Quality Chess Puzzle Book

By

John Shaw

Quality Chess
www.qualitychess.co.uk
 Contents
Key to Symbols used 4
Sources 5

Chapter 1 – Introduction 7
Chapter 2 – Contributions from our Readers 19
Chapter 3 – Thematic Combinations 31
Chapter 4 – Simple but not Easy 79
Chapter 5 – Missed Opportunities 127
Chapter 6 – Ivanchuk 145
Chapter 7 – Blitz Games 159
Chapter 8 – Winning the Endgame 167
Chapter 9 – European Team Championship 2009 187
Chapter 10 – Drawing the Endgame 201
Chapter 11 – Puzzles with Two Solutions 213
Chapter 12 – Defence 223
Chapter 13 – Puzzles with Pawn Promotion 241
Chapter 14 – More Missed Opportunities 257
Chapter 15 – Brain Crushers 277

Index of illustrative positions 343

Index of Players in the Puzzles 344
Chapter 2
Contributions from our Readers
In this chapter all the puzzles were generously sent to us by our readers. I hope this will create a new
business model in chess publishing where our readers do all the work and I reap the benefits. Naturally,
the positions demonstrate a range of themes. In general, the level of difficulty is lower than later in the
book, so this chapter is a useful warm-up for what is to come.
The first example was sent by Manfred Herbold of Germany. The tactic lands on move 8, but the
opening moves are weird enough to be worth a look.

Herbold – Mayer, Lampertheim 2002

1.¤c3 d5 2.e4 dxe4 3.¤xe4 £d5 Black was determined to play a Scandinavian. 4.¤c3 £a5 5.b4
£xb4 6.¤b5 £a5 7.¥c4 c6? 7...¤f6 would have seriously challenged the soundness of White’s
opening play.
1222222223
tMv+lVmT5
Oo+ OoOo5
 +o+ + +5
Wn+ + + 5
 +b+ + +5
+ + + + 5
p+pP PpP5
R BqK Nr5

79
8.¥xf7†!! ¢xf7? Black really should decline the piece, even though 8...¢d8 9.¤c3± is unpleasant.
9.£h5† It was probably at this point that Black realized it is his queen not his king that is in trouble.
9...¢f6 In avoiding a knight check with a discovered attack on the queen, the black king sacrifices
himself. The thematic line was 9...g6 10.¤d6† exd6 11.£xa5+–. 10.¥b2† e5 11.¥xe5† ¢e6
12.¤c7† ¢d7 13.£e8#

The next position was supplied by Rui Marques of Portugal. It is White to play. There is no forced win,
but there is definitely a correct way to play.
20 Quality Chess Puzzle Book

Marques – Eggert, Lisbon (rapid) 2006

1222222223
 +t+ Tl+5
O + WoO 5
 O +o+ O5
+ + P + 5
 V O + +5
+ Nq+ +r5
pPp+ PpP5
+ + R K 5

79
22.¤e4! The best move even though Black can hang on with accurate play. 22...¥xe1? Black had
to decline the offer with 22...¦fd8! creating a square for the king on f8. 23.¤f6† ¢f8 (23...gxf6??
24.¦xh6+–) 24.£h7 £c7! Now I cannot find a forced win, e.g. 25.¦f3 gxf6 26.exf6 ¢e8 27.£g8† ¢d7
(27...¥f8?? 28.¦xe6†! fxe6 29.£xe6† ¥e7 30.f7† ¢f8 31.£xh6#) 28.£xf7† ¢c6 29.£xe6† ¢b7 30.c3
dxc3 31.£e4† £c6 32.£xb4 c2 33.¦c3 ¦d1 34.¦xc6 ¦xc6 35.£e7† ¦c7 36.£e4† ¦c6 37.£e7† ¦c7=
23.¤f6†! gxf6 24.¦xh6 ¥xf2†! The only try. 25.¢xf2 ¦xc2† Now the game continued 26.£xc2? f5 and
Black eventually lost on time. White had to avoid 26.¢e1?? £b4† 27.¢d1 ¦fc8–+. The only way to win
was 26.¢f1! when Black must give up his extra rook and a few pawns. 26...¦c1† 27.¢e2 ¦c2† 28.¢d1
¦c1† 29.¢xc1 ¦c8† 30.¢b1 Black must lose f6, f7 and e6. For example, 30...£c5 31.£h7† ¢f8
32.£h8† ¢e7 33.£xf6† ¢d7 34.£xf7† ¢c6 and now either 35.¦xe6† or first 35.a4! will win eventually.

