Q v Q and P End game Yucca

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Avatar of yucca

Here's an ending I messed up recently.  (Probably messed up plently of other parts of the game game too!)

Well played Outpost if you're reading.  Anyone got any thoughts about whether I could have held a draw from this position?  I thought as long as I avoided exchanging Qs I was OK.

Avatar of Mateusz_Dubinski

@ yucca

thanks for sharing that game!

I lost very similar position against GM Vladimir Malaniuk in 2013 at International tournament in Karpacz. The game lasted about 160 moves and 6.5 hrs. I was exhausted.

GM Nalimov says it's a draw. I can say it's a losing position from the practical point of view.

 

Why?

2 reasons:

1) White has very easy play. It's enough to "haunt" for Queens exchange. White does not take any risk and it can try as many ways as it wants to.

2) Black has to play deadly precisely. The first mistake loses a game. Paradoxivally both sides needs to calculate quite far.

 

If an engine played this position it would end up in a draw but we are only humans. This position is very rare. I know one more example of that. My friend IM Michal Luch won the game with one pawn more.

 

To sum up. It's a draw but it's impossible to draw with a ticking clock.

Avatar of Millardevsky

I recently played a OTB game that had a similar ending. Ended in a draw after alot of running around.

Avatar of yucca

No clock to blame really as it was an "online" game aka correspondence but that is still a bit reassuring :)