Rook And Pawn Study - Old Study - New Thoughts. - Chess Forums

Ziggy_Zugzwang

Mar 18, 2014

0

#1

This is a composition by T Gorviev , 1936 from Speelman's and Livshit's excellent "Test Your Endgame Ability". I thouroughly recommend this book as a way to improve endgame play, by interracting, rather than just woodpushing and passively reading...Black can castle in initial position.

I wanted to see initially why 1 Rc3 was no good for white - and indeed it is the move Chessmaster 10 chooses ! I don't show this analysis but that analysis leads to a draw. So the below three : 1) The composers solution based on the 1a6 "solution" and 2) CM10's take on the 1a6 move that seems to lead to a draw. (leaves out Rg3+) 3) My attempt to beat CM10 based on the Rg3+ move

Let's examine again with computer suggestions. Chessmaster 10 running on 60 secs a move:

CM10 leaves out the Rg3 + finesse driving the black king just one square away which may make the difference.

So I decided to play against CM10 as white with the composers Rg3 +

notmtwain

Mar 18, 2014

0

#2

Interesting study but I think you need to point out that black can still castle.

// Oh, you did. I missed it.

Ziggy_Zugzwang

Mar 18, 2014

0

#3

notmtwain wrote:

Interesting study but I think you need to point out that black can still castle.

// Oh, you did. I missed it.

Thanks for commenting. When I first encountered this many years ago the authors didn't see fit to mention black's right to castle and I struggled for hours

Wolf183

Mar 18, 2014

0

#4

The position after black castles is a tablebase draw, and Chessmaster's defense is sound. Do you know the composer's idea if black avoids Ra8?

Ziggy_Zugzwang

Mar 19, 2014

0

#5

Wolf183 wrote:

The position after black castles is a tablebase draw, and Chessmaster's defense is sound. Do you know the composer's idea if black avoids Ra8?

Thanks for that. No I don't. In Speelman's & Livshit's book they give a line if white omits the Rg3 + line where the black king is able to get to the vicinity of the white pawn and force a draw. It seems that black still gets there even if a square further away.

On one CM10 setting I got the pretty stalemate position with white k/b5 pawn/b6 and white rook on 8th rank with black king on b7.