Positional

Attacks
Joel Johnson

Edited by: Patrick Hammond

© Joel Johnson, January 2014

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced,

transmitted in any form by any means, electronic, mechanical,
photocopying, recording or otherwise, without the prior written
permission from Joel Johnson.

Edited by: Patrick Hammond

Cover Photography: Barry M. Evans

Cover Design and Proofreading: Joel Johnson

Game Searching: Joel Johnson, Richard J. Cowan,

William Parker, Nick Desmarais

Game Contributors: Brian Wall, Jack Young, Clyde Nakamura,

James Rizzitano, Keith Hayward,
Hal Terrie, Richard Cowan, Jesús Seoane,
William Parker, Domingos Perego, Danielle Rice

Linares Diagram and Linares Figurine fonts ©1993-2003

by Alpine Electronics, Steve Smith
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In Memoriam to my step dad and World War II Navy, Purple Heart

Recipient, Theodore Kosiavelon, 12/22/1921 – 11/09/2012
CONTENTS
Preface 7
Kudos 7

Brian Wall 8

Young Rising Stars 27

Daniil Dubov 27
Wei Yi 30

Section A – Pawn Roles 36

Pawn Structure 37
Ugliest Pawn Structure Ever? 38

Anchoring 41
Alien Pawn 48
Pawn Lever 63
Pawn Break 72
Center Pawn Mass 75

Isolated Pawn 94
Black Strategy 95
White Strategy 96
Eliminate the Isolated Pawn Weakness with d4-d5 96
Sacrifices on e6 & f7, Often with f2-f4-f5 Played 99
Rook Lift Attack 104
Queenside Play 111
This Is Not Just A White Thing – Black Can Do It Too 111
Something Different 112

Backward Pawn 114

Doubled Pawns 123
Hanging Pawns 131
Strategy for Attacking Hanging Pawns 131
Strategy #1: Force a Pawn Advance 132
Strategy #2: Divide and Conquer 136
Failure to Control Hanging Pawns = An Attack 138

Minority Attack 140

White Strategy 140
Black Strategy 142

Attacking Pawn Chains 146

Pawn Chain Attack Strategy – Attack the Base 146
Pawn Chain Attack Strategy – Attack the Point 150
Pawn Chain Attack Strategy – Sacrifice a Piece 153

Section B – Positional Attack Concepts 158

Pawn Roll 159

Pawn Power 165

Passed Pawn 165
Create an Alien Pawn to Assist with Checkmate 167
Plug an Escape Route 167
Checkmating Pawn Storm 168
Slow Moving Pawn Storm 169
Pawns as a Battering Ram 169
Separate and Draw Forces Away from the
Defense of the King 170
The White Passed Pawns Form a Mating Net
Directly in Front of the Black King 171
Prevent a Pawn Pass to Force Open the h-file 172
An Amazing Pawn Game 173

Trades 174
Bad Bishop versus Good Knight 185
Exchange Sacrifice Reasons 189
Removing a Key Defender 190
Separation of Forces 190
Damaging a Pawn Structure 192
Weaken Squares 193
Prevent Castling 195
Create a Powerful Passed Pawn 195
Precise Value of the Pieces 196
Long-term Positional Pressure 198
Space 200
Place a Rook on a File 201

Piece Activity 202

King Exposure 210
John Grefe 213

Space Control 217

Fatal Weaknesses 223

Weakness – g8 Square 223
Weakness – f7 Square 223
Weakness – h7 Square 224
Weakness – h-File Square 225
Weakness – f7 & Back Rank 225
Weakness – Dark Squares 226
Weakness – Light Squares 228
Weakness – Squares Around The King 231
Weakness – Kingside Squares 233

Section C – Positional Attack Motifs 236

Positional Exchange Sacrifice 237
Localized Material Advantage 268
Overwhelming Force 295
Zugzwang/Bind 299
Positional Attacks 305
Beat Down Games 307
Player Spotlight: Aleksandar Indjic of Serbia 310
Player Spotlight: Alexey Korotylev of Russia 312
Opening Line – 1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. e5 c5 4. c3 Nc6
5. Nf3 Qb6 6. Bd3 cxd4 7. cxd4 Bd7 8. 0-0 Nxd4 9. Nbd2 313
Player Spotlight: Garry Kasparov of Russia 323

