White to move. How should white proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
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White to move. How should white proceed?
Source: ChessToday.net
1Bg6 fxg6 night move mate to queen.
if hxg6 rook goes & position worsens
Thats a funny looking one…
Noticing that the queen has nowhere to go, so a knight on e6 = game lost, and after …
1. Bg6!
The Knight is threathening to take on e6, so the bishop needs to be removed somehow.
fxB is out due to the queen problem, so…
1. …., hxB
2. Qxh8+, Bf8
3. Rfd8 aso should win …
1.Bg6 !
1. Bg6 (if fxg6)
then Nxe6, winning a queen.
So, second move could be either 0-0 or hxg6
If hxg6, Qxh8+, up an exchange. Not necessarily winning, but still winning.
and if second move 0-0, then Bxh7+, with a strong attack. Not sure whether black could survive that though.
Bg6! yikes
Bg6!!
yikes
The shocking 1.Bf7!! homes in on the vulnerable f7 square and threatens to win material with 2.Bxf7+ Kf8 3.Nxe6+; or 2.Nxf7; or 2.Nxe6 trapping the queen. What can Black do?
1…hxg6+ 2.Qxh8 +-
1…Nxe5 2.dxe5 +-
1…Rf8 2.Nxe6! traps the queen
1…0-0!? (disgusting, but I don’t see how White can get more than either (a) an extra pawn or (b) rook and two pawns for bishop and knight, with 2.Bxh7+ Kh8 3.Bg6+ Kg8 4.Bxf7+ Rxf7 5.Qh8+ Kxh8 6.Nxf7+ Kg8 7.Nxd8) I’m probably missing something stronger here.
Bg6 looks very nasty and embarrasing for black. it threatens Bxf7+ and Nxf7.
1. Bg6 hxg6
2. Qxh8+
1. … fxg6
2. Nxe6 and NxQ next move
1. … 0-0
2. Bxh7+ Kh8 (Nxh7, 3. Qxh7#)
3. Be4+ Kg8
4. Bxa8 Rxa8
5. dxc5
there are many pleasant alternatives here, and i don’t feel competent to discuss them. it seems, this line wins two pawns and should be good, but there are also other promising ones.
greets, jan
Bg6
Bg6! The threat is Ne6 or Qe6 in the next move depending on the responses.
Ag6 seems good
1.Bg6! and if 1..fxg6 White wins the queen by 2.Nxe6.
1.Bg6! ..
And lost by exchange.
D4
ne6
This one’s difficult. All I can see is
1. Bg6 O-O
White was threatening Nxf6 getting the queen. Bishop can’t be taken due to:
1. … hxg6
2. Qxh8++
or
1. … fxg6
2. Nxe6 getting the queen.
Continuing
2. Bxh7 Kh8
3. Bg6+ Kg8
4. Bxf6+ Rxf6
5. Qh8+ Kxh8
6. Nxf6+ Kg8
7. Nxd8 Rxd8
8. dxc5
White’s material advantage should be sufficient to force a win.
However, I feel there is a mate there somewhere that I am missing.
My first idea is that this should involve the threat of Nxe6.
Next thought is: “How will black answer Bg6?”
1. Bg6
a)
1. … fxg6
2. Nxe6 catching black queen
b)
1. … Rf8
2. Nxe6 catching black queen
c)
1. … Qc7 (doesn’t prevent the initial threat)
2. Bxf7+ Kf8
3. Nxe6+ forking black queen and king
d)
1. … Kf8
2. Nxf7 forking black queen and rook
e)
1. … hxh6 (only move actually)
2. Qxh8+ Bf8 (Nf8 Qxg7)
White is nicely up with quality, black’s king position destroyed.
Oh, I forgot about the 0-0 line.
I suppose it goes:
1. Bg6 0-0
2. Bxh7+ Kh8
3. Bf5! Kg8
4. Bxe6 fxe6
5. Nxe6 Qe8
6. Nxf8 Qxf8
Whte has given 2 pieces for a rook+3 pawns
I lost time by analyzing 1. Qxe6 fxe6 2. Nxe6 (Sorry but I am attracted by the sacrifice of a queen). 🙂
The only good move that I see is 1. Bg6
After
1. Bg6 if fxg6 2. Nxe6 is decisive
Or
1. Bg6 O-O
Bxh7+ Kh8
3. e4
or
1. Bg6 hxg6
2. Qxh8+ Bf8
3. Qh3 and then try to open the center even if the position is not very clear.
or
3. b3 (Prevents 3… c4 and prepares the maneuver (for white) Nb2 – Nc4 or Nd3
White is better, but nothing resolutive.
