Chess Puzzles #1

[omarmahmood200407161]

in puzzle 3 .. why not start with Rxc7 ... then Qa7 check mate??

[17arkrage]

1/5 :(

[BLOXaBLOXXER]

13,337 views o_O

[rwarnicke]

i am 11 and i got 5/5 so i think i am an ok player. i have a question also, i am about a 1100 and i was wondering what the lowest rating you could have was. i also was wondering what opening you think i should use against d4 nimzo, benko gambit, kings indian, or that one thats like a kings indian but you play d5 not d6. anyone who wants to reply on my questions feel free.

[Powhentall]

i did 4/5 im a 12 year old kid and i did all of them in less then 10 sec. ,only on problem 4 if 1.Ng6+ there is Qxg6, but i felt thet i could solve it.Thanks!

[mathers1663]

3/5, 4th was the hardest

[TheChessDude98]

awesome video

[SirSoSly]

For puzzle 3 why not just rook take pawn straight away ?

theres nothing that can stop queen to mate afterwards.

[dennychen555]

I thought I found the move to win the queen on puzzle 1 but i guess checkmate is better :D

[Skylinesandsunsets]

There's a life lesson in this video: Sometimes you have to sacrifice the queen in order to win the game.

[moftary1]

@Skylinesandsunsets excepts that "in life, unlike chess, there is no checkmate" --a popular quote

[orim298s]

Noticed that most of the checks were when the king was blocked by his own pieces restricting his movements. Also the importance of not having your pawns pinned.

[Jacoboo97]

I went 3 for 5

[spawnfan101]

For the third puzzle, what about Rxc7, to be followed by Qa7 unless black delays with ...bc5 in which case white plays Qxc5?

[Hoepsakee]

Lol:) I did 5/5 out of three puzzle vids, now if my starting game would improve I could actually get into these positions someday:) Cheers on the vids.

[ChessNetwork]

@Hoepsakee 15/15! :)

[sejikhu]

Mate in TWO for puzzle 3 start with Rc7 then Q

[Hoepsakee]

@sejikhu

Nope, after Rc7 black pawn takes Queen

[sejikhu]

@Hoepsakee i c thnx

[ccnmnm]

@sejikhu Also, even if black didn't have the g pawn, he still has the awesome move 1...Bc5. White cannot take because of the back rank mate threat.

[shoopi1234]

@sejikhu

The queen is attacked by the pawn on g3, so black simply takes it

[2011Chess2011]

In the puzzle 4 after Rdf1 if black plays b5 white take longer to win the game.

[MalaTemporaCurrunt]

hi there.

are these real game positions?

[laughingman1447]

only 2/5 (2 & 5)

[Greatbloke]

Nice entertaining puzzles. Thanks.

[TheRRumba]

i think 5/5 most difficult 

[zoomnastro]

DEEP

[OoiNatalie]

I thought I was the looser, but everything changed. The situation changed if someone can think deeply and far.

Win or lost is not according to the pieces you are having, it is about how good is your strategies.

[OoiNatalie]

BUT if I rifused to sacrifice any of my Pawns, both of my Pawns will be in danger. And of cuz, I will loose the game.

[OoiNatalie]

Unfortunetly, at the end, the Black Bishop took one of my Pawn, so I left one Pawn.. BUT, my Pawn (one Pawn) still able to win the game for me which the Pawn transform into Queen at the end after the next Pawn beside "him" was killed by the Bishop.. The White Bishop was keep chasing my both Pawns which were close to my King.. So I had no choice to take a Pawn as sacrificed, let the Bishop take and then I will have the chance to win..

[OoiNatalie]

I still remember I had only a White King and 5 Pawns. My opponent had a Black King, a White-square Bishop and 4 Pawns. My 3 Pawns were stucked due to blocking opponent's Pawns, I was clever, I knew the white King was coming to attack my Pawns so I use them to block the Black King and 3 Black Pawns on the same time. So I only have 2 Pawns and a King can be moved, 3 of them (2 Pawns and King) were staying together, guarding each other together.

