Cap Negret Round Seven

FACED a Belgian Fide master.

Johan Goormachtigh (2173) - Spanton (2009)

QGD Ragozin

1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bb4 5.cxd5

This is second in popularity to 5.Bg5.

5...exd5 6.Bf4!?

The mainline in ChessBase's 2024 Mega database runs 6.Bg5 h6 7.Bh4 g5!? 8.Bg3 Ne4 9.Nd2!? Nxg3 10.hxg3 c6, with a slight edge for White, according to Dragon1, although Stockfish17 is less sure. Note that 9...Nxc3 10.bxc3 Bxc3 11.Rc1 seems to give White good compensation for a pawn.

6...0-0 7.e3 c6

This may be a little passive. Most popular in Mega24 is 7...c5!?

The position looks like a mainline Exchange Variation of the Queen's Gambit Declined, but with the black dark-square bishop on b4 instead of e7, and the white dark-square bishop on f4 instead of g5 

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It is difficult to say whom the changes benefit. The engines reckon White is slightly better in the diagrammed position, but they also reckon White is slightly better in the analogous position from the Exchange Variation.

8.Bd3 Nbd7 9.0-0 Re8 10.Qc2 Nf8 11.h3 Ne6 12.Bg3!?

This may be a novelty. The known move is 12.Bh2.

12...g6!?

A familiar idea from the Exchange Variation. One possible follow-up is ...Ng7 and ...Bf5 to swop light-square bishops.

13.a3

Where should the attacked bishop go?

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13...Be7

The engines prefer 13...Bd6 or 13...Bf8.

14.b4 a6 15.Na4 Ng7 16.Nc5 Nfh5 17.Bh2 Bd6 18.Ne5 Qe7 19.a4 f6?!

The engines reckon White is only slightly better after 19...Nf6.

20.Nf3 Bxh2+ 21.Kxh2 Ne6 22.b5 Nxc5 23.Qxc5 Qxc5 24.dxc5 axb5 25.axb5 Bd7

After a flurry of exchanges, White's Minority Attack has made progress, but how should White proceed?

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26.Nd4

This is Dragon1's top choice, whereas Stockfish17 prefers 26.b6.

26...Ng7 27.Rfb1

But here the engines agree 27.b6 is best.
27...Ne6

The engines like 27...Rxa1!? 28.Rxa1 cxb5!?, claiming White at best has a slight edge.

28.Rxa8

The engines reckon 28.Nxe6 Bxe6 29.b6 gives at least a slight edge.

28...Rxa8 29.bxc6 bxc6 30.Nxe6 Bxe6 31.Rb6 Bd7 32.Ba6 Bc8?!

Probably better is 32...Kf7, and if 33.Bb7, then 33...Rb8.

33.Bxc8 Rxc8

How would you assess this rook-and-pawn ending?

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White has an active rook versus a passive one. Dragon1 reckons that gives the upper hand, but Stockfish17 calls the position completely equal.

34.Rb7 h5 35.Kg3 Re8!?

The rook will be less passive on e6.

36.Rc7 Re6 37.Kf4 Re4+ 38.Kf3 Re6 39.Ke2!?

The only way to try to make progress.

39...d4 40.e4!? f5!?

Dragon1 strongly dislikes this, but Stockfish17 is fine with it.

41.Kd3 fxe4+ 42.Kxd4

How should Black continue?

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42...Rf6?!

Both 42...h4 and 42...g5 give complete equality, according to Stockfish17, although Dragon1 reckons White in each case is slightly better.

What should White play?

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43.Kxe4

Stockfish17 reckons 43.g4!? is winning, eg 43...Rxf2 44.Rxc6 Kf7 45.g5!? Rf3 46.Kxe4 Rxh3 47.Rf6+ Kg7 48.c6. For much of the line, Dragon1 reckons the position is equal, but it comes to give White the upper hand.

43...Rxf2 44.Rxc6 Rxg2 45.Rf6 Kg7 46.Rf3 Rc2 47.Kd5 g5 48.c6 Kg6 49.Rf8 Rc3 50.Kd6 Rxh3 51.c7 Rc3 52.c8=Q Rxc8 53.Rxc8

How would you assess this rook-versus-pawns ending?

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Endgame tablebases show the position is drawn, but Black has to start with three only-moves.

53...Kf5!

The white king has to be shouldered away.

54.Kd5 h4!

