Is there a way to insert chess.com diagrams in posts or any chess diagrams for that matter?
Here are recent games where I don’t use the German:
chess.com/livechess/game?id=1041269732
chess.com/livechess/game?id=1022956916
EDIT: Wow! How did I manage to lose this one:
By resigning in a better position.
Instead of
… resigns
play
… QxR(h1)
RxQ (h1) RxR (h1)
KxR (h1) RxP (a3) (stopping an immediate e4 break)
Yes, you just gave up a queen for a rook, but you were already a bishop, knight and pawn ahead.
This line gives you K+R+N+B+6P (black pawns on c4 and h7 are passed) versus K+Q+4P (no passed pawns, the white pawn on b4 is undefended with two attackers and the white pawn weakness on d4 inhibits an immediate f5 break). Black has to worry about the back rank and the white queen, but white will have to hope for black errors to avoid losing.
Thanks. Yeah, on that last one, I didn’t analyze that much and just resigned because I lost a queen. It was one of those dumb 3|0 games. On that note. Are we sure this guy is rated 1700 while blundering away a piece in the beginning? Guess he didn’t see it. My weakness in that last game was me playing poorly and was waiting for him to resign. In other words, I was playing not to lose instead of playing to win.
EDIT: Do you believe it is even after 15. Nh4 Be4
EDIT again: Now that I look at it. White’s dark bishop might as well be a tall pawn…
After 27. Rh1, I did also look at maybe sacrificing my rook by 27. Rh1 Rg5+
You can try this site. You load the position in the diagram and it gives you a URL. You post that URL like an image link.
Hope that helps.
Thanks Enrique. So in this position, I believe … Rg5+ is great. What does everyone else think?
I would have probably played
I think black still has lots of play.
Black is won after both 1…Rg5+ or 1…Qxh1+.
Rg5+ leads to Kf1. The position is won for Black but why not just get it over with with Qh1+ etc? White will have reduced material and an even lower chance of holding the position than with Rg5+.
White looks to be in a worse material position after …Rg5+ (…Rg5+, fg Qxg5+, Kf2 Rf8, Qxf8+ Kxf8, Rh3) with other white options being worse (quick mate). However the two rooks and supported b4 pawn may give white more practical chances to hold it even with a worse material situation.
Black is clearly better after 1…Qxh1, etc. With only a Queen left, White appears to have no entry points or a means to create counter play. Therefore, no compensation for the material imbalance. The White b and e pawns are weak. Once the b pawn falls, it should be easy to shepherd the Black b pawn up the board. As long as Black does not allow White to get behind his mass of pawns, he is fine.
1… Rg5+ is a little messier, but also looks fine. White will hold on for a while with his two rooks, trying to support the pawns. Without doing a long calculation, I would think that this would take longer in time spent calculating and in moves to win than 1…Qxh1, though a human player would probably resign than suffer against the Queen and the minor pieces.
I may use this position as a lesson in move selection, calculation, and evaluation of the plusses and minuses of the position. This will test the kids technique in resolving an advantageous position without allowing or at least mitigating counter play. The position will also test their planning ability as opposed to pure tactics. The position is better for Black, but still a ways off from being absolutely won. There are still ways to mess it up.
It is a useful position for discussion. On the line with Qxh1 etc., white’s best best bet is Qg4, and if …Kf7 Qh5+ or … Nd8 f5. I’m not suggesting that white is ok in those lines, but it is at least a way to complicate. That said, that is probably what I would choose as white.
I think after…Rg5+ White is quickly toasted:
1… Rg5+ 2. Kf1 Rg3! 3. Ke2 (3 Rxh4 transposes) Rxf3 4. Rxh4 Rg3 5. Kf2 Rg6 6. Rah1 h6 7. Ra1 Nxb4 8. Kf3 Nc2 is a snap.
1…Rg5+ 2. fxg5 Qxg5+ 3. Kf2 Rf8 4. Qxf8+ Kxf8 5. Rag1 Qf5+ 6. Ke1 Bf4!! 7. exf4 Nxd4 White is getting mated or losing the rest of his remaining material - or both.
The suggested 5 Rh3 loses soundly to 5… Nxd4: 6. exd4 Qd2+ 7. Kf1 Qf4+ 8. Ke2 Qe4+ 9. Kf2 (9. Re3 Qg2+ 10. Ke1 Bf4) 9…Qxd4+
I think those looking at 1…Rg5+ aren’t realizing that Black can throw back a piece in the center for a mating attack, making the win easy, if not necessarily fast.
How did the lesson pan out?
Half of my students chose 1…Rg5+. All looked at 2.Kf1 and chose 2…Rg3. Against 2.fxg5, they won the White Queen after 2…Qxg5+ 3. Kf2 Rf8. These are the generally tactical players who like to play “kill the King” whenever they get the chance. The other half looked for a forced sequence to eliminate the White defenders. They thought that trading down made their remaining pieces stronger, especially the remaining rook. They found tricks for the knight if White played passively. These players are a bit more positional and have learned about restricting counter play. We have discussed compensation, prevention, and more endgame ideas, partly because they are a bit more advanced in age and skill. They liked having a puzzle where there was a material disparity to work on.
We played out the positions to explore different possibilities so that I could see their style of play, how much of the board they were looking at. For being ages 9 and 10, they played well. It was a good exercise for improving technique in winning a better position.
Nice to hear. Here is another game that might work. I played the Trompovsky. Black blundered at least twice in the middle and endgame:
TEST
White to move and win.
Is that “TEST” as in “I am testing the chess diagram site”, or is it “TEST” as in “This is a test. Try to find the right move”?
The solution is fairly easy.
Bill Smythe
I was testing the chess diagram website. The diagram was from an earlier thread, before I knew how to post a chess diagram.
Welcome to the ranks of those of us who can post diagrams!
The solution is:
[size=20]1.Rf8+ Rxf8 (or …Kg7 2.Ne6+) 2.Rxf8+ and then 3.Ne6+.[/size]
Bill Smythe
So, on this game below. Would you guys/gals have did a queen sac or move the rook. Black to move here:
chess.com/live/game/1041595088
This is also the final position in this thread: viewtopic.php?f=23&t=21194