Chess

BY PHILIDOR

No 60. R. BURGER (1st Prize, American Chess Bellew 1955)

BLACK (7 men) WHITE to play and WHITE (11 men)

mate in two moves; solution next week.

A num ber of solvers have pointed out that No. 58 (Mansfield) is `cooked' by Q-R3, Kt2, 131 or RI all with threat Q-B1. Apologies from comrn poser and myself: problem can be made sound by exchanging R on KR2 with Q on QR2.

Published games give a misleading impression of what tournament chess is like; they are in the main short attacking games, whereas the normal top-class tournament game is a gruelling struggle decided in the end-game—because the modern master is too good to be beaten by a middle game attack except on rare occasions. This game illustrates this; • White gets a positional advantage which he exploits with great skill and vigour but, faced with stubborn Black resistance, has to go to the end-game for victory.

White, B. SPASSKY Black, 1. BOLESLAVSKI Opening, King's Indian

1 P-Q 4 Kt-K B 3 22 P x P P-K 5 2 P-Q B 4 l'-K Kt 3 23 B-K 2 B x P 3 Kt-Q B 3 B-Kt 2 24 R-B 4 R-K 2 4 P-K 4 P-Q 3 25 Q R-B 1 R (K ,2)-B 2

5 P-B 3 0-0 26 P-K R 4! (h) B-Kt 3

6 B-K 3 P-K 4 27 Kt-B 6 ch K-Kt 2 7 P-Q 5 P-B 4(a) 28 PR 5 P-K R 3(1)

8 Q-82 Kt-K I (b) 29 R-Kt it R x

9 0-0-0 P-B 4 30 It (B4)-Kt 4 Kt (B 2)-K 1 10 P x P P x P 31 K-Q 2 R-B 5 II B-Q 3 Kt-R3 32 RxR RxR 12 P-Q R 3 Q-41 37(c) 33 R x B ch K-R 2 13 K Kt-K B-R 3 34 P-Kt 4 ( P-Kt 3 14 Q-Q 2 BXB 35 P x P P x P

15 Q x B Q Kt-B 2 36 Kt-Kt 5! Kt-K B2 (k) 16 P-I3 4! (d) B-Q 2 37 R-Q B 6 Kt-B3

17 P-K Kt 4(e) K P x P? 38 R x P P-R 3

18 Kt x P Q-K 4 (J.) 39 Kt-B 3 R-R. 5

19 QxQ PxQ 40R-B7 K-Kt 1

20 Kt-R 5 Kt-Q 3 (g) 41 P-B 5 Resigns (/)

21 K R-B 1 Q R-K 1 (a) Blocking White Q side advance and preparing for possibility of one of his own; in return he gets weak Q P. (b) 8 . . . Kt-R 4; is shade better with possibility of Kt-B 5 later. (c) Better 12 . . . Q Kt-B 2; followed by B-Q 2 and P-Q Kt 4. If in reply 13 P-K Kt 4, then 13 . . . P-K 51; 14 B P x P, P-B 5! (d) Very strong. Whatever Black does he gets left with weak pawns. (e) Blaring continuation. Black should accept the chal- lenge and play 17 . . B P x PT; after which although White has good attacking chances for pawn 1 can see no clear way of his gaining the upper hand.

(.1) Not 18 . . .P x P; 19 Kt-R 5 and 20 Q-R 6 with tremendous attack. (g) Black's trouble is that however he plays he will ultimately be left with bad pawn position. (6) Very strong, threatening 27 Kt-Kt 3, B-Kt 3; 28 R x R. R x R; 29 R x R, B x R (29... K x R?: 30 P-R 5!); 30 Kt x P. (i) 28 ... R x Kt?; 29 P-R 6 ch!

(I) Having tied Black to defence of K P, White now forces another weakness.

(k) 36. . . Kt x Kt; 37 P x Kt, R-B 3; 38 R x R, Kt x R; 39 P-Q 6 leaves Black quite lost.