Solution to Problem : RB Wormald -1867

Here's the solution for the problem from last week...

Quite straightforward.

The Black King is practically in mate, and if the Queen was out of the way, f4 would deliver it.

So, the solution is to remove the Queen with Rxe2 ?

Well, no  In practical terms, ie in a game, that will work, although mate will take longer.

To solve in two, its simply Be4. No matter what Black plays, a mate can be delivered.

Be4 wins !

Problem : RB Wormald -1867

A relatively straightforward Mate in 2, courtesy of  Mr RB Wormald.

[3R1r2/7N/8/3pkPN1/3p2Kb/1pP2Ppp/4q3/1Br1Rb2 w - - 0 1]
White to Play : Mate in 2

Mate in two  [http://signalman90.blogspot.nl/2013/02/solution-to-problem-rb-wormald-1867.html]

DIY Blunders and Tactics 2

The New Year seems to have flown by, and good intentions, well, not quite fulfilled.

However, its never too late to catch up, so I took the opportunity of the overnight snowfall to look for some more ' home-grown' blunders and tactics...


Below, White has played what should be the losing  move, in Qf2 - f1.

Luckily for him, Black didn't play the sharp move, and a draw was agreed in a few moves.

What should Black play ?

Black to play

Solution  [  Rxg3 wins !  not so simple if white doesn't reply hxg, but Black still gets there ]

Problem : Greenwood 1867

Here you go...a problem from 1867, courtesy of a Mr W. Greenwood.

The original problem stated mate in 4, but in 2013 , a mate in 3 is also there ( thanks to Houdini for confirming it :)

Enjoy !

White to play
2B5/5R1K/4p1p1/6kp/4P2R/6P1/8/8 w - - 0 1

Mate in 4 [ 1. Re7 e5 2. Rxe5 Kf6 3. Re6 Kf7 4. Rf4#  ]

Mate in 3 [ 1. Kg7 e5 2.Bf5 gxf 3. Rxf5# ]

DIY Blunders and Tactics

I was looking at the Chess Cafe Books of the year nominations, and saw a new nomination, namely Tactics Time! 1001 Chess Tactics from the Games of Everyday Chess Players by Tim Brennan.

A quick search tells me that, probably, this is a book of tactics( er, technically, a Kindle )  taken from games of us amateurs, although its probably beefed-up/fleshed-out as well. [ I can't check it as I am not a kindle owner, so if anyone has it and can comment ? ]

This reminded me of what I started a couple of years ago, namely using Chess Assistant to find errors in my games and possible tactics.

So I did it again, and its quite fun !  I'd have to refine it, and spend some time looking at the results, but the initial run was interesting.

Here was an example of what I found,.  Its a typical sort of blunder that us patzers make, and similarly the type of simple tactic that we should be spotting !

White has chased the Black Queen, and has played b5. Black has just re-captured with the c-pawn.

In the game, White replied with Rxb5. Is this a good move ? If not, what should he play ?

White to play

Solution [ Rxb5 is losing !  There followed Qxb5, Nxb5, Rxc2 and White resigned. Better was Qb2 ]

Chess Cafe Book of the Year ?

That time of year is coming around again : 2012 will be assessed and categorised in all areas that we can think of, and that includes chess !

As always, the Chess Cafe site has put up the first batch of nominated candidates ( with more to come no doubt ).

Looking through the suggestions offered so fa,r I hope that an opening book is not selected.

I have no doubt that Watson's latest French Defence book is detailed and precise, but I would rather these sorts of awards showcased the less theoretical ( and obsessive ?) parts of the chess arena to encourage us amateurs to think outside the opening phase of the game.

Unless I'm allowed to include the original and excellent edition of  Martin Weteschnik's  Chess Tactics from Scratch,   I own only one of the current candidates, Tim Harding's detailed and  intriguing look at Eminent Victorian Chess Players.  

I enjoyed what I have read so far ( I started with Captain Evans, but then jumped to Lowenthal and Zukertort ) and would recommend it , but I somehow doubt it will win, being a touch too specialised.

Reviews of the Nimzowitsch biography (  Aron Nimzowitsch, Path to Mastery : 1886-1924 by Per Skjoldager and Jørn Erik Nielsen ) are resplendent in praise for it, so despite it being more history/biography than pure chess, I would give that a great chance of success, since it deals with a giant among chess players, and seems well on the way to being the standard work on Nimzowitsch's life.

The Hawkins book ( Amateur to IM )  has had many good reviews, and seems to offer a good mix for a winner, consisting of a good tale ( his progress to International Master and now Grand Master in all but name as he is rated 2507 at present ), plus how he did it by a focus on endgames : both feelgood and didactic !

In the same mould, I would expect that a similar book from Matthew Sadler, explaining his preparation for his "chess comeback" , will also appear as a candidate soon, as he is a very readable author, although I admit, I haven't seen the level of reviews that the Hawkins book has.

However, I suspect that the provocative and perhaps controversial Willy Hendriks offering ( Move First, Think Later ) may well grab the prize, even though it has already won the ECF award.

This is a book that has generated a lot of interest and discussion, as it seems to indicate that intuition probably plays a large part in chess than previously thought  ( although no doubt structured by a huge chess knowledge in the case of Grandmasters ! ).  A short opinion  is here, a longer one here.

For us lazy amateurs, this also appears to offer the ideal antidote to the 10,000 and more hours of work that we should put in to make master-level, but I have no doubt that amongst his anarchistic and provocative words, he will also tell us that guessing ( which is what my intuitive move would be currently )  is no substitute for the insight that hard work brings !

I'll have to wait until 23rd January and see what the result is !