . Re4) 20 . . . . c5 2 1 . that too: I . Re3 Bxe5 2 . dxe5 (2.
Be4. The rook move now threatens Rxe5 f5 3. Re3 Qg7 4. Rg3 Rd7 is
to take the defending knight. better and winning i s not all that
19 . ... Re8 easy), and the game appears to be
The position suddenly reminds us drawn. Unfortunately, Black even
of the previous game again after has two defensive options, both
1 9 . . . . fxe6 20. Qxg6+ Kh8 2 1 . based on White 's weakened back
Qh6+ Kg8 22. Bh7+ Kg8 23 . Bf5+ rank: 2 . . . . Bf3 ! ! (or 2 . . . . Be4 ! 3 .
wmnmg. Rxe4 Re l + 4 . Be l Rd4). Now 3 .
20. Bxg6 Rxf3 ? Re l + leads to mate and 3 .
Now nothing can help. Black gxf3 Rxd2 loses a piece. The better
resigned. 3 . h3 Qf8 gives B lack enough
impetus.
We shall now take a look at exam­ However, manoeuvring the knight
ples in which the king 's position into place forces a quick resignation.

1 32
 t . Ng4 B lack mates on h2.
The threat of 2. Nf6+ can only be
avoided by the advance of the f­ x � X @
pawn.
1 . ... f5 2. Qg6+ Qg7
.t ' '
After 2. . . . Kh8 then 3. Bg5 • � ..t i � '
decides matters. ' · · � ltJ
3. N f6+ Kf8 4. Bh6 � �
White wins.
� � �
Generally speaking, winning posi­ � � ltJ 'iY � �
tions with an open king position n @ n
does not pose too many problems.
What is often harder to answer is Exchanging on f6 is an easy way
the question: how do I bring about to force gxf6.
such positions? 1. Bxf6 gxf6
In the positions which follow we Taking with the queen costs an
do away with the g-pawn to leave exchange after 2. Nh7.
the king open and defenceless. The 2. Qh5
first example is simple. This threatens both 2. Qxh6 and 2.
Nxe6.

This type of position without a g­

pawn and with sufficient attacking
pieces is totally lost. The win i s no
longer a matter of chance. In our
last example White also wins with
3 . Qxh6 Bxd3 4. e4 or with 3 .
Bxa6 Rxa6 4. Qxh6 fxg5 5 . hxg5
or in case of need also with 3. Bc2.
There are different reasons why the
defender might not be able to
Black opens the king position with recapture on f6 with a piece.
a sacrifice. The defending side can be forced
1 . ... Nf3+ 2. gxf3 into the weakening gxf6 for the
White must capture. B lack conti­ following reasons:
nues with a attracting move to eli­ • 1 . . . . Bxf6 2 . Nd7 (wins the ex­

minate the defence f.3-f4. change)

2 . ... Bxe2 3. Qxe2 Qg6+ 4. • 1 . . . . Bxf6 2. dxc5 (loses a pawn)

Kh l Qh5 • 1 . . . . Qxf6 2. Rxd7 (loses a

1 33
 piece) Bxf2+ 1 2 . Kh l Bxg2+ 1 3 . Kxg2
• a sacrifice on f6 Qb7+ 1 4. Kxf2 Ng4+.
• l . . . . Qxf6 2 . Bg5 (wins the 1 1 . ... Ng4 1 2. Nxc5 bxc5 13.
queen) h3 Qh7 14. hxg4 Qxh6
• the defender of f6 is lured away 1 5. Bxh6
• l . . . . Qxf6 costs material White wins.

We shall take a look at some

examples of the final three points
in the above list.

Miroshnichenko-Dambacher
Maastricht 1 9 1 0
1 . Bh3 Ne5
The knight must move on ac�ount
Wildi-Mell, Zuricfi 1 989 of the threat of Bxd7. An alterna­
1 . N xf6+ gxf6 tive would have been I . . . . Nb6 2.
l . . . . Qxf6 i s followed by 2. Bg5 . Rh4 g6 ( 2 . . . . g6 is an only move,
2. Rd l ! because after 2 . . . . h6 3. Bxh6 gxh6
White wins a useful tempo. The 4. Qc I things are soon over).
rook has to be deployed. White has good attacking chances
2 . ... Qc7 after 4. Rh6 g6 5. Be6 Kg7 6. Nd4.
2 . . . . Qe7 is better: 3. Bh6 Rfd8 4. The many sacrifices which follow,
b4 and 5 . b5 with advantage to however, tend to be Step 9.
White. 2. Nxe5 Bxe5 3. d6 Bxd6?
3. Bxh7+ Kxh7 4. Qe4+ f5 This is certainly wrong, but a good
Better than 4 . . . . Kg7 5 . Qg4+ Kh8 example for the subj ect we are
6. Bh6. deal ing with. 3 . . .. cxd6 4. f4
5. Qh4+ Kg8 6. Qg5+ Kh7 Qb6+ 5 . Kh l d5 6. fxe5 dxc4 7 .
7. Qh6+ Kg8 8. Ng5 f6 9. exf6 Rfd8 8. R f l would have been
Nxe6 Qfi 1 0. Rd3 Ne5 1 1 . required. The white bishop pair is
Rg3+ strong, but Black has two pawns
1 1 . Rh3 is insufficient: 1 1 . .. . for the minor exchange, so the

1 34
result is sti ll in doubt. These were examples of forcing a
4. Rf4 weakness. Sometimes the opponent
This inevitably forces the weaken­ is kind enough to weaken his own
ing move gxf6. position.
4 . ... Re8
Black could also have tried 4. .I .i. i¥ .I •
Qe8. White has the choice: 5 . Rh4,
i i i
5. Rxf6 and 5. Rxd6 all look to be
winning. But Black can still wriggle i i i
for a bit longer. i LS .i. �
5. Bxf6 gxf6 6. Rg4+ Kf8 7. LS LS LS
Qxh7
lb � � LS
The threat of 8 . Rg7 can no longer
be held off. Black resigned. LS � LS
11 11 �

Calderin-Sariego
Manzanilla, 1 991
With his last move g2-g4 White
has great plans; i f the knight
moves away, he will follow up
with f4. The pity for him is that the
knight is not obliged to move
away.
1 . .. Qh4!
.

White certainly considered this

1 . Nc6! move and rej ected it, since he
This clears the diagonal of the thought that Black would have too
Bb2 . After I . . . . Bxc6 there is the few pieces in his attack.
decisive 2. Bxf6 with mate or the 2. gxh5
win of the queen. Now Black can win back material
I . . Qc7 2. Bxf6 h6
.. with 2 . . . . Bxh3 ; his attack does not
The queen and knight have been have sufficient force after 3. f4.
eliminated as defenders. The win is And 2 . . . . Qxh3 would be bad : 3 .
made easy by this necessary weak­ f3 and the white queen attacks.
ening: B lack comes up with a surprise.
3. Qg4 g5 4. Qh5 Bxh2+ 5. 2 . ... Bh2+
Kh l A beautiful piece of attraction. As
Black no longer knows what to do. a result of this bishop sacrifice,
H e resigned. Black is able to capture on h3 with

1 35
tempo. In this game the player with White
3. Kxh2 demonstrates convincingly that
After 3. Kh l White could still set a Black does not have enough time
nasty trap: 3 . . . . Qxh3 4. f3 Bf4+ 5 . to organise a defence.
K g 1 Bxe3+ 6. Qxe3 Qg3+ 7 . K h 1 1. fS! es
Re5 8. Qh6 ! with the point 8 . . . . B lack has two other options which
Rxh5+ Qxh5 9. gxh5 Rg l . I f Black are worth looking at.
pays attention and plays 8 . . . . Bh3 Such attacks are stereotyped:
or 8 . . . . Qh4+, then the queen 1s A) 1 . . . . b4 2 . Qh6 Nc5 (2 . . . . bxc3
sti I I lost. 3. Bg6 fxg6 4. fxg6 cxb2+ 5 .
3 • Qxh3+ 4. Kg l
... Kb l R f7 6. gxf7+ Kh8 7 . Nxe6
The rest is simple attacking winning) 3. Rhfl bxc3 4. Rf3
technique: two checks and bring cxb2+ 5. Kb l Kh8 6. Rh3 Rg8
up more pieces. 7. Bg6 winning.
4 . Qg4+ S. Kh 1 Qf3+ 6.
... B) 1 . . . . Nc5 2 . Qh6 Kh8 (2 . . . . e5
Kh2 Res leads to the game continuation)
White resigned. 3. Bg6 fxg6 4. fxg6 Bd8 5 .
Qxf8 mate.
I n the Sicilian Defence there are 2. Qh6 NcS
variations in which Black volun­ Black has no time to capture: 2 . . . .
tarily recaptures on f6 with the g­ exd4 3 . Rd3 Kh8 4 . Rh3 Rg8 5 .
pawn and gaily ca � tles short. These Bg6 Rg7 6. Bxh7.
are often very exciting positions. I f 3. NdS Qd8
Black manages to play Kh8 and B lack does not have a great choice:
Rg8 in time, then the f-pawn is 3 . . . . Bxd5 is refuted by 4. exd5
not a weakness (it gives additional Rfc8 5. Nc6.
influence in the centre). 4. Bg6 fxg6 S. fxg6
B lack resigned. After 5 . . . . hxg6 6.
.I I • Qxg6+ Kh8 then 7 . Nf5 i s deci­
sive. It is unusual for White to
.i. iV & .i. .t. .t. finish the game from the position
.t. .t. .t. .t. in the diagram in only five moves .
.t.
�.,___,..
� The fianchetto is a popular way of
11:J � � developing the bishop. I t often has
an excellent position on the long
l1:J diagonal. And for the king the
� � � 'Wi � � bishop is a welcome extra defender;
@ � � but as soon as the bishop disappears
after being exchanged what re­
Paoli- Tatai, Italy 1 9 76 mains is an ugly weakness. An

1 36
opening which i s notorious for changed. The king would be very
Black often being mercilessly safe were it not for the bishop on
mated is the Dragon Variation of c I . The attacking side knows that
the Sicilian Defence. too, so it does not take long to find
the first move.
1. e4 ! !
It's al l over. White wins. The threat
of 2. B h6 and 3 . Qh8 can only be
warded off with great material
losses.

.i •
i 'i¥ i .t
i i i
� �
Juferow-Grosdow, Lvov 1 966 � � �
1 . Bh6! Bh8
l2J
There is nothing else.
2. Bf8! � �
A standard motif. The bishop � @
creates space for the queen and the
rook. I n nine out of ten cases, ex­
2 . ... Rxf8 3. Rxh8+ Kxh8 4. changing the fianchettoed bishop i s
Qh6+ Kg8 5. Nd5 a good plan. Here too.
Black will be mated quickly. 1. Bf6! Bxf6 2. exf6 Qd8
Preventing the threats 3. Qh6 and
.I � I. • 3 . Ng5 . Black now wants to drive
back the white queen with Nd6 and
i i i i i .*. �
Nf5 . This explains the next move.
it' .t i ��-�- 3. g4! Nd6 4. Kg2
tt:J Just like in the Karpov game in
� � Chapter 3. B lack i s powerless
against the doubling on the h-file.

In most games the king position i s

not weakened. Then you have "bring
in more pieces" in order to provoke
The bishop on g7 is an excellent weaknesses. The next game forms
defender when it cannot be ex- an instructive example.

1 37
 BISHOPS OF OPPOSITE COLOU RS
.i 'it' .i •
.i. I. I. I. The ideal attacking piece is a
.t. 'li bishop of the opposite colour to the
l2J defending one. The squares which
it attacks cannot be protected by
t!J t!J � the defending bishop.
� Ponziani already knew all about
that back in the I 8 1h century.

Mascarinas-Juarez, Manila 1 990

1. Re3 Bc6
This move gives White a free hand
to bring up more pieces. For sure
l . . . . b5 would have been better, to
keep White busy. After 2. Rg3 g6 !
(after 2 . . . . bxc4 3 . Qh6 g6 4. Nxg6
fxg6 5. Bxg6 Kh8 6. Bxh7 Qe7 7.
Bg6+ Nh7 8. Rh3 Rf7 9. Bxf7
Qxf7 White is better) 3. Nxd7
Nxd7 4. cxb5 Qf6 5. Rt3 Qxf4 6. Ponziani
Rxf4 Rc3 B lack 6 as compensation The pawns up are insufficient.
for the pawn. 1. f6 g6
After the move played B lack has to Black is obliged to weaken the
suffer. dark squares, because after I . . . .
2. Rh3 h6 Q f8 2 . fxg7+ Qxg7 3 . Qd8+ Qg8
2 . . . . g6 3. Re I but Black remains 4. Bb2+ he is mated. Nor does I .
tied to the protection of the Nf6. . . . gxf6 make any sense: 2 . Qxf6+
3. Rel Ne8 Kg8 3 . Bh6.
The queen arrives too late to dis­ 2. Qh6 Qg8 3. Kg5 !
rupt matters: 3 . . . . Qa5 4. Ree3 Necessary, otherwise Black frees
Qd2 5. Rxh6 Qd l + 6. Bfl win­ himself with 3 . . . . g5+.
ning. 3 . ... b4 4. Bf4 b3 5. Bd6 b2
4. Ng4 6. Bf8 b l Q 7. Bg7+ Qxg7 8.
Black resigned. Qxg7 mate.
The queen can no longer help: 4 . . . . In this example the bishop on c6
Qg5 5 . Nxh6+ gxh6 6 . Rg3 . can only stand by as an onlooker.
With bishops of opposite colours a
weakening of the long diagonal is

1 38
often fatal. A queen and bishop Kopecky-Cana/, Vienna 1 925
battery (with the queen to the Thanks to the bishops of opposite
fore ! ) on this diagonal is deadly. colours, B lack's attack i s like a
Also a bishop on h6 can be very knife cutting through butter. Keep
strong. Take a look at thi s exam­ an eye on the bishop on d2 . It is
ple. doing nothing and j ust getting in
the way.
'i¥ • 1 . ... Nf3+! 2. gxf3 Qxf3 3.
Kfl Qh3+ 4. Ke2 Bc4+ 5 .
.t. .t. .t .t.
Kd l Qb3+ 6. Ke t Bd3 7 .
.i .t. � Qc7 Rxa4
8 .i This move had to have been worked
.t. 8 out in advance.
8. Bb4 Rxa l+
'iY White resigned.
8 8 8 8
ll l:l @

White 's attack plays itself.

