Separated Passed Pawns vs Rook: The Win
Black to play and win
PlayThe rook has one job it can never drop: watch the a-pawn. While it is tied to that, your king walks out and escorts the other passed pawn home.
Updated
New to this ending? Learn the method first: Rook Endgames
No signup needed. The opponent never gives up, and every mistake gets explained.
Separated Passers Overrun the Rook
Black 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.
A rook can stop two separated passers only if it is free to watch both. Take that freedom away and the pawns win.
The anchor. Your pawn on a2, with your king behind it on a1, chains the white rook to the a-file: step off a1 and a1=Q follows. The rook may check, but it can never leave.
The runner. c4 is your only legal move and exactly what you want. The c-pawn advances while your king walks out to meet it: Kb2, Kc2, Kb3, Kc4.
The absent king. White's king starts on g6 and never arrives. Without it, the rook is one piece doing two jobs, and one of the pawns always gets through.
The rook cannot trade its job. It may try to switch off the a-file and chase the c-pawn instead, but the moment it grabs it, Kb2 and the a-pawn queens. It may spray checks; you simply climb through them, the king walking up a file each time, until the runner promotes. One piece, two jobs, and it can never drop either.
Keep going
Shouldering Off the King
White to play and draw
The Check That Buys a Tempo
White to play and win
The Stalemate Resource
Black to play and draw
All 96 rook endgames positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)