White to Play
Pete Tamburro
on
Published in Chess Puzzles
Solution:
Remember when we pointed out that a pawn on the sixth rank by a castled position can be troublesome? We would like to play 17.Qh6 and 18.Qg7 mate, but then the pawn would fall and there would be no mate. So, we use the vulnerable back rank to our advantage. 17.Nf5 Qc6 18.Qh6 Rg8 19.Qg7+ Rxg7 20.fxg7+ Kg8 21.Re8#
Other moves just put off the inevitable: 17…Qe6 18.Rxe6 Nc6 [18...dxe6 19.Qh6 Rg8 20.Nd6] 19.Re3 Rg8 20.Rh3 Rge8 21.Qh6 and mates. Also note that when a castled position has a g-pawn moved forward one space, it creates “homesteading” possibilities for the other player’s pieces.
Send questions and comments to PTamburro@aol.com.