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Later Kibitzing> |
Aug-19-11
 | | OhioChessFan: Hardest part was finding 31. Qc7. Like <rhickma> I kept wanting to try Qb8+ |
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| Aug-19-11 | | LIFE Master AJ: This was the first problem I didn't get in close to a month. (See my earlier posts.) I found the key move ... but gave up on it, when I was very close to the answer ... |
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| Aug-19-11 | | LIFE Master AJ: (I have gotten several e-mails ... asking me to be honest when I "blow one.") I certainly didn't get the solution for this one. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | CHESSTTCAMPS: White is up the exchange, but the bishop on c8 appears to be a dead duck. Black threatens 30... Qc2#, so moves that defend c2 will leave the bishop undefended, e.g. 30.Qf2 Rxd1+ 31.K/Rxd1 Qxc8 and white has no counterplay against black's winning material advantage. Black's hanging Rd4 is a nice little distraction in the position. Black has an obvious back-rank weakness, but I didn't find the trick right away. I looked first at 30.Bf5 Bxf5 31.Qb8+ Nc8, then at 30.Re8+ Qxe8 31.Rxe4 Qxc8 and went in circles for a while until I got it. 30.Bf5!
The desperado is in fact the only correct move.
30... Bxf5
30... Rxd1+ first can only be met by 31.Kxd1.
31.Qc7!!
X-ray defense combined with deflection & attack-we've seen this very recently in another POTD, but for some reason, I was focused on the undefended black rook. Now black has no way out: A) 31... Qxc7 32.Re8#
B) 31... Rxd1+ 32.Kxd1 Qxc2+ (Bxc2+ 33.Kc1 Bg6 34.Qxc6) 33.Qxc2 Bxc2+ 34.Kxc2 Kg8 (h6? 35.g6) 35.Re6 and the rook will win black's q-side pawns. C) 31... Bd7 32.Qd8+ forces mate.
I would guess that Khalifman saw this several moves in advance. Time for review... |
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| Aug-19-11 | | CHESSTTCAMPS: I completely missed the best defense, played in the game. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | jheller1: Earlier in this game, why did not black play <16... Qxe7> ?
It looks equal after that, no? |
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| Aug-19-11 | | howlwolf: I saw the two deflection moves quickly and then didn't look much further, that would have required more coffee. I do take some solace in that if I got the far over the board I would have found the remaining moves since they are mostly forced. Very impressive game on both sides with sharp imaginative play. |
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Aug-19-11
 | | chrisowen: Funny bone French tickler Bf5 great show by Khalifman in particular Aleg reunited Re6 chronic farsighted smoking black out a-master stroke it in rout |
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Aug-19-11
 | | Marmot PFL: Black threatens mate and a bishop but misses a double sacrifice to divert his pieces from the back row. I missed it also, finding 30 Bf5 but missing 31 Qc7, then looked at 30 Qf2, threatening Qf8 as well as the rook on d4 and knight on b6, but black has 30...Rf4. |
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Aug-19-11
 | | sevenseaman: <howlwolf> <I saw the two deflection moves quickly and then didn't look much further, that would have required more coffee.> First two moves are major part of the puzzle today. <31. Qe6> is highly imaginative and the hardest to find but the solver is impelled by the impending mate on c2. Later<35. Re6 > is also a critical move but one is unlikely to miss the chance of a skewer. |
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Aug-19-11
 | | kevin86: White's great play puts him the exchange up. Nice puzzle. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | gofer: Two days ago I waffled on about poor defenses and back rank mates. It seems
we have a moment of Deja Vu. The only difference is that black has its own
mate threat this time...
