Today's Chess Problem of the Day is called "Hypothenuse". More than that, I'd best not say because it's a mate in two.


Enjoy!


White to Move and Mate in two.

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Today's Chess Problem of the Day is called "Hypothenuse". More than that, I'd best not say because it's a mate in two.


Enjoy!


White to Move and Mate in two.

I see two ways to go...

1. Qa6-c6 check
Ke8-d8
Qc6xRa8 Mate. or...
2. Qa6-c6 check
Ke8-f8
Qc6xRa6 check
f8-g8 trapping the king in the corner
g7-h7 hopeless but stalling
Ke6-g6 tightening the noose
king could move sealing his fate but a pawn could be used as a diversionary tactic say Pa7-a5
Qg8-g6 check leaving king one move
h7-h8
Qg6-g7 Mate

Agreed?

Today's Chess Problem of the Day is called "Hypothenuse". More than that, I'd best not say because it's a mate in two.


Enjoy!


White to Move and Mate in two.

I see two ways to go...

1. Qa6-c6 check
Ke8-d8
Qc6xRa8 Mate. or...
2. Qa6-c6 check
Ke8-f8
Qc6xRa6 check
f8-g8 trapping the king in the corner
g7-h7 hopeless but stalling
Ke6-g6 tightening the noose
king could move sealing his fate but a pawn could be used as a diversionary tactic say Pa7-a5
Qg8-g6 check leaving king one move
h7-h8
Qg6-g7 Mate

Agreed?

Afraid not, Chris. You've got mating attacks here, but not the necessary Mate in Two.

NIce try though. Try again?

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Our CPOTD is Marion Andrians from the Netherlands, currently rated by FIDE at 2032. She says she finds men who play chess sexy. We can believe her, seeing that she married Dutch Grandmaster Loek ven Wely. The happy couple live in Amsterdam and are strong members and supporters of chess in the Netherlands.

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Haven't looked on the Cafe for some time, hmm, seems the Chess-Cafe has been renovated since last time...


Hmm, I don't like the pawn at c7...

But, hang on, you've overlooked a small fact... since both black King & Rook still stands on their original spots, black can take long castle, meaning you can't guarantee a mate in 2. ;)

Anyway, if says black can't castle, the solution is:

1; Qa6-a1
Black can move whatever chooses.
2; Qa1-h8 mate.


Haven't time to look on any of the other problems now.

Haven't looked on the Cafe for some time, hmm, seems the Chess-Cafe has been renovated since last time...


Hmm, I don't like the pawn at c7...

But, hang on, you've overlooked a small fact... since both black King & Rook still stands on their original spots, black can take long castle, meaning you can't guarantee a mate in 2. ;)

Anyway, if says black can't castle, the solution is:

1; Qa6-a1
Black can move whatever chooses.
2; Qa1-h8 mate.


Haven't time to look on any of the other problems now.

Ding! Ding!

We have a winner!

Give the man a Cupie doll!

You are now the Number One Problem Solver again, Ingleside.

Well done!

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Tonight's Late Night Special is called "Demolition Derby".


Enjoy!


White to Move and Mate in five.

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This distinguished looking gentleman is none other than Boris Spassky, the 10th Undisputed World Champion. He was born in Leningrad, and learned to play chess at the age of five. At age 18 he won the World Junior Chess Championship held at Antwerp, Belgium, and became a grandmaster, a record at the time.

Spassky was considered an all-rounder on the chess board, and his "universal style" was a distinct advantage in beating many top Grandmasters. For instance, in his Candidates Final match (the match which determines who will challenge the reigning world champion for the title) against Mikhail Tal the legendary tactician (Tbilisi, 1965) Spassky managed to steer play into quiet positions, avoiding Tal's tactical strength. This led to his first World Champion match against Tigran Petrosian in 1966. Spassky lost the match with 3 wins against Petrosian's 4 wins, with the two sharing 17 draws. In the next two years, his playing success again gained the right to challenge Petrosian. Spassky's flexibility of style was the key to his eventual victory over Petrosian by two points in the 1969 World Championship—by adopting Petrosian's negative style.