Other moves lose, eg advancing the king now fails, one line running 54...Kf4 55.Rc4+! Kf3 56.Ke5 h4 57.Kf5 h3 58.Rc3+! Kg2 59.Kg4! h2 60.Rc2+ Kg1 61.Kg3 h1=N+ (the only hope - but White has a winning reply) 62.Kf3! g4+ 63.Kxg4 Nf2+ 64.Kf3 Nd3 65.Rd2 Ne5+ 66.Kf4! Nc4 67.Rd4 (other moves also win) Nb2 68.Kf3 Kf1 69.Rd2 etc.

55.Rf8+ Kg4

The third only-move on the trot, but this one is obvious.

56.Ke4 h3 57.Rh8 Kg3 58.Kf5 g4 59.Kg5 h2 ½–½

The Power Of Two Pawns

MOST readers of this blog, I suspect, know two connected passed pawns on the sixth rank beat a rook if no other pieces can intervene.
It is a handy rule to bear in mind as it comes into play more frequently than might be thought.
If you are not sure of the rule, here is a fun way to test it, using an empty chessboard, two white pawns and a black rook.

It will be White to move

White goes first, and may place the pawns anywhere on their sixth rank.
You can then place your rook anywhere on the board.
White wins if either pawn can be promoted to a queen without being immediately captured. Black wins by capturing both pawns.
As long as White places the pawns next to each other, for example as in the diagram below, White wins wherever the rook is placed.

White wins

But note that the pawns must be connected.

Black to place the rook and win

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In the above diagram Black wins by placing the rook anywhere sensible on Black's first or second rank, for example on the a7 square.
Placing the rook behind one of the pawns loses as White simply advances the other pawn. Black also loses if the rook is placed on the same rank as the pawns.

Rook v Pawns

REACHED another tricky ending in today's round seven at the Hastings Masters.

White to make his 41st move in Spanton (1954) - Laurence Butt (1635), but what should the result be: win, lose or draw?

I have just given up a rook on f1 to capture a promoted pawn, and Black has recaptured with his king.
A simple material-count in the resulting position gives Black a big advantage, but Black's king is well away from the centre of the action on the queenside.
One factor to always bear in mind is that two pawns safely abreast on the sixth rank will beat a rook even if the pawns' king cannot help them (and provided the rook's king cannot interfere).
If you do not know this rule, to which there are NO exceptions, try placing white pawns on e6 and d6 on an otherwise empty board (including no kings). It is White to move, but before he can do so Black is allowed to place a rook anywhere on the board. You will quickly find the black rook cannot prevent a white pawn from queening.
The position in the diagram is complicated by Black still having a pawn left, but, with correct play, should White win, lose or draw?
41.b5
This is non-controversial - almost any sensible-looking White move keeps the game moving towards its proper conclusion.
41...axb5
Not 41...a5? as it wastes a tempo that White can use to get a second pawn to the fifth rank with 42.c5.
42.cxb5
It seemed sensible to keep the white pawns as far from the black king as possible, but it 42.axb5 was probably equally good.
42...Re3+!?
This surprised me, but analysis with the engines Komodo9 and Stockfish10 suggests the move is just as legitimate as the perhaps-more obvious 42...Ra2. Both moves clear the e2 square for the black king to take a straight diagonal towards the white pawns.
43.Kb4 Re4+?
But this drives the white king in the direction it wants to go while not giving any benefit to Black.
Correct was 43...Ke2, when Black is a tempo up on the game continuation. As we shall see, White eventually wins the game by a single tempo.
44.Ka5 Ke2 45.b6 Kd3 46.b7 Re8 47.Kb6 Kc4 48.a5 Re6+ 49.Ka7
More precise is 49.Kc7.
Komodo9 reckons the position is drawn after the text, but it is not as Black cannot prevent White returning to the correct plan.
49...Re7 50.Kb6
Not 50.a6? as 50...Kb5 51.Ka8 Re8+ leaves White with nothing better than  a draw after 52.b8=Q Rxb8+ 53.Kxb8 Kxa6.
50...Re5
Setting a little trap.
Equally losing. but requiring accurate play by White, was 50...Re6+ (returning to the position after Black's 48th move) 51.Kc7 Re7+ 52.Kc6! (but not 52.Kc8? Kc5! when White cannot make progress, eg 53.a6 Kc6 54.Kb8 Kb6=) Re6+ 53.Kd7 etc (analysis by the engines).
51.a6
51b8=Q?? Rb5+ is a draw.
51...Re6+ 52.Ka7 1-0
So, to get back to the original question, the diagram position seems to be a draw with correct play, but one wasted tempo (43...Re4+?) tips the balance.