Queen vs Rook Pawn on the Seventh: The King Wins It
White to play and win
PlayA rook pawn on the seventh is the queen's hardest case. Once his king reaches a1, in front of the pawn, he has no move left, so your free move would be stalemate. What wins here is a king close enough to mate: you let the pawn queen and mate him anyway.
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Let the Rook Pawn Queen, Then Mate
White to play and win · Win against perfect defense
Waking the engine…
The theory
Watch the method: press play to see the winning idea run, or step through it move by move.
The usual method fails. After Qb3+ Ka1, your free move Kd3 is stalemate.
Queen against a rook pawn on the seventh is the most stubborn drawing case in the whole queen-versus-pawn table, and exactly one thing beats it: an attacking king close enough to mate.
Why the stalemate normally saves. Drive the defending king in front of an a-pawn and grabbing the pawn stalemates him. The queen can never bank the tempo she needs, so a distant king never arrives.
What actually wins. You never stop the pawn. The queen boxes the king into the corner while your king walks up: Qb3+ Ka1, Qc3+ Kb1, Kd3! Black queens with a1=Q and is mated on the spot by Qc2, his own new queen sealing the only flight square.
The rule. Rook and bishop pawns on the seventh are drawn unless your king is near enough to join a mating net. Count the king moves before you write the position off.
In this drill do not chase the pawn. Herd the king and bring your own.
Keep going
The Pendulum Defense
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The King's Zigzag
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Zigzag Around the Check
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All 68 king & pawn positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)