1 . Qc3 Rf6 2. Rxd5 Bxd5
After 2 . . . . Qxd5 then 3. Rxe7 wins
3. Rd l Rf7 4. Qe5 e6 5.
Qxe6
This would not be possible without
the bishop on h6. White wins.

I n the next fragment White tries to

bring the black attack to a stop by Smyslov-Reshevsky
exchanging queens. Belgrade 1 9 70
White 's attack has apparently run
.i • out of steam. The white pawns are
getting in the way of the deploy­
.t. .t. .t.
ment of fresh troops.
.t. it' .t. 1. Nd5!
8 .t 'iY With the forced exchange on d5
8 8 A)\ White makes space for the bishop
on f5 . he can now set up a battery
with queen and bishop.
� 8 8 8 Black's position is not good
l:l @ enough for an exchange sacrifice.

1 39
However, that makes it possible to The final example shows that an
play on for longer. experienced international master
1 . ... Bxd5 2. exd5 e4 (which meant a lot more in 1 97 1
But another sacrifice. Black does than it does in the 2 1 st century) can
not want to allow 3. Bc2 and then be totally unaware of the danger of
4. Qf5 . After 2 . . . . Rde8 3 . Re l , bishops of opposite colours.
followed by 4. Bc2, too. B lack must 1 . ... Qc7?
surrender a pawn on e4. This forces the capture on c8.
3. Bxe4 Re5 4. Bd3 Rde8 5. B lack could achieve the same with
Kg2 Qe7 1 . . . . Bc5 2. Nxc8 Qxc8. The dif­
Black does not have enough coun­ ference appears small but is
terplay. Nor does he after 5 . . . . Rg5 enormous. The black bishop is - as
6. Qh3 Ree5 7. B f5 Rxd5 8. Be6. will become apparent in two
6. Rf5 moves - vulnerable on b4.
With the exchange of rooks, White Over the years I have shown this
works at the setting up of a battery position to a lot of students. Many
aimed at h7, with the queen in lead (too many ! ) moved the knight back
position. to c4.
6 • Rel 7. Rxel Qxel 8.
••• 2. Nxc8!
Rf3 Qe7 The only chance for an advantage.
Black accepts his fate. 8 . . . . Qe5 is Thanks to the bishops of opposite
followed by 9. Re3 , and 8 . . . . Re5 colours White has good attacking
9. Qd7 f6 1 0. Rxt6 Re7 1 1 . Bh7+ chances.
Kxh7 1 2 . Qf5+ also loses. •2 ••• Rxc8
9. Qf5 g6 1 0. hxg6 f6 1 1 . B lack stil l does not spot any
Qxf6 danger. He intended to move the
Black lost the hopeless struggle. queen again and to free the f8-
square for the bishop. There the
"ii' .i. .1 • bishop may be undertaking defen­
sive duties, but it is only defending
K .t. .t. .t. .t.
the black squares. He had better
.t. l2J .t. .t. chances after 2 . . . . Qxc8 3. Qg4
� Bc5 4. f5 exf5 5. Bxf5 Qe8 ! (5 . . . .
.i. � Qc7 6. e 6 fxe6 7 . Bxe6+ Kh8 8 .
Q h 5 Qd6 9. Rxf8+ Qxf8 1 0. B f5
� h6 1 1 . Rfl is good for White) with
� � � � � a position which he may be able to
� � l::t <it> hold.
3. Qg4
Gufeld-Dzindzichasvili, Gori 1 9 71 White wins a tempo for the attack.

1 40
The bishop on b4 is en prise after It is too late to have the rook help
3 . . . . g6 4. f5 . in the defence: 5 . . . . b5 6. e6 (even
3 . ... Bf8 4. f5 exf5 better than 6. Rxf7) 6 . . . . fxe6 7.
Necessary : 4 . . . . Re8 5 . fxe6 fxe6 ( Rh5 g6 8. Bxg6 hxg6 9. Qxg6+
5 . . . . Rxe6 6. Bc4 Re7 7. Rxf7) 6. Qg7 I 0. Qxe6+ Rf7 I 0. Qxc8 loses
Bxh7+. without a hope.
5. Rxf5 6. Rxti Kxti 7. Bc4+ Ke8 8.
The strongest, the rook takes a Qe6+ Be7 9. Rfl
more active part in things with Black resigned. He has nothing to
tempo. The a-rook can also help offer against the threat of I 0. Rf8+
out if required. Kxf8 1 1 . Qf7#.
5 . ... Qd8

WORKBOOK

43 : A ttacking the king - Weakness (g-pawn) : A

44 : A ttacking the king - Access: A
45 : A ttacking the king - Eliminating the defender: A
46: A ttacking the king - Mix: A
47: A ttacking the king - Opposite coloured bishops: A
48 : A ttacking the king - Opposite coloured bishops: B

Follow the rules for attacking the king and win:

• bring up pieces
• create access
• eliminate defenders
• del iver mate

141
 1 1 Endg a me advantage

It would be no exaggeration to say is often that we do not have

that there is nothing more difficult enough pawns. A rule of thumb for
than winning a won position. endgames in which we have an
Many a half point is lost along the advantage in material is:
way. Above all in the endgame.
So, it can safely be said that win­ Exchange pieces, not pawns!
ning is not as simple as all that. I n any case, not too many.
So why do things not run according
to plan in a won position? The main We keep our final pawn alive by:
reason is that we underestimate the • protecting it
possibilities available to our oppo­ • preventing it from being ex-
nent. In addition, the lack of knowl­ changed
edge is often blamed. "I did not Or we sell its skin as dearly as
know that it was a draw." possible by :
• protecting it indirectly
We will treat one after the other: • sacrificing
• how to convert an advantage in
material
• how to win by attacking
• how to liquidate to a (won) pawn
ending
• how to make use of zugzwang
• how to defend against a passed
pawn

AN ADVANTAGE IN MATERIAL

More material does not automati­ Mees (1 940)

cal ly mean the full point. In Chap­ White has extra material (six
ter 5 mention was made of several points worth). I t quickly becomes
differences in material which did clear what can go wrong in the
not suffice for a win. position : the knight is under threat
So what dangers are lurking in the of being lost, leaving White with
undergrowth? The biggest problem the wrong bishop. The knight must

1 42
- whatever the cost - remain on I ndirect protection is a possibility
the board in the next position thanks to the
t . Bd6! advantage in material.
The alternative I . Bc5 is no good,
since after 1 . . . Kxc5 2. Nc7 Kc4
.

3. Kg2 Kb3 4. Nb5 Ka4 the pawn

is lost. The knight has to defend
the pawn from the other end of the
board (from b 1 or c2).
1. ... Kxd6 2. Nb6 Kc5 3. • .t
Na4+ Kc4 4. Nb2+ Kb3 5.
a4
White wins. Remember this positi­
oning of the knight.

Fritz (1 952)
White is a sound bishop ahead, but
his last pawn is in danger. Pro­
tecting the pawn and preserving it
from exchange will not work.
Defending with 1 . Ba6 fails to 1 . . . .
Ke3 . First playing 1 . Bd2+ does
not help much after 1 . . .. Kg3 2.
Ba6 Kf2. White is lucky that the
position is sti ll won.
t. e4 !
Prokes (1 94 7) Now that the pawn is on e4, the
Where must the bishop go? To a win is suddenly simple. B lack
square on which it is not in the cannot take en passant in view of
way and on which it is not exposed the mate on d6.
to an attack by the black king. After I . . . . Bf3 2 . Bd2+ Ke5 3 .
l. Bal ! Kg5 there are n o longer any great
The best square. Both after 1 . Bf6? problems with winning. White is
Kc4 2 . Kd7 Kd5 3. g4 Ke4 4. g5 j ust a piece up.
Kf5 and also 1 . Bh8? Kc4 2 . g4
Kd5 3. g5 Ke6 4. Kf5 the pawn
falls. The rest is easy. In the next example too, it seems
1 . .. Kc4 2. g4 Kd5 3. g5
. that it is hardly possible to hang on
Ke6 4. g6 to the single pawn. It is in danger
White wins. agam.

1 43
Wotawa (1 95 1) Sarychev (1 971)
1 . Rh l + 1 . Nd6+ Ke7
White can try t o play fo r mate with Black does not have a great choice.
l . Be7?, but after l . . . . Rxb7 2. He must attack the knight. Other­
Bf6+ Kh7 he can make no further wise White will protect the f-pawn
progress. by Rb2 . After I . . . . Kd7 2. Rd 1
1. ... Kg8 White creates a winning battery
The check on h 1 is only that, a and saves the pawn.
check. B lack does not have a good 2. Nxf5+ Ke6
square for his king. 1 . . . . Kg7 i s The best chance. After 2 . . . . Kf6 3 .
followed b y 2. B f8 + Kg6 3 . Rb l ! Ne3 White has a knight fork . .
Rxb I 4. Bb4 and things continue 3. Nd4+ Kd5
as in the main variation: winning White appears to have played all
by interposing. his trumps, but he stil l has another
2. Be7 battery at his disposal.
Makes the pawn immune: 2. . . . 4. Rb2 Kxd4 5. Rd2+ Ke4
Rxb7 3 . B f6 and mate cannot be Or 5 . . . . Ke5 6. f4+
avoided. 6. f3+
2 . ... Kg7 3. Rb l Rxb l 4. White wins the rook.
Bb4 Re l + 5. Kd2
The promotion can no longer be
prevented.
MATE
(diagram above right)
Attacking the king tends to happen
The knight has to move away, thus in the middlegame. The positions
leaving the f2-pawn in difficulties. we shall now look at prove that
White protects his pawn indirectly mate in the endgame is not such an
with a subtle manoeuvre. improbable idea.

1 44
 After l . . . . Qa6 White wins in the
same way.
2. Rd2+ exd2 3. Qf3+ Ke t
4. Qfl #

Gu/ko-Makarichev, Moskau 1 9 74
White is expecting a technically
demanding task. Fortunately a direct
mating attack is also possible.
1. Nf5+
First 1 . Rg8+ Kh6 2. Nf5+ is also Even hidden in the corner, the king
possible. is not safe.
1. ... gxf5 2. Rg8+ Kh6 3. 1. Rg6 !
g5+ fxg5 4. hxg5+ Kh5 5. A great move. Black cannot
Bf3# capture. The rook must move away.
1 . ... Rd8 2. Rd2 Ra8 3.
Rdg2
Mate can no longer be prevented .

•
.t .t.
I.

A typical position, in which Black

goes all out for the win. Unfor­
tunately, though surrounded by its
own pieces, the black king is not Fenoglio (1 9 75)
safe. White has very few attacking
l . Rd4 Bc2 pieces. He has a battery to thank
Aimed against the threat 2. Qd3+. for his win.

1 45
 1 . Qd8 Ka8! 5. Ka6 ! Kb8
This threatens a winning disco­ 6. Kxb6 Kc8 7. c7 Kd7 8.
vered check with 2. Kt7+. Kb7
1 . ... Qa2 White wins.
The only possible way to prevent
2. Kt7.
2. Ke7+ Qg8 3. Bxg7+ Kxg7
4. Qd4+ Kg6 5. Qg4#

LIQUIDATING

When you are ahead in material,

you must exchange pieces or some­
times even sacrifice.
We look at the transition to a pawn
ending. B lack gave an intermediate check
before recapturing the queen. Not
so clever, since White can now
avoid the rook ending, (which ts
harder to win).
1. Re l ! Rxe l + 2. Kd2 fxe6
3. Kxe l
White has a simple win in the pawn
ending.

Haggquist (1 960)
1 . Kc4 !
White should not play the over­
hasty 1 . Bb6+?, because of course
Black does not take the bishop.
After 1 . . . . Kb5 2. Ba7 Ka6 3. Bb6
cxb6 the position is drawn.
1 . ... Ka6 2. Bb6!
Now that the king is not so far Nadareishvili (1 962)
away, the sacrifice is correct. The stronger side must be careful
2 . ... cxb6 3. c6 Ka7 4. Kb5 when liquidating. Sometimes the

1 46
defender has at his disposal more 1 . Qd l + Kb2
ways of escaping than it might There are few alternatives: I . . . .
appear. Kxb4 2 . Qg4+.
White can promote and exchange 2. Qe2+ Kb l 3. Qe l + Kc2 4.
queens. Are things so simple? No! Qf2+
1 . bxa8R+! The goal has been achieved.
After the logical I . bxa8Q+? Kb2
2. Qb8 Ka i ! 3 . Qxb3 (otherwise
what arises is a queen ending which
cannot be won) Black is stale­
mated.
1 . ... Kb2 2. Rb8 Qxb8+ 3.
Kxb8
The liquidation was a success.

In queen endings an extra pawn is

harder to convert because the op­
ponent is continually threatening to
give perpetual check. The best Z. Po/gar-Bischoff, Dortmund 1 985
strategy in such endings is there­ The win is no easy task on account
fore to force an exchange of of Black ' s bad king position. Black
queens. was certainly specifically looking
for a way to liquidate. (A good tip:
if you don ' t look, you won ' t find ! )
1 . ... Rg3+! 2 . Bxg3 c4+! 3.
Kd4 Qd2+ 4. Kxc4 Qe2+ 5.
Kb4 Qxb5+ 6. Kxb5 fxg3
The g-pawn is decisive.

First we look for the squares on

which an exchange can be success­
fully realised. The outposts in this
position are c5, f6, f4, f3 , t2 and
g4. Then we sti ll have to chase the
king on to the correct square.

1 47
When liquidating, you need to know queen is able to recapture. So the
your pawn endings. queen has to be lured away first.
1. Rc8 Kd6 1 . ... Qe l + 2. Qgl Rxh2+ 3.
Now White has to exchange Kxh2 Qh4+
cleverly by first taking with the The point of the rook sacrifice.
rook and thus winning a tempo. White has to abandon the protec­
2. Rxc5 Rxc5 3. h4 Kd5 tion of his rook.
A necessary loss of a tempo. 4. Kg2 Qxg5+ 5. Kfl Qxgl +
4. Bxc5 Kxc5 5. g5 hxg5 6. 6. Kxgl Nxd5 7. cxd5 Kd6
f6! The rest is child ' s play.
(Take another look at the section
on breakthroughs in Chapter 8 ! )
So, not 6 . h 5 Kd6 7 . f6 Ke6 8 . fxg7 ZUGZWANG
Kf7 9. h6 g4 I O. Kg2 e4 with a
draw. Zugzwang was already treated in
6 . ... gxf6 7. h5 the previous steps. Now you have
White wins. to develop a nose for positions in
which zugzwang occurs.
In more crowded pos1t1ons liqui­ One hint is, whenever the oppo­
dations do not happen so often, but nent' s pieces only have a few
they do from time to time. A nice moves. Your question then is:
example of this i s illustrated in the "What would my opponent play i f
'
next diagram. it were his move?"

