Rook superior to two minor pieces
Kavalek vs Suttles, 1974  (B08) Pirc, Classical, 42 moves, 0-1
Ugly pawn structure, but wins anyway
Smyslov vs Botvinnik, 1948  (B60) Sicilian, Richter-Rauzer, 41 moves, 0-1
Spassky centralizes his king in the middle game
Spassky vs Furman, 1959  (C33) King's Gambit Accepted, 31 moves, 1-0
Lone knight holds off a rook and pawn
Lasker vs Ed Lasker, 1924  (C99) Ruy Lopez, Closed, Chigorin, 12...cd, 103 moves, 1/2-1/2
More king centralization in the middle game
Kasparov vs Petrosian, 1981  (D25) Queen's Gambit Accepted, 42 moves, 0-1
2R+B outduel Q+R
Leko vs Kramnik, 2004  (C42) Petrov Defense, 65 moves, 0-1
Two knights can sometimes be better than two bishops
Lasker vs Chigorin, 1895  (D02) Queen's Pawn Game, 57 moves, 0-1
Another remarkable example of an active king in the middlegame
R Steel vs R Macdonald Ross, 1884  (C25) Vienna, 26 moves, 1/2-1/2
Doubled pawns are an advantage in the endgame
Ali Gattea vs A Istratescu, 2002  (E34) Nimzo-Indian, Classical, Noa Variation, 49 moves, 0-1
Down a pawn, king exposed, ugly position--won game
Denker vs Botvinnik, 1945  (D44) Queen's Gambit Declined Semi-Slav, 25 moves, 0-1
White delays castling until move 29--when it's the winning move
Suttles vs P Biyiasas, 1971  (A25) English, 31 moves, 1-0
Usually king-hunts are accomplished with checks...
Botvinnik vs Gligoric, 1956  (A37) English, Symmetrical, 30 moves, 1-0
Another instance of king activity in the middlegame
B Kantsler vs A Greenfeld, 2005  (D70) Neo-Grunfeld Defense, 63 moves, 1-0
Development? What's that??
N Kosintseva vs E Berg, 2007  (C10) French, 42 moves, 0-1
Both sides decide to castle rather late...
Negi vs Lagno, 2006  (B07) Pirc, 53 moves, 1-0
Capablanca knows when a rook beats two minor pieces
E Canal vs Capablanca, 1929  (E16) Queen's Indian, 57 moves, 0-1
Not your usual way of getting mate on g7
H Weenink vs L Gans, 1923  (C25) Vienna, 27 moves, 1-0
Better late than never: 46 O-O
Bobotsov vs Ivkov, 1966  (E84) King's Indian, Samisch, Panno Main line, 63 moves, 1/2-1/2
2 bishops better than 2 knights in a blocked position
Spassky vs Short, 2001  (E31) Nimzo-Indian, Leningrad, Main line, 62 moves, 1-0
tripled pawns: a force to be reckoned with
R Murray vs L Day, 1982  (B06) Robatsch, 28 moves, 0-1
Fischer plays 2N vs 2B, wins anyway
Fischer vs H Berliner, 1962  (B03) Alekhine's Defense, 45 moves, 1-0
Rubinstein knows when *not* to capture towards the center
Alekhine vs Rubinstein, 1912  (C83) Ruy Lopez, Open, 27 moves, 0-1
R+N holds off Q+P
Korchnoi vs Ljubojevic, 1972  (A42) Modern Defense, Averbakh System, 112 moves, 1/2-1/2
A different type of king hunt
Short vs Timman, 1991  (B04) Alekhine's Defense, Modern, 34 moves, 1-0
Black delays castling until move 31, when it's checkmate
L Prins vs L Day, 1968  (B28) Sicilian, O'Kelly Variation, 28 moves, 0-1
Develop the king before the bishops and rooks
V Gashimov vs Grischuk, 2010  (B97) Sicilian, Najdorf, 41 moves, 0-1
Nezhmetdinov run over by hippo
R Nezhmetdinov vs M Ujtelky, 1964  (A00) Uncommon Opening, 75 moves, 0-1
White has to resign after 29...O-O-O
P Hopman vs I Rogers, 1996  (A57) Benko Gambit, 29 moves, 0-1
A novel opening scheme.
Marshall vs H Rogosin, 1940  (B20) Sicilian, 26 moves, 1-0
An extra rook in the endgame is not enough to win
A Petrov vs P Journoud, 1863  (C39) King's Gambit Accepted, 33 moves, 1/2-1/2
The king marches up the board to assist in a mating attack.
Geller vs Tal, 1975  (B08) Pirc, Classical, 41 moves, 1-0
An endgame where black is a pawn up but is still lost.
Graf-Stevenson vs E Klein, 1936  (D39) Queen's Gambit Declined, Ragozin, Vienna Variation, 61 moves, 1-0
An unusual sort of castled postion
J van Ruitenburg vs S Castellani, 2000  (A45) Queen's Pawn Game, 27 moves, 1-0
Sometimes both sides like to play unconventionally.
F Cathely vs M Hadzikaric, 1995  (A10) English, 31 moves, 0-1
Castling does not always put the king in a safer location.
G Morrison vs G Chandler, 1978  (A01) Nimzovich-Larsen Attack, 16 moves, 0-1
Fischer knows when it's okay to go pawn grabbing.
G Tringov vs Fischer, 1965  (B97) Sicilian, Najdorf, 22 moves, 0-1
A whole bunch of "rules" are scoffed at here.
Aronian vs D Cawdery, 2017  (A16) English, 39 moves, 1-0
Black wins with 2..h5 in the Sicilian.
L Paichadze vs B Savchenko, 2011  (B20) Sicilian, 40 moves, 0-1
Black's center pawns never move.
C Guimard vs L Piazzini, 1938  (A83) Dutch, Staunton Gambit, 34 moves, 0-1
The king is a fighting piece in the middlegame.
Huebner vs A Beliavsky, 1990  (C78) Ruy Lopez, 32 moves, 0-1
Black wins even though he has four sets of doubled pawns
Botvinnik vs Stein, 1965  (C77) Ruy Lopez, 49 moves, 0-1
41 games |