[OoiNatalie]

Situation can be changed.. Like what I played before, I thought I was going to loose cuz my material was weaker than my opponent, and the situation was totally BAD! It's like I was going to resign, some sort.. But I wasn't!

[OoiNatalie]

As I look on the board, I know that Black is going to checkmate soon, BUT do this (the movements I mentioned above) will keeps the Black King alive for awhile.. Am I right? Sorry, I'm not good in chess, but this is what I'm thinking if I am the Black.. It's better to keep the Black King die later than soon, cuz Black MAY be the winner if the White take mistakes. :)

[OoiNatalie]

If the Black Queen on F7 takes the White Rook on F1, she's attacking the White King and forcing the White to take the Black Queen with either the White Rook on H1 or the White Queen on C4. White of cuz will uses his rook to takes the Black Queen. Then use the Black Rook on F8 to take the White Rook on F1, forces the King to move away or the White Queen to take the Black Rook.. After that, Black moves his pawn on G7 one step forward (to G6).

[OoiNatalie]

Er, I have a question to ask you.. It's on the fourth puzzle.. Hope you don't mind.. :)

White Rook moves from D1 to F1, pinning the Black Queen.. What if the Black Queen on F7 takes the White Rook on F1 on her next moves?

[ChessNetwork]

@OoiNatalie Qxf1 would have put up the most resistance from that puzzle. White is still winning, but it would certainly take longer. Good point! :)

[ardeeyae]

very nice puzzles sir... difficult and time consuming... like to have more from you

[ardeeyae]

guyz, kindly clear my doubt,it might sound amateurish, i got 5/5, but still cannot understand this in 5th one. 1. Ng5 h6 2.... how should i proceed then ???

[ChessNetwork]

@ardeeyae The g7 pawn is pinned to the king. Rxh6 with mate next move.

[ardeeyae]

@ChessNetwork oh ya, thanks... totally ignored that bishop... thanks

[AROHTAK97]

2/5 only(3 & 5).I think it would taken a long time to make these puzzles.

[tfavio1]

3/5 for me (1,3 & 5), 2nd was close but 4 was the hardest by far.

[AaronDemby]

Cool puzzles! Here are a few additional comments:

1.) In puzzle 4, black's best defense is ...Qxf1+, avoiding mate in the short term.

2.) In puzzle 5, there are a few important details. The white pawns on b5/d3 prevent black from playing Qc6+/Qe4+. Also, the white bishop on b2 helps white force mate if black tries the defense ...h6. This defense can be refuted with Rxh6+ Qxh6 Qxh6# due to the pin on the g7 pawn. (Note also that the defense ...h5 loses to Rxh5+ with a similar mate.)

[Iamyourboo2]

Nice puzzles. I went 5/5. that 4th one was tricky.

[Shauny7188]

3 out of 5, Number 4 got me and i thought the wrong way, and number 5 made me face palm, since i should of seen that.

[12ShippudenNaruto]

Men,AWESSOME!!!

[TheSerkanKapan]

In the forth question , after Rf1 what is black plays b5 ?

It does not chance the fact that black is down but it postpones the checkmate I guess ?

[mychokehold]

the second puzzle could have been completed in one move, instead of the unnecessary 3.

[Iamyourboo2]

@mychokehold Where do you see that?

[terrytsp]

I'm just wondering how can they form the 5th puzzle with the black bishop and the white queen stuck at that position..

[AtteMetal]

1 / 5 :D

[mrtman34343]

0/5 hoorah

[hibbitish]

These were tough

[AggieWolverine]

I only missed the 4th. I disregarded the first move quite early. Oh well.

[matthewlane1991]

I only got the first one -.- bleh I suck lol

[ledgeleaper]

Thanks for the puzzles. More please.

[darylt42]

I thought the last puzzle was the easiest.

[TheHuginMunin]

Beside demanding my virtual pat, i would like to suggest to continue this series whith some minor modifications: It's trickier and closer to reality if the you can't let your autopilot focus on a quick knockout. Like in Ray Chengs Practical Chess Exercises one should have to ask oneself "What measures does this position demand?" Mate? Attack? Defense? Consolidation? Positional play? - Thanks for this (and probably other) vid(s).