Ramirez-Miranda, ARG 1 99 7 Black also asked this question. It is

Black manages t o swap o ff a l l the easy to see that White only has a
pieces in the shortest possible time. check on b8. Any other move loses
Capturing on d5 does not come on the spot.
into question as long as the white 1 . ... Kh7!

1 48
It would be silly to play I . . . . Kh8 appears in pawn endings. Then the
2 . Qb8+ Kh7 3. Qe5, and B lack only pieces are the kings.
has no useful move (3 . . . . Qc I 4. I f B lack had the move, he would
g4). lose at once. I t is possible to
"transfer" the right to move to his
opponent in a subtle way.
1 . Kd2 Kf6 2. Ke2 Ke5 3.
Ke3
White has completed a "triangle"
with his king. "Triangulation" is a
technical term which is used in the
world of chess.
B lack does not have enough squares
available to be able to imitate his
opponent.

White's advantage in material is not

sufficient. The constricted position
of the rook on h I forces B lack into
king moves. However, he soon runs
out even of them.
1 . Re l Ka4
Because of the battery on the back
rank The king can no longer go on
to a black square.
2. Rb l h5+ 3. Kg3
Black has no more moves.
Maise/is (1 956)
In thi s position too, triangulation
by the king i s decisive.
1. Kf4
A characteristic of the triangle is
that it makes no difference whether
the king's first move is diagonal or
straight. This means that 1 . Ke4
Ke6 2. Kf4 Kd6 3. Kf5 is also
possible.
1. ... Ke6 2. Ke4 Kd6 3. Kf5
Kd7 4. Ke5
Logically, zugzwang frequently White wins.

1 49
All the other pieces (except the
knight) can also triangulate (even
it is not a real triangle that they
make). This is helpful, because in
many positions it i s necessary to
"lose" a move, so that it becomes
your opponent' s tum to move.

1 . Bg2
I . Bf3 and 1 . Bh I would also win,
but it takes a bit longer.
1. ... Qb2 2. Be4 Qb4 3. Bd5
It is Black to move and he will be
mated.

The motto is that if the opposite

Katsnelson (1 990) side still has pawn moves, get him
I n a blitz game you would quickly to use them up with tempo moves.
play I . Rd7? And discover after I .
. . . Kxc4 that you had given away
the win (2. Rxe7 Kd5). White must
only move the rook to d7 after
Kxc4.
1. Rd5 !
Threatening 2. Rxc5 , and after I .
. . . Kxc4 then 2. Rd7 decides
matters.
1 . ... Kb4 2. Rd3
This forces the capture on c4.
2. ... Kxc4 3. Rd7 Kb5 4.
Rxe7 Kc6 5. Rd7 Drewitt (1 9 1 7)
White wins. The black queen has no move. I t
must protect against the mate on
In the next position B lack is con­ g3 . The pawn moves will soon be
trolling the white king; if the king exhausted. White has to make
could move B lack would be mated. waiting moves with his king, while
So the bishop plans to lose a tempo. not al lowing B lack to be able to

1 50
check with the queen. now something that can be done to
1 . Kb3 g5 2. Ka3 g4 3. Nf4# combat them. Weapons:
• counter-attack (playing for mate)
• the double attack

Rinck (1 926)
H ere too, B lack does not have a
good move. Krikheli (1 98 7)
1 . . . . Rxc7 2. Qf8+ I f the pawns can no longer be
I . . . . Qa8 2 . Qf8+ stopped, as is the case in the next
l . . . . Qxc7 2. Qf8# position, there is only one remedy
Wanted: a useful wa1tmg move left: counter-attack.
with the king. If it is on the 4th or 1. Nf5
5 th rank, then there follows a rook In any case, thi s move stops I . . . .
check on d4 or d5. On the 6th rank a2, since then : 2. Bxa2 c 2 3 . Bf7#
g6 is no good because of the check 1. ... c2 2. Bxc2 a2 3. Bb3
on b l and neither is f6 because of The double threat of winning a
check from b2 . pawn I mate is deci sive.
All that is left is:
1 . Kh6!
White still has to win the queen
versus rook endgame, which is not
easy but it is a theoretical win.

DEFENDING AGAINST PASSED PAWNS

In Chapter 2 we learned that

passed pawns can be extremely
strong. In this case they can stil l be
very annoying; however, there is Rinck (1 9 1 9)

151
The double attack i s a strong that he can draw with I . R8d I .
weapon in the battle against passed Black gets a queen but the two
pawns. A piece can capture the rooks are sufficiently strong to
passed pawn or the new queen stand up to it. The question is
with tempo or else keep an eye on whether White can win. Yes. He
any possibi lity of castling. starts with an extraordinarily ele­
1. Nf4+ Kh6 gant move.
The only move with which the pawn 1. Rfl ! !
can be brought to the point of This threatens mate o n e8. The
queen mg. rook is indirectly protected by an
Other options: X-ray check: I . . . Rxfl 2. Re8+
.

A) I . . . . Kf7 2 . Nd6+ Kf8 (2. and 3. Rf8+. So Black must make

Ke7 3. Nf5+ Kd7 4. Ne3) 3 . a king move.
Ng6 mate. 1. ... Ke6
B) I . . . . Kf5 2 . Nd5 Ke4 3 . Nc3+ After I . . . . Ke4 White has a simple
Kd3 4. N d l Kc2 5 . Nd6 (or 5 . win: 2 . Re8+ Kd3 3. Rf3+ Kd2 4.
Nf2 Kc3 6. Nd6 Kb4 7. Nde4) Rf2+ and the black position im­
5 . . . . Kxd l 6. Nc4 plodes.
C) I . . . . Kg5 2. Nh3+ Kf5 3. Nf2 2. Re8+ Kd7 3. Rfe l !
2. Nd6 d l Q 3. Nf7# Now the threat is mate on e7.
B lack allows his opponent the plea­
Pretty examples, but the last two sure.
positions are even more remark­ 3 . ... a l Q 4. Rl e7#
able. Mate plays the main part, but
if the weaker side does not coope­
rate, there is a normal technical win.

Reti (1 928)
This appears to be an easy win, but
appearances are deceptive. White
Wotawa (1 948) must beware of stalemate.
The first consolation for White i s 1 . Bf5+

1 52
The first stalemate crops u p in the 2 . ... e l Q
following variation: I . Bc6+? Kd6 2 . . . . Kxd7 is fol lowed by 3. Rxe3.
2. Rxe3 e l Q 3. Rx.e l stalemate. 3. Bb5!
1 . ... Kd8 2. Bd7! And there is no defence against
and not 2. Rxe3 e I Q 3. Rxe I stale­ mate.
mate.

WORKBOOK

49 : Endgame - Mate: A
Look for a mating pattern. Of course you will have to reach your goal by
means of combinations. Eliminating a defender can often help. Try to shut
in the opposing king. Make use of "quiet moves" and zugzwang.

50: Endgame - Material advantage: A

A lead in material i s not enough for you to be able to rest on your laurels.
The dangers which are there are:
• too little material (to deliver mate or a theoretically drawn position)
• a fortress
• stalemate
Above all, take good care of your last pawn. Protect and cosset it, defend it
indirectly, if you have to then give it up but make sure than in doing so you
win.

5 1 : Endgame - Mastering a passed pawn: A

There are many ways to stop a passed pawn and in doing so to win. Think
of:
• blockading or controlling
• threatening mate
• double attacks (attracting, clearing a square or a l ine)
• rendering the new queen harmless
• the Reti manoeuvre

5 2 : Endgame - Liquidating: A
Useful procedures to reach a won pawn ending are:
• returning your lead in material
• forcing an exchange to create a passed pawn
• exchanging "annoying pieces" (queens ! )
• winning a tempo

1 53
5 3 : Endgame - Zugzwang: A
Take a look at the pieces which are able to move and make sure that:
• there is no longer any possible check
• there is no longer any way to defend against mate

If early on you realise that a position is ripe for a zugzwang, there :

various ways for you to "lose" a move:
• keep the opposing king at a distance
• carefully select the route your own king w i l l take
• triangulation
• either play or prevent a tempo move I the tempo moves of pawns:
--+ the choice between a double or single move of one of your own pa\\
--+ keeping in hand the double move of your own pawn
--+ preventing the opponent from making a double move

Kramnik

1 54
 12 Bishops

There are all sorts of different White decides on an effective plan.

types of bishops : good and bad, of H e first ties down the black pieces
the same or of different colours, to the protection of the pawn on
and many a bishop is even the b6.
"wrong" bishop. 1. e4 Bc8 2. Qa4 Bd7 3. Qa7
The "bad" bishop has already been Be8 4. Rb 1 Rd6 5. a4
introduced in the struggle against All his pawns are now on white
the knight. In Chapter 9 it was squares. Because of the passive
argued that you should not write position of the black pieces, c5 can
off the bad bishop straight away. no longer be sufficiently defended
Take a look at the next example. by them. So White swaps off the
defender on b6 .
.I • 5 . ... Kh7 6. a5 bxa5 7. Qxa5
Ra6
.t. .t.
Black gets some counterplay, but
.i. .t. 'if .t. not much .
.t. � .t. 8 8. Qxc5 Ra2 9. Qe3 Qa6 1 0.
8 Rb8 Qa4 1 1 . Kh2 Ra3 1 2 .
Qc5 Ra2 13. Ra8 Qxa8 1 4.
8 8 8
Bxa8 Rxa8 1 5. Qxe5 Bc6 1 6.
� 8 Qc7
n @ Black resigns.

Botvinnik-Kan, Leningrad 1 939 .I •

The differing levels of activity
.t. .t .t.
between the bishops i s crystal
clear. The white bishop is, one .t.
it' --�--
might say, "bad". But of course, '
the decisive factor is how active 8 �
the bishops are. The bishop on d5
has a central position, it restricts
� [::;
the activity of the rook on d8 and [::; [::; [::; [::;
controls many squares in the @
opposing camp. There is little the
black bishop can do to oppose it. Kholmov-Panov Skopje, 1 96 7

1 55
 Who is better? Black with the good pawn is lost without any compen­
bishop or White with the more sation. But the technique required
active rook? after that is of quite a high level.
I. Be3 6. Qb8 h5 7. Bh6
Attempts to exchange the d4-pawn White has the choice. 7 . Re8 Qb4
for another pawn fail . 1 . Rc7 is 8. Qc8 is also very strong.
followed by I . ... Bxd4 2 . Rxb7 7. Kh7 8. Bxf8 Qe l + 9.
•••

Qe 1 + 3. Kh2 Bxf2, and I . Rc5 Kh2 Qxfl 1 0. Bd6 g5 1 1 .

Bxd4 2. Rxd5 by the strong reply Rh8+ Kg6 1 2 . Qg8+ Kf5 13.
2. . . . Bxf2+. However the move Qc8
played in the game is very good. Black resigned.
1 . ... Bf8
At first glance it is a strange .t • .I
decision j ust to let the white rook
'ii' ..t i '
on to the seventh rank. More accu­
rate analysis shows us that B lack ' _.,___'__ _

also has problems in other varia­ ' ' [::,

tions and does not obtain equality. [::, ttJ � [::,
Winning a pawn is safe for White,
thanks to his active rook, after I . . . .
[::, �
Qd6 2 . Rc5 Rd8 3 . Qg3 ! Qxg3 4 . 'if [::, [::,
fxg3 K f8 5 . Rc7 Re8 6. K f2 Re7 7 . n @ .
Rc8+ R e 8 8 . Rc5� P laying for an
exchange of rooks makes the white A nand-Bareev, Linares 1 993
queen much more active: I . . . . Qd7 Which pawn should Black use to
2. Qf4 Rc8 3. Rxc8+ Qxc8 4. Qd6, take on c4?
and Black cannot prevent the loss 1 . ... bxc4
of a pawn. Many players would recapture
2. Rc7 Re7 3. Rc5 Rd7 4. with the other pawn: 1 . . . . dxc4 2 .
Rc8 Qe7 Be4 0-0 3 . Ra t Bxe4 4. Qxe4. And
The lesser evil . After 4 . . . . f6 (or Anand describes this position as
f5) 5. Bh6 Rf7 6. Rd8 the d-pawn winning. He continues: "This seems
will be lost. exaggerated, but I can see no hope
5. Qf4 a6? for Black. Although Black possesses
Black does not want to accept any the good bishop, the said bishop
loss of material, but as is so often does not have a single square.
the case in inferior positions this White will penetrate on the a-file
leads straight to a loss. After the and in a short space of time Black
logical 5 . . . . Rd8 6. Rc7 Rd7 7. will lose b5 and c4. The situation is
Rxd7 Qxd7 8. Qb8 Kg7 9. Qxa7 a unusual but White's "bad bishop" is

1 56
much better than Black's "good that the occupation of an open file
bishop", which is restricted in its does not make sense unti l one can
mobility by the white pawns." use it to penetrate.
Moreover, even taking with the b­ That is true, but here the rook
pawn does not save Black. move is purely intended defensive­
2. Bel Bc6 3. Qe3 0-0 4. f5 ly: White must on no account
exf5 5. Bxf5 Qd8 6. Bg4 Bg5 penetrate. The first thing that has
7. Qe2 h5 8. Bxh5 gxh5 9. to be done is to stem the activity of
Qxh5 Be8 1 0. Rf6 the white rooks.
Black resigned. Stean points out: "l . . . . Kh7 ! 2.
Rd l Red8 ! (not 2 . . Rad8 3. Be3
. .

