Tuesday, August 3, 2010

Chess Puzzle

Here is another puzzle to flex your chess muscles:


(Black, to move) played 1...Rxd4. His opponent, pondered, then offered a draw, which Black accepted.
Was White justified in offering a draw, and did Black act wisely in taking it?

Solution to the last puzzle:
If Black, whose opponent was the great player Samisch, expected Bxd6+ and exchanges, and a draw (since both Kings control both opposing Pawns) he was disappointed.
What happened was:
1.Rxd6 Rxd6 and now there is no hurry about recapture. Immediate recapture is automatism.
2.f6+! Ke6 3.Bxd6 Kxd6 4.c5+! and now one of White's Pawns will be uncontrollable.

1 comment:

Sean Coffey said...

There's also the (much less elegant) alternative: 3. f7 Rd8 4. f8=Q Rxf8 5. Bxf8, also winning (5. ... Ke5 6. Bc5).