<30 Bf5 ...>
This is the start of luring black's pieces from protecting against Re8#
while at the same time protecting against Qxc2#
30 ... Bxf5
31 Qc7! Rxd1+
32 Kxd1 Bxc2+
33 Kc1 Ba4+
34 Qxc3 Bxc3
35 Re3 Bb5
36 Rxb6 winning as the white king is mobile and the black king is in the hurt locker. So what can black do to defend against the combination of 30 Bf5 and 31 Qc7? <30 ... Rxd1>
<31 Kxd1 ...>
click for larger viewThe combination is still alive and kicking and more threats are on the cards, like Qb8+. Black only knight moves to try... <31 ... Nc4>
<32 Bxg6 hxg6>
<33 Qh3+ Kg8>
<34 Qe6+ Qxe6>
<35 Rxe6 > winning |
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| Aug-19-11 | | gofer: After looking at this more closely, black hasn't got many choices. The knight moves like 31 ... Nc4/Na4 lose instantly to 32 Qb8+ mating, so perhaps black should try 31 ... h6 It not clear that there is anything good for black... |
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| Aug-19-11 | | doubledrooks: I found the double deflection 30. Bf5 Bxf5 31. Qc7 Qxc7 32. Re8# |
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Aug-19-11
 | | patzer2: For today's Friday puzzle (30.?), White seems to be in a bit of a pickle. Black has a double attack underway, threatening both 30...Qxc8  and 30...Qxc2#.Black does have a weakness on the back rank. However, with both the Black Queen and Bishop defending e8, it doesn't appear on the surface that White has an immediate mate threat. So how does White exploit this situation? First, since the Bishop is lost anyway, he makes a sham sacrifice of it as a decoy and deflection move with <30. Bf5!!>. The strong 30. Bf5!! serves a dual purpose. Defensively, it defends against the mate threat 30...Qxc2#. Offensively, it makes 31. Rxd4 a threat which practically forces <30...Bxf5> to remove the Bishop's guard over e8. Black does however have the alternative 30...Rxd1+ 31. Kxd1! Bxf5 32. Qc7 which transposes back into the game continuation. After 30...Bxf5, Black revives his threat of 31...Qc2#, but now finds his Queen as the sole defender of a potential back rank mate on e8. White exploits this situation with the surprise followup <31. Qc7!>, which now offers the Queen up as a decoy and deflection sham sacrifice to again combine offense and defense in simultaneously defending against the mate threat 31...Qc2# and undermining the now overworked Black Queen's guard over e8. To be honest in trying to solve this I had difficulty deciding between 31. Qc7 and 31. Qb8+ Nc8 32. Qc7. My choice was wrong in picking the latter since 31. Qb8+ Nc8 32. Qc7 Rxd1+ 33. Kxd1 Qd7 34. Re5! Kg8 35. Qxd7 Bxd7 36. Rxd5  gives White a slight advantage in a difficult ending but not a clear win as in the game continuation. After 31. Qc7!, the reply <31...Rxd1+!> is practically forced due to White's dual threat of 31. Rxd4 as well as the mate threat on e8 (e.g. 31...Qxc7?? 32. Re8#). White replies <32. Kxd1> to keep the threat of 32. Re8# alive and reinforce the purpose of his en prise, undefended Queen's sham sacrifice offer. Obviously White doesn't want to play 32. Rxd1?? Qxc7 , throwing away the win and giving the game to Black. Now Black has nothing better than <32...Bxc2+> when White's amusing <33. Kc1!> forces a won ending. White can also try the line 33. Kd2 Nc4+ 34. Kc1 Qa8 35. Kxc2 Qf8 36. Kb3!  when he has a won middle game position. Matter of taste I guess as to whether to go with the won ending with 33. Kc1! or 33. Kd2 with a winning middle game. However, most Masters I suspect would prefer the won ending with fewer complications. What follows is the forcing <33...Ba4+ 34. Qxc6 Bxc6 35. Re6 > when White has a skewer leading to a won ending. This final position reinforces the decision to play the clearly winning 31. Qc7!  instead of the unclear 31. Qb8+! Nc8 32. Qc7 Rxd1+ 33. Kxd1 Qd7 34. Re5! Kg8 35. Qxd7 Bxd7 36. Rxd5 . |
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Aug-19-11
 | | David2009: Khalifman vs Ehlvest, 1985 postscript: There's far more to this game than the White combination. Let's rewind to move 27:
click for larger view Here White plays 27.Qh3. Who can blame Black for going for the win here including a Queen sacrifice that White must refuse: 27...Rf4 28.Qg3 Rxd4 to reach with White to play 
click for larger view
According to Crafty End Game Trainer, both sides err here. 29.Bxc8 is less accurate than 29.Rxd4! meeting 29...Rxc2+ with 30.Kd1 and Black has not got enough. Instead, 29.Bxc8 can be met by 29...Rxd1+ 30 Kxd1 Nxc8! and Black is consolidating his material advantage. Instead came 29...Qc6 which seems to win outright but was met by the brilliant game combination. Here are two further Crafty EGT links to explore interactively both sides of this extraordinary game:
http://www.chessvideos.tv/endgame-t... (White to play, 27?); and
http://www.chessvideos.tv/endgame-t...
(Khalifman vs Ehlvest 1985, 27...? colours reversed)
Back to the puzzle position: <sevenseasman> anticipated the Crafty EGT analysis in my earlier post Khalifman vs Ehlvest, 1985 and as a bonus correctly solved the puzzle. Congratulations! |
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Aug-19-11
 | | agb2002: White has a rook for a knight.