In manuals and m the opm10ns gaining a tempo with an attack on

expressed by many trainers, there a7) 3. Be3 Bh6 ! 4. Bc5 Bg5 , and
is a great tendency to be pessimis­ after the transfer of the black king
tic about the future of a bishop to e6 brings about approximate
when pawns are fixed on squares equality".
of the wrong colour. (As we go on, we shall see whether
The next position is taken from the that is correct.)
book "Simple Chess" by Michael Strange, because Black still has the
Stean, an English grandmaster. worse bishop. Apparently other
In fact the position appears to be factors have their role to play also.
absolutely simple. Two positional White can simply dispose of the
factors catch the eye : the open d­ black defence with 3 . Bg5 f6 4.
file and the fact that Black' s bish­ Be3 Bh6 5 . Bc5 and he has a maj or
op 1s worse. advantage. This order of moves
(starting with Red8) enables B lack
to avoid this problem in any case.
2. Be3 Kf8 !
We are in an endgame; every piece
must play its part. The centrali sing
of the king is often a good plan.
Here the king has the useful func­
tion of keeping a white rook out of
Black ' s position. Here too Black
can try to exchange bishops: 2 . . . .
Kh7 3 . Rhd l Bh6 4 . Bc5 Bg5 (the
position in which Stean thought
1 . ... Red8! that Black should have held the
A move which was not mentioned position) 5. Bd6 ! f6 (5 . . . . Bf6 is
by Stean. He correctly points out strongly met by 6. Bc7) 6. Be7

1 57
Rxd l 7. Rxd l Rg8 8 . Rd6 ! , and Kd7 Rf7+ 6. Kc6 Kf6 7.
White has a major advantage. Rf2+ Ke7 8. Rxf7+ Kxf7 9.
3. Rhd l Ke8 Bf2
White is better, but finds it hard to Black resigned.
make progress. After 4. Rxd8+
Kxd8 5. Rd l + Ke8 (followed by I.
Bf6, Bd8, a6 (Bb6}, Bc7 and Rd8
.t
Black can defend the position).
In the starting position, Black is i i i "i.V i
almost level, but certainly not be­ i 8 i i
cause he can exchange the bad 8 8 i tfj 8
bishops.
8 8
� 'ib'
.i..
i • i Rublevsky-Romanov
8 i A lma A ta 1 991
8 8 @ 8 The bishop on b7 is permanently
bad (optimists can see it appearing
� on h5 at some point). There are too
:! many pawns on the wrong . colour
of squares. Amusingly, that can
also work in B lack ' s favour: the
Kalinin-Kondratiev, Moscow 1 996 white bishop may be good, but it
Black has not only been left with cannot achieve anything against
the worse bishop, but also with a B lack' s pawn wall . I f it i s Black ' s
more passive rook. That is worry­ move, h e can completely close the
ing. All White ' s pieces, on the position, after which White can
other hand, are active. hardly break through. Unfortunate­
1. h5+ Kg7 2. Kf5 Bg5 ly it is White ' s move.
A waiting game can sometimes be 1. g4 ! gxf4 2. exf4 Qxg4+ 3.
the best defence. But not here; Kh l Qg6 4. Rgl Qf7 5. Rg3
afte� 2 . . . . Kt7 3. Rg2 (better than The pseudo-sacrifice 5 . Bxf5 exf5
3. Bxh6 Rg8 4. RO Rg2 with some 6. e6 Qf6 7. exd7+ Kxd7 i s far less
counterplay) 3 . . . . Rh8 4. Rg6 Bf8 clear than the game. The result of
White brings his c-pawn to c6 by the pawn sacri fice is easy to see.
means of a3 , b4 and c5 and there­ White gets control over the g-file.
after his bishop to a5 . Keep an eye on both bishops.
3. Rg2 Rf8+ 4. Ke6 Rf6+ 5. 5 . ... 0-0-0 6. Ragl Rhg8 7.

1 58
 Qg2 Rxg3 8. Qxg3 Nf8 9. Qe7 4. Rae I Rfd8 S. Rxd8+ Rxd8
Qh4 Ng6 1 0. Qxh6 Rg8 1 1 . 6. QxcS.
Bd l 2. b 4 Rfd8 3. Qc2 Nf6 4 .
The white bishop gets involved N e 5 N d 5 5 . a 3 b5
and the game comes to a rapid end. Black wants to prevent Nc4-d6. A
1 1 . ... Ne7 1 2. Bh5 Rxgl + better move is S . . . . Ba6.
13. Kxgl Qg8+ 1 4. K f2 Kd7 6. Be4 g6 7. h4 a5 8. bxa5
1 5. Qf6 Ra8 9. a4 b4 1 0. Bxd5 Rxd5
The threat of 1 6. Bl7 cannot be 1 1 . Rah l f6 1 2. Ng4 Rad8
parried. 13. Rxb4 Bc8 1 4. Ne3 R5d7
1 5. Rb8 e5 1 6. d5 cxd5 1 7.
In openings l ike the French and the c6 Rd6 1 8. c7 Rf8 1 9. Rxd5
Dutch (Stonewall), you have to f5 20. Qc5 Re6 2 1 . Qxe7
accept having the bad bishop from Rxe7 22. Rxc8 Rxc8 23.
the start. In most positions the bad Rd8+ Re8 24. Rxe8+ Rxe8
bishop is the result of weak play or 25. Nd5
a deliberate strategy on the part of B lack resigned.
the opponent.
•
.t. .t. .t.

Karpov-Lautier, Biel 1 992

Portisch-Radulov, Moscow 1 9 77 Black is threatening c S ; White ' s
1 . c5! first move is obvious.
With this very strong move White 1. Bf3 Ba8
fixes the black c-pawn on a light Again, he threatens cS. The solu­
square and temporari ly condemns tion is not so simple.
the bishop on b7 to the role of a 2. Rxd8 Rxd8 3. Rd l Rxd l +
spectator. 4 . Bxd l Qd8 5 . B f3 Qd2
1 . ... Qe7 Black sti ll had time to activate his
Sad, but taking on cS costs a piece : bi shop. However, the queen is all
I . . . . bxcS 2 . dxcS NxcS 3 . Qb4 the more active and the bishop will

1 59
not need to be worried any more activity remains the most impor­
after 6. Qe2 (what else?) 6. . . . tant factor.
Qxe2 7 . Bxe2 c 5 . Karpov turns all The next study is a convmcmg
his attention not to the question of example. White manages to make
material, but to the bishop on a8. the black bishop passive. It is abso­
H e gives up a pawn. lutely no problem that the white
6. b3 Qxa2 7. b4 Qa l + 8. pawns are on the wrong colour.
Kh2 Qa6 Black cannot attack them !
The move 8 . . . . Qb2 was interes­
ting to use the queen to run inter­
ference. White gets a strong passed
pawn after 9. b5 Bb7 I 0. bxc6 Bc8
and a defence i s probably impossi­
ble: 1 1 . c7 a5 1 2 . Qc6 Qxe5+ 1 3 .
g3 Qc5 1 4. Qd8 with the intention
1 5 . Bc6 and 1 6. Be8.
The moved played is probably
enough to draw.
9. Qd4 Qc8 1 0. c5 bxc5 1 1 .
Qxc5 a6 1 2. Qe7 g6 13. h4
h5 1 4. Kg3 Qb7? Makarichev (1 990)
Lautier is eager to exchange queens, Here the active "bad" bishop 1s
but he should have- kept the queens better than the "good" one.
on. The queen is passive but also 1 . f5! Bh7 2. Bfl
l imits the activity of the white It is important to prevent B lack
queen. Now the white king can from being able to bring his bishop
enter. The move 14 . . . . Qb8 holds. into the game.
1 5. Qxb7 Bxb7 1 6. Kf4 Kf8 2 . ... Ke7
1 7. Kg5 Ke7 1 8. Be4 Ba8 B lack cannot activate his bishop.
1 9. f3 Bb7 20. g4 Ba8 2 1 . The pawn ending after 2 . . . . Bg8 3 .
gxh5 gxh5 22. f4 Bb7 23. Bc4+ K f8 4 . Bxg8 Kxg8 5 . Ke3
Bf3 Ba8 24. Kxh5 Kf7 6. Kd4 Ke7 7. Kc5 Kd7 8.
Black resigned. Kd5 Ke7 9. Kc6 is lost.
3. Bc4 Kd6 4. Ke3 Ke5
The king has to give way. Even
BISHOPs-tfFT H E SAME COLOUR after 4 . . . . Kc5 5. Be6 Kd6 6. Kd4.
5. Be6 Kd6 6. Kd4 Kc6 7.
I n bishop endings things are worse Bti Kd6 8. Bd5 Ke7 9. Kc5
whenever the pawns are on squares Kd7 1 0. Bc4 Ke7 1 1 . Kc6
of the wrong colour. However, Kd8 1 2 . Kd6 Ke8 13. Be6

1 60
 KdS 1 4. Bf7
White wins.

Now it is the tum of the really bad

bishop. In this position the bishop
is very bad because of its total lack
of mobility. Its only task is to
protect the d-pawn.

• .i.
A rgandona-Huesmann
San Sebastian 1 995
1 . ... Bfl
B lack must reach this position
when it is his tum to move.
2. Bc2 Bb5 3. Bbl Ba6 4.
Bc2 Bfl 5. Ket
White is in zugzwang after 5 . Bd l
Bd3 .
Kovalenko (1 9 76) 5 . ... Bg2 6. Bd l
1 . Ld4 After 6. Kf2 the king penetrates to
White must not take his task light­ c3.
ly. After l . Bd8? Bc7 the win has 6• ••• Ke3
been given away (2 . Bxc7 stale­ Black wins.
mate).
1 . ... Ba7 2. Bb6 Bb8 3. Ka5!
3 . Kb5? i s inaccurate: 3 . . . . Kb7 4.
Ka5 Ba7.
3 . ... Kb7 4. Kb5 Kc8
Or 4 . . . . Ka8 5. Kc6.
5. Ka6!
5. Kc6? would be bad: Bc7 6.
Bxc7 stalemate.

The bad bishop can only defend

two weaknesses if it cannot be put
in zugzwang. A verbakh (1 954)
The defending side can often be I n this position Black 1s m zug­
defeated by triangulation. zwang if it is his move. Thanks to

161
Black' s three weaknesses, White ' s 2 . ... Ka6 3. b5+
bishop manages to transfer to his Back in Chapter 2, we saw the
opponent the obligation to move. problems faced by the bishop
1. Bd l ! Be8 trying to struggle against widely
White achieves his aim more separated passed pawns.
quickly after 1 . . . . Bg6 2. Bc2 Bh7 3 . ... Ka5 4. b6 e3 5. b7
3 . Bb3 Bg8 4. Bd l Bt7 5 . B fJ . Bd5+ 6. Kxd5 e2 7. g8Q
2. Bc2 Bg6 White wins.
Or 2 . . . . Bd7 3. Bd3 Be6 4. Be2
Bt7 5. BfJ and wins.
3. Bbl Bh7 4. Bd3 Bg6 5.
Bc2 Bh7 6. Bb3 Bg8 7. Bd l
Bti 8. BO
The starting position has been
reached again, but with B lack to
move.

The passed pawn

The endgame with bishops of the Amirjan (1 984)

same colour also makes uses of Luring a defender away and win­
some specific techniques for the ning a tempo play the main part in
promotion of a pawn. this study.
1 . BO Bc8 2. Bh5 Ke3
H eading for h6! After 2 . . . . e4 then
3 . Bg6 wins simply.
3. Bg6 Kf4 4. Bxh7 Kg5 5.
Bf5
• A necessary gain of tempo. After
' the capture on f5 , 6. h7 is decisive.
5 . ... Ba6+ 6. Bd3
�

Active king
As in almost all endgames the
1 . Ba2 ! Bxa2 2. b4+ activity of the king is i mportant. I n
He takes advantage of the fact that the next game extract, the player
promotion will follow the en with Black sacrifices a pawn in
passant capture. order to penetrate with his king.

1 62
Nowak-Pachman, Solingen 1 968 1. Bg6
1 . ... f4 ! Or other bishop moves (along the
Black wins simply. The king gets correct diagonal ! ) or I . Kf8. Of
through to d4. course not I . Kxf6 on account of I .
2. exf4 Bd7 . . . Kg8, and B lack wins. Take a
The white passed pawn is not good look at that one !
dangerous, but there would be no
need to let it advance. •
3. Kd2 Kd4 4. Be2 c3+ 5.
i i
bxc3+ bxc3+ 6. Ke t Bf5 7.
Bb5 Ke3 8. Bc6
After this, White resigned. .t

BISHOPS OF OPPOSITE COLOURS

I n endgames with bishops of oppo­

site colours, material does not play
such an important role as in other White draws by fixing the black
endgames. Exchanging pieces, the pawns.
correct strategy when you are 1. Ba3 d5 2. Bd6 e4 3. Be5
ahead in material, will hardly work Kf7 4. g3 g6 5. Ke3 Ke6
because the bishops cannot attack 6. Bf4
each other. That is an advantage White puts his king on d4, and
for the defending side. Black can no longer get through.
The magic way of obtaining a draw
is to fix the opponent' s pawns on The defender' s task is harder when
squares of the same colour as that the pawns are not connected. Then
of his bishop. what is very important is whether

1 63
the bishop can fulfil a double func­ Ke8 6. c6
tion. White wins.

The double function can also help

the defending side against connect­
ed pawns.

The bishop on g8 i s stopping the

two pawns on the same diagonal .
The position can be defended with
the help of the king.
1. Ke5 Kc6 2. Kf5 Bti 3. For the moment, Black is still stop­
Kg5 Kd7 4. Kh6 Bc4 5. Kg7 ping the white pawns.
Ke8 1.
••• Bf2
B lack achieves a draw. I . . . . Bh4 is also good, so as . to get
to e7 immediately.
But, oh dear, if we give White 2. Kc4 Bh4! 3. d5 Be7
some help by moving the c-pawn Simply not 3 . . . . Bg3 on account of
beyond the c4-square . . . . 4. Kd3 Bh2 5. Ke4 Bg3 6. Kf5 B f2
7 . d6+.
After the text move the b ishop is
ideally placed. It is attacking the
c5-pawn, so that the white king
cannot be manoeuvred round to e6.
In addition, the bishop is always
ready to sacrifice itself after d6+.
Of course, thi s defence only works
if the bishop can make a waiting
move along the same diagonal . But
the bishop has no chance against
pawns on the sixth rank because its
1 . Ke5 B ti 2. Kf5 Kc6 3. diagonal is too short. However,
Kg5 Kd7 4. Kh6 Bd5 5. Kg7 there is always an exception,

1 64
namely when one of the pawns is a wm.
rook pawn. We shal l take a look at 7 . ... a2 8. c4 bxc4 9. Kd2
this situation in a game between Draw.
two talented young players. It will
be some time before Black has two
connected passed pawns. The king stops the passed pawn

In general, the best defensive setup

is when the king is blocking the
opposing passed pawn. The bishop
has to defend pawns on the other
wing. That mainly happens simply
when the pawns are fixed on the
correct colour and when the oppo­
nent cannot create a second passed
pawn.

