Pawn on the Sixth: A Single Tempo
Black to play and draw
PlayThe same position, but now you are defending and it is your move. On the sixth rank the ending balances on a knife edge, and the extra tempo is enough to hold the draw.
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Pawn on the Sixth: A Single Tempo
Hold the draw against perfect play
Waking the engine…
The theory
Rook endings on the sixth rank are decided by tempo. The very position that wins with the attacker to move can be held when the defender gets there first.
The value of the move. With the tempo in hand, the defender denies the attacker the clean Lucena setup: the king stays boxed, or the rook reaches its checking post before the bridge can go up.
Checking distance. The defending rook needs room behind it, ideally three files, so its checks cannot be shut off by the enemy rook or blocked by the king. From long range the checks never stop.
In this drill you must find the holding resource at once. One loose move hands back the tempo and the win returns.