Best regards
Stef
Hmm, I see I managed to substitute the illegal “1.Bf7!!” for 1.Bg6!! as I of course intended. Thinking ahead? No one seems to have found anything especially crushing after 1…0-0! Anonymous/jan’s suggestion of 2.Bxh7+ Kh8 3.Be4+ Kg8 4.Bxa8 Rxa8 5.dxc5 “winning two pawns” seems to win only one pawn after 5…Nxc5! 6.Nxc5 Bxc5 7.Rxc5 Qxd2.
I’d rather be an h-pawn up than an h-pawn down, but it doesn’t seem like a clear endgame win for White. It would be interesting to know the further course of the game.
With great respect for Yancey Ward, may I be permitted to do a Yancey Ward imitation this morning?
Staring at this position, I was immediately struck by the e6-square. I very much wanted to play Nxe6 as soon as possible, since (if there were no Black pawn on f7) the Black queen would be trapped, the other White knight controlling all of the Queen’s escape sqaures. But it looked as if there were NO TIME to play this move. I could move the White bishop Bc4 to attack the pawn on e6 a second time, threatening 2. Bxe6 fxe6 3.Nxe6, but Black can easily defend with 1. … Bd5.
Seeing no way to realize Nxe6, I took a look at Black’s pawn on h7. None of the captures on h7 (Bxh7, Nxe7, even Qxh7) looked any good, but I did remark to myself that after 1. Bxh7, the White bishop would be pinned, and White could not afford to move the Bishop subsequently to g6, to attack the lone defender of the e6-pawn. But then it (fortunately) occurred to me to question what would happen if the White bishop were moved to g6 immediately, 1. Bg6. Then it would be the Black h-pawn that was pinned!
After 1. Be6, White is threatening 2. Bxf7+, and the f7 pawn is overworked: it cannot take, 1. … fxg6, since then I could realize my heart’s desire to play 2. Nxe6, trapping the Black queen.
So far, we have:
1. Bg6 [threat 2. Bxf7+ followed by a subsequent 3. Nxe6, trapping the Black queen]
1. … hxg6
2. Qxh8+ Bf8
1. … fxg6?
2. Nxe6 Ne4!?
3. Nxd8 [NOT 3. Be1? Ng5!]
So, what are Black’s other options on move #1: what about 1. … O-O That prevents 2. Nxe6 and 2. Bxf7, but runs into 2. Bxh7+
1. … O-O
2. Bxh7+ Kh8 [2. … Nxh7?? Qxh7#]
Now, 3. e4, with the idea of playing 4. e5, attacking the defender of h7, looks promising. But this is going to be complicated, and would go beyond the scope of this problem, perhaps.
What else can Black play on move #1? I don’t see any real alternatives other than the 3 moves already given.
Great one! After 0-0, I like Bxh7, Kh8, Bf5, Kg8, then Nxe6!
At that point fxNe6 leads to a straightforward mate, and Qe8 ends up gaining at least a rook and two pawns for the knight, and that’s if there’s not something even sharper than just grabbing the rook
Hi Susan Polgar,
Nice puzzle -I couldn’t find short and crisp mate for white,so applied “Bg6” – Which leads to mate,variations exist – White wins the game.( There is even fewer move mate )
Example
=======
1.Bg6 f*Bg6
2.N*e6 Bd5
3.N*Qd8 K*Nd8
4.d*c B*c5
5.N*Bc5 N*Nc5
6.Q*Rc8+ K*Qc8
7.R*Nc5+ Kd8
8.Rf1c1 Be6
9.R*a5 Ke7
10.B*b4+ Kf7
11.Rc7+ Bd7
12.a4 Rd8
13.Rc7a7 Ke8
14.a5 Nd5
15.Ba3 Rc8
16.Ra8 Kd8
17.R*Rc8 B*Rc8
18.Rd6+ Ke8
19.R*Nd5 Bb7
20.Re5+ Kd8
21.b4 Kc8
22.b5 Kb8
23.b6 Bc6
24.a6 Ka8
25.Re7 Bb5
26.a7 Bc4
27.Bc5 Bb5
28.Rf7 Be8
29.Rf8 Kb7
30.R*Be8 h5
31.Rb8+ Ka6
32.a8(Q)+ Kb5
33.Qd5 g5
34.Ba3+ Ka4
35.Ra8++ Mate.
White wins the game.
By
Venky [ India – Chennai ]
Oops! I missed RxN in my post, which makes 0-0 a “little” better…looks like 0-0 leads to white giving up knight and bishop for rook and either two or three pawns, and should win.
Makes me wonder if an early hxBg6, which drops the exchange but potentially ties up the white queen while leaving more pieces on the board, isn’t the “less bad” alternative for Black?
Castles queenside!!