Skype coaching session, 06 November 2016. 

Please note: Re-structuring of the sessions now offers the option for guests to bring their own games for group discussion. 

Recordings of some previous coaching sessions can be found at: 

http://www.open-aurec.com/Skype/PaulBenson/PaulBenson.htm 

The following were examined: 
Rook endgame study position #6 from practical play. 
Guest game, 39 moves with brief notes and without notes. 

Paul Benson. 

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Rook endgame study position #6 from practical play, Part I. 

White to play. 
White: Ke5, Rb7, Pf6. 
Black: Ke8, Rf2, Pg5. 

It is the location of the kings which determines who is pushing hard for the win. Here white is the attacker and black is the defender. 

White plays, 1. Ke6, threatening a back rank mate. But surely black has the necessary rook location to ensure the white threat comes to nothing? If white had wished to end proceedings quickly there was, 1. Rg7, aiming to eliminate the black passed g 5 pawn, leading to a drawn king and pawn ending. 

Black plays, 1. ... Re2+, with the intention of giving repeated checks from the distance. However, there is an important factor influencing matters here, black has a pawn on the g-file. 

White plays, 2. Kf5, attacking the vulnerable black g5 pawn. 

Black plays, 2. ... g4, which might seem rather puzzling. Surely, 2. ... Rg2, protecting the g-pawn seemed sensible? Instead, trying to run the defending king into the kingside runs into problems, 2. ... Kf8 3. Kg6, threatening a back rank mate, so black must try, 3. ... Re8, but then, 4. Rh7 Kg8 5. f7+ Kf8 6. Rh8+ Ke7 7. fxe8=Q+, is very painful. 

White plays, 3. Kg6, leaving the black g4 pawn to advance with promotion in mind. Instead, 3. Kxg4, would be a serious mistake which would justify the previous advancing move of the black g-pawn. The defending rook would be allowed to give repeated checks to the attacking king if it tried to assist in promoting the passed f-pawn. If the attacking king instead decided to approach the rook to prevent the repeated checks, then it would not be assisting in promoting the passed pawn. So, the attacking king would have no shelter if the black g-pawn were to be captured. The attacking king in the game however, has found shelter on g6 thanks to the black g-pawn, just as if it were one of his own pawns. 

Black plays, 3. ... Rf2, a necessity. Instead trying to make use of the passed g-pawn with, 3. ... g3, loses quickly after, 4. f7+ Kf8 5. Rb8+ Ke7 6. Re8+ Kd7 7. Rxe2, white wins. 

White plays, 4. f7+, and black is in trouble. 

Black plays, 4. ... Kf8, but the alternative was no better. Instead, 4. ... Kd8 5. Kg7 Kc8 6. Ra7 Kb8 7. Re7 g3, but this is too slow because, 8. f8=Q+ Rxf8 9. Kxf8 g2 10. Rg7, the black pawn will not promote, white wins. 

White plays, 5. Rb8+, forcing the black king off the promotion square. 

Black plays, 5. ... Ke7, still keeping control of the important f8 promotion square. 

White plays, 6. Re8+, forcing the black king away from the f-file. 

Black plays, 6. ... Kd7, though resignation was equally playable here. 

The final moves are easy to find, 7. f8=Q Rxf8 8. Rxf8 g3 9. Kf6 g2 10. Rg8, and the black pawn will not promote, white wins. 

Condensed winning line. 
1. Ke6 Re2+ 2. Kf5 g4 3. Kg6 Rf2 4. f7+ Kf8 5. Rb8+ Ke7 6. Re8+ Kd7 7. f8=Q Rxf8 8. Rxf8 g3 9. Kf6 g2 10. Rg8. 

## Rook endgame study position #6 from practical play, Part II. 

From the original position the result is quite different if it is black to make the first move. 

Black to play. 
White: Ke5, Rb7, Pf6. 
Black: Ke8, Rf2, Pg5. 

In Part I black tried to create counterplay with the passed g-pawn. With black to play the following could occur if white tries too hard to win. 

1. ... g4 2. Ke6 Re2+ 3. Kf5 g3 4. Kg6 Rf2, all as before for white but the black g-pawn is one move closer to promotion, does this matter? Play continues with, 5. f7+ Kf8 6. Rb8+ Ke7 7. Re8+ Kd7, and the critical moment arrives for white. The options are: 
(A). White succumbs to the greed with, 8. f8=Q Rxf8 9. Rxf8 g2, and the white rook cannot cover the back rank to prevent pawn promotion as the black pawn guards the vital f1 square, black actually wins this one! 
(B). There is still time for white to head for a draw with, 8. Re3, aiming to get behind the black g-pawn, play might continue with, 8. ... g2 9. Rg3 Ke7, and neither pawn can be successfully promoted, it is a draw. 

