Lightning Speed Endgame Technique

Koji Tanigawa, Meijin

Part Four: Table-Turning Technique

Chapter 6: A Surprising Variation

Diagram 1

The position in Diagram 1 is from my endgame against Ariyoshi 9-dan in the 1987 Junisen League. In response to my ...B*3i, attacking both his gold and rook, Ariyoshi has just moved the attacked gold from 6f to 6e, attacking my own rook. Although I have a material advantage of bishop against silver, I stand worse because of my insecure king position. But now the fight has begun and there is no going back.

If I answer G-6e by simply taking the rook with ...Bx2h+, Black will take my rook with Gx7d, when the threat of N*6d is very hard to meet. Alternatively, ...Rx7f would be met by R-3h (Diagram A), winning the bishop. While thinking for 30 minutes over ...Px6f three moves earlier, I had already decided on my next move, which combines the aims of ...Bx2h+ and ...Rx7f.

Diagram A

Taking advantage of the opportunity provided by G-6e, I played the pawn promotion sacrifice ...P-7h+. If now Kx7h, I can win a silver by ...Rx7f; P*7g Rx4f; Px4f Bx2h+. Ariyoshi 9-dan took the promoted pawn with Gx7h and after ...Bx2h+; Gx7d, I was able to play ...Bx5e (Diagram 2) with check. If I had not played the promotion sacrifice at this moment, Black could have answered it with Kx7h, when ...Bx5e is not check and White is immediately threatened with N*6d. I therefore played ...P-7h+ at the optimal moment.

Diagram 2

Checking to Escape Mate

From Diagram 2, play continued P*6f P*7g; Sx7g Bx4f; Px4f S*6i (Diagram 3). Looking at this position, I began to think it might be winning for me. ...S*6i does not threaten mate, but it is also very hard to threaten White's king with mate. Even if Black succeeds in doing so, after ...Sx7h+; Kx7h R*5h, the rook gives check and covers the 5th file, with a high likelihood of eliminating the mate threat.

Diagram 3

Let us look at some concrete variations. In Diagram 3, the most obvious mate threat is N*6d. After ...Sx7h+; Kx7h R*5h; S*6h +Bx4f (Diagram B), White wins as Nx5b+ is met by Rx5b+. Instead of N*6d, how about S*6a? This is also answered by ...Sx7h+; Kx7h R*5h; S*6h (Diagram C). If now ...+Bx4f, Black has N*5c and mates, regardless of whether White takes it with the gold or the silver. However, in Diagram C, White can play ...G-5a, and it is very difficult for Black to continue threatening mate now that he has dropped silvers on 6a and 6h.

Diagram B

Diagram C

Since White can give check to escape mate with the sequence Sx7h+ and R*5h, I had the impression that I might be winning in Diagram 3. But in fact I still stand worse. Even so, compared to the position in Diagram 1, it has become much more complicated and I still have chances of turning the tables.

A Difficult Position

In Diagram 3, Ariyoshi 9-dan played R*5g (Diagram 4). This is a good move. Dropping the rook on the 5th file, which is vital for both sides in this position, is effective for both defense and attack. While eliminating the tactic ...Sx7h+ followed by ...R*5h, this rook drop threatens mate by Rx5b+, etc. If White defends with a move such as ...P*5c, Black can drive the attack home with successive mate threats starting with N*6d. White therefore needs to escape the mate threat with one of his own. Does he have such a sequence? I now spent 22 minutes trying to find a way.

Diagram 4

Instead of R*5g, R*5f was also possible, with the idea of eliminating the possibility of ...+Bx4f. But White can answer R*5f effectively with ...P*5e (Diagram D). After Rx5e Sx7h+; Kx7h Nx7g+; Kx7g S*6h; Kx6h +Bx4f, winning the rook on 5e. Black would have to launch a decisive attack the moment White plays ...P*5e, but this seems very difficult.

Diagram D

Not Quite Enough

After Ariyoshi 9-dan played R*5g (Diagram 4), I searched hard for a line enabling me to escape the mate threat by threatening mate myself, but none of these variations seemed to be quite enough. In order to win in this position, White must draw Black's king to 6h or 7i so that he can pin the rook on 5g when he plays ...+Bx4f. And while meeting this requirement, he must also threaten mate. I considered three ways of doing this. The first was ...Sx7h+; Kx7h G*7i; K-6g Nx7g+; Kx7g S*6h; Kx6h +Bx4f. The second was ...Sx7h+; Kx7h R*4h; S*5h Nx7g+; Kx7g S*6h; Kx6h +Bx4f. The third, the line played in the game, was ...Sx7h+; Kx7h Nx7g+; Kx7g R*7i; S*7h S*6h; Kx6h +Bx4f (Diagram 5). In Diagram 4, I would have liked to play ...Sx7h+; Kx7h R*7i, but after Kx7i +Bx4f, Black has the rook drop R*5f (Diagram E), escaping the mate threat with his own mate threat. After examining all these possibilities, I reached the conclusion that the third line was the best chance.

