I spent my afternoon today revisiting a couple of my favorite chess puzzles composed by Johan Axel Åkerblom (10/21/1904 – 6/5/1980). Åkerblom was a strong chess player and a professional journalist from Avesta, Sweden. However, he is most famous for his chess compositions and his contributions in this field earned him the FIDE title ofContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 82”
Tag Archives: mate in 2
Betcha Can Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 3
Chess problems don’t need to be overly complex or daunting to be valuable; often, the simplest puzzles can offer fresh insights and deepen our understanding of the game. Even straightforward positions can reveal elegant ideas, subtle tactics, or positional themes that we might overlook in more complicated scenarios. Such is the case with this particularlyContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 3”
Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 81
Often in my youth I felt compelled to finish a chess puzzle as I would my homework; it must be done before I could rest. If my mind became too tired to solve the chess puzzle then I would admit defeat and look up the answer. As I have matured, I find the process ofContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 81”
Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 80
Buddhist monks engage in a form of meditation known as visualization, where they focus on a single mental image that serves as a focal point for their practice. This mental exercise not only enhances their mindfulness but also deepens their clarity of focus. I use a similar technique to focus on solving chess puzzles whileContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 80”
Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 79
I solved the puzzle below by using the brute force method of calculating all possible moves three steps deep to find the checkmate in two moves. This method is oftentimes a more appropriate choice than the “Checks, Captures and Threats” system because composers of mate in 2 puzzles commonly start with a “quiet move” toContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve this #Chess Puzzle! 79”
Betcha Can Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 2
Sometimes a relatively simple chess composition can be pleasing if it has a unique structure. This was the case with today’s mate in two composed by Idon Bruno Hovedskou Anderson. Enjoy… White to move and mate in 2 (by: Idon Bruno Hovedskou Anderson, source: Skakbladet, date: January, 1941).
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 51
Recently, a training game against a student created an additional opportunity to discuss an ancient checkmating pattern. In the position below, it is black to move and mate in 2. This one is not to hard to spot especially if you are familiar with the Arabian Mate or take a moment to analyze your checks,ContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 51”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 72
The British Chess Magazine really hit the snail on the head by including this wonderful mate-in-2 chess puzzle in the January issue of 1911. I solved this Frederick Forrest Lawrie Alexander composition at a rather sluggish pace which is why I betcha can’t solve this chess puzzle at all! But go ahead and prove meContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 72”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 70
Today’s puzzle of interest is a mate in 2 with many carefully placed ingredients. I was struck by this chess problem’s modern design and surprised by the fact that it was composed over a century ago in 1920. Not only is this chess puzzle a beautiful reminder of how much is possible on the chessboardContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 70”
Winning Chess Moves: Karpov vs. Mickiewicz, 1997
Former World Champion Anatoly Karpov is an incredible chess player who dominated the international chess scene for a decade beginning in the mid-seventies. Anatoly wasn’t the flashiest World Champion but his games are very approachable and I often recommend that fans of Capablanca also study the games of Karpov. For today’s Winning Chess Move puzzle,ContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Karpov vs. Mickiewicz, 1997”
Winning Chess Moves: Zhongyi vs Wagner, FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022
Grandmaster Tan Zhongyi of China finished her tenth round game at the 2022 Women’s Grand Prix with a very unique mate in 2. GM Zhongyi, who was the FIDE Women’s World Champion from 2017-2018, was facing WGM Dinara Wagner when Wagner played 43… Kh6 with the black pieces giving Tan a golden opportunity to finishContinueContinue reading “Winning Chess Moves: Zhongyi vs Wagner, FIDE Women’s Grand Prix 2022”
Puzzle Worthy Position 38
This puzzle worthy position has long been one of my favorite instructive combinations to use as a part of beginner classes on checkmating. The player with the white pieces is none other than the fifth World Champion Max Euwe but our feature position occurs twelve years before Max famously defeated Alexander Alekhine in a closeContinueContinue reading “Puzzle Worthy Position 38”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 67
When well composed, mate in 2 chess problems are highly enjoyable which is why I share so many of these gems with the Daily Chess Musings community. Tonight’s puzzle was definitely well composed and although I had never heard of Gyula Andre before, I now have a deep respect for his talent as a composer.ContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 67”
Chess Position Worth Sharing 142
Tonight I showed Werner Springe vs Hans Gebhardt, Munich 1927 to my chess students at Gomes Elementary School in Fremont, California. This game, played by relatively unknown players, is a delightful choice for a chess lesson. In the position below, black has just played pawn to h6 threatening white’s bishop. What is white’s best move?ContinueContinue reading “Chess Position Worth Sharing 142”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 64
German chess puzzle composer Herbert Ahues (1922-2015) specialized in the art of the mate in two. He composed more than 4000 chess problems and was awarded the title of Grand Master of Chess Composition by FIDE in 1989. Below is one of his final masterpieces first published in the year of his passing. White toContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 64”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 62
Whether you prefer racking your brain, wracking your brain or even wrecking your brain, this chess puzzle is for you. White to move and mate in two by Herbert Siegfried Oskar Ahues (Troll, 1/2001). Whit to move and mate in 2 (Herbert Siegfried Oskar Ahues, Troll 2001).
So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 43
National Chess Day is celebrated in the United States on the second Saturday in October. The 38th U.S. President Gerald Rudolph Ford Jr. declared National Chess Day on October 9th, 1976 as part of the nation’s bicentennial celebration. Today, the day honors chess’ lengthy history and the role it has played in uniting people fromContinueContinue reading “So I was just playing a game of #chess and then this happened! 43”
Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 60
I enjoy mating puzzles where the target king is surrounded by open squares. In these puzzles, the appearance of freedom for the target king is only an illusion because, in reality, the open squares surrounding it are not free from the influences of distant pieces. In tonight’s puzzle, the black king appears to have severalContinueContinue reading “Betcha Can’t Solve This #Chess Puzzle! 60”
#Chess Position Worth Sharing 137
In round 4 of the 2003 Corus Chess Tournament, Michal Vladimirovich Krasenkow fought admirably for 79 moves before allowing Vladimir Kramnik to end the game with a cute one-two combination. Can you spot Kramnik’s mating maneuver? White to move and mate in 2 (Kramnik vs. Krasenkow, 2003 Corus Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, Ned.).
#Chess Position Worth Sharing 136
Great chess players have a way of making it look easy. However, making it look easy requires a lot of work. For instance, just to get to the feature position in today’s puzzle, Boris Spassky had to spend hours grinding out a winning position. (Not to mention the years of hard work to become anContinueContinue reading “#Chess Position Worth Sharing 136”