Our final example before the puzzles was sent from Glasgow in Scotland. It is Black to play.

Hellegaard – Aagaard, Denmark 2010

1222222223
 + +tL T5
Oo+ +oOv5
 Mo+ + O5
W +m+p+ 5
 + P +p+5
+pOrNqNp5
p+p+b+ +5

+k+ + +r5
79
24...¦xe3!! The tempting 24...¤b4 is less convincing after 25.¦xc3 £xa2† 26.¢c1 and 24...£a3 is
foiled, for the moment, by 25.¤d1. 25.¦xe3 £a3 26.¦xc3 ¤a4! 0–1
 Chapter 2 - Contributions from our Readers 21

Snuverink – Lindam, Gent 2004 NN – Rotella, Internet Blitz 2008

1222222223 1222222223
1
 + N +l+5  +t+l+ T5 4
+ + +oO 5 + +v+o+ 5
o+ PtM O5 oW OoO +5
+oV + + 5 +o+ V + 5
 + +t+ +5  + +pP +5
+pP + +p5 +bNq+ P 5
 + + +pB5 pPp+ +k+5

R + Rk+ 5 
+ +rR + 5
79 79
Schnoor – Peterson, Dresden 2007 Rotella – NN, Internet Blitz 2008
1222222223 1222222223
2
 +t+ + T5 v+ WtVl+5 5
+q+ +oL 5 + + +o+o5
o+ +o+ +5  M + Po+5
+v+o+ +w5 + O + + 5
 + + + +5  + +p+ +5
P +bP P 5 +q+ +nN 5
 + R + P5  B + PpP5
+ + +rK 5
 + + R K 5

79 79
De Crop – Van Vliet, Brasschaat 2007 Dabo-Peranic – Kozul, Croatia (rapid) 2007
1222222223 1222222223
3
t+ + V Q5 t+vM VmT5 6
Oo+ +lO 5 + +lW Oo5
 + + +o+5 oB + + +5
+ +oP +m5 + +p+o+ 5
 + + + W5 pO +n+ +5
+ +bBp+v5 + + + + 5
pP + + P5  Pp+qPpP5

R + +rK 5 R + Kb+r5

79 79
22 Solutions 1-6

(1) J. Snuverink – Ingo Lindam, Gent 2004

Black went into the ending with an extra piece and an extra pawn after a nice combination, but
then failed to get the most out of his investment. 30...¤g4! A nice shot. 31.¦xe4 The only move.
31.hxg4 ¦f6† is mate. 31...¤xh2† 32.¢e2 ¦xe4† 33.¢d3 ¦e3† 34.¢d2 ¦e5 34...¦g3!–+ won
easily. 35.¤b7 ¦d5† 36.¢e2 ¥xd6 37.¤xd6 ¦xd6 38.¦h1 a5? Only here is the win put in jeopardy.
Black could win easily with 38...¦g6! 39.¦xh2 ¦g3 40.¢d2 b4 41.cxb4 ¦xb3 42.¦h1 ¦xb4–+ and
two extra pawns are plenty. 39.¦xh2 a4 40.bxa4 bxa4 41.¦h1µ White has a fighting chance, but
should probably still lose. Black however is having a bad day. 41...¦e6† 42.¢d3 ¦g6 43.g4 h5
44.gxh5 ¦a6 45.¦a1 a3 46.¢c4 f5 47.¢b5 ¦a8 48.c4 f4 49.c5 f3 50.c6 a2 51.c7 f2 52.¢b6 ¢h7
53.¢b7 ¦f8 54.c8=£ f1=£?! This is unnecessary. Black could make a simple draw with: 54...¦xc8
55.¢xc8 ¢h6 56.¢d7 ¢xh5 57.¢e6 ¢h4 58.¢f5 ¢xh3 59.¢f4 ¢g2 60.¦xa2= 55.¦xf1 ¦xf1
56.£c2† Black resigned, which is the most calamitous calamity of them all. The position is a fortress.
With the rook on f6, ready to go to h6, and the king on h8 or h7, the combined might of the Quality
Chess office has been unable to find a win. 1–0