Section D – Mixed Attack Motifs 327

Mixed Attack Motifs 328
Bxh6 Sacrifice 329
Bxh7 Sacrifice 335
Fishing Pole 341
H-File Mate 354
King Hunt 357
Lay Down Dacrifice 384
Nd5 Sacrifice 395
Nf5 Sacrifice 403
Opposite Side Castling 412
Pawn Storm 427
Separation of Forces 442
The Wedge 450
Bullet Chess 454
Aggressive Defense 463
Who Needs a Queen 483

Book News 498

Preface smooth, elegant, aggressive, and
positional attacking maneuvers.
You would think 1000 pages This book will also delve deeper
(“Formation Attacks” and into planning and square
“Formation Attack Strategies”) weaknesses, along with subtle
would be enough to cover all pawn play. Each of these topics
aspects of attacking and attack will be covered as they relate to
games. However, I felt quite attacking.
disappointed when I realized
there would be no room left in Kudos
the Formation Attack Strategies
book to include the planned I would like to thank Patrick
remaining chapters related to Hammond for his outstanding
Positional Attacking. A few of the editing work on this book. In
unpublished chapters were addition I want to thank Barry
“Positional Attacks”, Evans for turning my cover ideas
“Overwhelming Force”, and and designs into awesome pieces
“Localized Material Advantage”. of artwork for all of my books.
Thanks to both of you!
Forever the optimist and still
armed with loads of great In addition, Richard Cowan and
material, I simply decided to write William Parker were extremely
another book. helpful in finding new games for
the book. Their contributions can
The aim of Positional Attacks is to be found throughout the book.
uncover the artistic side of Loads of games were passed
attacking, one that is primarily along by Brian Wall, Jack Young,
centered on the creation and Clyde Nakamura, Jesús Seoane,
exploitation of weaknesses. Oh Domingos Perego, Hal Terrie,
sure there will be tactics; after all, James Rizzitano, and Keith
they cannot be avoided in chess - Hayward. Thanks to all of you and
nor would we want to exclude to the many others who had a
them. But there is nothing quite hand – no matter how small - in
like witnessing chess masters creating this book.
dissecting their opponents with
Isolated Pawn The White Isolated d-Pawn has
the following advantages and
uuuuuuuu disadvantages:
sDsdsdsd ---------------------------------------
Dsdsdsds
White Advantages
sDsdsdsd ---------------------------------------
DsDsdsds
1) The very definition of Isolated
SDs)sDsd Pawn means that the
DsdsDsDs possessor has either open or
sdsDsdsd semi-open files to the
immediate left and right of
DsDsDsds the Isolated Pawn;
llllllll
The Isolated Pawn is a lonely 2) White has easy development
creature with no real friends, as due to open diagonals and a
both sides want to remove it from space advantage;
the board.
3) The Isolated Pawn can
For the purpose of this chapter, support and anchor White
the discussion will primarily cover pieces on the e5 and c5
the White Isolated d-Pawn on d4. squares; and
Why?
4) Black has problems
1) It is by far the most common developing the light-squared
isolated Pawn situation seen Bishop and his queenside.
in chess;

2) Many openings can reach an

isolated d-Pawn position; “The Isolated Pawn is a lonely
creature with no real friends”
3) Most of the characteristics of
the isolated d-Pawn also apply
to other isolated Pawns; and

