White to play and win
S Lewis v R Rubin 1961
Solution
A nice puzzle again today, the main line relying on a tactic which is always nice when you see it, a double attack with the e pawn. 1 Qd7! Rc7 2 Qc7! Rc7 3 e7 and the game is over.
If 1…Qd7, 2 ed Rb8 3 Re8+ Kf7.
Black can't promote one of his queen side pawns- even if he played 2…Ra8 instead, so white slowly pushes forward on the king side, whilst black is always in zugzwang. He will never be able to benefit from Rb7 Rd8 Ke7 Rg8 since the rooks will then come off, and white will promote on the king side. Nice.
Posted with BlogsyWhite to play and win
L Bouah v D Gluckman 2005
Solution
After yesterday's poor puzzle, today's is more interesting. Particularly for me, since I often get in positions with type of structure, playing 3 Nc3 4 Nf3 5 Be2 against the Pirc; and at 3 min blitz, it is often easy for white's slightlest or advantages to fizzle away.
Not here: tactics come to the rescue, and once you see 1 Nh5+, the rest is easy. There are two ways to see it: Purdy's examine all biffs or his concept of jump-biffs, here Rd6-h6, so that the Pg6 is pinned.
So, 1…Kh7 or 1…Kg8, 2 Nf6+ Kg7
and here I wonder if my technique has improved over the years by watching all today's elite players, because rather than Reitstein's solution of Ne8+ and g3, which of course wins, but eases the pressure, I instantly thought of the meaner 3 h5, seeking to fix the pawns on the king side, locking black's bishop in after 3…g5.
The Re8 isn't going anywhere, and the mean, sly, h5 shows black the helplessness of his position. If instead black permits hg hg, then he has to watch out for Rd7 Bd7 Rd7 at some stage, pinning the Q and K- adding a tactical nuance to the position.
White to play: assess the position
L Bouah v D Gluckman 2005
Solution
Not a very satisfactory problem. All that is required is to examine each of white's many possibilities, and see that black either wins or has an overwhelming plus. On this occasion, I will leave it to the readers to look at as many lines as they wish.
Black to play and win
K Simpson v D Morschel 1975
Solution
Examine all biffs leads to 1…Re2 being examined, despite it losing the exchange to 2 Rf8. But then 2..Qg7 is a double attack on the LPDO Rf8 and Kc1 (by the threat Qa1+) and it is 0-1
White has nothing better after 1..Re2 so it is game over.
Black to play and win
JF De Beer v F Mentz 1982
Solution
Yet again, a Purdy motif review leads quickly to the solution. The white queen is tied to defending the Ne1, and since white's queen is in a net, the tie is absolute.
So 1..Qe5! and it is all over.
Black to play and win
NJ De Jong v D Morschel 1967
Solution
1…Re3+ is good enough, but 1…Rb3! is clearly better, giving white's queen the additional function of protecting the Ra1. 2 ab (2 cb Re3+ and mate next move) Qc3+:
and it is gruesome. 3 Qd2+ and, again, rather than the easy, winning, 3…Qa1+, first 3…Re3+ is mean.
White to play and win
M Rubery v JL Gluckman 1988
Solution
Fairly simple today. Following two of Purdy's maxims, first of all ignore the threat, and secondly examine all biffs, leads to 1 Bh6+! when it is all over.
If the B is captured, then 2 Qf6+ Kh5[] 3 g4 mate; if 1…Kh8, 2 Qf6+ Kg8[] 3 Qg7 mate; and if 1…Kg8, 2 Rg3+ Kh8[] 3 Qf6 mate.
Black to play and win, after white plays 1 Qg4? (and 2 Qg7)
D Friedgood v G Lawrence 1975
Solution
1 Nd2 would have been fine, as would 1 Bc5, in and in both cases the game would go on. But 1 Qg4 is a miscalculation: 1….Be3 2 Qg7 (better to play, as white did in the game, 2 fe and just at some stage retreat his queen) 2…Qg5! 0-1: if 3 Qh8+ Ke7 4 Qh7 Bf2+ is terminal, or near terminal- probably followed up by Qe5, Rh8.
White to play and win
B Nagle v K Selabe 1996
Solution
A nice forcing line. 1 Rh5+! gh 2 Rh5+ Kg8 3 Ne7+ Kf8[] 4 Rh8+ etc; or 2…Rh7 3 Rh7+ Kh7 4 Qh4+ K moves 5 Ne7 mate.
White to play and win
Black has just played Qf5*Pe6
E Van den Hoek v M De Wit 2003
Solution
Rather than the prosaic 1 Re1, when black can struggle on with 1…Qe1+ 2 Ne1 Rh6 with the idea of 3….Bd6, white can instead develop with tempo: 1 Bc4.
Black's queen is tied to the Nd7, so the Bc4 can't be captured, so 1..Qf5 2 Rhe1+ Be7:
When the neatest is 3 Rd7! again using the fact that after 3…Qd7 the king is tied to the Q, so 4 Bf7+! is 1-0.
allanbeardsworth 