Weekly Endgame Study (152)
17 January 2010, 12.00 CET | Last modified: 13:55 | By Yochanan Afek | Filed under: Weekly endgame study | Tags:
Every week we present you an endgame study selected by IM Yochanan Afek: player, trainer, endgame study composer and writer. A week later the solution is published. Good luck solving!
1991
White to play and draw
Next week the solution.
Solution last week
D. Gurgenidze
1982
Game viewer by ChessTempo
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Is a rook and a pawn enough to draw against a queen? I hardly see any way to stop the pawn.
The pawn alone should be enough to draw against a queen if you get it on the 7th rank, but thinks you are a couple of moves short.
Play for stalemate!
Problem is to stop the black pawn on e2. If the pawn an rook are traded then it is a draw due to insufficient material. 1. Rb7 won’t do it because of 1… Bc1, 2. Rb1, Kd1 and the pawn queens. On the other hand 1. Rh7 will draw for white because after 2. Rh1, the rook cannot be blocked and the pawn cannot queen.
It is not that easy.
On Rh7 comes Be3+ and black can play Kf1 and Bg1.
After staring at the position for an hour, I suddently realised that the way to go is 1. Rh7 Be3+ 2.c5!
@Willem – good point
@cak – I don’t see how after 1. Rh7 Be3+ 2.c5! Bxc5+ things are any better for white.