4) These positions are a launch

pad for attacks.
--------------------------------------- Isolated Pawn is weak and can
be targeted; and
White Disadvantages
--------------------------------------- 3) Win the Isolated Pawn and
the game.
1) Isolated Pawns can be weak
because they cannot be protected ---------------------------------------
by other Pawns; Simple Example
2) The square in front of the ---------------------------------------
isolated pawn (d5) may become a
strong outpost for an opposing ---------- Game #999 ------------
piece, especially a Knight, because
In the following game, the former
there are no enemy Pawns that
World Chess Champion was able
can chase the piece away; and
to follow the Black Strategy
3) Trading off pieces usually leads perfectly on his way to a win.
to a disadvantage in the endgame
as the Isolated Pawn loses its (W) Viktor Korchnoi
attacking advantages but keeps its (B) Anatoly Karpov
weaknesses. [D55] World Chess Championship,
Merano, Italy, (Round 9),
--------------------------------------- 10/24/1981
Black Strategy 1.c4 e6 2.Nc3 d5 3.d4 Be7
--------------------------------------- 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4
0-0 7.Rc1 dxc4 8.e3 c5
The ideal game scenario for Black 9.Bxc4 cxd4 10.exd4 Nc6
11.0-0 Nh5 12.Bxe7 Nxe7
is: 13.Bb3 Nf6 14.Ne5 Bd7
15.Qe2 Rc8 16.Ne4 Nxe4
1) Control the square directly in 17.Qxe4 Bc6 18.Nxc6 Rxc6
front of the Isolated Pawn to 19.Rc3 Qd6 20.g3 Rd8
prevent liquidation of the 21.Rd1 Rb6 22.Qe1 Qd7
weakness; 23.Rcd3 Rd6 24.Qe4 Qc6
25.Qf4 Nd5 26.Qd2 Qb6
2) Trade off as many pieces as 27.Bxd5 Rxd5 28.Rb3 Qc6
29.Qc3 Qd7 30.f4 b6 31.Rb4
possible with the idea of b5 32.a4 bxa4 33.Qa3 a5
reaching an endgame that is 34.Rxa4 Qb5 35.Rd2 e5
bad for the opponent as the 36.fxe5 Rxe5 37.Qa1 Qe8
38.dxe5 Rxd2 39.Rxa5 Qc6
40.Ra8+ Kh7 41.Qb1+ g6 ---------------------------------------
42.Qf1 Qc5+ 43.Kh1 Qd5+
0-1 Eliminate the Isolated
--------------------------------------- Pawn Weakness
White Strategy with d4-d5
--------------------------------------- ---------------------------------------
White has several attacking ideas In the following set of games,
to confront the strategy White was able to eliminate the
employed by Black. They are: Isolated Pawn weakness and win
primarily because of more active
1) d4-d5 pawn break to pieces.
eliminate the Isolated Pawn
weakness and open up the ----------- Game #999 -----------
position to exploit Black’s
slower development; A young Boris Spassky simply
sacrifices the Isolated d-Pawn to
2) Weaken the squares around create intense pressure on the
the Black King by attacking Black position.
either the g7 or h7 square;
(W) Boris Spassky
and
(B) Avtonomov
3) Utilize Rook lift(s) to add [D28] Leningrad, Russia, 1949
firepower to the attack on the 1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6
enemy King; and 4.e3 c5 5.Bxc4 e6 6.0-0 a6
7.Qe2 b5 8.Bb3 Nc6 9.Nc3
4) Weaken light squares to break cxd4 10.Rd1 Bb7 11.exd4
Nb4 12.d5 Nbxd5 13.Bg5
through to the enemy King: Be7 14.Bxf6!
use piece sacrifices on e6, f7,
or g6 and Pawn Breaks at f4- White proceeds to wreck the
f5 or h4-h5. Black Pawn structure. White is
winning despite still being down a
Pawn.
