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The Drawing Zone, Part 2

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Are you ready to defend against some dangerous attacks?

In "The Drawing Zone, Part 1" we saw some examples of how to hold a draw in an inferior position. Saving a draw in the endgame may not be the most sexy part of chess, but it is still a very important element of chess ability. Now let's see some more difficult problems on the same theme. Start saving bad positions today!

Here is what you will learn:

Learn the key techniques for defending tough positions!
Practice calculating essential defensive tactics!
Learn important defensive resources in the endgame!

Five Hours of Work... Gone in a Second

Chess is a cruel game, in that a player can spend an entire game building up a won position, and then throw it all away in a moment of distraction.

3 Uitdagingen

The Wisdom of the Ancients

Here we have a position published by Gioachino Greco as long ago as 1623.

3 Uitdagingen

Bogo's Blunder

The concept of shouldering; is fundamental in endings with a passed pawn against a rook.

10 Uitdagingen

A Bitter Pill for Bird

Deep in the endgame, the famous Arabian loomed. But Bird found reserves of cleverness, and saved the game.

5 Uitdagingen

Standard Move

In rook and pawn endings with all pawns on one wing, the result should normally be a draw, even when one player is up a pawn.

1 Uitdaging

Maroczy Unbound

Queen and pawn endings offer special drawing chances, even when a player is down material, due to the massive checking power of the queen.

7 Uitdagingen

The Knight Watch

Defense in the endgame is a combination of the twin poles of fortress building/simplification and counterattack.

3 Uitdagingen

The Knight is a Lonely Hunter, Part 1

The knight against the pawn - who wins?

5 Uitdagingen

The Knight is a Lonely Hunter, Part 2

The tortoise and the hare race again...this time the white king is in a good position to interfere with the knight, and it has to perform torturous maneuvers to catch the slow-moving pawn.

7 Uitdagingen

All Rook Endings Are Drawn

At least, that is how the saying goes. Obviously not ALL rook endings are drawn, but they do tend to be more drawish than other endings.

15 Uitdagingen

Getting Closer

Chess is not only a game of high-level strategy. Some of it involves pure human common sense. For example, when your opponent has a passed pawn, try to bring your king over to stop it or block it.

4 Uitdagingen

Jansa's Clever Trick

Saving a game is not just about trying to find the right move, but sometimes - especially when the position is objectively lost - it requires you to find the way to set your opponent the most problems.

2 Uitdagingen

House of Pawns

When both players have their pawn chains fixed on the same color as the opponent's bishop, things can get tricky.

11 Uitdagingen

Passively-Aggressive Defense

Defense in rook endings often requires a type of "passive aggression." The defending side must mark time while the threat of a counterattack holds the superior side at bay.

4 Uitdagingen

Tricky Bronstein

Resourcefulness in desperate positions can go a long way. It is never time to relax, even when the position seems completely won.

3 Uitdagingen

Another Brick in the Wall

Bishops and knights each have their particular advantages in the endgame. Knights are particularly good at building fortresses, especially when playing against bishops.

5 Uitdagingen

"Like Bishops of Opposite Colors"

Boris Spassky said, after his divorce, that he and his wife had become "like bishops of opposite colors." One sees what the other doesn't. In the endgame (in chess) this often means that passed pawns are hard to advance, leading to an extreme drawish nature.

5 Uitdagingen

Study-like Defense

Studies - also known as etudes - are composed positions, created for art and to show some idea in a pure form.

19 Uitdagingen

The Drawing Zone, Part 2

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