The Rule of the Square in Pawn Endgames
White to play and win
PlayYour b-pawn runs for b8 and his king is far away. Do not count moves one by one: draw the square of the pawn. If his king cannot step into it on his move, push, and the pawn queens on its own.
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The Rule of the Square: Outrunning the King
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.
Waste one move with your king and he gets in. After Kg1 Kg4 his king is inside the square, and it reaches the pawn in time to take it.
The rule of the square answers a common question instantly: can the king catch the runaway pawn?
Draw the square. Imagine a square with one side running from the pawn to its promotion rank. If the enemy king is not inside it and cannot step inside on its move, the pawn queens on its own.
Just push. Here the king is outside the square, so no king support is required and none is available: b4 and then b5 are the only winning moves, because a single waiting move lets Kg4 inside.
In this drill the defender never stops chasing. Trust the square and push the pawn home.
Keep going
The Pawn That Never Moves
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Queen Beats the Center Pawn
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Reciprocal Zugzwang: e6 Against c5
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All 68 king & pawn positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)