(2) Ekkehard Schnoor – Eric Peterson, Dresden 2007

White played 28.¥xb5? axb5 29.£xb5² and held a slight edge for a while. (0–1, 107). Later he
regretted not playing 28.g4!, when Black cannot hold the defence of f7 and White simply wins. For
example: 28...£xg4† 29.¦g2 and the queen is lost.

(3) R. De Crop – D. van Vliet, Brasschaat 2007

Black won an important tempo for only a rook. 20...¥c5! 21.£xa8 £g5† White is mated. 0–1

(4) NN – Tony Rotella, Internet Blitz 2008

21...¦h2†! Thematic and effective. 22.¢xh2 £f2† 23.¢h3 ¢e7 White resigned. 24.fxe5 ¦h8†
25.¢g4 f5† and mate is near. 0–1

(5) Tony Rotella – NN, Internet Blitz 2008

White is generally winning, but it is fun to end with a flourish: 23.£xf7†! ¢xf7 23...¢h8 24.¤g5
£d7 is equally hopeless. 25.£xe8! is the most effective, and also the most stylish. 24.¤g5† ¢g8
25.f7# 1–0

(6) Robert Dabo-Peranic – Zdenko Kozul, Croatia (rapid) 2007

White has played the game brilliantly, and now mated the former European Champion with a queen
sacrifice. A real-life dream scenario: 17.£b5†! 1–0
 Chapter 2 - Contributions from our Readers 23

Sullivan – Rousseau, Montreal 2003 Lindam – Weber, Germany 1991

1222222223 1222222223
7
 LtT + +5 t+v+ W T510
OoR + + 5 OoLo+nOo5
 + + W O5  +m+ + +5
+ + + O 5 + +q+ + 5
 +r+ + +5  + P + +5
+ + + P 5 + P + + 5
 +pQ PpK5 pP N Pp+5
+ + + + 5
 + K R + 5

79 79
Ortkamp – Neuer, Germany 1981 Lindam – Smithers, Correspondence 2003
1222222223 1222222223
8
 + + + +5 tM Wl+mT511
Oo+ +lOo5 Oo+ VoOv5
 +o+oTmW5  + +o+ O5
+ + +o+ 5 + +oPp+ 5
 + P + +5  + O Np+5
+bP +pP 5 + N + + 5
pP +q+k+5 pPp+ +b+5

+ + + R 5 R Bq+k+r5

79 79
Wyss – Rölli, Switzerland (ch) 2008 Robiolle – Muneret, France 2008
1222222223 1222222223
9
tMvT + +5 t+v+tVl+512
+o+mLoO 5 +oW +o+o5
o+ +o+ O5 o+ +o+o+5
+ + P + 5 + +m+ + 5
w+ Nn+ +5  + + +nQ5
+r+ + + 5 + Bb+ +p5
p+pQb+pP5 pPp+ Pp+5
+ + K +r5
 + +r+rK 5

79 79
24 Solutions 7-12

(7) Neil Sullivan – Daniel Rousseau, Montreal 2003

White took control over the 7th and 8th ranks with the brutal 26.£d7!!, forcing immediate resignation.
1–0

(8) Hans-Georg Ortkamp – Thomas Neuer, Germany 1981

Black won with a fine shot. 27...¤f4†! 28.gxf4 ¦g6† 29.¢f2 White is lost. After 29.¢f1 Black has
29...£h3†! forcing the win of material. 29...£h2† 30.¢e3 £xe2† 31.¢xe2 ¦xg1 0–1

