| Dec-26-22 | | Brenin: The key is the Black N stranded on a3: 36 Rxe5 Rxe5 37 f7 Rf5 38 f8=Q+ Rxf8 39 Bxf8 (attacking the N) Nb1 40 Kc2, and the N is lost. White wins the endgame easily. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | King.Arthur.Brazil: It is truly easy: 6. ♖xe5 ♖xe5 37. f7 ♖f5 38. f8=♕+ ♖xf8 39. ♗xf8 ♘b1 40. ♔c2 g5 41. ♔xb1 g4 42. ♗c5. Everybody likes Mondays... |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Brenin: Black was winning until he wasted time moving his stranded N between b1 and a3 on moves 31-33. Instead he could have activated his R with Rd8+, or his K via b7 or d7, or rescued the N with 31 ... Nc3 since 32 Rxe5 Rxe5 33 Kxc3 Rxe3+ is a win for Black. |
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Dec-26-22
 | | al wazir: For a change, a "very easy" position that is actually very easy! Way to go, <CG>. |
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Dec-26-22
 | | FSR: If White's e-pawn were off the board, 38...Rxf8 39.Bxf8 Nxc4 would draw. White would only have one pawn, the a-pawn, whose queening square is the wrong color for his bishop. But with the e-pawn on the board it's hopeless. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | jrredfield: I saw 36 Rxe5 and the rest of the obvious continuation but it wasn't as convincing as it should have been at first because I failed to see that 39 Bxf8 traps the Black N. Black can then only salvage a captured pawn (39 Bxf8 Nxc4). After 39 ... Nxc4, White has a mate in 23 according to my engine analysis: 40.♔xc4 ♔d7 41.♗c5 a6 42.♔d5 g5 43.e4 g4 44.♗f2 c6+ 45.♔c5 ♔e6 46.♗g3 ♔d7 47.a4 a5 48.♔b6 c5 49.♔xc5 ♔e6 50.♔b6 ♔d7 51.♔b5 ♔e6 52.♔xa5 ♔d7 53.♔b6 ♔e7 54.a5 ♔f8 55.a6 ♔g7 56.a7 ♔h7 57.a8♕ ♔g7 58.♕e8 ♔f6 59.♕f8+ ♔g6 60.♕g8+ ♔f6 61.♔c6 ♔e7 62.♗h4+ |
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Dec-26-22
 | | An Englishman: Good Evening: Curious position; the hopelessly out-of-play and irrelevant Na3 proves relevant--and hopeless. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | mel gibson: Easy as expected today.
Stockfish 15 says:
36. Rxe5
(36. Rxe5 (♖f5xe5 ♖e8xe5 f6-f7 ♖e5-f5 f7-f8♕+ ♖f5xf8 ♗g7xf8 ♘a3-b1 ♔d3-c2 ♔c8-d7 ♔c2xb1
♔d7-e6 ♔b1-c2 ♔e6-f5 ♔c2-d3 g6-g5 e3-e4+ ♔f5-g4 ♗f8-c5 a7-a6 ♗c5-e3 ♔g4-h5
♔d3-d4 ♔h5-g6 ♔d4-d5 ♔g6-f6 e4-e5+ ♔f6-g6 e5-e6 ♔g6-f6 ♗e3xg5+ ♔f6xg5 e6-e7
♔g5-f6 e7-e8♕ c7-c5 ♔d5xc5 ♔f6-g5 ♔c5-d5 ♔g5-f5 ♕e8-e4+ ♔f5-g5 c4-c5 a6-a5
♕e4-e5+ ♔g5-g4 ♕e5-g7+ ♔g4-f4 ♕g7-d4+ ♔f4-g5) +25.92/33 272) score for White +25.92 depth 33. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | saturn2: The point is the knight gets trapped. |
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Dec-26-22
 | | perfidious: It came as rather a shock to see Golombek essaying a King's Gambit, so accustomed have I been to seeing him play queenside openings; but there is at least other instance in this DB, the meaningless final game of his 1947 playoff for the British title. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | agb2002: White has a pawn for a knight.