[ChessNetwork]

Depends on the kind of puzzle. Puzzles 1,2,3 & 5 in not too long of a time. The 4th required more thought by me.

[sollkig]

I do not know you, but you seem like such a great guy. How come you are that? You should be praised more for your good humour and spirit! Or the Nobel peace prize for that matter.

That had absolutely nothing to do with chess :S

[ChessNetwork]

@sollkig Thanks :)

[ropierrot]

4/5- fair puzzles, pretty thematic- i missed the fourth but i think i still found a winning continuation- clearly not quite as convincing as Rf1- thanks for posting-

[F1N1TY]

Gah, only got 1/5, (the last one) :(

Darn

[F1N1TY]

Gah, only got 1/5, (the last one) :(

[Fadeplay2]

Hello Jerry,

i just wanted to say that i would be willing to pay to see more videos from you. Your way of explaning is just perfect for me. Out of one game review from you i gain more than out of 10 videos from another popular youtube chess video poster. Do you give private lessons?

Thank you!

[Tribble6hatch]

yeah third and the last one^^

[tehjoch]

3rd one definitly the most difficult!

[chessfan6]

in puzzle 3 what defense is there to Qa7 after black plays Rc7? That's the move i figured was best since its faster

[Redeiperdenti]

@chessfan6 Do you mean white plays 1.Rxc7? Because that would be a very bad blunder... just 1...gxf2 and no more queen nor mate for white :)

Anyway I did 4/5. I missed puzzle number 4.

[chessfan6]

@Redeiperdenti DUH, lol thanks didnt see the pawn

[Lovethempeas]

@chessfan6 I agree, I saw this also. I had to research past responses to make sure I wasnt alone.

[njmt18S]

well, i got the last two:)

[dumpnchase]

I always enjoy your videos. 3 out of 5.

[CycloneGU]

The first two are a little easier than the other three (since they are only mate in three). The only suggestion I could make is say what type of puzzle it is; is it a Mate in Three, or such? While I'd like to say I was 5/5, some are extremely tricky and no, I didn't go 5/5. the first WAS easy, the second I started but didn't pick the Queen move, the third I didn't predict the quiet move, then I was O_O for the other two.

[GoldenJoe]

Ah...I got pretty close, but I couldn't finish the first few. The fourth one was the only one I was clueless on, but I got the fifth.

[niilus]

got all 5, the 5th 1 was the least obvious one, took the most time. Great puzzles bro.

[WhiteAntimodes]

for the last puzzle

2... Bh4 is the best move, which prevents rapid checkmate

[knife071]

looks like its virtual pad for me!!

[AveragejoeChess]

I'd like my virtual pat on the back now

[ChessNetwork]

@AveragejoeChess :) *pat* *pat*

[SylvXIII]

3/5 :)

[880330145789]

thx for this nice puzzles... i always get stuck nearing the end... the silent moves are really hard to spot... cuz these puzzles always are full of forcing moves

[trixapete]

great video thanks jerry

[hkayabilisim2]

Only the 3th. I think 4th is the most difficult.

[lordofllamas42]

I went 5/5, but that's only because I remember a few of them from Hertan's Forcing Chess Moves. Good book, and a great place to find puzzles.

[MrGatherfield]

Well, I liked them all! The most difficult, I think, was puzzle #4, where you they weren't any forced moves.

[Monir1993]

I'd always get the first few moves, but I can't calculate the rest very well.

[guitarfella581]

5 of 5

[LuckilyLevi]

3/5

[Omiccron]

Great video. I'm trying to improve my tactics and got 4/5. I failed the last move on the third one. It's still hard for me to find the "quiet" positional moves.

[ojb500]

Nice puzzles.

[RelinaUlryy]

3/5. The fourth puzzle, for me, seemed the most difficult to see. But it is all personal perspective and what we are lookng at.  I'm not Garry Kasparov, after all.

[avan432]

3/5

[HellSaint1000]

4/5. The last one I wasnt with patience to think and just didnt stop >_<

[HellSaint1000]

in the second puzzle, how about 2. Rxd8 Kxd8 3. Qb8#?