A rthur Pijpers-A nne Haast

Ven/a, Dutch Youth Championship
200 7
1 . ... Kc4
The most promising try. In the
game I . . . . Kc6 2. Kf4 a5 3. Ke3
Bc4 4. Bxb6 was played, with a
draw. B lack has the wrong bishop.
4. Kd2 b5 5. Kc I is also insuf­
ficient.
2. Kf4 a5 3. Ke3 It is not difficult to draw in this
The pawn on b6 is taboo: 3. Bxb6 position. The bishop has a useful
a4. Manoeuvring with the bishop waiting move. White moves his
does not help either: 3. Bf6 a4 4. bi shop back and forward between
Be7 Kxc3, and the connected pawns a5 and b4 or his king between g3
can no longer be stopped. and f2.
3 . ... a4 4. Kd2 a3 5. Kcl b5
6. Bf6 Kb3 7. Be5 As soon as the bishop ' s diagonal is
This i s the best. The draw, of too short there are problems. In the
which there was some question, following position that is the case.
occurs after 7. c4 Kxc4 8. Bg7 Kb3 Black wins with a pretty pawn
9. Bf6 b4. B lack can no longer sacrifice.

1 65
 The only move. Or else White
plays g5, after which the h-pawn
can be defended from the much
longer h3-c8 diagonal . After I . . .
.

Kd6? 2. g5 hxg5 3 . Bh5 White has

a blockade on both wings (despite
being three pawns down).
2. Bg8 Kd4
The black king will win the h3-
pawn, and the white king loses
time capturing the black pawns.
1 . ... b5 3. Kxb4 Ke3 4. Kxa3 Kf3 5.
White suddenly has major pro­ Kb4 Kg3 6. Kc3 Kxh3 7.
blems. There is no hope after 2 . Kd3 Kg2 8. Bd5+ Kg l 9.
Bxb5 Kxb3 , and the a-pawn de­ Ke2 h3 1 0. Be4 h2
cides matters. The alternative i s Black wins.
not much better.
2. cxb5 Bb6 The bishop stops the passed pawn
White gets into zugzwang.
3. Ke2 Kc3 4. Kf3 Kd3 The bishop is much less suited to
White has to give the f-pawn a free stopping a passed pawn. The op­
run through or play 5. b4 and give posing king can simply chase the
Black a passed b-pawn. bishop away and often the pa ssed
pawn costs the bishop its life. A
principle which has already been
mentioned plays an important role.

The diagonal fl /h3 of the defen­

ding bishop is too short. The pawn
on h3 is a weak one. It has to
remain weak. The black king has broken through
1. ... Bg5 ! and the g-pawn will cost White the

1 66
bishop. The a-pawn will be deci­ White draws with 1 . e6 followed
sive. The d-pawn is doing no hann. by 2. e7.
The bishop on d8 is fulfill ing two
functions on one and the same The final example demonstrates
diagonal : that the bishop may be well placed
• The bishop is protecting the a­ but that there are problems because
pawn the bishop' s diagonal is too short.
• The bishop is stopping the d-
pawn
From the moment when the bishop
has to carry out both functions on
different diagonals, the win ts no
longer possible.

With the bishop on b4 the position

would be a clear win. But now
B lack can draw.
1 . ... Kd3 2. h6 Ke2 3. Bh4
Kd3 4. Bf6 Kc4.
The bishop is forced on to the
I n this diagram the e-pawn lures wrong diagonal. There is nothing
the bishop away from the protect­ which can be done to prevent b6-
tion of the a-pawn. b5-b4.

WORKBOOK

54: Strategy - Good + bad bishops: A

For the side with the bad bishop, the following strategy can be recommen­
ded:
• exchange the bishop (for another bishop or a knight)
• activate the bishop (have it do something sensible)
• put pawns on squares of the correct colour
If you are playing against the bad bishop, you have to :
• prevent it being exchanged

1 67
• create a second weakness (the first weakness is the bishop ! )
• exchange other pieces (so that the bishop becomes worse)

5 5 : Endgame strategy - Good + bad bishops: A

For the side with the good bishop, the following strategy can be recom­
mended:
• make use of zugzwang
• enter the opponent' s position with the king (sacrifice a pawn if necessary)
• limit the mobility of the enemy bishop

56: Bishop endings (same coloured) - Passedpawn: A

Take another look at what was said in Chapter 2 about the promotion of the
passed pawn. Effective techniques in bishop endings are:
• helping
• eliminating the defence (luring away, blocking, interfering)
• keeping away from the opposing king
• gaining a tempo
• making use of zugzwang

5 7 : Bishop endings (same coloured) - Technique: A

Useful techniques in endings with bishops of the same colour are:
• making the bad bishop worse (fixing pawns, hemming in the bishop)
• making use of zugzwang
• exploiting a badly positioned king
• activating your own king

5 8 : Bishop endings (opposite coloured) - Passed pawn: A

See the section on passed pawns with bishops of the same colour.

5 9 : Bishop endings (opposite coloured) - Defending: A

In bad positions it is important:
• to block
• to force pawns on to squares of the colour of the opposing bishop
• to stop any passed pawn as soon as possible
• to have the bishop fulfil a double function (attacking pawns and tying up
the king)
• tum an opponent' s b-pawn into the wrong rook pawn

In good positions you have to:

• prevent a blockade, whatever the cost (if required, sacrifice a pawn)

1 68
• have the bishop fulfil a double function (defending your own pawn +
stopping an opposing pawn)
• fix weak pawns

60: Bishop endings (same coloured) - Defending: A

In bishop endings you can make use of types of defence from other end­
games. The following types of defence are represented on the exercise
page:
• forcing stalemate
• constructing a fortress
• leaving your opponent with the wrong bishop
• a theoretical draw (e.g. by taking the last pawn)

Hort-Timman

1 69
 13 Defending

Not everyone is a fan of defending. not really help. The only option is
Attacking is much more fun. Never­ to eliminate the attacking queen.
theless, it is worthwhile immersing 1. Qxg6+!
oneself in the subject of defence. It A spectacular queen sacrifice.
can mean the gain of some impor­ 1. ... hxg6 2. Rxg6+ Qxg6
tant points. 3. Ka8
White has invested 1 3 points in his
In the first part of this chapter, we defence, but with his now unstop­
shall take a look at some defensive pable promotion he will secure a
options for when you are facing draw.
mate. The vast maj ority of exam­
ples are to do with the attack on -*- • .i
the king. The refutation of tactical
.i 'iV
subtleties will be dealt with at the
end of the chapter. ' � ·
� · � �
· �
DEFENDING AGAINST MATE
� �
� �
Il @

Of course the queen on g7 i s taboo

in view of mate: 1 . . . . Rxg7 2.
Rf8+ Kd7 3 . Be8+ Kd8 4. Bc6#.
White had such a lovely plan. He
is threatening to take on g8 and I .
. . . Re8 is no good on account of 2 .
Bf4. And I . . . . Qxg6 2. R f8 + Rxf8
3. Qxg6 is good for him too. The
Cohn attacking bishop can be eliminated
White is a rook up, but Black i s by manoeuvring it into a pin.
threatening mate in one. The b7- 1. ... Qxg2+! 2. Kxg2 Rxg7
pawn cannot be defended, and 3. Rf8+ Kd7
moving away with the king does Now 4. Be8+ is an i l legal move.

1 70
What i s particularly unfortunate the king.
for White is that his bishop will The move just played, I . Rd6, looks
also be lost. dangerous: 1 . . . . Qxb5 2. Qxb5+
Rxb5 3. Bc6+ winning. I . . . exd6
.

leads to mate: 2. Bc6+ Kd8 3 .

Qe8#. The solution is the creation
of an escape square for the king.
1. ... Bc3+! 2. bxc3 exd6 3.
Bc6+ Kf8

DEFENDING AGAINST AN ATTACK

World Champion Capablanca was

considered almost unbeatable in his
Black appears to have no hope. day. All his losses in serious play
Running away with I . . . . Ke8 costs have been col lected in a book. It is
material. H ere too, a queen sacri­ not a thick book and contains only
fice is the saving grace . . 3 6 games. His advice to defenders
1 . ... Qc4+ 2. Rxc4 was simple : "Make sure you have
After 2. Kg2 Black captures on g4 the correct number of defenders,
with check: 2 . . . . Qxg4+. not too many and not too few".
2 . . . Rxh7 3. Rxh7 Kg8 4.
. Unfortunately, in order to evaluate
Rh6 Kg7 that correctly you have to be able
Black has nipped the attack in the to play chess as well as the Cuban
bud in the most inventive of ways. could .

I. .t • � .i
' ' .t '
'

In the third example, the correct Black has managed to defend econo­
defence is to make an air-hole for mically. Apart from his king and

171
pawn only the knight is defending. 1 . ... g6?
As will tum out, that was abso­ B lack wants to chase away the
lutely all that was needed. strong knight and capture on h4.
1. ... Ng6 Suddenly, the cooperation between
The knight keeps all of White ' s the four attacking pieces gets
attacking pieces in check : queen, go mg.
rook and two bishops. Other defen­ 2. Re7!
ces are worse: I . . . . f6 2. Bxf6 or I . Even if the bishop on b7 were
. . . g6 2. Qc3 . protected, this rook move would be
2. Qc3 f6 3. Bxg6 hxg6 4. decisive. On account of his weak­
Rxg6 Be4 nesses, Black can no longer protect
A new defender comes on the f7 (the threat is 3 . Nxh6+ with a
scene. White ' s attack has been quick win).
beaten off, B lack is simply left a 2 . ... gxf5
pawn up. There are two ways for Black to
surrender his queen and neither is
Do not weaken the position satisfactory : 2 . . . . Bxe7 3 . Nxh6+
Kh8 4. Nxf7+ or 2. . . . Qxe7 3 .
Weaknesses are a target, something Nxe7+ Bxe7 4 . hS . White wins.
to latch on to, for which the
attacking side will be thankful. So, Keep the position closed
the logical conclusion is: avoid
weakening (pawn) moves .

.i 'iV .i. •
.t .l .l
.l .l
l2J
8
8 �
8 8 � l:l 8 8
@ Panov-Kan, Tiflis 1 93 7
1 . ... g5 !
Black' s king position is slightly White was threatening to open the
weakened. No problem, if Black h-file by taking on g6. Black has to
now simply continues with I . . . . put off his own attack a l ittle bit
Qf6. A second weakening w i l l be longer. After I . . . . Nxb2 2 . hxg6
fatal. fxg6 3. Bd2 hS 4. gxhS g5 ! (the

1 72
best try; after 4 . . . . Nc4 5 . hxg6 White got his own attack going.
Nxd2+ 6. Rxd2 Bxc3 7. Qh7+ Kf8 1. g4
8. g7+ Bxg7 9. Rg2 the attack will White prepares to double rooks on
break through) 5 . Rdg l , and White the h-file, because it is sti ll too
gets there earlier. early to play I . Qh6. The move i s
2. Rd3 also helpful, with Nd3 , in keeping
The player with White accepts his the queen away from e 5 .
fate. After 2 . Bxg5 Nxb2 3. Kxb2 1 . . . . axb3 2. a3 !
Rxc3 4. Kb I Qb6 B lack is threate­ That' s the trick. The b3-pawn does
ning to take on b3 . H i s attack is no damage, and because of the
much stronger. pawn neither do the black rooks.
2 . ... Be5 3. Qgl f6 Before B lack has directed his
Now there is no question of an forces at a3 , White ' s own attack
attack. The game continued: can gather force. First he has to
4. Qxa7 Qd7 5. Qgl Qc6 6. prevent 3 . Nd3 and 4. Qh6.
Nd4 Qb6 7. Nb3 Qa6 8. Qcl 2 . ... Bc4 3. Rdh2 e5
Bf4 9. Qdl Ne5 1 0. Ne2 Running away with the king
Nxd3 1 1 . cxd3 Ra8 1 2. a3 achieves nothing: 3. . . . Kg7 4.
Qb6 13. Nbd4 Be5 Rh7+ Kf6 5. g5+ Kf5 6. Qe4+.
Black won of course. 4. Qg5
B lack resigned.
An opposing pawn i s an excellent
defender of one ' s own king. Since Swap off attacking pieces
taking your own pawns is i llegal, a
pawn like that can really get in
your way.

.i •
'ir'
.i
'
'
t!J t!J 'J/li t!J
t!J @ l::t t!J When attacking the king, a main
ttJ � rule is: bring up your forces. It is
logical that the defending side
Sutovsky-Kudrin, Philadelphia 1 993 should exchange off as many
Black has a strong attack. It is time attacking pieces as possible.

1 73
The white attack is dangerous. made to disappear in a clever way.
Despite the numerous defenders, That would have left some excite­
the h7-square can hardly be pro­ ment in the game.
tected. So Black must tum to a use­
ful defensive technique: exchange Swapping off attacking pieces
off attacking pieces. sometimes costs material, but is
1 . ... Bf2 always better than being mated.
Other defensive moves lose, are Usually the attacking side has
bad or insufficient. already sacrificed something, so
A) I . . . . gxf6 2. Bg7 with mate. the · loss of material is not so bad.
B) I . . . . gxh6 2. Qxh6 with a win. The defending side must always be
C) I . . . . Qxf6 2 . Bg5 B f5 3. Bxf6 prepared to return material.
Bxf6 4. Qxf6 gxf6 5 . Bxf5 , and
White is in no danger.
D) I . . . . Bxa l 2. Bxg7 Rd l + 3 .
.t. .t.
Bxd I Kxg7 4 . Qh6+ Kg8 5 .
Rfl , and Black is only slightly
better.
After the successful I . . . Bf2 most
.

of the attacking pieces disappear.

