Kupreichik-Sveshnikov
USSR 1985 Black to play
1. . . . f5?
With 1... Wf8! Black can hold the a-pawn on the fourth rank: 2.
We3 We7 3. Wd3 Wd6 4. Wc4 Wc6 5. Wb4 Wb6, and with his � free Black has excellent winning chances.
2. we3 �r7 3. �d3 �e6 4. wc4 f4
The Black � is too slow (4 ...
Wd6 5. �b4) so he uses his is.
5. Wb4 a a8
6. as! e4 7. a6! we5 8. Wc3!
White threatens to use his greater � mobility and eliminate
is via 9. �a5t and 10. Wd4.
8. . . . f3!
9. gxf3 exfJ 10. �d2 �f4 1 1. a7!
White draws. E.g., I I... g5 12.
We 1 Wg3 13. Wfl ( 13 ... Wxh3 14.
Wf2 g4?? 15. � h l =It) or I I... wg3 12. �gl t and 13. �xg7.
Pat: Why do I think there's another "but" coming up?
Noah: You're right. "But" he spends a tempo on pushing his own f- ! and that costs a tempo.
White uses the tempo to break the a5-blockade and tie up the black t=! -not the
�-on the a-file.
Pat: And that means what?
Noah: That means a mismatch on the �-side where Black's lone W is trying to fight two mobile pieces without the benefit of his t=! .
Pat: Black is even in danger of lOSing in Diagram 141.
Noah: Deservedly. He com
mited the sin of taking too long to use his W-and in an endgame that's often a mor
tal sin.
Pat: Seems like there are al
ways mismatches in .§ + ! endgames.
Noah: Naturally. One of the most common themes is shown in Diagram 142.
White's b-t , with the sup
port of � and 11, must win a
� on the * .. side. Black's � is no match for three enemy units.
Pat: But if he'd played accu
rately?
Noah: Then there would be a balancing mismatch on the W-side. Black's <if? would cre
ate at least one passed t that would eventually cost White his � .
But he lost a vital tempo-in fact, he lost three tempi-with his faulty � -move.
Knowing when to reposi
tion your � -from in front of a t to the side of it or behind it-is one of the most subtle skills in rookdom.
Diagram 143 is a fine illus
tration.
Short-Speelman
Hastings 1987-88 White to play
1. . • • � e6??
With 1... a e8 2. b7 a b8 Black can draw because by the time White plays rtIa7 (and forces ... axb7t) he will have created an equalizing passed i on the other wing.
2. b7 Resigns
Because now 1... a a6t 2. rtIb2!
ab6t 3. a b3 axb7 is forced, after which Black is three tempi behind the previous line (4. axb7 rtIf6 5. �c3 h5 6. �d4 g5 7. �e4).
Pr. Nikolic-Vaganian
Lucerne 1989 Black to play
1. • • • .B: a2t
Here 2. '1t>d3 § xg2 is hopeless for White.
zwang which would occur after 9.
Wd3 Wd5.
Pat: Looks drawish to me since
�xg7 can't be stopped.
Noah: True, but Black can re
position his � just in time.
Pat: Behind the a-i ?
Noah: Ideally, yes. But it can go to c5 if needed, as in the 3.
� as line in order to free the t; so it can chase the white � from its best square, as.
Pat: So both �s get shifted, Black's during moves 1-4 and White's during 6-S. And White gets back just in time.
Noah: But the difference in
� s in Diagram 144 is termi
nal. White' s � is almost out of moves and space, and he can only pass with his t;.
It's entirely appropriate that Black finishes off with another repositioning of the � -from the a-file to the third rank.
Pat: So sometimes the � is the star of the endgame and some
times the t; is.
Noah: But ideally they should coordinate-as they do after
13 .. . � d3! in this case.
"Always put the Rook behind the pawn • • . Except when it is incorrect to do so. "
-Siegbert Tarrasch
Pat: So when doesn't the � belong behind the t ?
Noah: When it can be more useful on a rank, as in Dia
gram 145. White spoiled his chance to advance in the world championship
elimina-tions by following the old cliche.
Pat: I don't get it. What can possibly be wrong with 1.
�al?
Noah: The a becomes a pas
sive bystander on al once Black blockades on as.
But on e4 it would have kept the e- t under attack, creating the possibility of a
<&>+ t vs. a mismatch on the 'l!J-side.
Pat: I guess a � isn't that much stronger than a <&>.
Noah: As I mentioned earlier, when we were talking about mismatches, usually a � can
not stop a tJ from advancing a nearby t . But there's a big exception.
Pat: Let me guess. It happened in Diagram 146.
Yusupov-Timman Candidates Match 1992
White to play
Mter 1. a e4! White's W reaches the 'It-side decisively, e.g., 1... <lifS 2. a eSt and 3. a5 or 1... <lie7 2.