(9) Jonas Wyss – Sabrina Rölli, Swiss Championship 2008

With the black king in the centre it is not a surprise that there is a direct win. It is also not a surprise
that it is brutal and sacrificial. 17.¤xe6! fxe6 18.£d6† ¢f7 19.¤g5†! Not the only win, but a nice
way to own the light squares. White also wins after 19.0–0† ¢g8 20.¦g3! with a winning attack.
For example: 20...¢h8 21.¦xg7!+– 19...hxg5 20.0–0† ¢g6 21.¦h3! Accurate till the end. Black is
mated. 21...g4 22.£xe6† ¤f6 23.¦xf6† ¢g5 24.¦f5# 1–0

(10) Ingo Lindam – Michael Weber, Germany 1991

White has a promising position and can take back the sacrificed exchange. But instead he found
an instant winner: 21.¦e8!! £xe8 Nothing else makes any sense. 22.£d6† ¢b6 23.¤c4† Black
resigned, facing mate-in-three. 1–0

(11) Ingo Lindam – Steven Smithers, Correspondence 2003

White wins material with a neat little twist. 13.fxe6! dxc3 There is no alternative. 14.exf7† ¢xf7
15.£xd5†! The point. The rook an a8 cannot be defended after the queens come off. 1–0

(12) J.M. Robiolle – M. Muneret, France 2008

22.¥xg6! The most effective solution. White is also winning after 22.¥e5 £e7 23.¥f6!, when Black
should give up the exchange. 22...fxg6 23.¦xd5! exd5 23...¥g7 was possible, but after 24.¤f6† or
24.¥xg7 £xg7 25.¤f6† Black is dead anyway. 24.¤f6† Black resigned. A possible line was: 24...¢f7
25.£xh7† ¥g7 26.£xg7†! 1–0
 Chapter 2 - Contributions from our Readers 25

Soszynski – Henderson, Nottingham 1999 Gardner – Scoones, Canada 1985

1222222223 1222222223
13
t+v+t+lV5  + + + +516
+ +m+o+ 5 + W + +l5
o+ O MoB5  + No+oO5
Wo+pO + 5 + + Po+ 5
 + +p+ +5 q+ + + +5
+ N + N 5 P + +tP 5
pP QbPp+5  + +m+ P5
+ R K +r5
 
R + + +k5
79 79
Ljubicic – Peranic, Croatia 2000 Papatryfonos – Bibby, Calvia (ol) 2004
1222222223 1222222223
14
 + L T T5 t+ T +l+517
+o+ +o+ 5 + P WoOo5
o+oP No+5  P + M +5
+ + +m+o5 O M + + 5
 + P + +5  + + + +5
+ P + +p5 Q +o+pP 5
pP Kr+ +5 p+p+p+bP5
+ + +r+ 5
 
R + K Nr5
79 79
Sanchez – Semprun, Spain 2006 Bemrose – Ramachandran, Australia 2005
1222222223 1222222223
15
b+ + +l+5 r+ + + +518
+ + +o+ 5 + W OtLo5
v+ +o+ +5  T M Mo+5
+ + + O 5 + + + + 5
 + +p+ +5  O + + +5
+ Q + +k5 + O QbNp5
 Pp+ +pP5  Pp+ Pp+5

+ W + + 5 + +r+ K 5

79 79
26 Solutions 13-18

(13) Marek Soszynski – B. Henderson, Nottingham 1999

White has a promising position, but to be able to exploit the weaknesses on the kingside and in the
centre at the same time requires violence. 17.¤f5! ¤xe4 Trying to make it to an ending, but there is
no happiness there either. The more critical 17...b4 is best met with 18.¥f8! (although 18.¤xd6!? also
wins) 18...¤h5 19.¦xh5! gxh5 20.¥xd6 and the black king lacks a defence. Black cannot take on c3,
as it would allow the rook to quickly reroute to g3 with terminal effect. 18.¤xe4 £xd2† 19.¢xd2
gxf5 20.¤xd6 Complete collapse. 20...¦d8 21.¥h5 ¤f6 22.¥xf7† ¢h7 23.¥f8† ¤h5 24.¦xh5#
1–0

