Author: Ricardo Gibert
Date: 22:05:33 01/03/01
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On January 03, 2001 at 23:02:26, Robin Smith wrote: >On January 03, 2001 at 21:41:26, Ricardo Gibert wrote: > >>On January 03, 2001 at 19:51:25, Michael Fuhrmann wrote: >> >>>[D] 8/5p2/8/4P1p1/4bk2/8/8/4BK2 b - - 0 63 >>> >>>This position was reached in a comp-comp blitz game on my computer between >>>crafty 17.14 and little goliath. I was surprised that crafty (black) did not >>>play Kxe5, which wins, and instead played g4, which eventually draws. >>> >>>Later I let crafty analyse the position, and it doesn't really seem to settle on >>>Kxe5 until ply 16 or thereabouts (about 2 1/2 minutes on my computer). >> >>1...Kxe5 2.Bd2 any 3.Kf2 followed by 4.Kg3 is an easy draw. Maybe Crafty has it >>hand coded into its eval that the type of KBPPKB ending that results after Kxe5 >>is a dead draw. Regardless, it's no big deal whether it takes or not in this >>position. A draw is a draw. > >This position is not such an "easy" draw as you seem to imply. In fact I am not >at all certain it IS a draw. After 1...Kxe5 2.Bd2 Kf5 3.Kf2 Kg4!, black >prevents your Kg3 move and thus has good winning chances since both pawns can >then easily be brought to the fifth rank (the f4 & g4 squares). If white >instead tries 3.Bc3 Kf4 4.Bc6 to blockade the f-pawn, black plays 4...g4, 5...g3 >and then 6...Kf5, chasing away the bishop to allow the f-pawn to then advance. >Thus after 2.Bd2 black can force both pawns to the 5th rank, and although >opposite colored bishops with 5th rank pawns on the f & g files is sometimes a >draw and sometimes not, it is never all that "easy". Possibly 2.Kf2 is better >than 2.Bd2, but in any case, even if the position should eventually prove to be >drawn, not taking the pawn clearly gives white a *much* easier game, and not >playing 1...Kxe5 is highly peculiar. > >Robin Smith Yes! My look at the position was too superficial. Your Kxe5-f5-g4 is troublesome.
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