Middlegame to Endgame Transition Mastery

GM Bryan Smith

Question 1.

Is there a way for Black to win this

endgame? (Black to move)

Question 2.

How can White hold this endgame?

What should White play?

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Question 3.

What should Black play here –

1…Ke2, 1…Kd2 or 1…Ke4?

Question 4.

It is Black to move.

What move to play here – 1…Kf5 or

1…Bxf4?

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Question 5.

What is the best continuation for

White here?

Question 6.

How should White continue in this

position?

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Question 7.

What should White play to win this

pawn endgame?

Question 8.

How do you evaluate this position?

Who is better and why? (White to
move)

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Question 9.

How can Black win this position?

Question 10.

What should White play here –

1.exd6 or 1.Kf3?

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Question 11.

How to continue with Black?

Question 12.

Can you spot the winning

combination for Black?

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Question 13.

How do you evaluate this position?

Who is better and why? (Black to
move)

Question 14.

Can you spot the winning

combination for Black?

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Question 15.

Find the best move for White. (White

to move)

Question 16.

This position occurred in the game

Carlsen – Hou, Wijk aan Zee 2018.

Find the best move for White. (White

to move)

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Question 17.

How do you evaluate this position?

Who is better and why? (White to
move)

Question 18.

What should Black play here –

1…Rh2 or 1…h2?

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Question 19.

How can White hold this endgame?

What should White play?

Question 20.

Who is better and why? (White to

move)

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 Solutions
1 The only winning move for Black in the position is the counter-intuitive 1…Ke5! 2.Kh3
Kd4 3.Kh4 Kd3 4.Kxh5 Ke2 -+.
2 Surprisingly, White can create a fortress with 1.h3 Kf6 2.f5! g5 3.Ke4. Black has no
chance to break through.
3 The only move that draws for Black is 1…Ke4! 2.Kg3 Ke5 3.Kxf3 Kf5 and with Black
having the opposition, this pawn endgame is a well-known draw.
4 Only 1…Kf5! (1…Bxf4 2.h3 Kf5 with stalemate) 2.h3 Bd2! 3.Kg3 Bxf4+ wins for Black.

5 White’s best continuation is 1.dxc6! Nxg5 2.cxb7! Black has to react to the threat of
b8=Q. White has a huge advantage.
6 White wins after 1.Bxd8 Rxd8 (1…Kxd8 2.b7 Rb8 3.Nc6+ +-) 2.Nc6 Rd7 3.Kc4 +-.

7 White’s only winning move is 1.b4! Kc4 2.a5 and Black has to stop the White a-pawn
while the White king conquers the Black g-pawn and sets his own g-pawn in motion.
8 Only Black can be better in this endgame. There are no open files for the White rooks. The
pawn on b2 is a clear weakness and Black has several ideas to improve the position of his
knight to finally break through.

9 Black wins after 1…c3! 2.bxc3 Rb1 (threatening mate on g1) 3.Rh1 h3+! (a deflection
sacrifice) 4.Rxh3 Rg1 mate.
10 1.Kf3! (1.dxe6? e5! -+ and the Black king picks up the White d-pawn). White is going to
win this endgame. The game continued 1…d5 2.Ke3 g6 3.h6 Ke7 4.Kd4 Kd7 5.Kc5 Kc7.
Now, White wins with 6.a3! which hands the opposition to White. Without this move, the
position would be equal.
11 1…Nxe3 2.Rxf8+ Kxf8. White is in huge trouble. 8.Bxe3 Bxe3 is mate and 8.h4 Ng4+
won’t help either. White has to give up a lot of material to avoid a quick checkmate.

12 Black wins after 1…Rg4+ 2.Kh1 Rxb7 3.Nxb7 Bd5+ 4.f3 Bxb7 5.Rxa7 Bxf3+! 6.Rxf3
Rg1 mate.

13 There are pawns on both sides of the board and the position is open. White’s bishop turns
out to be the superior minor piece. Moreover, it’s also key to notice that White is better in
this position because bishop and rook often combine better than knight and rook. The
former are both long range pieces that can control the whole board and quickly move from
one side of the board to the other. White has a pleasant advantage.

14 Black wins after 1…Rxa1 2.Rxa1 Rxb7 3.Nxb7 Bd5+ 4.f3 Bxf3 mate.

15 White wins at least a pawn after 1.Rxa6! Black can’t recapture in view of Bxb5+, winning
the house.
16 Magnus Carlsen, playing White, went for the exchange sacrifice 1.Rxc7! Rxc7 2.Nd6+
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 Kd7 (2…Ke7 would allow White to regain the sacrifice exchange with a discovered check.
Thanks to his superior piece placement, White would be close to winning in the resulting
endgame.) 3.Nxf7 Rcd8 4.Ne5+ Ke8.

In return for the long-term exchange sacrifice, White got a pawn, well-centralized pieces
and two strong pawns on the c- and d-file which control several key squares. The game is
by no means over and Carlsen could not calculate all the complications arising from this
sacrifice in advance, but it seems that White, despite the material deficit, has the upper
hand here. In the game, Magnus managed to outplay Hou Yifan in a long endgame.
17 Black has a clear advantage. He has the more mobile pawns on the kingside and pressure
on the queenside. White is confronted with a tough defensive task.
18 1…Rh2! Black wins as after 2.Kb3 Rh1 3.Kc3 h2! 4.Kb2! The White king had to return
as 4.Kd2? would have lost to the well-known skewer 4…Ra1! 5.Rxh2 Ra2+ -+. Now, the
Black king can move closer and support the h-pawn. The White king can’t help in defense
and the White rook has to stay on the h-file.

19 White plays 1.f4 Bf2 2.f5 g5 3.Kd5 with a fortress.

20 Black is clearly better. White has several pawn weaknesses and the Black knight has a nice
central outpost on d5, blockading White’s weak isolated d-pawn and controlling plenty of
important squares. The White bishop, in contrast, is rather limited in its options. It controls
an empty diagonal and there is no clear way to improve its position.

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