Experienced players sometimes forget all the things they had to learn to become proficient at such "easy" problems ,and need to be more sensitive to the difficulty such problems can present for novices. Still, I can empathize with the frustration of those expecting more of a challenge from the daily quiz.

Given the wide range of chess skill of visitors to the site, Chessgames. com is faced with a dilemma in trying to provide challenging problems for the experienced fan while not overwhelming the novice. One way I've noticed they have tried to accomplish both goals is to start with a theme such as "deflection" and then slowly increase the level of difficulty during the week, using the same theme.

When experienced problem solvers find the solutions "too easy," they can challenge themselves by doing three things. First, examine the entire game to see if the winning side had a won game with an earlier move. Secondly, look for the point at which the game was lost to see if they can find a move to salvage the game for the losing side. Third, for a more advanced challenge, find the point a which one side gained a clear advantage short of a forced win. Bobby Fischer's massive study of games in his youth focused on similar themes (i.e. finding where the games he studied were won or lost), and I think this arsenal of knowledge, along with his natural ability, contributed significantly to his domination of the Chess world duing his successful pursuit of the world championship in 1971 and 1972.

In this game for example, White had a forced win in this Queen and rook ending long before 48. Qe1+. And it is not clear at which point White started to gain the advantage or the point at which Black made the losing move.

Those who think this problem was "too simple" and want a more difficult problem, allow me to provide a challenge. Review this entire game and answer the following three questions:

(1) What was the move that first gave White a forced win?

(2) What move or moves could Black have played to prevent the loss (i.e. where did Black go wrong)?

(1) Black blundered with 29...c4? allowing 30. Qg4+ Kh7 31. Qxc4 ( even better is the simple 30. Qxc4! immediately). White has a won game after 30. Qg4+ or 29. Qxc4, and playing it out against a computer should be a great learning exercise for the club player and excellent practice for even the most advanced players.

(2) Black could have held on with drawing chances by not giving up the pawn with 29...c4? (for no apparent gain) by playing any other feasible move. Fritz 8 gives 29...Rg8 as best, apparently to shore up the defense and discourage 30. Qg4+, as 30...Kh7 now gives Black a fairly secure King position with counter pressure on the g-file.