14. ... gxf6 15.Nxd5 Bxd5
16.Bxd5 exd5 17.Nd4 Kf8
18.Nf5 h5 19.Rxd5! Qxd5
20.Qxe7+ Kg8 21.Qxf6 1-0
 Once again White temporarily
----------- Game #999 ----------- sacrifices the Isolated d-Pawn to
open up the position.
As a teenager, I played Tigran
Petrosian in a simul at the 15. ... exd5 16.Bg5 Ne4
Boylston Chess Club in Boston. He 17.Nxe4 dxe4 18.Qxe4 g6
wiped me out in twenty moves. 19.Qh4 Qc7?
At the time, I thought he would Black had to play either 19. ... h5
positionally strangle me and or 19. ... Qd7 to hang in there.
instead, he came out, “guns a- From here, White dissects the
blazing”. It took me some years to Black position in a very instructive
understand why this happened. fashion.
The first lesson learned is World
Champions are well-rounded 20.Bb3!
players. They can adapt to any
White threatens 21. Bxf7
style of play, even if they are
followed by 22. Qxh7+ leading to
known for a particular one
checkmate.
(Positional Chess). Secondly, in a
simul, the main objective of the 20. ... h5 21.Qe4!
person giving the simul is to
quickly eliminate as many White threatens 22. Qxg6+ while
relocating his Queen closer to the
opponents as possible. This will
action.
greatly reduce the overall length
of the simul and help maintain his 21. ... Kg7 22.Bxf7! Kxf7
stamina for the entire event. The 23.Bh6!
method for accomplishing this
This is the point of the last couple
task is to play aggressive chess.
of White moves. The Black King is
(W) Tigran Petrosian stuck out in the open with no
(B) Yuri Balashov shelter from the White attack.
[E54] USSR, 1974 23. ... Qd6 24.Qc4+ Kf6
25.Rad1
1.c4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e6 3.d4 Bb4
4.e3 c5 5.Bd3 d5 6.Nf3 0-0 White opts for the simplifying win
7.0-0 dxc4 8.Bxc4 Nc6 rather than the crushing 25. Ng5.
9.Bd3 cxd4 10.exd4 Be7
11.Re1 b6 12.a3 Bb7 13.Bc2 25. ... Nd4 26.Qxd4+ Qxd4
Rc8 14.Qd3 Re8 15.d5! 27.Rxd4 Rc5 28.h4 1-0
----------- Game #999 ----------- 7.0-0 cxd4 8.exd4 dxc4
9.Bxc4 b6 10.Re1 Bb7
Black was so concerned with 11.Bd3 Nc6 12.a3 Be7
13.Bc2 Re8 14.Qd3
blockading the d5 square, he
neglects his development. uuuuuuuu
Ultimately White breaks down the rds1rdkd
blockade and the game comes to
a quick end.
0bdsgp0p
s0ndphsd
(W) Efim Geller dsdsdsds
(B) Alexey Suetin
[B42] Moscow, Russia, 1981
sds)sdsd
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4
)sHQdNds
4.Nxd4 a6 5.Bd3 Bc5 6.c3 s)Bds)P)
Ne7 7.0-0 Nbc6 8.Be3 Qb6
9.Nd2 d5 10.N2b3 Bxd4 $sGs$sIs
11.cxd4 dxe4 12.Bxe4 Qd8
13.Qh5 Nd5 14.Bg5 Nce7
llllllll
15.Rfe1 h6 16.Rad1 Qd6? This chapter contains four Artur
17.Bxe7 Nxe7 18.d5! Yusupov games because the
veteran Grandmaster fully
The opening of the center exposes understands Isolated Pawn
the Black King. Attacks.
18. ... exd5 19.Bxd5 Qf6 14. ... g6 15.h4
20.Bxf7+! 1-0
The moves h4 and f4 (with the
----------- Game #999 ----------- idea of h5/f5) are frequently seen
as a method of softening up the
Once White plays d5, Black over
Black kingside Pawn complex of
estimates the strength of his pin
e6, f7, g6, and h7. This creates
on the Isolated d-Pawn.
real possibilities for those
(W) Artur Yusupov squares.
(B) Eric Lobron 15. ... Qd6 16.Bg5 Rad8
[E57] Nussloch, Germany, 17.Rad1 Qb8 18.Bb3 a6
(Round 9), 1996 19.d5!

