White would like to Queen his pawn but if his rook moves black can take it with his rook.
Black would like to move his king towards whites pawn and then simply take it.
There is a way for white to win however.
It is now whites move.
Try to see a great move for white.
That`s it white plays 1.Rh8 allowing black to capture his pawn on a7 but then white can play 2.Rh7+ and capture the black rook on a7 after black gets out of check.
Originally posted by National Master Dale White would like to Queen his pawn but if his rook moves black can take it with his rook.
Black would like to move his king towards whites pawn and then simply take it.
There is a way for white to win however.
It is now whites move.
Try to see a great move for white.
[fen]R7/P2k4/8/8/r7/8/5K2/8[/fen]
That`s it white plays 1.Rh8 all ...[text shortened]... 7 but then white can play 2.Rh7+ and capture the black rook on a7 after black gets out of check.
this would be a teoretical draw if black's king were in the g or h-file. This trick, plus rooks activity, is the reason why you should strive to place your rook behind the passed pawn. (The farther the pawn up is the more squares there are behind it and thus the more active the rook protecting it behind becomes. The oposite is also true)
Pawns on the h-file are always harder to Queen although thats a nice trick. I recently had an nimzo game with the following endgame: ultimately black manages to draw even though white's king gets in front of the pawn and the white rook is covering the mating square. I cant even see a terrible move from white to go from 2 passed pawns up to a draw.
Could white have won from this position? I really dont understand endgames so Ive got no idea if white can force a win, if its a draw with best play from the start or at what point the draw becomes forced.
Originally posted by mathmo I recently had an nimzo game with the following endgame: ultimately black manages to draw even though white's king gets in front of the pawn and the white rook is covering the mating square. I cant even see a terrible move from white to go from 2 passed pawns up to a draw.
Could white have won from this position?
That's a notoriously hard to win endgame with the R and B pawns. In order to make progress white needs to sacrifice one of his pawns but if black knows his R+P v R basics he can make sure white can only progress into theoretically drawn positions. Only in exceptional cases can white win this, but this position is ideal for black, his R is well placed, so is his K and white's pawns have a long way to go.
Here's a pretty well-known example of the same endgame between Marshall and Rubinstein, San Sebastian 1911 where the ending is reached at move 50:
Mathmo I think the initial position you give is drawn, White cannot make progress, the Rook seems tied to the defense of a4 and the c pawn cannot make a safe advance either? Black's set-up is "ideal" with the King blocking c6 and the Rook relaxed behind the a pawn.
I guess I got lucky in the game as I wasnt aiming for that position but it just happened that after the all exchanges I came out with a draw. Thanks for clarifying that heinzkat and ill remember it for future seemingly lost positions
Daley endgame lesson
10 Oct '09 07:121 edit
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