Rook-pawn endgames

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14th September 2008, 09:46am
#1
by Hendrik77
Tallinn Estonia
Member Since: May 2008
Member Points: 87

What is you oppinion and experience in only rook-and-pawns-related endgames. Do they frustrate you or do you think it´s a good sport and educating?

14th September 2008, 10:24am
#2
by hicetnunc
Neuilly-sur-Seine France
Member Since: Aug 2007
Member Points: 3143

If you're talking about endings with R and pawns on both sides, I think they account for 50% of all endings in OTB games, so they are quite important and studying them is a must in any chess player education.

15th September 2008, 09:32pm
#3
by nimzovich
United States
Member Since: Jun 2008
Member Points: 531

When I started tournament chess, too many years ago, I typically loathed endings (unless I ahead by a ton of material.) As I progressed in chess strength (before I plateaued out Wink), I appreciated the necessity of endgame technique and experience, especially since such endings (rook & pawn) seemed to recur constantly.

At the start, studying endgames may seem dry, but the effort really paid off for me when I "stole" draws from lost positions and wins from drawn positions due to my relatively greater knowledge base than my opponents'.

I will make an unsolicited book suggestion for starting out rook endings:

Mednis' "Practical Rook Endings" (can be found at www.abe.com for $10-$15)

before graduating to

Emms' "The Survival Guide to Rook Endings."

17th September 2008, 10:12am
#4
by Hendrik77
Tallinn Estonia
Member Since: May 2008
Member Points: 87

nimzovich wrote:

When I started tournament chess, too many years ago, I typically loathed endings (unless I ahead by a ton of material.) As I progressed in chess strength (before I plateaued out ), I appreciated the necessity of endgame technique and experience, especially since such endings (rook & pawn) seemed to recur constantly.

At the start, studying endgames may seem dry, but the effort really paid off for me when I "stole" draws from lost positions and wins from drawn positions due to my relatively greater knowledge base than my opponents'.

I will make an unsolicited book suggestion for starting out rook endings:

Mednis' "Practical Rook Endings" (can be found at www.abe.com for $10-$15)

before graduating to

Emms' "The Survival Guide to Rook Endings."


 Thank You for suggestions!

17th September 2008, 10:45am
#5
by cuendillar
Stockholm Sweden
Member Since: Jan 2008
Member Points: 811

As opposed to just a few yers ago, I'm delighted to see them, as I'm comfortable in them and often win even when a pawn down. Confidence does a lot here. This holds well against players up to about 2100 (OTB rating). A particularly notable case is my old win again a player 787 points my superior, from a clearly inferior position.

21st September 2008, 06:12pm
#6
by Elubas
Buffalo United States
Member Since: Aug 2008
Member Points: 2161

I am terrible at these. They're probably the weakest part of my game. This may sound ridiculous but I often draw and sometimes even lose these endings when I'm up two or three pawns! They're much more complicated than at first glance.

21st September 2008, 06:49pm
#7
by LisaV
Tenerife Canary Islands
Member Since: Jan 2008
Member Points: 737

Short of hijacking this thread, I posted a game a while back in which I lost a rook-pawn endgame.  You might find the endgame and the analysis from others worthwhile.  :)

http://www.chess.com/forum/view/endgames/help-please--rookpawns-endgame-train-wreck

5th October 2008, 07:37pm
#8
by fzweb
Home Australia
Member Since: Dec 2007
Member Points: 737
hicetnunc wrote:

If you're talking about endings with R and pawns on both sides, I think they account for 50% of all endings in OTB games, so they are quite important and studying them is a must in any chess player education.


Definitely important. In this game my friend was playing, the game was down to a rook and king v.s. king endgame. He didn't know how to checkmate with the combo (LOL). He was lucky though...(the adjudicator gave him a win).

13th February 2009, 09:28am
#9
by aristeidis9
Thessaloniki Greece
Member Since: Nov 2007
Member Points: 3109

Rook and pawn endgames considered to be the most dificult endings,but i love them.Keres has write a book about endings and of course the man who played flawless the rook & pawn endings (and generally all endgames) was Capablava.

If you are interested for some studies about endgames you can find some interesting games about Capablanca at his group here

13th February 2009, 10:57pm
#10
by NM tonydal
United States
Member Since: Oct 2007
Member Points: 4007

I'd say both: they're frustating and good sport/educating.

Maybe (as aristeidis9 says) R + Ps are considered to be the toughest endings, but queen endings are always the ones that give me the biggest headache (all those checks!). That's when you wish you had Fritz built in to your brain.

 

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