allanbeardsworth

A break, on my late father’s birthday, to show a day when Caissa smiled on me. It was only a 3-0 Chess.com blitz game, but only once in a life do you get to repeat a famous combination.

First, the scene setting:

allanbeard v Combinenerder, Chess.com 25/4/17: 3min Blitz

White has “something”, in the shape of Black’s exposed king and better development. I imagine there are better ways to play this, but 1 Ne6 hitting the Rf8 and looking at the Nf6; 1…Rf7 2 Ng5, threatening perhaps to check twice on g5; 2…Ne4.

White to play and win

Solution

3 Re4! fe[] 4 Nfg5+ hg (4..Kg8 is similar) 5 Ng5+ Kg8 (5…Kh6 6 Nf7+ forks the K and Q)

and now the denouement:

6 Qh8+!!, and White wins the ending.

Though in the game, Black ran out of time after Qh8+!!, which I hope startled him.

Question

I hope one of my readers can help. I “know” I have seen this pattern before, and I thought it was in a game of Petrosian, but I can’t recall it; and nor am I sure: I might be remembering a slightly different pattern. Help, please!

Another puzzle from Training with Moska, following yesterday’s. I recommend this book, despite the author’s slightly quirky style: he really does try to train his readers.

White to play and win

Study by Hermann Mattison, 1923

Solution

As yesterday, since the book is currently in print, I won’t publish the solution, and will leave it for my readers to solve (recommended: it took me half an hour, and I had to put the pieces on the board, but finding the solution was joyful), check with an engine (Komodo solved it more or less instantly) or, buy Viktor’s book.

FEN

8/8/4k3/8/1p6/3BP3/2K3Np/8 w – – 0 0

A break from my daily posting from the book Matni Udar.

I am always reading or dipping into chess books; typically dipping into one or two or more at the same time. Occasionally, some books make a bigger impression, and one that is currently doing so is Viktor Moskalenko’s “Training with Moska”.

The style is quirky, but “good quirky”: I like how he writes. I am presently on the endgame section, which includes many studies. Studies haven’t to date been “my thing” but several in Moska have really appealed. Here is one, and I will post another tomorrow.

White to play and draw

Study by Ramon Rey Ardid, 1926

Solution

I won’t give the solution, instead leaving it to the readers to solve for themselves (it took me a long while, but boy!, was it joyful to solve it). Or, put it into an engine: I did, to be able to print the diagram, and Komodo solved it in a blink of a transistor.

But did Komodo enjoy it as much as I did?

FEN

8/8/K6p/8/8/4k3/N7/8 w – – 0 1

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and mate Black

Hartston v Whiteley, 1974

Solution

A puzzle I’d seen before, maybe in my childhood, when Bill Hartston was at the forefront of British chess.

1 Qg8+ Rf8[] 2 Qg6+!

Qg6[] 3 Ree7+ Kd8[] 4 Rbd7 mate.

Hopefully Andrew Whiteley smiled at the prettiness of the finale.

FEN

2r1k3/pR2nr1Q/3q4/P7/3p1p2/P1p3P1/7P/4R1K1 w – – 0 1

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and mate Black

Hug v Huguet, Las Palmas 1974

Solution

A nice solution, but not too hard, given the back rank mate threat: Black’s king is in a net.

(UPDATE see the comment from my reader James Clark; he correctly points out the even stronger solution than I wrote up)

1 Qd8! and e.g. 1…Rd8 2 Rd8+ Nd8 3 Nf6+ forks the King and Queen, so 3…Bf6[] 4 Re8 mate.

FEN

3rr1k1/1p2bp1p/p1n3pB/3Q4/4N1q1/2P5/PP3PPP/3RR1K1 w – – 0 1

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and mate Black

James v Miles, 1974

Solution

I am assuming this game is a loss by Tony Miles, but the game isn’t in Megabase. Anyway, it is a fine finish.

1 Bh7+! Kh8[] 2 Nf7+ Rf7[] 3 Ng6+ Kh7 4 Nf8+ Kg8[] 5 Qh7+ Kf8[] 6 Qh8 mate.

FEN

2rq1rk1/1b1nbpp1/1p5p/p2pNB2/3p1N2/4P3/PPQ2PPP/2RR2K1 w – – 0 1

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and mate Black

Pytel v Haussner, USSR 1973

Solution

The LPDO Qc6 and the jump-biff Qf3-c6 provide the basis for the solution: 1 Rc5!!, and we see that Qa8+ is threatened, so Black is also in a net.

FEN

4k2r/4bp1p/p1qp1n2/3R4/1r3P1P/5Q1B/1PP5/2K1R3 w k – 0 1

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

White to play and mate Black

Karaklajic v Nikolic, Pristina 1973

Solution

The Nc6 is tied to defending a7, so 1 Qa5!!

1…Ne8[] to defend c7, when 3 Qd8+!! is a fine finish: 3…Nd8[] 4 Na7 mate.

The game is in Megabase, and is a nice example of an early Q sortie, grabbing a pawn, falling behind in development, being punished.

FEN

2k2b1r/1p2pppp/p1n2n2/1Np2q2/Q1P5/5NB1/PP3PPP/3R2K1 w – – 0 16

Another puzzle from Dragoslav Andric’s 1981 book “Matni Udar”.

Black to play and mate White

Dumitru v Kusmir, Rumunjska, 1973

Solution

Quite an unusual finale, but not too hard. 1…Qb3!

and since the Q can’t be taken, 2 Qc4[] Qc4 3 dc[] when 3…Rg8 mates.

FEN

rq6/8/4RP2/3QP3/2p5/2kP4/Pp6/1K6 b – – 0 1