Opposite Bishops: The G- and H-Pawn Exception

Two connected passed pawns on the sixth normally win against an opposite-colored bishop. There is a single exception, and this is it: a knight's pawn and a rook's pawn, with the bishop planted on the long diagonal.

One diagonal does two jobs. From the a1-h8 diagonal the bishop covers g7, which freezes the g-pawn, and h8, the h-pawn's promotion square. Both pawns are held by one piece, so the defending king is free and never overloaded.

No outflanking, no zugzwang. The attacker would like to force zugzwang or walk his king around, but the edge of the board removes the second flank, and the defender always has another square on the long diagonal to wait with. Meet the king walk with Kf8, never Kh8, which would let White win with Ke6 and Kf7.

In this drill White will push the king forward and probe. Keep the bishop shuffling on the long diagonal, answer the approach with Kf8, and the half point holds.