2. Qxf2 Qxa l + 3. Qfl Qxf6
Or, if B lack is afraid, 3 . . . . Qxfl .
Black wins withou(problems .

.t Stahlberg-Soultanbeieff
Ostend 1 936
'ti' � i. .t. .i. •
B lack has j ust played the powerful
.t. .t. .t. .t. Rf3 (without capturing anything).
llJ .t. � This bold move threatens a capture
llJ on h3. Of course, the rook cannot
be taken. Also, moves such as I .
'iY
Ra3 d3 or I . Bxe6+ Rxe6 2 . Rxe6
� � Qfl + are out of the question.
@ The normal move is I . g3 , and
White must wonder whether he
B lack was quickly defeated after I . can defend against I . . . . Rxg3 2.
. . . Re8 2. Nfxh6. Exchanging hxg3 Qxg3 , and then :
pieces was the correct strategy. A) 3 . Re2 Qxh3+ 4. Kg l Qg4+ 5 .
1 . ... Ne5! 2. Rxe5 exf5 K h I R f8 , and the threat of 6 . . . .
A white attacking piece has been R D is decisive.

1 74
B ) 3 . Qd2 Qxh3+ 4. Kg l Qg3+ 5 . 1 . RO i s more obvious, but in that
K h 1 Rf8, and B lack wins. case B lack exploits the fact that the
C) 3. Qe2 Qxh3+ 4. Kg l Qg3+ 5 . king is on g l . Black threatens to
K h 1 d 3 6. Qd2 R f8 winning. exchang e queens with I . . . . Rc4
The answer is no. So White is left and after 2. Be4 Qxd4+ 3. Kh 1
with nothing other than returning a Qxe4 4. Rh3+ Qh7 5 . Rxh7+ Kxh7
piece. 6. Qh3+ Kg7 7. Qg3+ perpetual
1. Be3 check is the best that White can
1 . Bf4 is also insufficient. The next hope for.
moves are forced. 1. ... fS!
1 . ... Rxe3 2. Rxe3 Qxe3 3. The only move ! At the moment
QxhS Re7 4. Rfl QeS 5. Black has no time to bring up
QxeS BxeS 6. Re 1 Bf6 7. defenders. After 1 . . . . Nd3 2. Qh4
Rxe6 f5 then 3. Qh6 is decisive. Fleeing
This forces the exchange of the with the king costs material : 1 . . . .
rooks. The ending with bishops of Re8 2 . Qh3 Kg7 3 . Rg4+ K f8 4.
opposite colours was drawn. Qa3+.
2. BxfS
Bring in defenders Nor does White have more than a
draw after 2 . Qg3 . B lack defends
.i iV • with 2. . . . Qc7 3. Qh4 Qxf4 4.
Qxf4 Kxh7. The line 2. Qh5 Kg7
' �
3. Rh4 Qf6 would even be bad,
.t ' leaving, Black in the driving seat.
2 . ... exfS 3. RxfS
8 � With inevitable mate? No!
3 . ... Bd3
It is unbelievable but this move
8 � 8 8 secures the half point. White
n n @ cannot include the rook in the
attack without Black being able to
Smyslov-Po/ugaevsky interpose the bishop on g6 or h7.
Moscow 1 961 4. QhS+
Black' s king position is exposed, White has to be content with the
there are no defenders nearby, but draw by perpetual check. Black' s
there are attacking pieces. Smyslov defence was perfect.
certainly thought that his next move
would mean that Black would soon When defending it makes sense to
have to surrender. look at what your opponent is
1. Rf4 threatening. That makes finding

1 75
the correct defence simpler. But of then you have to move over to a
course you have to work out what counter-attack if the king is as
the real threat is. That could prove badly placed as it is in this
to be a problem in the following position. B lack can save the game
position. (avoid losing) with 1 . . . . Qb6 2.
Bxh6 g6 3 . Qh4 Rh8 4. Qf6
Qxb l +, and Black gives perpetual
check. There is no more in it for
either side. However 1 . . . . Qf8
with a win is the better option.

Black is thinking: "White i s threat­

ening Rh3 and a capture on h6.
Then I can defend with Qf8 and all
will be well . After a capture on f7 I
can play Qf8 or Qh4. Nothing bad
will happen so I c an play 1 . . . . The first moves you consider in
Nxd4." this position ( 1 . b3 Qxb3 and 1 .
Unfortunately the threat is more Rd3 Qxd3 ), have to be rej ected
dangerous than that: 2. Bxh6 gxh6 straight away. A third move is 1 .
3. Qxh6+ Kxh6 4. Rh3+ and Black Qe7. Unfortunately thi s move is
is mated. bad after 1 . ... Ra4+ 2. Qa3 Rxa3+
The emergency brake with 2 . . . . g6 3. bxa3 Qxg2. However, this
3. Qh3 Rh8 4. Bg5+ Kg8 5. Qxh8+ turned White ' s attention to the
does not tum out well either. right procedure: exploiting the fact
Bringing up the rook with 1 . . . . g5 that the rook was tied to e8. W ith
fails to 2 . Rf3 f5 3. Rh3 Rg6 4. the help of thi s piece of tactics,
Rxg5. White can bring up a defender to
B lack should not be thinking so far the aid of the threatened king.
ahead; he should immediately 1. Bc5! Rxc5 2. Qd8! !
bring in another defender with Firstly White uses a bishop sacri­
1 . ... Qf8 fice to entice the rook one rank
White ' s attack is not so fearsome. ' further up the board, so that the
If no defender can be deployed, queen can help defend from d8.

1 76
Black must now give perpetual Bring pieces into the defence and
check on a4 and c2. After 2 . . . . Kf8 exchange ! After 4 . . . . Raf8 5. Bxe7
White plays 3 . Qd2, and Black Rxf5 6. Rxf5 Nc6 7. Bc5 Re8 8 .
remains a piece down without com­ Rxh5 Re2 Black is n o worse.
pensation. 5. Rxf3 Qe I+ 6. Rfl Qxfl +
7. Qxfl Rhf8 8. Qd3
In the following game between Black resigned.
two young players (Werle is now a
grandmaster! ) White almost has a This next game fragment tells us
winning advantage. Both sides some more about weakened king
make instructive mistakes. positions.

.I it' .I K � .I •
�· · i 'iV .i. .i. i i i
i �
i t2J
8
8 t2J � �
8 8 � 8 8 8 8 � 8 8
I;I @ I;I n @

Wer/e-Kodentsov, The Hague 1 996 Tal-N. N. , Simultaneous 1 968

I. ... h5 B lack' s position i s not so hopeless
Further weakening one ' s king posi­ here as in most of the examples in
tion i s rarely a solution. Drafting in Chapter 1 0. Tai begins stylishly.
more defenders with I . . . . Ra6 ! is a I. Rxf6 Bxf6
much better attempt. White would The best move. After I . . . . gxf6
then have to find 2. Rxe5 ! , to then 2 . Nxh7 i s decisive: 2 . . . . Kxh7
maintain his advantage. Black has 3. Rxd7 Qxd7 4. Bg4 Qxg4 5 .
to give up a pawn after 2 . . . . Rf6 3 . Qxg4, and White is winning.
Qg4+ Rg6 4 . Qh5 Re8 . 2. Nd5 Qxc2
2. R fl Qe7 3. Rxe5? An elementary error. A queen must
When sacrificing, you should first always help out in defence when
of all not give up such a valuable the king is in great danger. The
piece. White wins simply with 3 . correct move is 2 . .. . Qc6. Then
Bg5 Nxg5 4 . Rxe5 Qd8 5 . Re6 further sacri fices do not help: 3 .
Nxe6 6. Qt7+ Kh6 7. Qxe6+. Nxf6 gxf6 4 . Nxh7 Kxh7 5 . Rxd7
3 . ... Nxe5 4. Bg5 Nf3+? Qxd7 6. Bg4 Qd6, and Black wins.

1 77
 3. Nxf6 gxf6 4. Rxd7 Qxe2 Rxg8 6. Nt7 mate. Taking the
Here too, Black has something knight is a much better try : l . . . .
better. He must take the attacking fxe5 2 . Rxe8 Qxg4 3 . Qxe6+ Qxe6
knight: 4 . ... fxg5 5. Bxg5, and back 4. Rxe6 with more or less level
with the queen : 5 . . . . Qc6. It is not chances.
obvious how White can win. An The player with Black let himself
excellent opportunity for you to be be fooled. He decided to chase
quoted in a new edition? Here away the queen.
there is an excuse for B lack. 1. .•• Re7? 2. Qd8!
White ' s winning method is far Unfortunately the queen moves to
from obvious. an unexpected square.
5. Rxd8 Qc4 6. Ne6! ! fxe6 7. 2 . .. Rf7 3. Nd7
.

Rd7 Rg8 8. Qh4 Rg7 9. Mate can no longer be prevented.

Qxf6
White wins. How should Black have played in
this position? A counter-attack
would have been good. For that
Counter-attack two knight moves come into the
reckoning:
I n real life a counter-attack 1s a A) I . ... Nc3 (Black lures the
military battlefield tactic. In chess white rook away. The threat is
it is a useful weapon to ignore an mate in two with 2 . . . . Ne2+,
immediate threat. White must take) 2. Rxc3 fxe5
3 . Bxe5 (seems to win for
n .1 .1 • White, but Black has a sur­
prising defence) 3 . . . . Qxg4+ !
' 'iV ' '
(not 3 . . . . Qh6 4. Rc7) 4. Rg3
-·�-
' ' ' Re7 ! (this intermediate move is
� lb the first point behind the
capture on g4) 5. Qxe7 Qd 1 +
6. Kg2 Qd5+ (The second
point. Black wins the bishop
back with a double attack, and
after the capture on e5 the g7-
square is protected. B lack has a
How does Black react to the attack slight advantage. )
on his rook? An exchange of B) l . . . . N e 3 ! ! (This move i s more
pieces is not possible. l . . . . Rxc8 is forcing and wins.) 2. fxe3 fxe5
followed by : 2. Qxe6+ Kh8 3. 3. Re I Qxg4, and simply wins,
Nt7+ Kg8 4. Nh6+ Kh8 5 . Qg8+ an exchange ahead.

1 78
 The roles would be reversed again
after 6 . . . . Qb4+ 7. Kfl .
7. Kd l Qxd5+ 8. Kc l
Bxh6+ 9. Rxh6 Qg8
In this variation Black does not
win by an attack, but thanks to the
rook sacrifice on e2 the queen can
help out in defence with tempo.

DEFENDING AGAINST TACTICS

Goodman-Kennedy,
Pennsylvania 1 984 In the previous Steps, individual
White has invested a rook in his chapters were dedicated to defend­
attack. That is not the problem, ing against double attacks, pins
because the rook on a l would not and mate. The same defensive op­
be able to participate i n the attack tions remain available at a higher
for the moment. However, the level. The whole business is simply
white king is badly placed. much more complicated. Defence
1 . ... Rf6 and counter-attack frequently go
l . . . . Rf7 would also be enough, hand in hand. The examples will
since after 2. g4 Qb5 Black can give you a good impression of this.
exploit the position of White ' s
king.
i. .t • i.
2. Qh7+ Kf8 3. Ne6+ Rxe6!
We are no longer following the
i ..i.
game, since it came to a quick end : ' � i i 'it' i i
3 . . . . Bxe6? 4. Bh6 and resignation. '
4. Bh6 8 8
What i s the difference between this
and what happened in the game? 8 Cfj 8 � � 8
Firstly, the king has f6 as an 8 '/W 8 8
escape square. So after 4 . . . . Bxh6+ n n @
5. Qxh6+ Kf7 6. Qh7+ Kf6 7.
Qh4+ Kg7 White has no more than A double attack: two white pieces
perpetual check. But there is more are hanging. The fact that White
in the game because of the position does not lose a piece is due to the
of the white king. unprotected knight on c6 and the
4 . ... Re2+ 5. Kxe2 Qb5+ 6. king on e8.
Kel Nc2+ 1. Kg2

1 79
Every move matters. The king may
•
not be on g l . After I . Bg2 Qxc3 2 .
e5 (the line which works i n the
main variation}, there fol lows 2 . . . .
Nd4.
1. ... Qxc3 2. e5 ! Bxe5
If an intennediate capture is made
on d2, then the i ntennediate check
on c6 will save the game.
3. Qxc3 Bxc3 4. Bxc6+
White only has to give up his extra
pawn. Bent (1 9 72)
1 . Ng6 Rxg8 2. Ne7
White wins the bishop on a5 .

Kaminer (1 935)
The threat of Bf6+ i s not only a
double attack with the bishop, but H ere the double attack does not
also mate if the queen moves cost a lot of material, but "a pawn
away. The solution of a study is al­ is a pawn". B lack found a subtle
ways a beautiful sight. solution.
1. Nf3 Bf6+ 2. Ne5+ Ke7 3. 1. ... Qc8!
Qh4! Bxh4 4. Nxg6+ This protects the c-pawn. After the
Interposing, luring and a knight exchange of queens, Black tends to
fork have wiped away all the pro­ be better. So . . .
blems. 2 . Qxe7 f6
There i s now nothing which can be
In the following diagram White has done against 3 . . . . Rf7.
to find a reply to the attack along
the eighth rank. White finds the Sometimes there is a subtle way to
correct reaction: a double attack. save a piece which has been trapped.

1 80
 1 . .. Rxc3 2. Rxc3 Qd4
.

Now Black was simply thinking of

3. Qd2 Qb4+ with a win, not that
his opponent would exploit the pin
for his own ends.
3. Rxd3
White wins.

Mashinskaya-Franc, Tapolca
European Girls Championship
The knight on h4 has no square to
retreat to.
1 . ... Ne7!
The game ended abruptly : l . . . .
Rh8 2 . Qxh4, 1 -0.
2. Nxc7
And White recovers half of his two Oren-Dyner, Tel A viv 1 952
pawn deficit. 2. Nxh7 is followed 1. Nb6
by the strong move 2 . . . . Rh8, and That will hardly be the first move
2. Qxh4 Nxd5 3. Qxh7+ Kf6 is not that you considered (if so, then you
dangerous. are really strong ! ). Yet, you soon
2 . ... Qxc7 3. Qxh4 Rh8 get to thi s knight move, because
B lack retains an extra pawn. there is no hope after l . Kh 1 Nf2+
2 . Kg2 Nxd l , and after l . Nd4
.I Rxd4 2. Nb6 Rxd l + 3 . Bxd l Black
is better.
.I 1 . ... Qxb6+ 2. Qd4+
White can hang on to his lead in
material.

Sometimes the best defence is not,

practically speaking, the best. An
unexpected (bad) move can con­
fuse your opponent. Even after the
game White believed that the
The lesson from this example: not moves he played were by far the
every pin wins. Black struck. best of all.

