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Problem of the Week
2007.11.18

Black to move and win

[need a hint?] [Solution] [archive]

1...Ba6 2.Qf3

Take the bishop, and White runs into a buzz saw; enjoy playing through the variations: 2.Bxa6 Qf2 3.Rxe3 Nothing else avoids mate: (3.Rg1 Qh4+ 4.Kg2 Qg3+ 5.Kf1 Qf2#; 3.Qg1 Qf3+) 3...Qxe3+ 4.Kg2 Qe4+ 5.Kg1 Be3+ 6.Kh2 Qh7+ 7.Kg2 Qc2+ 8.Kh3 (8.Kg3 Qf2+ 9.Kh3 Bf4 and mate follows.) 8...Bf4 9.Qg1 Qe4 10.Qd1 (10.Qf1 Qe3+ 11.Kg2 Qg3+ 12.Kh1 Qh2#) 10...Qh7+ 11.Kg2 Qh2+ 12.Kf1 (12.Kf3 Qg3+ 13.Ke2 Qg2+ and mate next move.) 12...Qh1+ 13.Kf2 (13.Ke2 Qg2+ and again, it's mate next move.) 13...Qxd1 Game over.

2...Bd3!

Black makes a "non-move", that is, he moves a piece without changing the nature of the position, save that now it's White to move, but White has a problem...

Zugzwang! White seems to have all the critical squares covered, and has only one problem - she has to move! Unfortunately for White, she has no "non-moves" to make, like Black did. Any move White makes reveals a weakness for Black to exploit.

3.Rc1

3.a4 Be4 4.Qf1 Qb2 Threatening to shift the queen to the kingside via b2-b7-h7. White has no defense, except to surrender massive amounts of material. 5.Qg2 (5.Ra1 Mate-in-five beginning with 5...Qb7) 5...Bxg2+ 6.Kxg2 Qxc3 White can safely resign here.;

3.Kg2 Be4 Oops!;

3.c4 Be4 Is this starting to look familiar yet? 4.Qf1 Qb2 Once again Black wins by threatening to shift the queen to the join in the kingside festivities via b2-b7-h7, to which White can only say - Yikes!

3...Qb2

3...Qxc1 4.Bxd3 gives White hope, though not too much.

4.Re1 Be4

Fritz here says that White's best is the sorry looking 5.Qxe4 but that obviously loses too. On the other hand, the only other real try is 5.Qf1 and that's mate-in-five, beginning with 5...Qb7 6.Qf3 Qh7+ 7.Kg2 Qh2+ 8.Kf1 Bxf3 etc. What's a woodpusher to do? Resign!

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