(14) Filip Ljubicic – Robert Dabo Peranic, Croatia 2000

34.¦xf5! gxf5 35.d7! Black is paralysed. White is in no hurry to give the check on e8, but first brings
the king to f5. 35...¦hg8 36.¢e1 h4 37.¢f2 Black resigned. 37...a5 38.¢f3+– 1–0

(15) Lidia Sanchez – Fernando Semprun, Spain 2006

Black organizes a surprise mating attack with a few clever twists. 28...e5! 29.¥d5 29.£f3 loses to the
nice line: 29...£e1! 30.£g4 £e3† 31.£f3 g4†!! 32.¢xg4 ¥e2–+ 29...£f4 The quickest way to mate,
but Black was also winning after: 29...g4†!? 30.¢xg4 ¥e2†–+ 30.¥xf7† ¢g7 0–1

(16) David Gardner – Dan Scoones, Canada 1985

Black managed to unsettle the white pieces with a lovely punch. 46...¦xa3! White resigned. After
47.¦xa3 £c1† 48.¢g2 £g1† 49.¢f3 ¤d4† Black would win the queen. 0–1

(17) Constatinos Papatryfonos – Simon Bibby, Calvia Olympiad 2004

Black is able to give up a lot of pieces, as his opponent’s king is in trouble. 19...d2†! 19...¤ce4
20.cxd8=£† ¦xd8 21.£xd3!µ is less clear. 20.¢d1 ¤ce4! An elegant solution. Black could also win
with: 20...¤d5!? 21.cxd8=£† ¦xd8 22.e4 ¤a4!!–+ 21.fxe4 Resignation. 21.cxd8=£† ¦xd8 changes
nothing. 21.£e3 ¤d5! is another way to end the game. 21...£xa3 22.cxd8=£† ¦xd8 23.¤f3
£b2 0–1

(18) Trevor Bemrose – Rajendran Ramachandran, Australia 2005

White has a good position, but to win it still requires work. White did this with a nice shot. 26.¦xd6!
¦xd6 Black saw no reason to fight on with a piece less. 27.¤f5†! gxf5 28.£g5#1–0
 Chapter 2 - Contributions from our Readers 27

Lindam – Renner, Stuttgart 1995 Van Vliet – Roos, Belgium 2007

1222222223 1222222223
19
tM WlV T5 t+vWt+ L522
Oo+ + Oo5 + + +oO 5
 +o+oM +5  +oO M O5
+ +oN + 5 + Or+ + 5
 + P + +5 o+p+ P +5
+ +q+ +r5 PpQbP + 5
pPp+pP +5  B + P P5
RnB K + 5
 + + K R 5

79 79
Cooper – Stimpson, England 2004 Swede – Hannum, Café (friendly) 2008
1222222223 1222222223
20
 + + Tl+5  + W + L523
O + +oOo5 O + + Oo5
q+p+ M +5  + V + T5
+ V Mw+ 5 + +r+ + 5
 + + + T5  + + T +5
+ N + P 5 + Np+ + 5
pP +bP P5 pPq+ PpP5

R B +rK 5 
+ + +rK 5
79 79
King – Marques, Internet Blitz 2008 Semprun – Faller, England 1983
1222222223 1222222223
21
 + + + T5  + + Tl+524
O V +vL 5 +o+vBo+ 5
 + + O +5  + Oo+ +5
+ Pb+ O 5 +w+ V +o5
 P Q + +5  + +p+o+5
+ N + +p5 +nP + + 5
p+ +r+k+5 pP Q + +5

+ W + + 5 + Kr+ + 5

79 79
28 Solutions 19-24

(19) Ingo Lindam – Kai Renner, Stuttgart 1995

White wins with a classic king hunt. 10.¦xh7! ¦xh7 11.£g6† ¢e7 12.£f7† ¢d6 13.¤c4† dxc4
14.¥f4† ¢d5 15.¤c3† ¢xd4 16.0–0–0† ¢c5 17.¥e3† The queen is not enough. The rest is a bit
silly, but still fun. 17...¢b4 18.£xb7† £b6 19.¥xb6 g6 20.¥c7† 20.a3# 20...¢c5 21.¤a4# 1–0

