Welcome to this active site. Each week I am going to present to you an endgame position for you to solve or to workout the best continuation. Computer analysis will also be considered. Some of these positions will come from actual historical games. Others will be composed endgame studies, but all the solutions will be relevant to the practical game. The new position will occur each SUNDAY and I will always be pleased to receive POSITIVE feedback about the positions and the analysis and I will try to acknowledge these where relevant.

 

British Grandmaster and Problem Composer. One of the top six players in the world and for many years England's greatest player. He was coached by Bernard Horwitz, the famous endgame expert, who made him an excellent player in this sphere of the game. He became even more renowned for his attacking play and because of this was known as the Black Death. His own career paralleled the increasing popularity of chess in the UK in the 19th century. He had many tournament successes and kept his form even into old age: In his 70s he tied 1st place with F.D.Yates for the British Championship. His influence on the growth of chess in his own country was immense.

 

This ending is famous and often seen in endgame manuals although it has been misquoted a few times. Black has a number of small advantages which lead to a won ending. He has the more active King. The extra c-pawn at c6 is important because it offers a spare tempo which is often vital in K&P endings. Black has to find a way to break into White's position. He needs to create invasion squares and his pawn formation on the kingside leading to the ...h4 push is ideal for this. The winning method of encirclement is very instructive and will repay careful study.

1. Cumulative 2003 Prizes: 1st £100 or equivalent, 2nd £50, 3rd £30; 4th £20. (Total Prize Money=£200) Entries limited to 20 solvers. This event will run from 5/1/2003 to 22/12/2003 with a recess in July. Present CUMULATIVE COMPETITION rules apply but note the prizes will go to those participants who climb the ladder the greatest number of times during the year. The relative position of the solver's name on the ladder will decide the allocation of prizes.