Spassky's reign as a world champion only lasted for three years, as he lost to Bobby Fischer of the United States in the "Match of the Century" in Reykjavík, 1972. He remains a hardworking, much loved ambassador of the game.

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In Chess News today, little Armenia has clawed its way to the top and is hanging on! Wonderful results show that China is emerging as a world power in chess.

Olympiad Top 10 Rank Results After Round 9:

1 Armenia 26.5
2 China 25.5
3 France 24.0
4 Russia 23.5
5 USA 23.5
6 Ukraine 23.5
7 Czech Republic 23.0
8 Cuba 23.0
9 Slovenia 23.0
10 Uzbekistan 22.5

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I'm a little disappointed at the lack of posts on this thread lately, but I'll post another Chess Problem, pending some replies.


Today's Chess Problem is called "Storming the Fortress".


White to Move and Mate in Four.


Enjoy!

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I'm a little disappointed at the lack of posts on this thread lately, but I'll post another Chess Problem, pending some replies.


Today's Chess Problem is called "Storming the Fortress".


White to Move and Mate in Four.


Enjoy!

[snipped pic]

I am finding it impossible to force Black for more than two turns. I've tried moving the queen first and the rook first and got frustrated both times when the tree of possible moves gets unmanagable.

I'm glad octagons don't have hair, so I can't pull it out :-)

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No animals were harmed in the making of the above post... much.

I am finding it impossible to force Black for more than two turns. I've tried moving the queen first and the rook first and got frustrated both times when the tree of possible moves gets unmanagable.

I'm glad octagons don't have hair, so I can't pull it out :-)

Heyas Octo!
Hint is below in fine print. Hit reply to this post to see it.

The first move is Rdid6+ Also...You'll want to force the Black King out of his stronghold at e6.

Let me know if you want further moves or hints. This one's a toughie, I guess. :-)

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The 3rd. move was the hard one to choose correctly.


1; Nf5-h6+
Kg8-h8
2; Nh6-f7+
Kh8-g8
3; Qg4xg7+
Kg8xg7
4; Rh1-h7+
Kg7-g8
5; Nf7-h6 mate


Hmm, while octagons don't have hair, I've got some, so won't try looking on the other problems now...

The 3rd. move was the hard one to choose correctly.


1; Nf5-h6+
Kg8-h8
2; Nh6-f7+
Kh8-g8
3; Qg4xg7+
Kg8xg7
4; Rh1-h7+
Kg7-g8
5; Nf7-h6 mate


Hmm, while octagons don't have hair, I've got some, so won't try looking on the other problems now...

Hahahah! Excellent!!!

Well done, Octogon!

Give the man a Cupie doll!

Congratulations! How many do you have now?

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I can compile a buggy kernel but can't figure out basic chess...ya'll making me feel stupid...

LOL

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I can compile a buggy kernel but can't figure out basic chess...ya'll making me feel stupid...

LOL

Heh. Nobody ever taught you how to play the game, I betcha.


Here's a quickie Chess Primer that will start you off on the right track:


You know the way players are always fighting in the openings to get pieces and pawns onto the center of the board? Here's why:


The same piece on one of the four center squares is much more powerful there than towards the sides, on the edges, or worst of all, in the corners.

Check this out yourself with this pic I made for you.











If you picture a Knight on any one of the four squares where the pawns are right now, you'll see that it can move to 8 different squares.

That white Knight towards the left? It can only move to 6 squares.

The other white Knight on the right-hand edge? It can only move to 4 sqares.

That black Knight in the upper left? It can only move to 3 squares.

That other black Knight in the upper right-hand corner? It can only move to 2 squares.

It's the same with all the other pieces too, check it out with say, a Bishop, and you'll see what I mean.

