Rook Endgame: Interference and the Defence by Vertical Checks
Black to play and draw
PlayHis a-pawn is on a7, one step from queening. His winning method is interference: his king comes to b5, then his rook checks and lands on the a-file, between your rook and the pawn. Your defence: check his king from the first rank, along the files, and drive it as far as possible from your pawn on g5. Every tempo counts.
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Vertical Checks Against the Far-Advanced Pawn
Black to play and draw · Hold the draw against perfect play
Waking the engine…
The theory
Watch the method: press play to see the winning idea run, or step through it move by move.
Why not run with the king at once? After Kf5 his king goes to b5: Ra1 Rc5+ Kf4 Rc4+ Kf3 Ra4. His rook now stands on the a-file between yours and the pawn, and the pawn queens. Pushing g4 at once loses too.
Interference. With a far-advanced passed pawn, the attacker's main weapon is interference: his rook steps onto the pawn's own file, cutting your rook off from the queening square so the pawn can go through.
The defence. Drive the king away with vertical checks, and drive it as far as possible from your own passed pawn. Every check you land is a tempo the attacker must spend walking back.
Do not rush your pawn. Pushing it before the checks have done their work loses the race by a single move.
In this drill you defend. Get the rook behind the a-pawn, check the king up the board, and only then start running.
Keep going
The Rook in Front of Its Pawn
White to play and win
The Vancura Position
Black to play and draw
The Short-Side Defense
Black to play and draw
All 96 rook endgames positionsFollow the full curriculum (free)