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      Home  >  Chess Improvement • Chess Puzzles • Daily News • Susan's Personal Blog  >  Checkmate in 4

      Checkmate in 4

      Chess tactic, Puzzle Solving, Tommy Polgar


      White to move and checkmate in 4.

      Puzzle created by Tommy Polgar

      8/kpPK4/4n3/1p1p2q1/2p5/2P1N3/1PNP1bp1/7R w – – 0 1

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      23 Comments

      1. laith Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 7:14 pm

        Ra1+ Kb6 ,,C8=N+ Kc5,, D4+ CxD4 (NxD4,,CxD4#) B4#

      2. Aditya Gautam Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 7:37 pm

        Ra1 + Kb6
        c8(Knight)+ Kc5
        d5 + Nd5 or c x d (en passent)
        b5 ++

      3. Francisco Assunção Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 7:51 pm

        1.Ra1+ Kb6
        2.c8=N+ Kc5
        3.d4+ cxd3
        4.b4#

        I love underpromotions 🙂

      4. CFDinCLE Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 8:32 pm

        Nice, just have to use the right sequence!

        1.Ra1+ Kb6
        2.c8=N+ Kb5
        3.d4+ Nxd4
        4.cd#

        or if
        3…. cxd (ep)
        4. b4#

      5. Anonymous Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 8:35 pm

        1. ra1+ kb6
        2. c8=N+, kc5
        3. d4+ cd-ep
        4. b4++

      6. hchavarro Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 8:38 pm

        1. Ra1 Kb6
        2. c8=N Kc5
        3. d4 cxd3
        4. b4#
        if 3…Nxd4 then 4. cxd4#

        Nice mate, congratulations for the boy.

      7. Anonymous Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 8:39 pm

        i think, it’s not too difficult:
        1. Ra1+ Kb6
        2. c8N+ Kc5
        3. d4+ cxd3 e.p.
        4. b4#
        3. … Nxd4
        4. cxd4#
        greets and happy new year, jan

      8. Anonymous Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 8:42 pm

        Two nice ideas I see in this problem: 1. minor promotion and 2. en-passant taking. However, the first move is not a ‘silent’ move, and so this is not a very sophisticated problem yet, but… it’s a good one and … may I ask, what’s Tommy’s age?

        Solution:
        1. Ra1+, Kb6 (only move)
        2. c8N+, Kc5 (only move)
        3. d4+, cxd3
        4. b4 checkmate

        Erik Fokke
        Amsterdam, Netherlands

      9. rhsatrhs Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 9:14 pm

        1. Ra1+ Kb6
        2. c8(N)+ Kc5
        3. d4+

        If 3. … Nxd4, 4. cxd4#
        If 3. … Cxd3 e.p., 4. b4#

      10. Anonymous Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 9:25 pm

        1 Ral+ Kb6
        2 c8=N+ Kc5
        3 d4+ cxd3 ep
        4 b4#

      11. Tom Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 9:39 pm

        Excellent puzzle. I especially like how a dual was avoided on move 3.

      12. Yancey Ward Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 9:46 pm

        Looks like the young puzzlemaker has a unique solution puzzle, as best as I can tell.

        1. Ra1 Kb6
        2. c8(N)Kc5
        3. d4 cd3 (Nd4 4.cd4#)
        4. b4#

        At move 3, white mates in 5 total by playing b4 first:

        3. b4 cb3
        4. d4 Nd4
        5. cd4#

      13. Yancey Ward Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 9:46 pm

        Tom,

        Me, too.

      14. Anonymous Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 10:31 pm

        Forced sequence Ra1+, c8=N+, d4+ and depending on black, b4# or cxd4#.

      15. zehn( frogdude) Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 11:00 pm

        The answer to this puzzle is
        1 Ra1+ Kb6
        2 c8=N+ Kc5
        3 d4+ cxd3( Nxd3) leads to mate because cxd3
        4 b4#

      16. ramon gamarra Reply
        January 2, 2011 at 11:18 pm

        ta1+,kb6,c8=N+,kc5,d4,cxd-ap,b4++

      17. Eric R Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 1:50 am

        Ra1+ Kb6
        c8=N+ Kc5
        d4+
        if …Nxd4, cxd4++
        if …cxd4, b4++

      18. Tom Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 3:25 am

        Since nobody else supplied the solution (up to the time I’m posting this):

        1 Ra1+ Kb6
        2 c8=N+!

        The only way to force mate in the required number of moves.

        3 d4+ cxd3

        Or 3 … Nxd4, 4 cxd4#

        Black takes the pawn en-passant, but now it’s not available to do the same to the b-pawn.

        4 b4#

      19. Anonymous Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 3:29 am

        Good puzzle. But if Timmy decided to become a chess composer, he whould remember that checkmate problems should not begin with a check.

      20. The Dickens Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 2:52 pm

        Timmy is Bob Cratchet’s son (Tiny Tim).

        Tommy is Susan’s son.

        BTW, a chess puzzle can have any form or configuration that is why it is a puzzle, not a game analysis.

      21. Anonymous Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 2:57 pm

        He’s 10 I think.

      22. Cortex Reply
        January 3, 2011 at 9:53 pm

        Okie…

        Challenge, Tommy: we are waiting for the Valladao theme:

        1) Castling
        2) En passant and
        3) Underpromotion

        in the same line…

      23. Anonymous Reply
        January 4, 2011 at 10:20 pm

        he turns 12 in march

      Leave a Reply to ramon gamarra Cancel reply

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