Queen vs Rook and Two Pawns: When an Extra Pawn Loses
White to play and win
PlayWithout the g6 pawn this would be a draw. With it, Black is lost: his own pawn takes g6 away from the rook, and your g5 pawn covers h6, so the rook has only one protected square left, e6. The rule: one protected square means zugzwang works. Your queen keeps his rook and king busy while your king walks in toward the black pawns.
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The Extra Pawn That Loses the Draw
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.
First, a trade that throws the win away. Qe5+ Rxe5+ Kxe5 leaves a pawn ending that is only a draw. The queen has to stay on the board for now.
This is the sharpest illustration of the criterion, because it inverts the instinct that more pawns mean a safer defence.
The same position without g6 is drawn. There the rook had two protected squares, e6 and g6, and no zugzwang was possible.
The extra pawn is the flaw. Black's own pawn sits on g6 and the white g5 pawn covers h6, so the rook is left with e6 alone. One protected square means the attacker can put Black in zugzwang, and the white king walks toward the black pawns step by step.
The one thing that saves Black. If the white king is cut off in the bottom right corner, White cannot make any progress at all, here or in many similar situations. Route the king with care.
In this drill the win is real and long. Zugzwang, not checks, does the work.
Keep going
A Passed Pawn and Still No Zugzwang
White to play and draw
The King on the Seventh Changes the Verdict
White to play and win
Adjacent Pawns: Walk the King to g7
Black to play and draw
All 19 queen vs rook positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)