Tuesday, August 2, 2016

A pattern worth remembering

@HowardStaunton does it again, this time highlighting a position from the current British Championships. (Link to Chess24.com.)


Mr. Staunton writes:
White has played with great skill, but here he by no means makes the most of his advantage.
White took a draw here. Can you see what he missed? Answer below the fold, in white font.

Answer: White missed a mate in five!  
33. ... Kg8 
34. Qg6+ Kh8 
35. Qh5+ Kg8 
36. Ne7+ Kg7 
37. Qg6+ Kh8 
38. Qh6#

I have to confess this one flummoxed me. The key idea (white font again: 35 Qh5+ keeping the Black king from escaping via f7) went over my head. I could say it's because I'm recovering from the cholera and the rabies and the plague (which is true enough), but I just missed it. So here it is for everyone else to NOT miss.

2 comments:

  1. White can mate by using the h5 square to keep the black K off of f7, and the N checks on e7.

    ReplyDelete
  2. Yep. I kept stubbornly keeping my queen closer when I was trying to find the solution.

    ReplyDelete