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## Annotated Guest Game. 

White: Jim Slagle, 1700 (FTP). 
Black: Jose Maria Saponara, 1355 (FTP). 
Event: FTP-Chess, October - December 2016. 
Result: 1-0 in 39 moves. 
Opening: Colle System, D05. 

1. d4 Nf6 
2. Nf3 e6 
3. e3 c5 
4. Bd3 Nc6 
5. c3 d5 

| White is employing the Colle System. It is not easy to disrupt the simple development plan white adopts. On the other hand, it does not place black under any pressure during the opening skirmishes. Consequently, black is given freedom to choose from many systems. Here black is in the process of turning the game into a Queen's Gambit Declined, Slav Defence, with colours reversed. In essence, one can think of the opening as White playing a Slav Attack. || 

6. Nbd2 Be7 
7. O-O Qc7 

| Black continues to reply with anti-Slav strategy. || 

8. dxc5 Bxc5 
9. e4 

| White makes the thematic central break associated with the Colle System. || 

9. ... Bd6 
10. Re1 O-O 
11. Qe2 

| White is at last threatening to advance with, pawn e5, winning material. || 

11. ... Ne5 

| Perhaps, 11. ... e5, transforming the whole game was worth a try. The head-to-head e-pawns force white out of the comfortable Colle strategy involving activity of the light square bishop, and so white would have to find a whole new middlegame strategy over the board, not an easy task with the clock relentlessly ticking away. || 

12. Nxe5 Bxe5 
13. h3 d4 

| Black finds a method to produce symmetric pawns but this does not mean the pressure is relieved. || 

14. cxd4 Bxd4 
15. Nf3 e5 

| And white is given the chance to put an imbalance back into the pawn formation. Instead, 15. ... Bb6 16. e5 Nd5, leaves white with the task of calculating the soundness or otherwise of the Greek Gift sacrifice: 
(A). If, 17. Bxh7+ Kxh7 18. Ng5+ Kg8 19. Qh5 Rd8 20. Qh7+ Kf8 21. Qh8+ Ke7 22. Qxg7, and black will struggle to defend the dark squares. 
(B). If, 17. Bxh7+ Kxh7 18. Ng5+ Kg6 19. Qg4 f5 20. Qg3, leaves black to do something about the threatened white knight move giving discovered check, the black queen on c7 is the immediate target. || 

16. Nxd4 exd4 

| Depending on perspective, black either has a passed pawn or an isolated pawn on the d-file. So, which is it? It all comes down to how much support the black d-pawn can be given should it come under attack. If it can receive good support then it is passed, if support is difficult to arrange then it is isolated. || 

17. Bg5 Qe5 

| Perhaps the immediate, 17. ... Qb6, was a better way to avoid a possible doubling of the f-pawns. The game choice gives the white attack a couple of useful gift tempi. || 

18. f4 Qe6 
19. Bc4 Qb6 
20. Kh2 

| White simply removes the king out of any x-ray tactics from the black queen through the d4 pawn. Once white has king safety then the kingside pawn majority can be put to good use. || 

20. ... h6 
21. Bh4 Bd7 
22. e5 Nh7 

| Every white piece is better placed than every black piece. This signals that the time is ready for a kingside assault. || 

23. g4 g5 

| This is about the only way to prevent white from playing, 24. g5, when the black kingside will be forced open as appropriate, perhaps after white has doubled rooks on the g-file. || 

24. Bg3 gxf4 

| Part of a plan to try and hold the kingside. Unfortunately for black, this only seems to assist the white attack. || 

25. Bxf4 Ng5 
26. h4 

| The attempted black blockade is immediately broken. Black is also running a little short on time which explains the next move. || 

26. ... Ne6 

| Blundering a pawn. Instead, 26. ... Nh7, keeps the black h6 pawn protected by the black b6 queen. White would then have to sift through many good looking ideas while the clock ticks away, sometimes having too much choice can be detrimental. || 

27. Bxh6 Qd8 

| An excellent attempt to try and randomise matters as the time control approaches. The black f8 rook is left as, "bait", for the white dark square bishop, but why? || 