Diagram E

The Psychological Factor

Diagram 5

The move that worried me most in Diagram 5 was Kx7i. Can White press home his attack after ...+Bx5g; S*6h? During the game, I felt that after ...R*5i; N*6i P*7g (Diagram F); S7hx7g, I would have something, but there seems to be no good way of continuing here. However, the moment Black drops the silver on 6h, White's king can no longer be easily mated, and this causes him to fear that White will be able to attack as he pleases. The desire to avoid this is understandable from a psychological viewpoint.

Diagram F

In the game, Ariyoshi 9-dan chose to counterattack with N*6d (Diagram 6), but this turned out to be the losing move. The silver drop S*6a would have been a better way of counterattacking. If White meets this as in the actual game with ...+Bx5g; Kx5g R-5i+; P*5h (in the game, S*5h was played) G*4g, Black's king can escape by K-5f, when after ...+Rx5h; K-6e (Diagram G) White has no forced mate. But if Black has played N*6d instead of S*6a, White can mate immediately by ...R*5e. Since the knight on 6d cuts off the king's escape route, Black has no choice but to take the gold when White plays ...G*4g. This is why S*6a would have been better than N*6d.

Diagram G

Nevertheless, N*6d is the first move one would think of and looks right. When a player has two ways of threatening mate, he will always want to do so using the piece of lesser value. This was the trap my opponent fell into, and in that sense I was lucky.

Diagram 6

Insurance Cover

From Diagram 6, the game continued ...+Bx5g; Kx5g R-5i+; S*5h (Diagram 7). The fact that Black can defend with P*5h instead of S*5h makes this position more practically difficult. At this point I only had 28 minutes left and it was very hard to thoroughly calculate all the variations during this time. After S*5h G*4g; Kx4g R*4h; K-3f (Diagram 8), even if I do not have forced mate, I am covered by the insurance that ...Rx5h+ prevents mate while capturing a silver. But if Black had played P*5h, I would have faced the pressure of having to mate after I sacrifice the gold with ...G*4g because I can only take a pawn on 5h. With time running out in a close-fought endgame where it is either mate or not mate, win or loss, the insurance cover provided by ...Rx5h+ gave me precious breathing space. S*5h made it easier to play ...G*4g. However, it turned out that I did not have to go into the ...Rx5h+ line because I had forced mate.

Diagram 7

Diagram 8

From Diagram 8, play continued ...P*3e; Kx3e +R-3i; G*3f (Diagram 9). If S*3f instead of G*3f, ...P*3d; Kx2d R-2h+ (Diagram H) is decisive. If Black interposes a piece on 2g, then ...+Rx2g; Sx2g +R-3e mate, or if N*2e S-3c; Nx3c+ Gx3c with a simple mate. The point of G*3f is that it enables Black to interpose a piece on 2f.

Diagram H

Diagram 9

Ariyoshi 9-dan played G*3f after 10 minutes' thought. I was grateful for these 10 minutes. At this point, I had just 20 minutes left and I still had 14 minutes left when my opponent resigned. In view of this, I might well have found the mating line in time even if he had played G*3f instantly. However, the sense of pressure is quite different when you are thinking from when your opponent is thinking. During your opponent's thinking time, you can analyze the position quite calmly, but when it is your turn to move, with the time-keeper calling out the remaining time as it steadily decreases, it's hard to keep your cool. So those 10 minutes spent on G*3f were very important. During that time, I was able to calculate all the mating variations.

Intermediate Diagram

After ...P*3d (Intermediate Diagram), if K-2f R-2h+ and, whatever piece Black interposes on 2g, it is mate after ...P-2e; Gx2e (or Kx2e +Rx2g, etc.) +R3i-3g, etc. In the game, Ariyoshi played Kx2d, which I answered with ...S-3c. If now Nx3c+, there is no forced mate, but after ...Gx3c; K-2e Rx5h+ defends my own camp with a winning position, though still difficult. Black therefore met ...S-3c with K-2e (Diagram 10). I now have a mating line that is so spectacular that it surprised even me: ...Rx4e+; Gx4e S-2d. If now K-2f S-3e K-2g N*1e is mate, so Black had to play Kx2d +R-2h; Kx3d (if Black interposes a piece on 2e, G-3c mates) Gx2c; K-3e +R-3g (Resignation Diagram) and Ariyoshi 9-dan resigned. Whatever piece Black interposes, White has a simple mate after ...P*3d. I was amazed that the position could contain such a beautiful variation. Sometimes it seems that all the pieces on the board are on your side. Even the opponent's pawn on 2c plays a vital role. Surprisingly, without this pawn, there would have been no mate.

Diagram 10

Resignation Diagram