I took my pocket chess set to the seaside to study my pawn endings.
I was hoping some beach babes would happen along and find me cool.
Alas all l attracted was a few curious seagulls and a stray dog that pee’d
on one of the Kings. Then the tide came in and washed the whole lot away.
And from the Summer of 2023 we go to December 1966 and the Boy’s Life Magazine.
This issue has the first chess column ‘Checkmate’ by Bobby Fischer. (page 87)
I must get that issue to do the Space Weightlessness Experiment (what ever that is?)
and Customising My Derby Racer is something I’ve been planning to do for a while.
All the columns Bobby wrote have been collected in a book.
I have read a few columns. They are warm, friendly. Keeping his young readers
up to date with his travels and his game notes are peppered with instructive advice.
(and no doubt adults started subscribing when they found out Bobby had a column.)
This weeks puzzle comes from the first issue. White to play and mate in four moves.
It is fairly easy and quite a good choice for a first column. Those new to solving
will try to mate with the Rook and Bishop (that by the way is a clue) and when
they keep mating in five moves instead of four they will eventually solve it.
I do not know who composed it. (does anybody know?) The Answer is below
Last week we looked at a few games where a player castled queenside and picked
up a Rook on b2 or b7. Here is a rare event. Black castles kingside with checkmate.
odogg - eloluis68 RHP 2013
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. a3 {Perhaps White wants to play a classical game a tempo down.} 3... Nf6 4. Nc3 {This is the Four Knights a tempo down except Black does not have Bb4.} 4... d5 {Black plays the Scotch Four Knights.} 5. exd5 Nxd5 {The move here (in reverse) is usually 5...Bb5 and White is playing a Black mainline.} 6. Nxd5 {But this is not good.} 6... Qxd5 {The Queen can only be dislodged if White plays the weakening c4.} 7. c4 {And there it is.} 7... Qd6 8. h3 {This time the waste of tempo is a bad move but White is already in trouble.} 8... e4 9. Ng5 Qe5 10. d3 {10...exd3+ is hard to resist but there is nothing wrong with.} 10... Be7 {Develop a piece with tempo. Good move.} 11. Nxe4 f5 {And Black wins a piece.} 12. Qf3 {Looks like White is having a bad day. The rest will be in silence till the critical part.} 12... Nd4 13. Qd1 fxe4 14. dxe4 Qxe4+ 15. Be3 Nc2+ 16. Ke2 Be6 17. b3 Rd8 18. Qc1 {And now Black sets up his idea.} 18... Bh4 {Covering the square g3.} 19. Ra2 Qd3+ 20. Kf3 O-O {Black castles Kingside with a mate. Quite rare.}
The Quickest checkmate with castles Kingside on RHP is in 11 moves.
Peterselie - Flagg RHP 2011
1. e4 e5 2. f4 exf4 3. Nf3 f6 {An odd 3rd move in the King's Gambit. Probably not very good.} 4. Nh4 g5 {4...Qe7 was the move here. Now the Black King goes for a walk.} 5. Qh5+ Ke7 6. Nf5+ Ke6 7. Bc4+ Ke5 8. d4+ Kxe4 9. Nc3+ Kxf5 {It is now mate in two.} 10. g4+ fxg3 {And now not 11.Rf1 mate that would be boring.} 11. O-O {Checkmate.}
A while back we looked that most successful trap on RHP.
There is a sister trap for Black which though not as successful numerically it has
it fair share of victims. One user ‘dicn168’ caught eight players with it last year.
Next we look at one of dinc158’s games, see the trap in action and then
we are treated to a typical Red Hot Pawn game. The last to blunder losses.
1. d4 c5 {Usually White plays 2.d5 than we get Benoni or Benko formations.} 2. dxc5 {Another common move here is 2.Nf3.} 2... e6 {And not the 'obvious' 2...e5, the traps needs the a1-h8 diagonal clear.} 3. b4 {3.Nc3 is safer. It's always dodgy delaying development to hold onto material.} 3... a5 {Already Black has the making of a comfortable game.} 4. c3 {White is blissfully unaware they are walking into a trap.. 4.Nc3 axb4 5.Ne4 looks OK.} 4... axb4 5. cxb4 {The trap has sprung.} 5... Qf6 {Very similar to the main trap with White which is 6.Qf3 aiming at the a8 Rook.} 6. Bb2 {As good as any move. White is losing a piece.} 6... Qxb2 7. Nd2 Qxb4 8. Rb1 {Careful...do not relax....play 8....Qa5 here.} 8... Qxc5 {OOPS!} 9. Rc1 {White has skewered the c8 Bishop.} 9... Qe5 {Possibly let the Queen go with 9...Nf6 then White is winning an expensive Queen.} 10. Rxc8+ Ke7 {It is now White's turn to play a blunder.} 11. Nc4 {Black can now play 11..Qc3+ 12.Qd2 Qa1+ 13.Qd1 Rxa2 and Black is winning.} 11... Qd5 12. Qc2 Nf6 13. Nb6 {This is another blunder 13....Qa5+ wins the b6 Knight.} 13... Rxa2 {Black has missed that White's next move...} 14. Nxd5+ {...is a CHECK! Black resigned.}
The solution to the Fischer column problem.
FEN
8/3k4/8/3K2B1/8/8/P2R4/8 w - - 0 1
[FEN "8/3k4/8/3K2B1/8/8/P2R4/8 w - - 0 1"] 1. Bd8 {1...Kxd8 2. Kd6 and 2....Kc8 3.Rb2 mate next move. or 2...Ke8 then Rf2 mates next move.} 1... Kc8 {1...Ke8 2. Ke6 Kf8 3.Rg2 mate next move.} 2. Kc6 Kb8 3. Bb6 {And checkmate next move.}