[lordofllamas42]

@HellSaint1000 3.Qb8+ isn't mate, since black has Kd7.

[Gerstein1]

5/5 ^^

[TheChessPlayer93]

3/5

[Squeezyness]

0 of 5. I was close on #3 though...

[Nimzowitz]

I got the first three with a board. The last two I tried without a board and failed.

[mike454545454545]

5/5

[MichaelFJ1969]

In the first one, I actually found the correct first move Ng6+, but missed the queen sacrifice on g7. I chose 2. Nfe7+ which seems to give white a strong attack and winning back the rook. But 2. Qg7+ is obviously more direct.

The remaining four puzzles were not too hard.

[ForYeensSake]

Only 3/5 :(

[Bolzhoden]

5/5. With your hints.

[Winstet420]

0/5 :<

[youvebeensmoked]

2/5... ouch

[gotaids]

I love chess puzzles, although I would argue that they aren't too influential on your own games -- when I see a puzzle, I usually look for whatever I probably wouldn't do in a real game.

discuss.

[theshoe124]

@gotaids They can help you spot non-typical checkmates. You usually won't have these in every match, but it's still a nice ability to have.

[misterkefir]

4 on 5

i only had problems with the 4th one , cuz i was looking for mate and i didnt see the Rdf1 move ;(

pretty good puzzles

[KillaNinja0]

got 4/5.. found Ng5 in a second :D .. it was number four doh.. i just said.. ya Ng6+ mates.. then Qxg6.. doh!

[1GoodRiddance]

Really helpful, thanks for the upload. i got the first two, I didn't think the last one over a lot and I missed the rook's attack on the queen at the 4rth... The third one was pretty hard.

[MrZingnigga]

4/5. Thought the first was the hardest.

[Wuzzysbrand06]

I got them all...but my problem with chess puzzles is that I only find a solution because I know it's a puzzle with mate in x moves. If I faced this position in an actual game I'd probably never see this :(

But I guess it helps learning.

[juicenburg]

In problem 4, i thought of rook D7 not F1 -.- 4/5  Not too dificult, all the same theme. When you do alot of chess puzzles you see these things.

[antonio8332]

how do you make your videos I mean what program do you use to show us the board and move the pieces and all the things you do.

[juicenburg]

In problem 4, i thought of rook D7 not F1 -.-

[Nimzowitz]

@juicenburg me tooo

[Auriouk]

Another great upload from you! Keep up the good work

[Bulbapuck]

4/5

I failed on the third one, didn't see the first move.

Great video! Made me proud of myself for beating number 4 :D

[sauskeuchiwa]

hey jerry... by the third puzzle, why not just going with the rook to c7? and than queen to a7... finish?

[shinmasaki]

@sauskeuchiwa pawn g3 takes queen?

[sauskeuchiwa]

@shinmasaki ah, i didn't see that one ;) thx

[Wuzzysbrand06]

@sauskeuchiwa After Rxc7 black plays Bc5. If white takes the bishop with Qxc5 then black goes Re1+..and white loses the queen after Qc1.

If Rxc5 or Nxc5 white would still win but it would take longer because black has some options to defend with for example Rh7 etc...

[nrmz22]

When it comes to puzzles I just cant get enough of them. I got #2 wrong...should have realized the knight covering the a7 and c7 squares....

[hvitekristesdod]

i only got the third one and the last one.

[PressA2Die]

Wow, I failed every single one. I suck.

[ChessNetwork]

@PressA2Die You didn't fail at anything. These aren't easy puzzles.

[PressA2Die]

@ChessNetwork I came close on one, but didn't see a pawn was pinned so I ruled out that line of attack. I only took up chess few months ago. My brain just doesn't work that way yet.

[ICarnag3I]

@ChessNetwork How long does it take you to solve these?

[elbay2]

@PressA2Die Ditto.. no worries, they were fun nonetheless!

[vidiviciveni]

5/5 with 4 being most difficult to 'see'. Many thanks Jerrry.

[liuton2005]

In all these puzzles the king is poorly defended.

