...was ruined by some idiot insisting he gets into the picture.
(inspired by Gary Larson)
The best problem in the world has been ruined. Try this. White to play and win.
I do not know who composed this one. It contains a pattern worth knowing.
Be careful, White has eight legal moves, seven of them lose!
The solution is at the bottom. First I’ll show how not to do it.
[FEN "8/1Pk5/P7/2P5/5p1p/6p1/6K1/8 w - - 0 1"]
1. c6 {Looks Ok but...} 1... Kb8 {...White is now in zugzwang. Everything move loses.} 2. Kg1 {Pushing either the a-pawn or the c-pawns and the Black King just takes it.} 2... h3 {Here the three pawns easily beat the White King.} 3. Kf1 h2 4. Kg2 f3+ 5. Kh1 f2 6. Kg2 h1=Q+ 7. Kxh1 f1=Q {Mate. That must have given you an idea. Now start again and solve it.}
I’ve mentioned before that I think it is unreliable for a recognised strong player
to recommend a modern chess book as being good for the up and coming student.
My stance, albeit slightly tongue in cheek, is ‘how do they know - they are already
strong players and it was not because of the book they are reviewing and suggesting.’
Having said that, I can mention a recent (published 2005) book that I know if I had
read it when I was starting out it would have made me a better player. But would I
have enjoyed myself so much? In my good days I was breaking most of the rules the
author, Jonathan Rowson warned his readers about, especially the part about playing
a combination I knew was unsound hoping my opponent would not spot the refutation.
This book came out 35 years too late. Another Rowson chapter is entitled; ‘Which
Myth Are You Playing By?’ This book is for cool Zebras. not laughing Hyenas like me.
I’m still turning the James Macrae Aitken games into PGN format. Every now and then
a game pops up that contains an instructive point. Take this next game, it is ticking over
nicely when White makes one plausible pawn move which unleashes tricks and tactics.
The culprit is the f-pawn. This is what Jonathan has to say about moving your f-pawn.
M Staples - J. Aitken, West England Championship 1972
1. e4 e5 2. Bc4 Nf6 3. d4 exd4 4. Nf3 {4...Nxe4 is playable as is 4...Nc6. Black develops and preps castling.} 4... Bc5 {5.e5 d5 and theoretically Black comes out the opening OK} 5. O-O {Black usually castles here or plays 5...d6.} 5... d5 {Black takes a positional risk to create opening problems.} 6. exd5 O-O 7. Nxd4 c6 {Black has the space and activity. White will have play v the IQP} 8. Bg5 cxd5 9. Bb3 Nc6 10. Nf3 Be6 11. Nc3 d4 {Aggressive play by Black. White could have recovered his minor edge with 12.Ne4.} 12. Bxf6 Qxf6 13. Ne4 {But this OK. Black's forceful play looking for a major error is not working.} 13... Qf5 {When playing v an IQP you chop wood and work on the lone pawn.} 14. Bxe6 {14,Nxc5 is better. Black can use that half open f-file.} 14... fxe6 15. Re1 {White has plans of Ne4-g5 going for the e6 pawn.} 15... Bb6 {Black would have been surprised to see he still had this Bishop on the board.} 16. Qd3 {Back to plan 'A' gang up on the IQP.} 16... Ne5 {I'd have played 17.Rad8 first.} 17. Nxe5 Qxe5 18. Ng3 Qf6 {Now 19.Ne4 and Re2 etc Black will need an error to get on the scoreboard.} 19. f3 {There it is! All the tricks that now happen result from this one move.} 19... Rac8 {Careful. Black has a threat here.} 20. Re4 {Obviously planning Rae1 etc but White has missed....} 20... Rxc2 {The two move trick rules. 21.Qxc2 d3+ is 0-1.} 21. Rae1 {19.f3 allowed the c2 pawn to fall and that pawn was protecting the White Queen.} 21... Qg6 {Pinning the e4 Rook. White's dream of hitting e6 has tactically stalled.} 22. Qb3 {White tries to solve his problems tactically but the d-pawn now decides the game.} 22... d3+ 23. Kh1 d2 {The Black d-pawn is the star of the show.} 24. Rd1 Rc1 {25. Rxe6 Rxd1+ 27.Re1!+ puts up a fight but 25.Rxe6 Qf7! wins a Rook.} 25. Nf1 {White has everything under control..Yes!} 25... Qxe4 {No! White resigned. The end is:} 26. fxe4 {In this game the f-pawn cannot even get away with taking a Queen.} 26... Rxf1+ 27. Rxf1 Rxf1
As expected the are thousands of RHP examples featuring the trigger happy f-pawn.
capaverde - Juca RHP 2021
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 h6 {Not needed and as this game pans out, an infectious waste of time.} 4. d3 Bc5 5. a3 {An easily countered threat (4...d6) or is it to stop Bb4 after Nc3. Either way a waste of a move.} 5... Nf6 {White could have now played b4 and b5 wining the e-pawn,} 6. Nc3 {It appears 5 a3 was to stop Bb4 and Bxc3 and not a masked threat to the e-pawn.} 6... O-O 7. h3 {To stop Bg5 after white castles. No White has another idea.} 7... d6 8. Nh2 {Is it g4-g5, then Ng4. 0-0-0, Rg1 etc...} 8... a6 {Of all the played pawn to rook three's this is the most sensible.} 9. O-O {White has either ditched the 0-0-0 idea. due to b5 and b4 or forgotten about it.} 9... Nd4 10. f4 {And there goes the forlorn f-pawn Rowson warned us about. 10.Nf3 was OK.} 10... Ne2+ {That is a double check.} 11. Kh1 {Only move.} 11... Ng3 {And that is checkmate.}
*** SOLUTION ***
[FEN "8/1Pk5/P7/2P5/5p1p/6p1/6K1/8 w - - 0 1"]
1. b8=Q+ {This is the only way to win. Every other moves losses.} 1... Kxb8 2. c6 {2...Kc7 3. a7 and 2...Ka7 3.c7. Black is reduced to pawn moves.} 2... h3+ {2...f3+ 3.,Kxf3 ending the same way as in the game.} 3. Kxh3 f3 4. Kxg3 f2 5. Kxf2 {And either the a-pawn or the c-pawn promotes.}
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