The Philidor Position - Calculation Part XIII

"A pawn, when separated from his fellows, will seldom or never make a fortune."
- Francois-Andre Danican Philidor

Yesterday, we examined one of the rare examples of when the lone pawn made its fortune in the Lucena Position.

Today, we'll observe a typical example of a rook pawn endgame where you can force a draw with accurate play.

Much like the Lucena Position, the solution to the Philador Position is simple yet unintuitive to the untrained eye.

Take a brief moment to evaluate the position.

Black to move.

We are playing black in this position.
Both sides have a rook, but white has an extra pawn.

As Philidor would have said, the soul of this position is the pawn.

If the rooks were not on the board and either side was to move, it would be an easy draw, as we've discussed in detail previously.

But the rooks are on the board, and there's no obvious way to force an exchange.

The most intuitive way to attempt to force a draw would be to put your rook on the eighth rank and rain checks down from afar.

Unfortunately, white has a clever rebuttal to this attempt.

With some accurate play from this position, it becomes a clear victory for white.

Another common thought is to pin the pawn to their king.

There are many variations, but white claims victory when black fails to utilize the central theme of this position.

So the best idea is to force white to push their pawn forward by preventing any other valid option.

By forcing white to push their pawn forward, continuous checks become the winning (or, in this case, drawing) strategy.

So what can prevent the white from moving the king forward?

That's right, place the rook on the sixth rank and move it back and forth until he pushes the pawn!

If you want to practice a similar position, here's a link to an endgame simulator that can help.

Until next time, keep improving, keep learning, and most of all, enjoy every moment!

.

If you enjoyed this endgame study and would like to see more like them, share your thoughts on this position in the comments below and remember to follow me for updates on the latest content.

.

This is the thirteenth chapter in the series Calculation - From Opening to Endgame.

You can catch up or skip to any chapter that you feel would best suit your development here.

.

If you're looking for something a little different and want a little inspiration, check out Chess - A Love Story or How to Think Like a Champion - Improve Your Mental Game.