Cloud Hosting

The bishop pair is sometimes like a pair of scissors that can cut through an opponents position. With this hint in mind, please try to find whites winning attack.

Whites bishops, f1 rook and queen target blacks king-side, as if they were scissors, rock and paper ready to pounce. White first pounces with the f1 rook capturing blacks bishop on f6. After blacks g7 pawn takes the rook, whites bishop on e5 captures blacks pawn on f6 and delivers checkmate (see next diagram).

Blacks best reply to rook takes bishop is to not capture the rook but to move its queen to e7. This defends f6 and threatens whites rook. White is winning, but black has not lost.

White, however, cuts through this defense with the unexpected queen sacrifice on g7. That is, after the black queen moves to e7, whites queen takes blacks g7 pawn and checks black. After the black king takes the queen, white wins with rook takes blacks pawn on f7 (see next diagram).

Both the rook and bishop on e5 check black. The black king thus retreats to g6 or h6. Whites rook snatches blacks queen, and white now has an overwhelming material and positional advantage.

The lesson this week is that if a police officer pulls you over and asks for your papers, as if it were the 1940s, just reply scissors and drive off. Of course, you may then need a rock to break out of jail.

We are making critical coverage of the coronavirus available for free. Please consider subscribing so we can continue to bring you the latest news and information on this developing story.

Continue reading here:
Chess Corner: Scissors, rock, and paper - Muskogee Daily Phoenix