Black to move. Is this a win, draw, or loss for Black? How should Black proceed?
2k5/8/2K4p/4p3/8/3P4/2P5/8 b – – 0 1
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Must know K and P endgame
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e4 allows the h-pawn to queen
Black wins with 1. … e4; it blocks White’s straight line access to h1 and gives Black the tempo needed to promote. Everything else is a matter of how White plays; here is an example.
2. dxe4 h5
3. e5 h4
4. e6 Kd8
5. Kd6 h3
6. c4 h2
7. c5 h1(Q)
8. e7+ Ke8
9. c6 Qh2+
etc.
1. … e4
2. dxe4 h5
3, e5 h4
4. e6 Kd8
-+
1 … e4
2 de h5
and the white king cannot stop the h-pawn because the white pawn is in the way as a result of the sacrifice on move 1
Good night, Mrs. Polgar.
A pleasure to see their problems online.
Seeing this problem I remembered one I made while trying to break up the king with his own pawns.
My possible solution (made without correction or assistance of computer time would be) =
1 … e4! White is forced to eat the pawn and then h5!! and the king does not reach the corner why one of his pawns is an obstacle.
I hope you forgive me for my English.
Attentively
David Kaufmann
This one isn’t so hard. The box defined by c6/c1/h1/h6 tells the story-the white king is as far away from the queening square of h1 as he can be and still be able to catch the black pawn. Black can push the h-pawn, but he will find that the white king can catch it in the nick of time by travelling the shortest distance along the long diagonal. So, to win, black need only block this diagonal for a single move to cost white one move. So
1. …..e4!
2. de4
Forced- otherwise the e-pawn will queen. Continuing:
3. …..h5
4. Kd4 h4
And white has three choices and they all delay the king one move-Kd3, Ke5, e5. I will analyze e4 and leave the rest as an exercise:
5. e5 h3
6. Ke4 h2
7. Kf3 h1(Q)
The only other line that matters is the one where white doesn’t try to catch the h-pawn and, instead pushes his passed e-pawn, but this won’t work as black can then take the time to play Kd8 and Ke8 if necessary:
1. …..e4
2. de4 h5
3. e5 h4
4. e6 Kd8
black can use an old trick to block the opponent’s king to queen first and win the game. it seems the white pawn is quicker, but the black king can stop it easily:
1. … e4
2. dxe4 h5
3. e5 h4
4. e6 Kd8
5. Kd5 h3
black queens. it won’t help white to change the move order.
if 2. d4, then black’s e-pawn wins the race. greets, jan
e4 wins for black !
e4 winning for black
1.-e4 and white can’t reach the h-pawn!
White’s in the square of the h-pawn so the naive rush to h1 fails:
1. … h5
2. Kd5 h4
3. Ke4 h3
4. Kf3 h2
5. Kg2 h1Q+
6. Kxh1
This suggests the sacrifice: 1. … e4 to put an obstacle in the White King’s path, but now Black loses the pawn race:
1. … e4 (threat 2. … e3)
2. dxe4 h5
3. e5 (3. Kd5 h4 wins) h4
4. e6 h3
5. e7 h2
6. e8Q#
Nevertheless, 1. … e4! wins. The Black pawn gets just out of range of the White King and then the Black King can stop the White e-pawn.
1. … e4!
2. dxe4 h5
3. e5 h4
3. e6 Kd8! wins
Tommy K. says:
This is a win for black. The key
move is 1…e4! as this forces
2.dxe4 blocking the a8-h1 diagonal
putting the white king “outside
the square.” The sequence will
go something like this:
1 …e4
2.dxe4
otherwise the e pawn marches to
promotion and a black win.
2. …h5
3.e5 h4
4.e6 Kd8
5.Kd5 h3
6.Ke4 h2
7.Kf3 h1=Q+ with an easy win.
If we don’t advance the e-pawn it
will block the white King’s path
to h1.
3.Kd5 h4
4.Kd4 h3
5.Ke3 h2
6.Kf2 h1=Q again an easy win.
White does have one tricky move at
move 3. By moving the King to d6 to
entice black into moving his king to
d8 which is unnecessary and wastes a
tempo and lets the white king back
into the square. Black should ignore
the king move a simply advance the h
pawn. Both lines to follow:
3.Kd6 Kd8
4.Ke5 h4
5.Kf4 h3
6.Kg3 h2
7.Kxh2 and white will win.
The correct play is:
3.Kd6 h4
4.Ke5 h3
5.Kf4 h2
6.Kg3 h1=Q and black wins.
I think it is a win for Black. 1… e4 forces 2.dxe4. then the pawn blocks the King from getting to the h pawn.
…d4 Black Wins
Actually, I thinks it’s 1…e4 and black will block the white king’s efforts to reach the h-pawn.
1. …d4
This move, even if white takes back, will keep the white king from getting “inside the square” as blacks h pawn high steps its way down to promotion.
It’d take 5 white squares for the White King to get to h1 (i.e., diagonally) and it’ll take the same number of squares for the black pawn on h6 to get to h1 as well.
So why not block the path of the White King with a black move of e5-e4! This forces white to play d3xe4 — thereby forcing the White King to make more than 5 moves to get to h1.
I think Ive seen something similar before. Black wins with e4! as white is forced to play de which blocks the white king’s path to stopping the h pawn while the black king can easily defend e8.
Sorry I meant …e4 Black wins
…e4 Black Wins
your meant 1…e4 blocking white king’s path.
you mean …e4 😛