Daily chess puzzle: Check Mate #467
Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.
White to play and mate Black
-solve the problem, and then find the cook.
Seirawan v Barbero, Skein 1979
Solution
Nice to see a win by Yasser Seirawan, whose articles and commentating I have long enjoyed. I have also been lucky enough to play Yasser 3-0 blitz many times on ICC.
I solved it, but then when entering the position into my iPad app in order to produce the diagrams, the engine sprung up with the evaluation “0.0”. Oh.
First, the solution.
Examine all biffs makes this not too hard. 1 Rg7! is a natural biff to try, and also ‘examine all pins, nets and ties’ it is noted that the f6 pawn is pinned by the Bb2, so that after 1…Kg7[] 2 Qg5+ the queen can’t be taken.
2…Kf7 3 Qf6+ Ke8 4 Bg6+
a) 4…Nf7 5 Be5 again exploits a pin, now the Nf7 by the Bg6, and after 5…Q moves, 6 Bc7 and White mates by Qd8.
b) 4…Rf7 5 Ba3, take the bishop, and then mate after Qf7+ and Qe8.
The cook
Where is the cook? I will post it tomorrow, to give my readers impetus to try to find it for themselves.
FEN
2b2r1k/2pp2p1/3n1p2/2Q4p/8/3BPPR1/1B1PKP1q/8 w – – 0 1
allanbeardsworth 
Could you explain what a “biff” is? I checked the link, but didn’t see an explanation there. Thx.
Sorry, James, I thought it was on that link, but you are right. “biffs” is Purdy’s term for captures, but he uses it in a slightly more general term, of seeing what all potential captures are, even nonsensical ones. His slightly humourous, quirky, style is behind his use of this word. But well worth reading some of his books, because he writes with brilliance.
Thx!