Chess puzzle

Posted on November 14, 2007 by Nicholas Gruen
Posted in Sport-general

I was pretty impressed with this. From a real game at the highest level, between a world Champion who is white.  It's his move. What should he do?

He did the wrong thing. Find out what he did below the fold. Then work out how you can beat him.

33 Comments

  1. Nicholas Gruen
    November 15, 2007

    Oops - forgot to add. White moved his pawn b5-b6.

  2. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    f5-g3?

  3. Patrick
    November 15, 2007

    Damn, I would have done what white did.

    f5-g3? that isn't bad - black will queen in the aftermath and presumably win.

    Unless white sidesteps f1-d3. At which point presumably if you want to attack you are drawn to a8 - a1, which you could have done in the first place for an arguably stronger position.

    so i will suggest a8 - a1, bearing in mind that black does have to hurry to beat white's pawn.

  4. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    1. ... f5-g3 (check)
    2. e1xg3 ... (h2xg3? a8-h8!)
    ... d4-d1
    3. g3-e1 d1xe1 (threatens e1xf1)
    4. h1-g1 a8-a1
    5. b3-b1 a1xb1

    I think it's going to be some time before white gets out from under the threat of checkmate for the two moves it will take to queen that pawn.

  5. Ed
    November 15, 2007

    If you were white you would have moved castle b3 to d3 instead of pawn b5-b6. If you were black, (after white's pawn b5-b6 routine) you would move queen d4 to a1. If the white queen takes the black queen then the black castle takes the white queen and moves for the white bishop. If the white queen moves away instead of taking the black queen then white is still in a world of hurt.

  6. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    Damn! I missed 2 b3xg3. Sloppy.

    Time for a rethink.

  7. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    I dips me lid to Patrick: a8-a1 is much better!

  8. Nicholas Gruen
    November 15, 2007

    Patrick,

    There's no shame in doing what the World Champ did! We're still not through to the answer - which surprises me, and shows how clever black was!

  9. James Farrell
    November 15, 2007

    Agreed. If the white queen escapes to e2 where she can still cover the bishop, the black queen goes to C4 and it's curtains. Her best bet is to go to b1. Castle takes queen and castle takes castle, but that leaves black's knight just enough time to stop that pawn.

  10. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    Black can force a queen exchange with:

    1. ...d4-a1
    2. e1xa1 a8xe1 (threatens a1xf1 and that's all she wrote) so
    3. b3-b1 a1xb1

    A whole world of hurt for white - bishop pinned on f1 so it has to be either h2-h3 or g2-g4 to avoid the smother mate. Goodbye passed pawn (maybe), Goodbye knight (maybe) and the boring old king-hunt is on.

    Am I getting warm?

  11. Gummo Trotsky
    November 15, 2007

    BTW - the right thing for white to do in this situation is to ask for a potty break, and hide himself in one of toilet stalls while he analyses the position. That's what toilet rolls are for. (see Hartson How to Cheat at Chess).

  12. Nicholas Gruen
    November 15, 2007

    Gummo, Sorry you're not warm. Amazing isn't it!

  13. Patrick
    November 15, 2007

    I have considered d4-d5 but I can't figure it out so I guess not that!

    So I give up. Now I know why I am not a world champion ;)

  14. James Farrell
    November 15, 2007

    1. ...f5-g3 (check) 2. e1xg3 a8-h8 (mate).

  15. James Farrell
    November 15, 2007

    No, forget that.

  16. James Farrell
    November 15, 2007

    1. f5-g3 (check)
    2. b3xg3 a8-a1
    3. e1xa1 d4xa1
    4. a8-a7 a1-d4 (check)
    5. a7-a8 e5-a4

    Black can soon capture White's bishop, then stop the pawn, and then he has a queen-castle advantage. But this is no better than my suggestion at #9.

    My #14 was very silly. I didn't look at Gummo's properly.

  17. Patrick
    November 15, 2007

    So what did Black do?

  18. Nicholas Gruen
    November 15, 2007

    Well the elements of the answer have not gone unnoticed. Now you have to put them together!

  19. James Farrell
    November 15, 2007

    Don't give it away, Nicholas.

  20. Nicholas Gruen
    November 15, 2007

    Well, there's one tactical theme that is striking and has already been mentioned. But you have to set it up. How?

  21. Gummo Trotsky
    November 16, 2007

    1. ...a8-h8

    and that passed pawn isn't going anywhere in the near future!

  22. Nicholas Gruen
    November 16, 2007

    But then black looks lost after 2. h2-h3

  23. Gummo Trotsky
    November 16, 2007

    Time for a trip to the supermarket to buy another six rolls of analysis paper, I reckon.

  24. TimT
    November 16, 2007

    After 1. b5-b6

    how about

    1... N-e7, bringing pressure on white's pawn at d5? I don't think white can hold his pawn on b6 with the pieces that he has.

  25. TimT
    November 16, 2007

    A complete shot in the dark, as I haven't really analysed the position deeply. Or at all.

  26. Nicholas Gruen
    November 16, 2007

    Nope. I think pushing the pawn further and then Qe1-b4 fixes that.

    In the game, white resigned after two moves as hopelessly lost.

  27. Nicholas Gruen
    November 16, 2007

    No it doesn't. I'm wrong.

  28. Nicholas Gruen
    November 17, 2007

    OK guys, here's the game.

  29. The Doctor
    November 17, 2007

    Ra1!! - a brilliant diversionary move, stopping Rxg3 & working out that there was time to get to h8!

  30. James Farrell
    November 17, 2007

    Well, I deduced the solution from the Doctor's comment above. Any points for that?

  31. Nicholas Gruen
    November 17, 2007

    No points James.

  32. Patrick
    November 18, 2007

    Surely I get some points for comment 3?

  33. Nicholas Gruen
    November 18, 2007

    Patrick - you get some points. How many do you think you should get?