(20) L. Cooper – P.M. Stimpson, England 2004

Black is very active, but his attack could quickly lose momentum. In the game he made sure this did
not happen. 19...£h3!! 20.gxh4 ¤f3†! Blocking the f-pawn. These two great moves could of course
be inverted. 21.¥xf3 ¥d6 White cannot avoid mate. 22.¦d1 ¥xh2† 23.¢h1 ¥g3† 24.¢g1 £h2†
25.¢f1 £xf2# 0–1

(21) Jens K. King – Marques, Internet Blitz 2008

Although only an Internet blitz game, Black found a wonderful combination. 32...¦xh3!! 33.¢xh3
There is no reason not to take the rook. After something like 33.¤d1, Black wins trivially: 33...¦h2†
34.¢f1 ¦xe2 35.¢xe2 £c2† 36.¢e1 ¥g3† 37.¢f1 £f5†–+ 33...£f1†! The important follow-up
check. White is mated. 34.¥g2 White cannot elude his fate: 34.¦g2 is best met with: 34...¥e6†!!
35.¥xe6 £f3† 36.¦g3 £xg3#; 34.¢g4 ¥h5†! 35.¢xh5 £h3† 36.£h4 £xh4#] 34...£f5† White
resigned. The next check is on h7, and it hurts. 0–1

(22) D. van Vliet – A. Roos, Belgium 2007

White needs to strike or cry. A fancy move like 19.¦h5 only leads to a perpetual check, but White can
strike much harder with: 19.£xf6!! £xf6 This does not change much. 19...gxf6 20.¦h5 and Black is
mated. 20.¥xf6 cxd5 21.¦xg7 ¦e4 The only way to avoid mate, but not a way to live. 22.cxd5 ¥f5
23.¦g5† ¢h7 24.¦xf5 ¦ae8 25.¥e5 1–0

(23) A. Swede – W. Hannum, Café Friendly 2008

A sudden chance, and Black created a little masterpiece. 24...¦xh2!! 25.g3 The only attempt. 25.¢xh2
is refuted by thematic means: 25...¦h4† 26.¢g1 ¦h1† 27.¢xh1 £h4† 28.¢g1 £h2# 25...£h4!! But
this ends all discussion. 26.gxh4 ¦g4# 0–1

(24) Fernando Semprun – A. Faller, England 1983

White would like to play 25.£g5†, but after 25...¥g7! the queen on b5 would interfere and give Black
the edge. Instead White found a tricky little deflection in 25.a4! forcing Black to resign in view of the
mate. 1–0
 Chapter 2 - Contributions from our Readers 29

NN – Rotella, Internet Blitz 2008 Mihoci – Ziskovic, Croatia 2004

1222222223 1222222223
25
t+ Wt+ +5 t+ + T L527
OoO +lOo5 Oo+m+ O 5
 +m+ M +5  W +o+ O5
+ + +v+ 5 + + + +q5
 VpP + +5  P V + +5
+ N Bp+ 5 P + + + 5
pP + KpP5  + B PpP5

R +q+bNr5 +bR +rK 5

79 79
Rotella – NN, Internet (rapid) 2008
1222222223
26
tMv+ Tl+5
Oo+ +o+o5
 + P +o+5
+ O + B 5
 +bV + +5
W + + + 5
p+ + +pP5
+ Rq+r+k5

79
30 Solutions 25-27

(25) NN – Tony Rotella, Internet Blitz 2008

Black won with a demolition on the dark squares. 10...¦xe3! 11.¢xe3 ¥c2!! The really brilliant
move, luring the queen to a worse square. 11...¤xd4!?µ is very good for Black, but not as direct.
12.£d2 12.£xc2 £xd4† 13.¢e2 ¥xc3 14.bxc3 ¦e8†–+ is hopeless. 12...¤g4†! 13.fxg4 13.¢e2
£e7† and the queen is gone. 13...£g5† The point. 14.¢f2 In blitz, who can blame him. 14.¢e2
¦e8† 14...£xd2† 15.¤ge2 ¤xd4 16.¦e1 ¦e8 0–1