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 White successfully achieves the

4.e3 0-0 5.Bd3 d5 6.Nf3 c5 liquidation move, d5.
19. ... Na5? uuuuuuuu
uuuuuuuu s1s4rdsd
s1s4rdkd dbdsgsip
dbdsgpdp p0sdshpd
p0sdphpd dsdsdsGs
hsdPdsGs sdQdsds)
sdsdsds) )nHsdNds
)BHQdNds s)sds)Pd
s)sds)Pd dsdR$sIs
dsdR$sIs llllllll
23.Ne5!!
llllllll
Black thought that the threat of Rather than playing the automatic
this move prevented move, 23. Qxb3, White attacks
White from playing 19. d5, the weak f7 square. This finesse
however this assumption is simply enables White to quickly reach an
not true. easy win.
20.dxe6!! Nxb3 23. ... Ng8 24.Rxd8 Qxd8
25.Qf7+ Kh8 26.Qxb3 Qd4
No better is 20. ... Rxd3 21. exf7+ 27.Re3 Rf8 28.Bxe7 1-0
Kg7 22. fxe8(N)+ Qxe8 23. Rxd3
Nxb3 24. Rde3 Kf7 25. Bxf6 ---------------------------------------
Kxf6 26. Re6+ Kf7 27. Ng5+ Kf8
28. Nxh7+ Kf7 29. Rxe7+ Qxe7 Sacrifices on e6 & f7,
30. Ng5+ Kf6 31. Rxe7 Kxe7,
leaving White with a won
Often with
endgame. f2-f4-f5 Played
21.exf7+ Kxf7 22.Qc4+ Kg7 ---------------------------------------
As I mentioned during the last
game, the moves h4 and f4 (with
the idea of h5/f5) are frequently
seen as a method of softening up
the Black kingside Pawn complex
of e6, f7, g6, and h7. After which, Kharkov, Russia, 1963
the opportunity of sacrifices on
1.d4 d5 2.c4 dxc4 3.Nf3 Nf6
any of those squares becomes a 4.e3 e6 5.Bxc4 c5 6.0-0 a6
real possibility. The games in this 7.a4 cxd4 8.exd4 Nc6 9.Nc3
section illustrate this theme. Be7 10.Be3 0-0 11.Qe2 Nb4
12.Ne5 b6 13.f4 Nfd5
----------- Game #999 ----------- 14.Rad1 Bf6 15.Ne4 Bb7
16.f5 exf5 17.Rxf5 Nxe3??
White sacrifices a Knight on f7
Black opts for a combination that
which ultimately puts him ahead
wins a piece, but loses the King.
by an exchange for the endgame.
18.Nxf6+! gxf6 19.Qxe3 fxe5
(W) Mikhail Botvinnik 20.Qxe5
(B) Andrei Batuyev
Black is hopelessly lost. The King
[D40] Leningrad Championship,
exposure is too much to
Leningrad, Russia, 1930
overcome and certainly not worth
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6 the free piece he grabbed.
4.Bg5 Be7 5.e3 0-0 6.Nf3
Nbd7 7.Bd3 dxc4 8.Bxc4 c5 20. ... h6 21.Rf6 Kh7
9.0-0 cxd4 10.exd4 Nb6 22.Rdf1 Bd5 23.Qf5+ Kg8
11.Bb3 Nbd5 12.Ne5 Nd7 24.Qg4+ Kh7 25.Rxh6+ 1-0
13.Bxe7 Nxe7 14.Qe2 Nf6
15.Rfd1 b6 16.Rac1 Bb7 The Black King is checkmated
17.f3 Rc8 18.Nxf7! Rxf7 after 26. Rf5 and 27. Rh5#.
19.Qxe6 Qf8 20.Ne4 Rxc1?
21.Rxc1 Nfd5 22.Nd6 Ba8 ----------- Game #999 -----------
23.Re1 g6 24.Nxf7 Qxf7
25.Qxe7 1-0 White sacrifices a Knight on f7 to
rip apart the Black center.
----------- Game #999 -----------
(W) Mark Taimanov
There are many Isolated d-Pawn
games contested with the elite (B) Predrag Ostojic
chess players of the world, in all [E12] Reykjavik, Iceland, 1968
eras of chess history. 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 b6
4.Nc3 Bb7 5.e3 Be7 6.Bd3
(W) Boris Spassky d5 7.0-0 0-0 8.b3 c5 9.Bb2
(B) Yuri Nikolaevsky Nbd7 10.Qe2 cxd4 11.exd4
g6 12.Rad1 Nh5 13.Qe3 Rc8
[D27] USSR Championship,
14.Ne2 Re8 15.Ne5 dxc4 ----------- Game #999 -----------
16.Bxc4 Nhf6 17.Nf4 Bf8
uuuuuuuu Again White shatters the Black
center with a Knight sack on f7.
rds1rgkd
0bdndpdp (W) Shakhriyar Mamedyarov
s0sdphpd (2699)
dsdsHsds (B) Andrei Kharlov (2555)
[D27] Russian Club Cup, Sochi,
sdB)sHsd Russia, (Round 6), 04/25/2006
dPds!sds 1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 e6 3.c4 dxc4
PGsds)P) 4.e3 c5 5.Bxc4 a6 6.0-0 Nf6
7.Bb3 cxd4 8.exd4 Nc6
dsdRdRIs 9.Nc3 Be7 10.Bg5 0-0
11.Rc1 Nd5 12.Be3 Nxc3
llllllll 13.Rxc3 Nb4 14.Ne5 Nd5
18.Nxf7! Kxf7 19.Nxe6 15.Rc1 Bd7 16.Qg4 Bb5
Rxe6 20.Qxe6+ Kg7 21.Qf7+ 17.Bh6 Bf6 18.Rfe1 Ne7
Kh8 22.Rfe1 b5 23.Be6 Rc7 19.Bd2 Qd6
24.d5 Ne5
uuuuuuuu
With White threatening 25.
Qg8#, the practical looking
rdsds4kd
defensive response, 25. ... Bg7, dpdshp0p
failed to pds1pgsd
26. d6!.
dbdsHsds
25.Qxf6+ 1-0
sds)sdQd
dBdsdsds
“The Isolated Pawn is a lonely
P)sGs)P)
creature with no real friends” ds$s$sIs
llllllll
20.Nxf7!

