Pawn vs Rook: Walk the King to Shelter
White to play and win
PlayYour pawn on c7 is one step from queening, and his rook checks your king. The rule: your king can hide from the checks on b7, next to the pawn. Walk there, and before each step make sure his rook cannot win your new queen with a check along the c-file.
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The Pawn That Beats the Rook
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.
Usually a rook stops a lone pawn with ease, but there is a scenario where the pawn wins outright: a pawn on the seventh sheltered by its own king, with only two rook squares that lose. This is the practical cousin of the famous studies.
Down, across, and up. The rook has nothing but checks. Your king answers them with a ladder: down the board first, two files from the rook, so no check ever comes with a fork or a hit on the pawn, then across the c-file and up the b-file.
Mind the squares. Precision matters. Drifting to d7 lets the rook reach f1 and draw; crossing with Kc4 instead of Kc3 runs into a pin. The goal is b7, right beside the pawn, where checks run out.
In this drill the rook will check from every angle. Walk the exact ladder, reach the shelter on b7, and promote.
Keep going
The Rook's Waiting Move
White to play and win
The Tail-Hook
Black to play and draw
Hold the Rook Pawn with Precise Checks
Black to play and draw
All 96 rook endgames positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)