Black threatens 30... Qxc2# and 30... Rxd1+ followed by 31... Qxc8. The black queen and bishop defend e8, the entry point of one of the white rooks. This suggests 30.Bf5, to divert the bishop: A) 30... Bxf5 31.Qc7
A.1) 31... Qxc7 32.Re8#.
A.2) 31... Qa8 32.Rxd5 + -.
A.3) 31... Rc4 32.Qxc6 Rxc6 33.Re8#.
A.4) 31... Rxd1+ 32.Kxd1
A.4.a) 32... Qxc2+ 33.Qxc2 Bxc2+ 34.Rxc2 Kg8 35.Re6 + - [R vs N]. A.4.b) 32... Bxc2+ 33.Kc1 and Black looks unable to avoid further material losses. B) 30... Rxd1+ 31.Kxd1 Bh5+ 32.Kc1 + - [R vs N].
C) 30... Rc4 31.Bxg6 h(Q)xg6 32.Rd2 + - [R vs N]. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | BiteByBits: black's mistake came at the 29th move to exchange pieces...Qc6? After black tried to seize attacking initiative with a bad exchange (28...Rxe4! 29 Bxc8!) shouldnt black be more agressive? black threatens Qxc2 mate. In these cases there are 4 options
1. move the king (doesnt work)
2. defend with rook (passive and we want to grab the rook on e4!)
3. take the attacking pieces (we cant)
4. block or deflect
in potential back-rank mate situations, in this case we want to have Re8 mate, we should deflect the attacking bishop!
30. Bf5...Bxf5? loses to Qf2, and the bishop cannot be defended as protecting it requires black to not defend the e8 square. 31...Qb8+ or Qc7 are winning as well.
removing the defender theme...very nice tactics by white in the game. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | tatarch: Great game and great puzzle. Like others, I couldn't see the continuation for black after 31.Qc7 ... but agree that it feels like what we'd all play if facing that position over the board. |
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Aug-19-11
| | sevenseaman: < jheller1: Earlier in this game, why did not black play <16... Qxe7> ? It looks equal after that, no?> The position was;
click for larger viewAt the time it looked a harmless little observation with a throwback from the day's puzzle. I thought Black Q takes e7 N and White Q takes b6N. Later I worked on it and got this; <16...Qxe7 17. Qxb6 Qh4+ 18. Kd1 (Not Ke2 or d2, Rf2+)Qxg4+ 19. Kc1 Bxe4
20 Nxe4 Qxe4> hitting the R at h1 and eying mate at e1. The White Q
is helpless.
click for larger viewThe line has not been checked with Crafty completely but what little
I tried I saw Crafty sauntering to a win. |
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| Aug-19-11 | | LIFE Master AJ: Does anyone speak <CO> here? |
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| Aug-19-11 | | SimonWebbsTiger: AJ
why would you care if anyone knows CO when you don't understand the majority view of many people over many years, expressed in plain English: SOD OFF! |
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Aug-19-11
 | | Patriot: This has been an extremely busy day! About all I could figure is 30.Bf5 Bxf5 31.Qb8+ Nc8 32.Qc7. 31...Bc8 32.Qxb6 and 31...Qc8?? 32.Qxc8+ followed by 33.Re8#. I didn't consider the direct 31.Qc7! |
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| Aug-19-11 | | ProjectR: Damn ! I just typed out a long post explaining why i "didn't" see the mate immediately,and my computer went wild wiping my observations of the game away ! So i wont re type but needless to say i didn't solve it strait away,but its obvious the c8 and f8 squares were the main attacking for white,whilst also defending the c2 square was vital to stop the mating threat from black. <LIFE master AJ>
<I have gotten several emails....asking me to be honest when i "blow one">
I presume you mean "cant solve" when you use the words "blow one"? If so,i find that quite shocking for someone of master level strength,as this is a puzzle after all so you know the mate/winning line is there,just like the rest of us do!
Iv actually read some of your recent posts and find you to be quite aloof,cocky,arrogant,offensive,and basically not a friendly person towards other people who post on the puzzles every day at this site,and even at your own forum! Maybe you should be more humble towards people here as it seems your disliked. |
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Aug-19-11
| | sevenseaman: White in this game and in Tal vs Hjartarson, 1987 may have used very complex and intricate procedures but I am unable to shake off the feeling that White players got away with daylight robberies. To put it more plainly, I feel Black in both cases had very strong winning chances that they squandered. |
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Later Kibitzing> |
sac: 23.O-O-O