Three puzzles every couple of weeks: one for beginners, one for club players, one for Brannock. White to move in all three. Capital letters are White, small letters are Black (K king, Q queen, R rook, B bishop, N knight, P pawn). The answers are at the very bottom of the page, so don't scroll too far. E-mail me your answer and the first correct reply gets a mention next time.

No. 1  (beginners)  White mates in one

   +-----------------+
 8 | . . . . . . k . |
 7 | . . q . . p p p |
 6 | p . . . . . . . |
 5 | . p . n . . . . |
 4 | . . . . . . . . |
 3 | . P . . . N . . |
 2 | P . . . . P P P |
 1 | . . . . R . K . |
   +-----------------+
     a b c d e f g h

White: Kg1, Re1, Nf3, pawns a2, b3, f2, g2, h2.
Black: Kg8, Qc7, Nd5, pawns a6, b5, f7, g7, h7.
Hint: look at the black king's own pawns.

No. 2  (club players)  White mates in two

   +-----------------+
 8 | . . . . . r . k |
 7 | . . . . . . p p |
 6 | . . . . . . . N |
 5 | . . . Q . . . . |
 4 | . . . . . . . . |
 3 | . . . . . . . . |
 2 | . . . . . P P P |
 1 | . . . . . . K . |
   +-----------------+
     a b c d e f g h

White: Kg1, Qd5, Nh6, pawns f2, g2, h2.
Black: Kh8, Rf8, pawns g7, h7.
Hint: the black king has plenty of friends around him. Too many.

No. 3  (for Brannock)  White mates in two

   +-----------------+
 8 | r . . . . . . k |
 7 | . . . . N . p p |
 6 | . . . . . . . . |
 5 | . . . . . . . . |
 4 | . . . . . . . . |
 3 | . . . Q R . . . |
 2 | . q . . . P P . |
 1 | . . . . . . K . |
   +-----------------+
     a b c d e f g h

White: Kg1, Qd3, Re3, Ne7, pawns f2, g2.
Black: Kh8, Qb2, Ra8, pawns g7, h7.
Hint: this pattern has a lady's name. Black is threatening things on the other side of the board, so White has no time to waste.

Last time's winners: Glenlivet was first with No. 1 (at 6:10 in the morning his time), OldTom got No. 2, and nobody got No. 3 except Brannock, who says it was easy. We'll see about this one.

Answers to [email protected]. Put "PUZZLE" in the subject line so I don't lose it in with the round robin results.

Answers

No. 1: 1.Re8 mate. The pawns on f7, g7 and h7 that are supposed to protect the black king are the ones boxing him in. Nothing Black has can get back to f8 in time. This is why we tell beginners to make a little escape square for the king (h3 or h6, say) once the middle of the game starts.

No. 2: 1.Qg8+! The king can't take because the knight on h6 guards g8, so 1...Rxg8 is forced, and then 2.Nf7 is mate. The king is smothered by his own rook and pawns. This is the famous smothered mate, and it's worth setting up on a real board and playing through a few times until your hands know it.

No. 3: 1.Qxh7+! Kxh7 2.Rh3 mate. The knight on e7 takes away g6 and g8, and the rook on the h-file does the rest. This is Anastasia's Mate, named after a novel from the 1800s. White had to hurry: give Black one free move and that queen on b2 comes over with checks.

Last updated Thursday, September 23, 1999