So...the closer to the center a piece is, the more "powerful" it is. What makes a Queen generally more powerful than a Rook? (Queen 9 points, compared with Rook 5 points, Bishop 3+ points, Knight 3 points, King 2-and-a-half points)?

It's the Queen's general mobility, the number of squares she can move to from any given square, ...compared to the other pieces.

But now you know, Buddy, that where even a "weaker" piece is placed, can make it a more "powerful" piece, a much more powerful one than a supposed "stronger" piece that's sitting on a weak square.

Edit: So, think of the chessboard as having a 4-square center, and then less and less powerful "rings" as you go outward and towards the corners. The four corners are the least powerful squares a piece can possibly be on.


Make sense?

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Our Chess Player of the Day is Grandmaster Maria Manakova, born in Serbia March 1, 1974. She won the FIDE Womens World Championship in 2003, and is currently FIDE rated at 2312 (her highest was 2395).

Every sport nowadays seems to have its "Bad Girl" and for chess, it's definitely Manakova. She is the only woman chess Grandmaster ever to pose completely nude. She posed nude for the Russian men's magazine Speed (and No, we're not going to show that pic here). Speed is a Russian rag or "yellow" magazine. The headline next to the picture of Maria says "I like eating... elephants". You should know that the Russian word for the chess Bishop is "Slon", which actually translates to "elephant", and in Russian you "eat" pieces, not take them.

That caused quite a stir, as you may imagine. This story in The Telegraph tells of it.

http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/main.jhtml?xml=/news/2004/08/08/wchess08.xml&sSheet=/news/2004/08/08/ixworld.html


For those of you that just have to get a fuller glimpse of her, I reccomend the wikipedia article link on her at the bottom of the page, or a Google image search with her name and "Die Spiegel".

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Our Morning Chess Problem is called "Quick Kill".


White to Move and Mate in two.


Enjoy!

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Our Morning Chess Problem is called "Quick Kill".


White to Move and Mate in two.

Hey Beets, Morning all.
Another hot and humid one here in DE.

Quick post, then it's off to job search.

BF4-C7 Ch
KD8-E8
QF5-C8 Mate
Thanks for that one.


Oh, and your "center of the board" theory is what I learned, but it was slightly different. You take your original four block size and add two more in each direction thereby forming a large, thick cross in the middle. If you controlled that part of the board early on in the game, you stood a good chance of winning.
(At least thats what I was taught as a youngster. YMMV) ;)

::pps::

I can compile a buggy kernel but can't figure out basic chess...ya'll making me feel stupid...

Hey Mike, I'll trade ya! 8^)
(Although, I think I'd get the sweeter deal-lol)

Our Morning Chess Problem is called "Quick Kill".


White to Move and Mate in two.

Hey Beets, Morning all.
Another hot and humid one here in DE.

Quick post, then it's off to job search.

BF4-C7 Ch
KD8-E8
QF5-C8 Mate
Thanks for that one.


Oh, and your "center of the board" theory is what I learned, but it was slightly different. You take your original four block size and add two more in each direction thereby forming a large, thick cross in the middle. If you controlled that part of the board early on in the game, you stood a good chance of winning.
(At least thats what I was taught as a youngster. YMMV) ;)

::pps::

I can compile a buggy kernel but can't figure out basic chess...ya'll making me feel stupid...

Hey Mike, I'll trade ya! 8^)
(Although, I think I'd get the sweeter deal-lol)

Heyas Chris!

Yeah, me too! ...on wishing I knew how to do a kernal. :-))

On the center theory, I like yours too, except that I'd probably only extend the "cross" one square in each direction, not two. But it's another good perspective for Mike to consider.

On that "Quck Kill" solution of yours.... OOOH! So close! You got the hard part right: the first move. But your second move is wrong, it lets the King slip out to f7.

You'll get an Honorable Mention on it, even if you don't solve it. (But I'm sure you will.)

Have a great day!

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