(26) Tony Rotella – NN, Internet (rapid) game

1.d4 ¤f6 2.c4 g6 3.¤c3 ¥g7 4.e4 d6 5.f4 0–0 6.¤f3 c5 7.d5 e6 8.¥e2 exd5 9.cxd5 ¦e8 10.e5 dxe5
11.fxe5 ¤g4 12.¥g5 £b6 13.0–0 ¤xe5 14.¤xe5 ¥xe5 15.¥c4 £xb2 16.d6 ¦f8 17.¦c1 ¥xc3 18.¦b1
¥d4† 19.¢h1 £c3 20.¦c1 £a3 21.¦xf7!! This attack was all home preparation. However, this does
not reduce the pleasure for the player in executing it. 21...¦xf7 22.£e2! The dual threat of £e8† and
¥xf7† followed by £e7† is too much to handle. The queen is by the way better placed on e2 than on
e1, as was played in two games. The main difference is that the defence attempted by Black in this
game would be far more successful, as White would lack £c4 in the end. 22...£a4 The other line
runs: 22...¥e3 23.¥xe3 ¢g7 24.¥xf7 ¢xf7 (24...¥g4 25.£d2) 25.¦f1† ¢g7 26.¥c1+– 23.¥xf7†
¢g7 23...¢xf7 24.£e7† ¢g8 25.¥h6 is just mate. 24.¥b3! £d7 25.¦xc5!! Another great shot.
25...¤c6 Or 25...¥xc5 26.£e5† ¢f8 27.£h8#. 26.¦xc6! bxc6 27.£c4 Black resigned. 1–0

(27) Ivica Mihoci – Nikola Ziskovic, Croatia 2004

The first move is easy, but the subsequent win is very hard to find. It all ends in a rook ending where
White has to show a bit of accuracy to win. 26.¥xh6! This is easy enough, and in the game Black
did not make it harder than this. 26...¥xf2†? This loses quickly, as the rook can come to c3. The
accurate defence was 26...¤f6, and now 27.£h3, 27.£g5 and 27.¥xg7†! all lead to the same position
after a few checks. 27...¢xg7 28.£g6† ¢h8 Here White cannot do more damage with the pieces
he does have in the attack, but he can bring more in. It is not possible for Black to get rid of the
queen from g6. 29.¦cd1!! ¦ac8 The only defence. 30.¦d3 ¦c3 31.¦fd1 ¦fc8 It seems as if Black has
managed to keep control, but the set-up of his pieces is fragile. 32.£g5!! With the threat £h4† and
£xd4. Black has no easy way to meet this. 32...¤h7 The best among not many options. (32...¦d8
is well met with the curious 33.¢f1!! threatening £h4† and ¦xc3, without having any irritating
...¥xf2† interfering. And 32...e5 is refuted with 33.¦xc3 ¥xc3 34.£h6† and the opening of the a2-g8
diagonal is lethal.) 33.£h4 Here Black has a real choice for once. Probably best is 33...¥xf2† to keep
some pieces on the board. (After 33...¦xd3 34.¥xd3 ¦c7 35.¥xh7 ¥xf2† 36.£xf2 £xf2† 37.¢xf2
¢xh7 38.¦d6 White has a winning rook ending. 38...¦c2† 39.¢f3 ¦c3† 40.¢e4 ¦xa3 41.¦xe6 ¦a4
42.¦e7† ¢g6 43.¦xb7 a5 44.¦b6† ¢g7 45.¢f5 axb4 46.g4 ¦a5† 47.¢f4 ¦a4 48.h4 b3† 49.¢g3+–)
34.£xf2 £xf2† 35.¢xf2 ¤f6 36.¦e1+–, but the extra pawn still needs to be converted in practical
play. 27.¢h1 ¤f6 28.¥xg7† ¢xg7 29.£g6† ¢h8 30.¦c3 1–0