181
 K • • ..t K
'1i' ' '
' ttJ ' � ·
� � tt:J i
8 8 �
8 8 8 �
8 8 8 8 8 8 8
ll @ ·a: � @ n
Minev-Keller, Bern 1 9 77 Korchnoi-Spassky, Tallinn 1 948.
The knight is in an annoying pin, The move 1 . Nd5 had the effect of
which it cannot get out of un­ a bombshell. B lack resigned after
scathed. he had calculated I . . . . Qxf3 2.
The endings after both l . Re8+ Nxf6+ Ke7 3 . Nd5+ and White
Rxe8 2 . Nxe8 Qxc3 and after l . wins a piece. Nor could he see a
Nb5 Rxd5 2. Nxc7 Rc5 3 . Re7 way out after I . . . . Bg7 2 . Nxf6+
Nc4 ! give Black a big advantage. Bxf6 3. Qxg4. There is in fact
1. Qd4? none, but at least B lack can play
M inev gave this move two excla­ on.
mation marks. Practically it turns 1. Kd8!
...

out to be a wise cho1ce. 2. Nxf6 is followed by 2 . . . . Q h4+.

1 . Qc6
.•. Of course White stil l has an advan­
Here, neither l . . . . Nc6 2 . Qf6 nor tage, even after 2. Qxg4. A defen­
I . . . . Qxd6 2 . Re8+ achieves any­ der must take into account all the
thing. The correct continuation for characteristics of the position and
B lack i s I . . . . Qb8 ! , and White has must not resign immediately when
to surrender a piece. material is lost.
2. Nf5 Rxd4 3. Ne7+ Kf8 4. One more thing needs to be men­
Nxc6 Ra4 5. Nxa7 Rxa3 tioned: the player with the black
6. Rb l pieces was twelve years old when
The game was agreed a draw here. the game was played.

1 82
WORKBOOK

6 l : Defending - Defending against an attack on the king: A

62 : Defending - Defending against an attack on the king: B
The idea of the tasks is to ward off one or more threats. Sometimes pure
defensive play will do the trick, on other occasions the defending side can
often hit back with a counter-attack. Useful tips :
• bring in defenders
• exchange attacking pieces (the strongest! )
• tie attacking pieces down to defence
• keep lines closed
• counter-attack
• flee with the king
• give (back or away) material

63 : Defending - Piece ( : � lb ) against a passed pawn: A

A draw i s enough. Possible ways of achieving that are :
• get your king into the queening square of the pawn (remember Reti)
• take control of the actual queening square (e.g. by a double attack)
• watch out for zugzwang
• do not allow your opponent to win a tempo
• l iquidate to a theoretical draw

64 : Defending - Defending against tactics: A

• the subj ects here are : defending against mate, against the double attack
and against pins.

1 83
 14 Rook endings

In rook endings the activity of the With a king on the edge of the
rook and the king is very impor­ board and a rook in the corner,
tant. In this chapter, we shall take a Black cannot really enj oy his extra
closer look at what useful things pawn.
the rook can undertake. From pre­ l. g6!
vious steps, we know about: The rook gains access to the eighth
• cutting off the king rank by means of a pawn sacrifice.
• tying pieces down There i s no time for "technique":
• creating weaknesses I . Rh l a5 2 . Rxh7 Ra6+ 3. Ke5 a4.
• supporting the passed pawn 1 . ... hxg6
I f the pawn sacrifice is declined by
ln.. tb1 s ehapter we shall deal with: I . . . . a5 White wins thanks to a
1 . bad piece p ositio n...____ known finesse: 2. gxh7 Ra6+ 3 .
2. promoting a passed pawn Ke5 Rh6 4 . Rxa5 , and the h-pawn
3. technique is indirectly protected. Next comes
4. placing the rook 5. Ra8 !
2. Rh t Kc8 3. Kc6 Kd8 4.
Rh8+
BAD PIECE POSITION White wins a rook.

Having inactive piec115 causes pro­

blems if the opponent' s are active.

Golubev (2002)
1 . Kb6 Rd8 2. Kc7 Rd4
Forced, otherwise mate on a3 .
Selesniev (1 922) 3. b4! Txb4 4. Kb6 Th4

1 84
 5. Te3 ! 1 . b4 ! Rxb4
White should carefully choose the After I . . . . Re5 2. R xb6 the win
file for the rook. The difference we has also been secured.
will see on move seven. Wrong is 2. Rf5+ Kg6 3. Ra5! bxa5 4.
5. Rd3? Rh8 6. Kc7 Rh4 7. g4 b4 ! a7
8 . Rd ! Rh3 . The pawn can no longer be
5 . ... Rh8 6. Kc7 Rh4 7. g4 ! stopped.
Rxg4
The defence 7 . . . . b4 is not work­
ing now: 8. Re5 c5 9. Rxc5 . The
rook needs a square on the 5 th
rank.
8. Kb6
Black can resign.

There are twelve more examples on

an exercise page for thi s chapter.
Simpler than the last example !

B lack may be a pawn down, but

THE PASSE D PAWN his passed pawns are further for­
ward.
As well as the activity of king and 1 . ... d3
rook, the passed pawn always plays B lack must play accurately, since
an important part. White can make use of both the
king and the rook and Black only
the rook. I . . . . a2 leads to a draw :
2 . Ra l Ra3 3 . h4 Kg7 4. g5 . And I .
. . . Kg7 2 . Kf2 ! does not achieve
much either .
• 2. Kf2 d2
After 2 . . . . Rd8 White advances his
passed pawn in order to lure away
the rook: 3 . b5 .
3. Ke2 Re8+
Black makes use of his far­
advanced a-pawn. White cannot
Prokes (1 93 7) exchange rooks.
B lack threatens to take the b-pawn, 4. Kfl a2
advance his pawn and play Ra3 . Black wins.

1 85
TECHNIQUE 6. Kxe7 a4 the a-pawn has ad­
vanced too far to be stopped. Black
"The rest is a matter of technique." can even play S . . . . a4 6. ReS RxeS
That is much easier said than ap­ 7. KxeS a3 8. e8Q a2 with a draw.
plied in practice. We shall tum our Better, though a loss of tempo, is
attention to various techniques. I . Kc4 aS 2. Kd3 - and that also
even wins.
B lack now has the choice as to
Cooperation which activity by the rook he will
In the previous two examples, the succumb.
passed pawn was brought to the
opposing back rank by tactical Helping
means. Of course, that does not 1 . ... a5 2. Rh4+ Kb3 3. Re4
always work. Normally a pawn
advances with the help of its king Luring away
and rook. What is important here is 1 . ... Kb5 2. Rh5 Rxh5
the cooperation between the pie­ 3. e8Q+
ces.
interposing
1 . ... Kb3 2. Kd4 Re l 3.
Rh3+ Kb4 4. Re3

Optimal cooperation betwee n the

rook and pawns can be seen in the
next diagram.

Karstedt (1 913)
The e-pawn cannot promote with­
out the help of the king. It is a long
way to d7; while that is hap eni ng,
Black too is also mak i ng progress
with his a-pawn.
1 . Kd3
The obvious move I . Kd4 does not A rook on the seventh rank is above
win. After I . . . . Re I 2. KdS Kb3 3 . all very strong if the king can be cut
Rh3+ Kb2 4 . Kd6 a S S . RhS Rxe7 off on the eighth rank. When there

1 86
are no black pawns we describe this make.
as the "seventh rank absolute". In A) 1 . . . . RcS ? (a bad move) 2.
this example the seventh rank is Rc3 ! Rxc3+ 3 . Kxc3 Kf7 4. aS ,
absolute despite the black pawns, and White wins.
thanks to the help of the white ones. B ) I . . . . Rc4 2 . Rc3 Kf7? (2. . . .
The a-pawn runs through without Rd4 3 . Rc6 is tense) 3 . Rxc4
let or hindrance. dxc4+ 4. Kxc4 Ke6 S. Kd4
1. a4 h6 winning.
Or I . . . . g6 2. h6 Kg8 3. aS Ra8 4. C) I . .. Re I (of course, this move
.

a6 Kf8 S. a7. And 1 . . . . fS is simply is also good enough for a win,

followed by 2. aS . but why makes things compli­
2. g6 fxg6 3. hxg6 Rc8 4. a5 cated when there is a simpler
White wins. way) 2. Rc3 Ra l 3 . Rc6 e3 4.
Re6 d4.
2. a5
Activating the king White tries something.
Activating the king is important in 2 . ... Rc5 3. Kb4 Rc4+ 4.
all endgames. On very few occa­ Kb3 bxa5
sions the king may remain passive, Black wins.
but generally that i s not the case .

•
• n
.t. .t.

Lilienthal-Smyslov
The black position looks like a Leningrad 1 94 1
winning one. Without thinking we 1 . Ke5
. ..

should play a king move ! Backing up the c-pawns makes no

1 . ... Kti sense. White wins the f- and the g­
Off to eS, to be able to help the pawns and has a simple win, e.g. :
advance of the d-pawn. I . . . . Kd7 2 . Rf6 Ra I + (2 . . . . Rb2 is
The only interest in the position is even more hopeless: 3. RxfS Kd6
the mistakes which Black could 4. RxgS Rxb3 S. h4, and White

1 87
wins.) 3 . Kg2 Ra2+ 4. Kf3 g4+ 5 . There is only a draw after 1 . Rh8
Kf4 Rf2+ 6. Kg5 Rxh2 7 . Rxf5 Ra7 2 . Kf6 Rxf7+ 3. Kxf7 e4 and
Rb2 8 . Kxg4 Rxb3 9 . Kf3 Rb4 1 0. after 1 . Rf6 e4, when Black gets
Rf4, and there are no more pro­ there in time.
blems. 1. ... Kf4 2. Re8 Ra7 3. Kg8
2. Rxc6 Ke4 3. Rxc5 f4 ! Rxf7 4. Kxf7 e4 5. Ke6
This prevents a check on f5 . The king is on the correct side of
4. exf4 Kf3 5. h3 Ra l + the pawn.
Black gives perpetual check.

Anticipating
Winning material is nice, but not
always sufficient to win the game.
If you antic ipate, you will be one •
step ahead of the things which are
going to happen.
' .I

The a-pawn costs White his rook,

but B lack must play with great care.
1 . ... Rb4 !
• The "normal" win of a rook is not
enough. After I . . . . Kb3 then 2. f5
is a simple draw.
2. Ke5 Kb3
The threat is 3 . . . . Ra4.
3. Rxa2 Kxa2
The f-pawn gains a ro k for White, Black can still make his pawn
but the ending of 'rook versus count. The black king is close
pawn" is far from b mg one that is enough to help.
always won.
l . Re6!
of rook against Gaining a tempo
pawn, th rook i s best placed be­ It is always good, even when it is
hind th passed pawn. While still not absolutely necessary, to gain a
in the rook ending, White must tempo. When it is the only way to
come up with something: that i s win a a game, it is even urgently
anticipation. necessary !

1 88
 the black king is a also a negative
factor. White can take the pawn
with check .

.I

The black king is cut off from the

queenside, so the win does not x
appear difficult. But that is not the •
case, because the white king does
not have much freedom of move­ Kapfer (1 948)
ment either. After I . a6 a draw i s 1 . Rh6+ Kgl 2. Rh5 ! g4
there with 1 . . . . Rb6, and after 1 . Other moves also lose: 2 . . . . Kfl 3 .
Ra3 Kd6 the black king reaches Rh l + Ke2 4. Rb l o r 2 . . . . Rg3 3 . b7
the a-pawn i n good time. White 3. Rh4!
must first bring his rook to the a­ Not getting behind the pawn too
file with gain of tempo. quickly with 3 . Rb5?. After 3 . . . .
1 . Rb3 Ra2+ Rd2 ! 4. Rg5 Rd4 5 . b 7 Rb4 Black
Other moves are met by the deci­ gets off with a draw.
sive 2 . a6; e.g. I . ... Rh2 2. a6 3 . ... g3 4. Rh3 !
Rxh4+ 3 . Ka5 Rh l 4. Ra3 Rg l 5 . It is the same old story after 4.
Kb6 and wins. Rg4? Kfl 5. b7 Rb2 .
2. Ra3 Rb2 3. a6 Rb8 4. a7 4 . ... Rb2 5. Rxg3+ Kf2 6.
Ra8 5. Kb4 Kd6 6. Kc4 Rg6 Ke3 7. Rd6 ! Ke4 8. Kf7
White has a simple win. Ke5 9. Ke7
The king supplies decisive help.
Tying down
A rook which is tied to the defence Cutting off
of a pawn is vulnerable. It cannot In a pawn ending it is cal led
become active. So it is a useful "keeping at a distance" or "shoul­
activity to tie an opposing rook dering off'; in a rook ending it is
down to a specific task. "cutting off'.
In the following endgame the Naturally, we are talking about the
black rook is tied down to protect same thing: preventing the oppo­
the g5-pawn . The poor position of sing king from becoming active.

1 89
Korchnoi-Karpov, Baguio 1 9 78 Option 1 :
The rook i s behind the passed 1 . ... Rg6
pawn, and the white king can stop A tactical solution. Normally it is
the d-pawn. That must be good. suicide to put the rook within
But things tum out differently. range of the opposing king.
1. ... d3 2. Kf2 Re8 ! 2. Kfi Rf6+ 3. Ke7 Re6+
Cutting off the king saves Black. Or 3 . . . . Rg6
Other moves lose, e.g. 2 . . . . d2 3 . 4. Kd7 Rd6+ 5. Kc7 Re6 6.
Ke2 Rd7 4 . Kd l . Rd8 Re7+ 7. Rd7 Re8
3. Ra2 Re7 B lack draws.
The d-pawn must be exchanged for
/

the a-pawn. Option 2:

4. Rd2 Re6 5. a7 1. ... Rgl
The players agreed on a draw. The strategic solution : keeping the
rook as far as possible away from
the opposing king, so that the dis­
�
Checki g distance tance of three ranks can always be

�
When gi � ing check, it i s important
for the ok to be at a sufficient
distance for this, read through the
maintained while checking.
2. Kfi Rfl + 3. Kg6 Rg l + 4.
Kh6 Rh l + 5. Kg5 Rg l + 6.
reminder "Rook endings " from
. Kh4 Kf6
step 5 agJ in). I . . . . Rg3 ? leads to a loss: 2. Kf7
A rook; which is less then three Rf3+ 3 . Kg6 Rg3+ 4. Kh6 Rh3+ 5 .
files of ranks away from the king Kg5 Rg3+ 6. Kh4 .
.w-lren it gives check, can not
always keep doing so for long. Pawn sacrifices
I n the fol lowing position Black can Many positions in rook endings
draw in two ways: a tactical way with a single pawn are known.
and a strategic way. They are "theory". There are some

1 90
positions which occur frequently PLACING THE ROOK
which you really should know (see
Step 5). That gives you the possi­ A rook can protect a passed pawn
bil ity to aim for certain positions, in one of three ways:
by sacrificing material if neces­ I . the rook goes behind the passed
sary. This knowledge will often pawn
mean the difference between win­ 2. the rook stands next to the past
ning, drawing or losing. pawn
3 . the rook goes in front of the
passed pawn

The differing levels of act1v1ty

decide which of the three positions
is the best one.

