Cordingley puzzle 200 #chess
White to play and win
Solution
200, being a round number, makes this puzzle special, and I didn't want to mess it up. Fortunately, it is relatively easy; more fortunately, I didn't end with the obvious and good 1 Rh5, but looked for a better move.
So, firstly. 1 Rh5 is the move that comes immediately to mind, biffing the queen. If the queen captures the rook, then 2 Nf6+ wins it, but the game still has to be won: so there is a need to look for something better; but also first noting that if 1…Qd8 2 Nh6+ and 3 Qg4+ is going to be nasty.
Seeing the queen is in a net, 1 g3! was my second thought, quickly noting that 1…fg?? loses to Re8, Qf7+, Qe8 mate; so the only moves which have to looked at are 1…Qh3 and 1…Qd8. I dealt with the second first: the Nh6+ sac and Qg4+ follow up are terminal: black either interposes his queen on g5 when it is trivial, or moves Kh8 when 4 Qg6 is likewise game over: not hard to calculate how to defeat black's various tries.
So, all that remains is 1…Qh3 when 2 Rh5 is good enough, but better to exchange on e8 and then play 3 Bf5 when black must move his king to avoid Nf6+ (discovering an attack on his queen) when 4 Ne3 wins at least the exchange.
In the game, Tartakower played 1 Rh5, which is not Houdini's first or second move: it gives 1 g3 as +4.4, 1 Re8 as +2.9; after 1 Rh5 it recommends taking the rook, 1.5, compared with the move Marshall played, 2.9.
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allanbeardsworth 