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Understanding Rook Endgames
Endgames with rooks and pawns are the most frequently occurring in chess, arising in about 1 game in 10. If you learn an important technique in this endgame, chances are you will end up using it sooner or later.
And there are a great many methods and concepts that can be mastered with a little effort. This book highlights the key themes in rook endings, and at each turn invites the reader to test his knowledge and skills with abundant exercises.
Rook endgame theory does not stand still. New practical examples illustrate novel approaches as players seek to pose problems to their opponents – Magnus Carlsen has shown that even the driest-looking positions can feature deadly traps. The ongoing creation of new endgame tablebases – of which co-author Yakov Konoval has been at the forefront – enables new classes of positions to be assessed with definitive certainty. Using six-man and the brand new seven-man tablebases, the authors re-examine many of the old evaluations and reach new and enlightening conclusions about classic rook endings. You will be startled and amazed, and soon discover that you are becoming a far more effective endgame player.
German grandmaster Karsten Müller is arguably the world’s foremost writer on chess endgames. His ‘masterwork’, Fundamental Chess Endings , is a modern endgame ‘bible’ and was studied intensively by current World Champion Magnus Carlsen in his youth.
Yakov Konoval is a Russian chess-player and programmer who studied at Mikhail Botvinnik’s chess school. He has written programs for solving chess problems and has pioneered new techniques for generating endgame tablebases.
And there are a great many methods and concepts that can be mastered with a little effort. This book highlights the key themes in rook endings, and at each turn invites the reader to test his knowledge and skills with abundant exercises.
Rook endgame theory does not stand still. New practical examples illustrate novel approaches as players seek to pose problems to their opponents – Magnus Carlsen has shown that even the driest-looking positions can feature deadly traps. The ongoing creation of new endgame tablebases – of which co-author Yakov Konoval has been at the forefront – enables new classes of positions to be assessed with definitive certainty. Using six-man and the brand new seven-man tablebases, the authors re-examine many of the old evaluations and reach new and enlightening conclusions about classic rook endings. You will be startled and amazed, and soon discover that you are becoming a far more effective endgame player.
German grandmaster Karsten Müller is arguably the world’s foremost writer on chess endgames. His ‘masterwork’, Fundamental Chess Endings , is a modern endgame ‘bible’ and was studied intensively by current World Champion Magnus Carlsen in his youth.
Yakov Konoval is a Russian chess-player and programmer who studied at Mikhail Botvinnik’s chess school. He has written programs for solving chess problems and has pioneered new techniques for generating endgame tablebases.
- GenresChess
288 pages, Paperback
First published March 22, 2016
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September 16, 2023unexpected discovery was that the ending of ♕+g♙+h♙ vs ♕ was generally drawn
seven-man tablebases exist for all endings of practical importance
My three books based around the five-man tablebases (Secrets of Rook Endings, Secrets of Pawnless Endings and Secrets of Minor-Piece Endings) provided a first insight into how tablebases could be interpreted by a human author
DTC means 'distance to conversion', i.e. the number of moves before either mate or a transition to a different won ending via capture or pawn promotion.
zwischenschach = A zwischenzug that is a check.
Zwischenzug = an in between move.
seven-man tablebases exist for all endings of practical importance
My three books based around the five-man tablebases (Secrets of Rook Endings, Secrets of Pawnless Endings and Secrets of Minor-Piece Endings) provided a first insight into how tablebases could be interpreted by a human author
DTC means 'distance to conversion', i.e. the number of moves before either mate or a transition to a different won ending via capture or pawn promotion.
zwischenschach = A zwischenzug that is a check.
Zwischenzug = an in between move.
Displaying 1 of 1 review