White immediately gets two

Pawns for his Knight, loads of
pressure along the a2-g8
diagonal, and the lure of so much were necessary for White to
more. weaken the light squares before
the sacrifice finishes the job.
20. ... Rxf7 21.Rxe6 Qd7
uuuuuuuu (W) Boris Gulko
rdsdsdkd (B) Gregory Kaidanov
[B14] 40th U.S. Championship,
dpdqhr0p Key West, Florida, 1994
pdsdRgsd 1.c4 c6 2.e4 d5 3.exd5 Nf6
dbdsdsds 4.d4 cxd5 5.Nc3 e6 6.Nf3
Be7 7.cxd5 Nxd5 8.Bd3
sds)sdQd Nc6 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Bf6
dBdsdsds 11.a3 Bd7 12.Bc2 Rc8
13.Ne4 Be7 14.Qd3 g6
P)sGs)P) 15.Bd2 Qb6 16.b4 Rfd8
17.Bb3 Be8 18.Rac1 a6
ds$sdsIs 19.h4 Na7 20.Nc5 Nc6 21.h5
llllllll Qa7? 22.hxg6 hxg6
Black’s move gives you the sense uuuuuuuu
he does not want the White Rook
on e6 to move. However White
sdrdbdkd
has other plans. 1pdsgpds
22.Rxf6! Qxg4 23.Rxf7 Kh8 pdndpdpd
24.Rxe7 Rc8 25.Rxc8+ Qxc8
26.d5 1-0
dsHndsds
s)s)sdsd
Black resigned because of the
combination of the g7 square
)BdQdNds
weakness and the passed d-Pawn sdsGs)Pd
----------- Game #999 -----------
ds$s$sIs
llllllll
Same old story, except this time 23.Nxe6!! fxe6 24.Rxe6 Bf7
around the sacrifices occur on e6 25.Rxg6+! Kf8 26.Rh6 Ke8
27.Re1 1-0
and g6 instead of f7. In addition,
you should pay particular Black decided to relent as White
attention to the h4, h5, and hxg6 has too many threats against the
moves. Those preparatory moves
exposed Black King. The foremost 20. ... Rxf7 21.Bxf6 Bxf6
of which is Qf5 followed by Rh8. 22.Rxd5 Qc6 23.Rd6 Qe8
24.Rd7 1-0
---------- Game #999 ------------ ---------- Game #999 ------------
Black goes out of his way to
Even though Black traded on c3 to
guarantee control of the d5
eliminate the isolated d-Pawn, the
square which does nothing to
game is instructive because
parry the attack.
White’s plan for attacking Black
(W) Mikhail Botvinnik remains the same - but the
execution of the plan is not.
(B) Milan Vidmar
[D40] Nottingham, Nottingham, (W) Julio Bolbochan
England, (Round 13), 08/25/1936
(B) Ludek Pachman
1.c4 e6 2.Nf3 d5 3.d4 Nf6 [D41] Olympiad, Moscow, Russia,
4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 0-0 6.e3 (Round 9), 1956
Nbd7 7.Bd3 c5 8.0-0 cxd4
9.exd4 dxc4 10.Bxc4 Nb6 1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5
11.Bb3 Bd7 12.Qd3 Nbd5 4.Nc3 c5 5.cxd5 Nxd5 6.e3