Rook behind the passed pawn

Normally behind the passed pawn

is the best position for the rook.

Winawer- Tarrasch, Budapest 1 896

1 . ... Rh l
Knowledge of theory would have
saved B lack. The king must go to
the short side. For the e-pawn that
means the kingside. The b-pawn is
not important; even worse, it is
simply a diversion. First and fore­
most the advance of the e-pawn
has to be prevented (the threat is 2 .
Rb8+ and 3 . e6+): I . . . . Re l ! 2.
Rxb5 Re2 3 . Ke6 Kf8. After the White first creates a passed pawn
move in the game, White wins. with the help of a pin.
2. Rb8+ Kd7 3. e6+ Kd6 4. 1. g6 hxg6 2. Rg5 Rfi 3.
Rd8+ Kc5 5. e7 Rel 6. e8Q hxg6 Rg7 4. Kb3
Rxe8 The usual technique in positions
White stil l had to prove that he with the rook behind the passed
could win the pawn. We ' l l trust pawn. White waits until the useful
him with that. moves have been used up.

191
 4 . ... Kc6 the second rank with his king, with­
4 . . . . a4+ does not offer any hopes: out the black king getting away
5 . Ka3 Kc6 6. Kxa4 c4 7 . dxc4 d3 from the first rank. He manages
8 . Kb3 . that by triangulation.
5. Kc4 Kd6 6. Rxc5 2. Kfl Kd t 3. Kgt Ket 4.
The simplest. After 6. a4 Rb7 7 . Kh2 Kfl 5. Kh t Ke t
Rd5+ Ke6 White has t o work The black king has to go back
somewhat harder. agam.
6 . ... Rxg6 7. Rxa5 6. Kg t Kd t 7. Kfl Ke t 8.
White wins simply. Ket Kb t 9. Kd t Rd8+
After 9 . . . . Ka i 1 0. Kc ! black is in
Which rules can we use i f the rook zugzwang.
is behind its own passed pawn? 1 0. Ke2 Rg8 t I. Ke3
In general it is good to move the With a simple win.
passed pawn as far forward as pos­
sible. Your own rook gets more I n rook endgames, having the rook
freedom and the opposing rook behind the passed pawn is mostly a
less. The further the pawn is away great advantage.
from the other vertical half of the
board, the better. There is a simple Rook next to the passed pawn
reason for this : the opposing king
needs more time to approach the This placement is often good. The
pawn. In rook endi ngs the rook' s rook can be active on both w ings,
pawn is thus not such a n inferior though it i s tied to the same rank as
piece as in other endings. the pawn. The pawn which i s no
longer far from the queening
square has a lot of opportunities .

I . g7 Rg8
The opposing rook is now totally
passive. White must try to get over I . ... Rh3 2. Kg2

1 92
 2. f5 gxf5 is also sufficient. How­ g6? b 2 9. g 7 b l Q 1 0. g8Q Qe4+
ever, White must find the correct 1 1 . Kfl Qf3+. After the king move
moves : the position is drawn.
A) 3 . Rh6+? Kg4 4. Rxh3 Kxh3 5 .
g 6 b 2 6. g 7 b l Q 7 . g8Q Qc2+ Positions with the pawn on the last
with a decisive advantage. rank but one almost always offer
White cannot prevent the the attacking side good chances.
exchange of queens, and the Unfortunately thi s position cannot
black king can occupy a key be won.
square after the exchange: 8 .
Kfl Qd3+ 9. Kf2 Qd4+ 1 0.
Ke l Qe4+ 1 1 . Kf2 Qf4+ 1 2 .
Ke l Qg3+ 1 3 . Qxg3+ Kxg3 .
B) 3 . g6 ! Kh6 4. Kg2 (4. Ke2? b2 !
5 . Kd2 Rh l 6. Kc2 b l Q+ 7.
Rxb l Rxb l 8 . Kxb l Kxg6 9.
Kc2 Kg5 1 0. Kd3 Kg4, and
Black is occupying a key
square) 4 . . . . Rc3 5. Kf2 Rc2+
6. Ke3 Rb2 7. Kf4 ! Rb l 8. Ke5
b2 9. Kf6, and Black cannot
make any more progress. Rogers-Bellini, Chiasso 1 988
2 . ... Rd3 3. Kf2 Rc3 4. Ke2 B lack seems to be in zugzwang.
White can also draw with 4. Rb5 The rook cannot move, because if
Kg4 5. f5 gxf5 6. g6. the white king gets free then things
4 . ... Rh3 5. f5! will be settled. The king then
The correct way to draw. After the wanders over to the b-pawn, and
liquidation the king will be in the there i s nothing Black can do.
queening square of the b-pawn. 5 . B lack certainly did not look at the
Kf2? would b e a mistake: 5 . . . . possibility of a king move. He
Kg4 6 . Rb4 Rd3 7. Ke2 Rc3 8 . Kf2 sacrificed a pawn in the hope that
Rc2+ 9. Ke3 b2 1 0. Kd3 Rf2 1 1 . he would be able to activate his
Ke3 Rf3+ 1 2 . Ke2 Rh3 ( 1 2 . . . . Kg3 king, but with a white pawn on the
is inaccurate 1 3 . Ke ! ) 1 3 . Kf2 (or seventh rank he was condemned
1 3 . f5+ Kxf5 1 4. Rb5+ Kf4) 1 3 . . . . from the start.
R h I with the well-known X-ray I. ... h5+?
W ill . It is not obvious, but Black could
5 . ... gxf5 6. Rh6+ Kg4 have drawn by exploiting the
7. Rxh3 Kxh3 8. Kd2 position of the white king: I . . . .
White can still go wrong with 8 . Kf8 ! 2 . Rc8+ (White does not have

1 93
a great choice either. After 2 . h5 the b-pawn, but j ust when the king
gxh5 3. Kxh5 Kg7 4. Kg4 Kg6 the protects the pawn, B lack begins to
king can breathe freely again with­ give a continuous series of checks.
out having to lose a pawn) 2 . . . . 1. Kd4 h5 2. Kc5 Kf6 3. Kc6
Ke7 3 . Rc7+ (The best move ! The Rc2+ 4. Kb6 Rb2+ 5. Kc7
finesse which Black overlooked i s : Rc2+ 6. Kd7 Rb2
3 . b8Q? h 5 + 4. gxh6 f5+ 5 . Kg5 White can make no further
Rg3#) 3 . . . . Kf8. progress.
2. gxh6+ Kxh6 3. Rxf7 Rb4 The black king is completely safe.
4. Kf3 Rb5 5. Re7 Rb3+ 6. Only when the opposing king has
Ke4 Rb5 7. Rc7 Rb6 8. Kd4 nowhere to hide can the pawn be
Kh5 9. Kc5 Rb l 1 0. Rh7+ moved on to the last rank.
Kg4 1 1 . Kc6 Kxf4 1 2 . Rh8 H iding places for the king are:
Kg4 13. b8Q • the g7- or h7-square g7 (b7, a7)
B lack resigned. The white king i s • one of its own pawns
too close. • opposing pieces
Often the only real ly safe place is
the first of these points. Squares
Rook in front of the passed pawn have fixed locations, whereas pieces
and pawns can move, and thus offer
A typical beginner' s mistake is less in the way of protection.
when in a position .with the rook in
front of the passed pawn to ad­
vance the pawn as far as possible. Let us take a look at wmnmg
Then we get a position such as we positions with the pawn on the
see in the diagram. seventh rank, and in doing so cast
an eye over some drawing posi­
tions.

White has absolutely no winning

chances left. His king must help

1 94
Black is threatening to reach the threatening to get to safety with 1 .
safe hiding place on b7 by ! . . . . . . . Kb6 and 2 . . . . Kb7 .
Kc7 . White must advance his pawn 1 . h7 a5 2. d4+ Kc4 3. d5
because I . Rg8 Rh I 2. Rg7+ Ke6 ! Kc5 4. dxc6 Kxc6 5. Rc8+
leaves him no hope. A pawn is not a good protector
1 . h7 Rh l 2. Kb3 ! when the hiding place can be
This position is j ust as easily won destroyed with a sacrifice.
as lost. Those who look no further
than the end of their nose play a Nor are pieces (king or rook) well
tempo 2. Ra8, to be able to react suited to that role. There are exam­
after 2 . . . . Ra l + with the words: ples of this in the workbook.
"That is stupid". Those "who know
what they are doing" have on their A king on g7 is not safe in two
face an expression which says cases:
"I ' m not going to fall for that" as • the king can be chased out by an
they play 2. Rb8 . That too is not f-pawn
good after 2 . . . . Ra l + 3. Kb5 Rb l + • there is a winning liquidation to

4 . Kc4 Rxb8. a pawn ending

After the king move, Black has no
good reply. If he moves the king to
the sixth rank, this is met with a
rook check; if he remains on the
seventh rank, there follows 3. Ra8
with a decisive X-ray check.

This position is won.

1 . Kf4 Kf7! ? 2. f6
Careful : 2 . Rh8? Rxb7 3 . Rh7+
Kf6 4. Rxb7 stalemate. The next
move will be Rh8 (after some use­
less checks)
A hiding place for the king behind Take a look at how a correspond­
its own pawn is sometimes safe, but ding position with the g- or h-pawn
mostly not so. This position shows is not won !
us what the problem is. Black is In the following engame White has

1 95
a winning l iquidation to a pawn
ending.

Tip 1 : Activate the king (it will

relieve the rook)

1. a7 Tip 2: Do not exchange strong

The black rook remains tied to the pawns for weaker ones
a-file, so that you no longer have
to worry about the e-pawn. After I . . . . Kf6 even the world
1 . ... Kh7 2. Kc3 Kg7 3. Kb3 champion would have no hope !
Ra 1 4. Kb4 Ra2 5. Kb5 Ra 1 After 2 . d7 Ke7 3 . Rd6 Kd8 Black
6. Kb6 Rb l + 7. Kc6 Re l + can advance his queenside pawns.
O r 7 . . . . Ra I 8. Rd� Rxa7 9. Rd7+ Black was afraid of 2 . Rc4, be­
Rxd7 I 0. Kxd7 Kt7 I I . Kd6 cause after 2 . . . . b5 White wins
wmnmg. with 3. Rd4, but 2 . . . . a3 ! i s deci­
8. Kd6 Rat 9. Rc8 Ra6+ 1 0. sive and Black promotes with
Rc6 Rxa7 1 1 . Rc7+ Rxc7 check.
1 2. Kxc7 Kf7 13. Kd7
White wins the pawn on f6. Next came the much weaker:
1. ... a3
Now White can exchange his weak
AND A BONUS • • • d-pawn for one of the connected
pawns. An additional advantage is
The final game fragment i n this that the white rook can become
book comes from the game be­ active, since it no longer needs to
tween Erwin L ' Ami (grandmaster protect its own pawn. The position
nowadays) and Frank Erwich for can now no longer be won.
the Youth Championship of the 2. d7 Rd3 3. Rxb6 Rxd7 4.
Netherlands 1 998 (under l 4s ). Ra6 Rd3 5. Kg2 Kf8 6. Ra7
Thi s game allows us to show some Ke8 7. Kh3 h5 8. f4 Rb3 9.
useful and instructive tips. Kh4 Kf8 1 0. Kg5

1 96
Tip 3: Only become active when the white rook being able to go
you are really threatening pawn-grabbing.
your opponent, not at the 12. f5 Rb5 13. Rxa3 Rxf5+
cost ofyour own safety. 1 4. Kh4 Rf2 1 5. h3 Kh6
1 6. g4 Rg2
The "attack" by the king can sim­
ply be beaten off.
10 . ... Kg7 1 1 . Ra6 Rb2?

Tip 5: A lways check whether there

is more than one threat

Tip 4: Win a tempo whenever B lack is not only threatening mate

possible with g5, but also f6. The first threat
was enough to divert White ' s atten­
It is good to first give check on b5 tion. He played 1 7. Ra5?, and after
and only then to move the rook to 1 7 . ... f6 had to give up a pawn
b2 : 1 1 . . . . Rb5+ 1 2 . Kh4 Rb2 1 3 . with 1 8. g5+ and lost.
h3 (or 1 3 . Kh3 ) 1 3 . . . . a2 . When The correct move is 1 7. Ra6 ! with
the pawn is only one square away a draw since both threats have then
from promotion, then B lack can been parried.
bring his king over to b I without

1 97
WORKBOOK

65 : Rook endings - A ctivity and vulnerability: A

The activity of the attacking side is contrasted with the vulnerability of the
defender. On this exercise page, the losing side is in a bad state. The attack­
ing side wins by means of simple tactics (double attack, mate, X-ray
check). In many positions a winning liquidation is also possible. Don 't
hang on to individual pawns.

66: Rook endings - Passed pawn: A

67: Rook endings - Passed pawn: B
Many passed pawns have already been promoted in this book. In rook
endings there are some specific ways of doing so (you already know the
others):
• the rook sacrifice
• the X-ray check

68: Rook endings - Technique: A

69: Rook endings - Technique: B
Many different techniques are employed, of which the most important are:
• i nterposing (bridge building)
• exploiting the se".:'.enth rank
• liquidating to a won pawn ending
• winning a tempo
• activating the king
• placing the rook better
• using zugawang (also with triangulation)

70: Rook endings - Rook in front of the pawn: A

The first six positions are won. Which means are available to you to win
them?
• Use tactics; the X-ray check of course can be useful, but so can dis­
covered check.
• Destroy the king ' s hiding place.
• Liquidate to a won pawn ending.

In positions 7- 1 2 it's the defender' s turn to do some work. His task is to

take care that the bishop pawn does not drive the king out of its hiding
place.

1 98
Loek van Wely

1 99
The Step-by-Step Method

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