<lie3 \ftd6 3. �d3 and 4. <lic3.
I . .§ al?? .§ a51 2. we3 e51
And Black draws, e.g., 3. fxeSt
<lixeS 4. \ftd3 \ftdS S. �c3 �c6 6.
<lib4 a eS and ... <lib6 followed by a checks.
The game actually went3. <lie4 exf4 4. \ftxf4 <lie6 5. <lie4 g51 and was eventually drawn.
Adams-Dreev
Dehreczen 1992 White to play
1. a h5!
The only try. Otherwise 1... �f7 guarantees Black the drawn Phil
idor position.
1. • • . a d8!
The seemingly "more active"
1... � d 1 2. � fS � h l t?? allows the 1 to advance decisively (3. �gS
�g1 4. WhS � h l t S. Wg6 and 6.
gS).
If the pawn reaches the fifth, White can force Lucena. E.g., 2 ...
�d4?? 3. WhS � d8 (too late) 4. gS
� h8t S. �g6 �g8t 6. Wh7 and 7. Noah: Yes, this decided a
cru-g6. cial match in a European
2. a f5 a h8t Team Championship. Hours
Now 3. Wg3 �g8! keeps the 1
back, and 4. �f4 �f8! leads into ofadjoummentanalysiswere
what happened. rewarded when the diagram
3. �g5 ag8t was reached.
4. �f4 a fB! White wins if he gets the t 5. axf8 Draw to the fifth supported by his
Black keeps the crucial opposi- � while the black � is not in
tion after S ... �xf8 6. �gS wg7 7.
the ts path. But Black stops
�fS Wf7.
" • • •
the checking distance only applies to a Rook
· fi t "
In ron
• • •GM Tall
that because he has the
"checking distance."
Pat: What's that?
Noah: It's a device that en
ables a � to prevent a �
supported t from advancing by checking the � from in front of the t .
If the enemy t is no further than the fourth rank, as it is here, there's plenty of room in front of it for a � to check and keep the enemy � from
supporting the t 's advance.
Bear in mind the checking distance only applies to a � in front, not in back as in 1 . . .
� dl.
Pat: The problem for me is that all these positions look alike.
Noah: Same for most of us.
Even the great authorities on the endgame get mixed up, as in Diagram 147.
Pat: Who played this?
"The simplest Rook
endgames contain a lot oJ surprising little
secrets. "
-Mikhail Botvinnik
Noah: No one. It's a study by a famous composer named Nikolai Grigoriev.
He showed that White can win-even though Black has
"the distance" -by cleverly seizing the a-file for his W's approach.
Pat: So?
Noah: What he missed is the main distinguishing feature of the position: That Black's W is cut off by rank, not just by file. So 1. � h5 wins much faster.
Pat: So much for the great Grigoriev.
Noah: Worse than that. The same study was used in the most respected book on the subject, RookEndings, by Lev
enfish and Smyslov-with no mention of 1. � h5.
White to pllly
1. � c6?! a b8 2. �a6?! �d5 3. �a4 wc4 4. � c6t Wd5 5. b5 � a8 6. �b4
And White wins.
But 1. !! h5! makes 2. b5! un
stoppable and therefore saving a bit of time and energy.
Even 2. !! c5 and 3. !! h5 wins faster than the book line.
Yudasin-Zlotnik
Ponfirrada 1992 White to play 1. � b8!
148
Much better than 1. � b4 � xg3 2. �xa4 which prevents the white
� from holding up the g- i's ad
vance (2 ... g4!).
1. • • • Kg6
Mter 1... � xg3 2. Wxa4 g4 3. c4
�fJ 4. �g8! the � slows the g- i while White promotes on the other wmg.
2. � c8! �f7 3. c4 �xg3t
Otherwise 4. Wxa4 wins as in
the last note. two pieces to fight the connected
is. moves that work in every t!
ending?
Noah: I'm afraid not. Chess isn't a multiple choice test.
White's task in Diagram 148, for instance, is quite hard
even though he not only has an extra t but has the better placed t! .
Pat: But doesn't Black's t! get in the way on the g-file?
Noah: Yes, and thanks to his accurate first two moves, the long-distance white t! is able to make a crucial transfer.
Pat: Where?
Noah: At move 7. The t! can
not get to g8 where it would
slow the march of the enemy t . So it goes to d3 where it cuts off the black � from the
�-side and still slows the g
t .
Pat: And that's it?
Noah: No, there's one more subtlety at move 9. But there it's just another case of keep
ing the t! more active than Black's.
Pat: I'm getting confused by where or when the t! be
longs.
Noah: No surprise. The role of the t:! may constantly change in the course of an ending.
