White to move. How should White proceed?
Susan Polgar vs. Vasilios Kotronias (Corfu, 1990)
8/5r1k/1p1p3P/p1pP1p2/P1P3Np/KP5P/1B3pq1/1B2R3 w – – 0 1
Corfu chess tactic
White to move. How should White proceed?
Susan Polgar vs. Vasilios Kotronias (Corfu, 1990)
8/5r1k/1p1p3P/p1pP1p2/P1P3Np/KP5P/1B3pq1/1B2R3 w – – 0 1
Re7+ looks interesting: black has to play RxR, and then Bxf5+ Kg8. But then I’m stuck. Maybe that’s not right.
1. Bxf5!
if 1.. Rxf5, then 2. Re7+ leading to mate either by 2….Kg6, 3. Rg7+, Kh5 4. h7! and mate next move with h8Q#
or by 2…Kg8, 3. h7+, Kf8, 4. Rb7, and again h8Q lurks.
– if the rook does not tak, and black goes 1. … Kg8 right away, it continues with 2. Re8, Rf8, 3. h7+, Kf7, 4 Rxf8+, KxF8 and once again h8Q+ leading to mate shortly.
@TVTom: I would switch the move order and start with 1. Bxf5+ etc. Looks more forced starting with checks.
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Bxf5+…then lot of ways to mate
Must be B:f5 R:f5 Re7 Kg6 Rg7 Kh5 h7 Rf8 Nf6 and now either a) Kh6 Ng8 wins or b) R:f6 R:g2 again wins
Re7 Rxe7
Bxf5+ Kg8
h7+ Kf7 or Kf8
1.Bxf5+! Rxf5 2.Re7+ Kg8 3.h7+
1.Bxf5+! Rxf5 2.Re7+ Kg6 3.Rg7+ Kh5 4.h7
Kamalakanta
Bf5 is like a trumpet call. In this position, white must force the black rook off of the 7th rank for at least a move, and as far as I could tell, only Bf5 accomplishes this:
1. Bf5! Rf5 (Kg8 is below)
2. Re7 Rf7 (Kg8 and Kg6 are below)
3. Rf7 Kg6 (Kg8 is below)
4. Rg7 Kf5 (Kh5 5.h7 with # in 2)
5. Nf2 and white wins this easily as the h-pawn cannot be stopped, and there are no checks possible on the white king. At move 3 above, black loses even more quickly with both Kg8:
3. …..Kg8
4. Rg7 Kh8 (Kf8 5.h7 with # in 2)
5. Rd7 Kg8
6. h7 with mate on the next move.
At move 2 above, black loses still with either Kg8 or Kg6, but puts up more resistance:
2. …..Kg8
3. h7 Kf8
And, here, I spent a while working out h8(Q) which does win for white , though not elegantly, but I finally found a better plan with
4. Ra7 Rh5 (what else?)
5. Bg7! Ke8
6. Nf6 Kd8
7. Nh5 and black cannot stop the mate now. Or, at move 2
2. …..Kg6
3. Rg7 Kh5
4. h7 Rf8 (what else?)
5. h8(Q)Rh8
6. Bc1 and there is no way to stop both of the mating threats of Nf6 and Rg5- black is toast.
Finally, at move 1, black still loses with
1. …..Kg8
2. Re8 Rf8
3. h7 Kf7
4. Rf8 Kf8 (Ke7 5.h8Q with # in 1)
5. h8(Q)Ke7 (Kf7 is still mate)
6. Bf6 Kf7
7. Nh6#
A beautiful mating attack. It is easy to see 1.Bf5 as it appears to me that every other move loses for white, and quickly, but not easy to see some of the variations over the board.