The advanced f-pawn can create a double threat after 36.Rxe5: A) 36... Rxe5 37.f7 Rf5 38.f8=Q+ Rxf8 39.Bxf8
A.1) 39... Nxc4 40.Kxc4 + - [B vs p].
A.2) 39... Nb1 40.Kc2 traps the knight with a won ending. For example, 40... g5 41.Kxb1 g4 42.Bc5 g3 43.e4 Kd7 44.Kc2 Ke6 45.Kd3. B) 36... Rd8+ 37.Rd5 Rxd5+ (37... Re(g)8 38.f7 wins decisive material) 38.cxd5, followed by f7, wins. C) 36... Kd7 37.f7 wins decisive material (37... Rxe5 38.f8=Q). |
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| Dec-26-22 | | GlennOliver: My first thought, 36. f7 fails to ... Nd8+ |
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| Dec-26-22 | | TheaN: This Boxing Day puzzle kind of comes in two parts. The first part is, "do we have any better than Rxe5?": to which the answer is no, because Black threatens Rd8+ and gxf5. So, <36.Rxe5 Rxe5> technically Black can probably hold out longer with an alternative, but f6 will decide anyway. Now, part two. We will win back the rook with the f-pawn, but "what's left?". If you don't look further than the actual promotion you'd consider B:N and 3P to be drawn (at best, Black has a passer). That in mind, I considered e4 to prevent Rf5, but then Re8 and White will lose moves even. Then it dawned me, the knight's actually trapped. <37.f7 Rf5 38.f8Q+ Rxf8 39.Bxf8 Nxc4 (Nb1 40.Kc2 +-) 40.Kxc4 +-> and White will win this relatively easily. |
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Dec-26-22
 | | chrisowen: Tin c quark its we fag hop july its z Rxe5 abled its leeway doh its axiom jug arrive at oar Rxe5 ebb :) |
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| Dec-26-22 | | thegoodanarchist: Tuesday-level puzzle, IMHO. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Messiah: Good ol' Mondays... even I was able to see the solution! Now grab a champagne. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Refused: Knight on a3 is just a very unfortunate piece, that will run out of squares and drop at the end. 36.Rxe5 Rxe5 37.f7 Rf5 38.f8Q Rxf8 39.Bxf8 Nb1 40.Kc2 and loose piece drops off. |
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Dec-26-22
 | | takebackok: Brenin hit it on the head, easy win for WAF until 31...N-a3? Then, easy as pie Monday |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Hercdon: Solved itself |
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Dec-26-22
 | | keypusher: I think this is the first Golombek game I've ever seen where he wins. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Retireborn: <keypusher> He has 66 games in my collection and has lost at least 40 of those! One interesting thing about his record is that he has played (and lost to) every World Champion from Capa to Spassky. If he'd ever played Lasker and Fischer he'd probably have lost to them too... |
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Dec-26-22
 | | playground player: I like P-f7 better--a double attack. |
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| Dec-26-22 | | Brenin: <playground player: I like P-f7 better--a double attack.> 36 f7 Rd8+ 37 Ke2 Bxg7 with an easy win for Black. |
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Dec-27-22
| | perfidious: <Retireborn....One interesting thing about (Golombek's) record is that he has played (and lost to) every World Champion from Capa to Spassky. If he'd ever played Lasker and Fischer he'd probably have lost to them too...> Timing is everything; had Golombek been born a generation later, much less in the fifties, none of this comes off. He came of age at a time when the Hastings event had become one of the annual fixtures of the chess calendar, and the young British masters were able to test their mettle against the likes of championship-calibre players. |
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| Dec-27-22 | | Retireborn: <perf> Timing is everything, that's certainly true. I have sometimes wondered if Jan Timman (to take a random example) resented the fact that Hans Ree (only 7 years older) got to play against Euwe, Botvinnik, and Fischer, and he didn't. Well such is life. |
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Kibitzing
sac: 36.Rxe5