In Diagram 150 Black cor
rectly places his t:! on d5, where it cuts off the white � from the -(t-side and tries to immobilize the enemy t:! by tying it to the defense of the c5- i .
Pat: So White trades is.
Noah: And makes a fine trans
fer with 4. t:! a3. The t:! can W-side singlehanded against Black's only source of coun
terplay-an attack by his <it and is.
Pat: What is Black's t:! doing in the meanwhile?
Noah: It was correctly used to prevent the W and i (S ...
t:! as!) from advancing.
Pat: But it looks like he missed something later.
Noah: Something big. In Dia
gram 151 he could have pen
etrated along the d-file-an active plan. Instead, he kept his t:! flexible-yet passive-on as. This allowed White to use his � and t:! to advance the i to the fifth rank.
Pat: And Black's only chance was to find an entry on the �-side for his W to gobble is.
Noah: A good plan but easily stopped by White. It may seem like magic that White makes progress in moves 16-21 and Black doesn't. 3. �e2 and White makes progress).
2. � a6 �xc5
This gains checking distance to stop the threatened 9. �b3 § b5t
15. as h4 16. Wa4 Wf4
Not 16 ... g4 because of II hxg4 fxg4 18. � h5.
17. � c4t We5 18. �b4! Wd5 1 9. � b5t We4 20. �b6
Clears the way for 21. a6. Now 20 ... g4 again allows 21. hxg4 fxg4 22. � h6.
20. . . . �4 21. a6 g4 22. waS
But 23. � b4t! kills the idea 22. • • • g3 23. �b4t! We5 24. fa
Black resigned after 24'M f4 25.
E!e4t WfS 26. �e2 and 27. <;t'b6.
Pat: Not magic, just tactics.
Noah: Well, to quote a wise
"Good is
-Vasser Seirawan
Once White had tactically killed off all counterplay his opponent threw in the towel.
Pat: Does the defender have to be just as flexible?
Noah: Sure. He usually has even more useful things he can do with his t! than the player with the advantage.
Pat: I don't see that at all.
Noah: Try Diagram 153 on for size. You tell me what should happen.
Pat: Okay. First Black tries-to and two connected is against a mere �.
Pat: But White crosses him up with 3. � b6t, which cripples both the � and i .
Noah: And what else does that do?
Pat: It forces Black to use his
� to break the b6-blockade.
Noah: Right again. Once the blockade is broken the W can return to the W-side.
Pat: Then White can win if he cuts off the black � with his
� .
Noah: But notice how differ
ently Black uses his � . At
move 10 it swings back to provide a bridge for the � to
fl.
As usual the defender' s � is best stationed in front of the enemy is. And that frees the black � for one last duty.
Pat: I see. The checks along the b-file. White can't take his own � away from the first rank or Black queens.
Noah: And if and when he removes his � far from checks, Black attacks the �
side pawns with his � , creat
ing a final mismatch.
Pat: Aren't there any kind of general rules that you can learn instead of trying to re
member all these key posi
tions?
Noah: Hmmm. There is one mildly useful rule for � + i
endgames. But almost no one west of Kiev and south of a 2400 rating knows it: the Rule of Five.
Dvoiris-Novikov
Polanica Zdroj 1989 Black to play 1. . . . �g8!
Mter 1... bS? 2. � b2! Black's � is immobilized and he loses (2 ...
<IIe6 3. g4 <IId6 4. <IIg3 <IIcS 5. h4
� gS 6. gS ,&>c4 7. �g4 b4 S. hS-a
<IIf6 White can be stopped.
3. • • • 'It'e5
Not 3 ... '&>g7? 4. g4 and Black is
fatally passive, or 3 ... <ligS 4. g4
<lif4 5. '1t>g2.
4. g4 \fld5 5. g5 \flc5 6. abl b5 7. h4 \fld6 8. \flg3 b4 9. h5?
The last chance for a win was the cutoff, 9. � e l !. If9 ... b3 10. hS b2, then I I. h6! b l='/t 12. �xb l
�xb l 13. h 7 � h l 14. g6 and queens.
9. • • • \fle7
10. an! af8!
Not 10 ... b3 I I. h6 b2 12. h7
b l='/t 13. � xb l � xb I 14. h8='/t or, 12 ... �h8 13. g6.
1 1. � elt
Of course, I I. � xf8?? loses the
<Ii+ t race.
1 1. . • . \flO 12. g6t \flg8 13. \flg4 b3 14. \flg5 � b8!
And the game was drawn after
15. h6 � b5t 16. <liffi � b6t 17.
<lif5 � b5t 18. <lie4- b2 19. �d4-!
(mate threat) � b8! 20. � b 1 � b6!
21. '1t>c3.
Pat: Never heard of it.
Noah: It applies only to end
ings with one t . The rule states:
RULE OF FIVE