Hang on - this is fascinating!
I am going to contend that it is won for Black (which makes the earlier Kg5 a very, very bad move), but there are a lot of variations. I have worked these all out myself with a board and the PGNs here over the last two hours, so there may yet be a hole in the analysis.
First, White has an extra pawn he can use and thinks he has a win:
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| 1. | a4 | bxa3 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | bxa3 | Kd3 |
| 3. | a4 | Kxc4 |
| 4. | a5 | Kb5 |
So White must bring the King over, as greenpawn suggested, but can Black attack the two back pawns and win by promoting the b-pawn more quickly?:
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | Ke5 | Kxb2 |
| 4. | Kd5 | Kxa2 |
| 5. | Kxc5 | b3 |
| 6. | Kd6 | b2 |
| 7. | c5 | b1=Q |
| 8. | c6 | Qb5 |
| 9. | Kd7 | Qd5 |
| 10. | Kc7 | Kb3 |
| 11. | Kb6 | Qd4 |
| 12. | Ka6 | Qc5 |
| 13. | Kb7 | Qb5 |
| 14. | Kc7 | Kc4 |
| 15. | Kd6 | Qd5 |
| 16. | Kc7 | Kc5 |
I've repeatedly been through the a-pawn attempt we saw earlier, tried once the Black King is closer, and I don't think there's a draw for White. First, the race:
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | a4 | bxa3 |
| 4. | bxa3 | Kb3 |
| 5. | Ke5 | Kxc4 |
| 6. | a4 | Kb4 |
| 7. | Kd5 | c4 |
| 8. | a5 | c3 |
| 9. | a6 | c2 |
| 10. | a7 | c1=Q |
| 11. | a8=Q | Qh1 |
What about moving the King out of the way of that check, then advancing the a-pawn?
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | a4 | bxa3 |
| 4. | bxa3 | Kb3 |
| 5. | Ke5 | Kxc4 |
| 6. | a4 | Kb4 |
| 7. | Kd5 | c4 |
| 8. | Kd4 | c3 |
| 9. | a5 | c2 |
| 10. | a6 | c1=Q |
| 11. | a7 | Qg1 |
So can White just stay with the c-pawn and prevent it promoting?
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | a4 | bxa3 |
| 4. | bxa3 | Kb3 |
| 5. | Ke5 | Kxc4 |
| 6. | a4 | Kb4 |
| 7. | Kd5 | c4 |
| 8. | Kd4 | c3 |
| 9. | Kd3 | Kb3 |
| 10. | a5 | c2 |
| 11. | a6 | c1=Q |
| 12. | a7 | Qc8 |
So, White can't draw with the a-pawn attack (unless my fatigued mind has missed something?). What about delaying Black by defending the b-pawn?
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | b3 | Kb2 |
| 4. | Ke5 | Kxa2 |
| 5. | Kd5 | Kxb3 |
| 6. | Kxc5 | Ka4 |
| 7. | Kd6 | b3 |
| 8. | c5 | b2 |
| 9. | c6 | b1=Q |
| 10. | c7 | Qb7 |
| 11. | Kd7 | Kb5 |
| 12. | Kd8 | Qd5 |
| 13. | Ke8 | Qc6 |
| 14. | Kd8 | Qd6 |
| 15. | Kc8 | Kb6 |
| 16. | Kb8 | Qxc7 |
| 17. | Ka8 | Qb7 |
I have no other ideas for White - anyone?
Hi Robbie.
Yes I did manage to win a game but Keti got her revenge.
Hi chessicle
Never let it be said you cannot learn from games between under 1600 players.
And rest assured the hours you put in will pay dividends in your own games.
Your analysis looks good and the skewer trick in the 3rd game is very instructive.
But it does appear you have missed one cute move by White to hold the draw.
I blame Ernie for not showing the other lines. But it has made chessicle dig out
a set and board and do some graft. Excellent. Don't take nothing at face value.
For this fact alone that blog has been worth it.
Trust me chessicle the time spent was not wasted. You will be repaid in spades.
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| 1. | Kg7 | Kd2 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kf6 | Kc2 |
| 3. | a4 | bxa3 |
| 4. | bxa3 | Kb3 |
| 5. | Ke5 | Kxc4 |
| 6. | Kd6 | Kd4 |
| 7. | a4 | c4 |
| 8. | a5 | c3 |
| 9. | a6 | c2 |
| 10. | a7 | c1=Q |
| 11. | a8=Q |
Originally posted by greenpawn346 Kd6!!
Hi chessicle
I blame Ernie for not showing the other lines. But it has made chessicle dig out
a set and board and do some graft.
Aaaargh! But also, well spotted. 😳
I can't resist showing that Black's last attempt doesn't work:
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| 1. | Kb5 | a4 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kb4 | a5 |
| 3. | c4 | a6 |
| 4. | c3 | a7 |
| 5. | c2 | a8=Q |
| 6. | c1=Q |
There is another instructive little nuance, actually - Black could mess up by trying too hard to win:
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| 1. | Kxa3 | Kd5 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kb4 |
But White can nick the idea!
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| 1. | Kxa3 | Kd6 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kb4 | Kd5 |
There's so much in these simple positions, and I really wish I were better at working them out.
"I blame Ernie..."
You can't show everything; fascinating as it was, there was no place for what I posted last night in the blog. But I like Ernie, and I like to think I had something to do with his genesis - all that nagging paid off!
"...dig out a set..."
Just moved house; I've no idea where my nice wooden board and pieces are, but I did manage to dig out my Dad's old set, the one with the folded cardboard board which has almost fallen in two, and the little wooden pieces, and the knights whose heads fall off, and on which I very first learned to play this game back in the 1980s - haven't used it for years! Time to see if my seven year old or five year old fancy a game over the weekend, maybe...
Originally posted by SupermanIndeed - the King has to be close enough. I almost (almost) just accepted that it was drawn, but then I wondered if the King were close enough - and he was!
Great, I didn`t know there were exceptions to the king+bishop or rook pawn in the 7 rank VS queen draw endings, I just googled it and learned them, thanks for posting this.
Glad you learned something - I sure as hell did!
This position.
Is Mutual Zugzwang. Who ever has the move losses.
Of course all this has come far too late for....
Andrew6969 - masterfosse RHP 2010 Game 7296428
(As with most endgames on here it should have been all over in the Middle Game.
White has a stonking attacking, missed x amount of wins and lost.)
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| 1. | Rd3 | Rxd3 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | exd3 | Kxd3 |
| 3. | Ka5 | Ke4 |
| 4. | Kxa4 | Kd5 |
| 5. | Kb4 |
The correct way was for White to give up his pawn (he cannot hold onto it)
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| 1. | Kd3 | Kb3 |
|---|---|---|
| 2. | Kd2 | Kxc4 |
| 3. | Kc2 | Kd4 |
| 4. | Kd2 | Kc4 |
| 5. | Kc2 | Kb5 |
| 6. | Kb3 | c4 |
| 7. | Kc3 | Kc5 |
| 8. | Kc2 | Kb4 |
| 9. | Kb2 | c3 |
| 10. | Kc2 | Kc4 |
| 11. | Kc1 | Kd3 |
| 12. | Kd1 | Kc4 |
| 13. | Kc1 | Kb3 |
| 14. | Kb1 | c2 |
| 15. | Kc1 | Kc3 |