[blackchrisp]

4/5, the fourth one was weird. I didn't feel like thinking too long over it.

[Blakjak2000]

Ugh, I was on the right track on 1,2,3 and 5, but didn't get any of them right. :(

[lazimofo90]

qb1+ sorry

[lazimofo90]

3:17 Another way to delay the checkmate one more move is qb2+

[guineapig713]

On the last puzzle...why can't black play pawn to h6 at 5:18?

[lazimofo90]

@guineapig713 5:18 notice the bishop is pinning the g7 pawn?

h6?qxh6 qxq forced rxq#

[guineapig713]

@lazimofo90 yep, saw that a little bit after... brilliant!

[agmm1985]

3/5. In #4 I was looking for a forced checkmate, but I didn't noticed that the puzzle was about gaining position and material advantage for the endgame (Q+N vs. R+N) so I failed that one. In #5 I move Rh6 because pawn in g7 is pinned, but it didn't work because that wasn't the weak spot.

[MrMrvideoz]

for me it pauses at 1:12 and wont go any further..

[ChessNetwork]

@MrMrvideoz This happens for occasionally when I view other youtube videos. Refresh works for me when that occurs.

[dylancaprotti]

fourth one I missed

[nicocola1]

3/5, I missed the 4th and 5th :). And I guess the 4th was the most difficult because of the different continuations.

[krunchyberries]

Awesome!!!!!!!!!

[cleedrulez]

i love queen sac puzzles!

[8minutesofarc]

4/5 for me. I missed the third one, and instead found 1. Rxc7 gxf2 2. Nb6+ Kb8 3.  Rd7, thinking that white had an unstoppable made. I completely missed black's response 3...f1=Q#.

[MultiKnark]

3/5 :(

I thought the last one was most difficult, I really have a hard time seeing smothered mates. I even saw the line up until the last move but couldn't see the simple knight move... =(

More of these! I hate being told how many moves until check mate or how I should win a queen. This is real problem solving!

[iPLAYgb]

i only got the third and the fifth lol

[geollnyz]

5 for 5 :)

[skinnyjohnsen]

4/5. Not no. 4. The possibility of sacrificing queen on Q x c8 got me stuck.

[videogamerboyman]

yuo should make a video on the basics of actually SOLVING one....

[scorici]

3rd is more simple to me Rxc7 threatening Qa7#

Black can only avoid this by sacrificing his bishop and queen to delay mate.

[scorici]

@scorici I just realise I was wrong :)) , after Bc5 Qxc5 Rd8 so my solution is not good :D

[ximbomike]

@scorici You were wrong, but not because of that . It's because after Rxc7, black simply plays gxf2 xD

[scorici]

@ximbomike Ohh yeah , so embarrassed right now :))

[ximbomike]

@scorici lol it happens to everyone :P

[failedassassin]

I got the first one, but never found your answer on any others... After 3 I was completely lost. The hardest was maybe 4.

[jamiedastylishman]

argh 4/5

didnt spot the queen sac on g7 on the first puzzle xD

[TheOpinionatedPerson]

1/5 woo!

[TimeFreeze1]

5/5 yay! I loaded myself on tactics for the past few days, so this was pretty easy.

[turquoiseguy]

For the second puzzle, I came up with Qg4, checking the king. The only legal response would be Kb8, then after the rook trade off, Rd8 is checkmate. Same concept as yours, just a different order of moves and doesn't sacrifice the queen.

[bierbuik]

@turquoiseguy ?? Black can just block with f4...

[Wuzzysbrand06]

@turquoiseguy There are a couple of legal responses after Qg4. For example f5...or Re6...or Qe6.

[bierbuik]

@turquoiseguy Qg4 is a very bad move, because it doe snot accomplish anything and loses tempo, gives initiative to black. It is however the first step in the thought process to come to the queen sacrifice. So my advice for you would be: be more thourough in your thoughtprocess, you understand the fundamentals though.

[turquoiseguy]

@bierbuik @Wuzzysbrand06 Oh, yes, I didn't seem to take into account black blocking the queen. Sorry, I see the problem now, never mind.