Rook Ending Tragicomedy

The third rook ending in Thomas Engqvist, 300 Most Important Chess Positions (2018) sent me back into my database. There I found a game that went from winning to drawn to losing, and then I won on time when my opponent had a forced checkmate in three. It was a blitz game, and likely we were both seriously short on time.

White to move

Stripes,J. (1618) -- Internet Opponent (1573) [E91]
freechess.org, 08.01.2006

55.Kh1 Rf2 56.Rf8+ Kg3 57.Rxf2??

Throws away the game.

Black to move

57...exf2??

57.Kxf2=

58.Rf1??=

58.Rb3+-

58...Kf3

White to move

59.Kh2??-+

59.Ra1=

59...g3+ 60.Kh1 g2+ 1-0

Black lost on time.

Analysis Positions

White to move

White should win easily, but 56.Ra3?? allows Black a draw.

Black to move

Black has a draw.

Black to move

Black has a draw.

Black to move

Not 61...gxf1Q=

Rook vs. Pawn

The first rook ending in Thomas Engqvist, 300 Most Important Chess Positions (2018) is from a game that he won because his opponent did not know how to draw. I had an almost identical position in a blitz game twenty years ago with the same result.

White to move

57.Kb7??

57.Kd8 draws

57...Kd6 58.Ka7 Ra1+ 59.Kb8 Kc6 60.b7 Rb1 61.Kc8

61.Ka8 was worth a try, even though it leads to a faster checkmate. Maybe my opponent was hoping I could not checkmate with the rook in the time remaining.

61...Rxb7

Further exploration of my database revealed another instructive rook ending that should have been drawn. After my opponent's blunder, my play was near perfect.

White to move

47.e5??

47.Ke5=;
47.Kf5 a2 48.Ra7+ Ke8 49.Ke6 Kd8 50.Ra8+ Kc7 51.e5=

47...a2 48.Ra7+ Ke6 49.Ra6+

Black to move

49...Ke7

49...Kd7 is slightly better.

50.Ra7+ Kd8 51.Ra8+ Kc7 52.Ra7+ Kb6 53.Ra3

Black to move

53...Rf1+ 54.Kg5 a1Q 55.Rxa1 Rxa1 56.e6 Re1

56...Kc5 also wins

57.e7

57.Kf6 Kc5 still wins 58.e7 Kd6

57...Rxe7 White resigns 0-1

The second rook ending in Engqvist's book is a gem from Richard Reti.

White to move

Can you win with White?

Dancing Knight

The first problem in the Basic Test in Jesus de la Villa, 100 Endgames You Must Know, 4th ed. (2015) inspired my search for instructive positions with which to build a lesson for my students this week. Naturally, a few games in Chess Informant gave me what I needed. These are the positions in the sequence I used.

Black to move

From Van Wely,L -- Epishen,V, Ter Apel 1995, Informant 63/437

Black to move

Variation from the previous exercise.

Black to move

From Bronstein,D. -- Podgaets, M., Soviet Championship 1974, Informant 18/646

Black to move

My composition

White to move

From de la Villa's test. Can White draw?

White to move

From da la Villa's test. Can White draw?

White to move

From Eingorn,V. -- Beliavsky,A., Soviet Championship 1986, Informant 41/555

White to move

From Varga,Z. -- Dinev,D., Novi Sad 2016, Informant 130 Endings.