28. Qf2 

| One good move deserves another! White is a safe and solid pawn ahead, has control of the dark squares, a kingside space advantage, and perhaps an extra 10 minutes on the clock. Why become embroiled in unnecessary complications? Instead the greedy, 28. Bxf8, will be answered immediately with, 28. ... Qxh4+, and the black queen has suddenly achieved activity. White would have to be careful about follow up moves such as, 29. ... Nf4, and the black d7 bishop now targets the white g4 pawn. White might be able to defend against this activity, but why take the chance? The chosen game move of, 28. Qf2, keeps the position under control and hands back the decision to black as whether or not the f8 rook can be safely captured on next move. || 

28. ... Ng7 
29. Re4 

| A double purpose move. The g4 pawn is defended and the black d4 pawn is targetted for capture at a convenient moment. || 

29. ... Be6 
30. Bd3 

| White avoids the exchange of bishops, judging that on d3 his bishop will have a much greater influence on the game than the black bishop on e6. || 

30. ... f5 

| Again black produces a move to complicate matters. Fortunately for white, the time control has just passed and there is plenty of time to think about how to reply. || 

31. Rxd4 Qb6 

| White to play and find a plan which neutralises any black activity and at the same time creates the opportunity to initiate the final assault. || 

32. Bxg7 

| Counter-intuitive but perfectly correct. The white bishop is clearly a much better piece than the pinned black knight, so why exchange it off? White anticipates making full use of the open lines about to appear on the kingside, so the reason for this unforced piece trade is to remove a defender of the black king. || 

32. ... Kxg7 
33. gxf5 

| And the next step in the white plan emerges, the g-file is now fully open for the heavy white pieces. || 

33. ... Bxf5 

| Black assesses the game as a loss and so tries one last attempt to confuse matters by opening up the position for his queen. || 

34. Bxf5 Kh8 

| Perhaps black was planning, 34. ... Rxf5, trying to exploit the overloading of the white queen. However white can let the black queen run free as, 35. Qxf5 Qxd4 36. Rg1+ Kh8 37. Qf6+ Kh7 38. Qg7+ is mate. There was an alternative for the black queen to try after, 34. ... Rxf5 35. Qxf5 Qxb2+, trying to pick up a couple of white rooks with check. It fails after, 36. Kh3 Qc3+ 37. Rd3 Qxa1 38. Rg3+, again leading to mate. It is the fully-open g-file which sets up the mating nets, explaining the retreat of the black king. However, this gives white a tempo to defend the f5 bishop. || 

35. Rf4 Qa5 
36. Qe2 

| A double purpose move. The white e5 pawn is defended, and the white queen threatens a powerful invasion on h5 with check. The black king has no shelter, it is all over. || 

36. ... Kg7 
37. Qg4+ Kf7 
38. Qg6+ Ke7 
39. Qe6+ 
Black resigns, 1-0 

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## Unannotated Guest Game. 

White: Jim Slagle, 1700 (FTP). 
Black: Jose Maria Saponara, 1355 (FTP). 
Event: FTP-Chess, October - December 2016. 
Result: 1-0 in 39 moves. 
Opening: Colle System, D05. 

1. d4 Nf6 
2. Nf3 e6 
3. e3 c5 
4. Bd3 Nc6 
5. c3 d5 
6. Nbd2 Be7 
7. O-O Qc7 
8. dxc5 Bxc5 
9. e4 Bd6 
10. Re1 O-O 
11. Qe2 Ne5 
12. Nxe5 Bxe5 
13. h3 d4 
14. cxd4 Bxd4 
15. Nf3 e5 
16. Nxd4 exd4 
17. Bg5 Qe5 
18. f4 Qe6 
19. Bc4 Qb6 
20. Kh2 h6 
21. Bh4 Bd7 
22. e5 Nh7 
23. g4 g5 
24. Bg3 gxf4 
25. Bxf4 Ng5 
26. h4 Ne6 
27. Bxh6 Qd8 
28. Qf2 Ng7 
29. Re4 Be6 
30. Bd3 f5 
31. Rxd4 Qb6 
32. Bxg7 Kxg7 
33. gxf5 Bxf5 
34. Bxf5 Kh8 
35. Rf4 Qa5 
36. Qe2 Kg7 
37. Qg4+ Kf7 
38. Qg6+ Ke7 
39. Qe6+ 
Black resigns, 1-0 

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