13.Ne5 Bc6 14.Rad1 Nb4 Nc6 7.Bc4 cxd4 8.exd4 Be7
15.Qh3 Bd5 16.Nxd5 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Nxc3
Nbxd5 17.f4
Black cures the Isolated d-Pawn
White commences the plan of for White while shutting down the
weakening of the e6 and f7 open c-file.
squares.
11.bxc3 b6 12.Bd3 Bb7
17. ... Rc8 18.f5 exf5 19.Rxf5 13.Qc2 g6 14.Bh6 Re8
Qd6? 15.Qd2 Rc8 16.Rac1 Bf6
17.Qf4 Na5 18.Ne5 Nc6
Black was already in trouble and 19.Ng4 Bh4?
he was required to play 19. ... Rc7
to defend against the coming Black should trade off some
attack. pieces to relieve the pressure, say
with 19. ... Bg7.
20.Nxf7!
20.g3 Be7 21.Bc4 Rc7
White’s combination works 22.Qxf7+! 1-0
because Black’s Rook on c8 is
hanging.
--------------------------------------- uuuuuuuu
Rook Lift Attack rdb4sdkd
--------------------------------------- dpdsdpdp
In the following games, White lifts pdsdp0sd
one or more Rooks to attack the dsdqHsds
Black kingside. This maneuver
may go hand in hand with Pawn Pds)sdsd
thrusts like h4 and f4 if needed. dsdsdsds
----------- Game #999 ----------- s)sdQ)P)
$sdRdsIs
White terminates the game with a
Rook Lift as the Black King stands llllllll
without any shelter or cover. One would think White must
retreat his Knight, but instead,
(W) George Treysman White finds a great method of
(B) Milton Hanauer exploiting the new Black kingside
[D27] 1938 U.S. Championship, weakness.
New York, NY, (Round 2), 18.Qh5! Kh8
04/03/1938
Black cannot capture the White
1.Nf3 d5 2.d4 Nf6 3.c4 dxc4 Knight due to:
4.Nc3 a6 5.a4 e6 6.e3 c5
7.Bxc4 Be7 8.0-0 0-0 9.Qe2 18. ... fxe5 19. dxe5 Qa5
cxd4 10.exd4 Nc6 11.Rd1 20. Qg5+ Kh8 21. Rxd8+.
Nb4 12.Ne5 Qa5 13.Bg5
Rd8 14.Ne4 Nbd5 15.Bxd5 19.Qxf7!
Qxd5 16.Nxf6+ Bxf6
17.Bxf6 gxf6 White lets his Knight go to finish
the job of striping the Black Pawn
Yes, White has managed to pry cover.
open the Black kingside to expose
the Black King, but will White be 19. ... fxe5 20.Qf6+ Kg8
able to follow-up? 21.Ra3 1-0

The Black King awaits his fate

completely uncovered and no
place to run to.
---------- Game #999 ------------ [D42] Budapest, Hungary, 1990
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Nf6
(W) Lev Polugaevsky 4.cxd5 Nxd5 5.Nf3 c5 6.e3
(B) Anatoly Lutikov Nc6 7.Bd3 cxd4 8.exd4 Be7
[D37] USSR Championship, 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Bd7 11.a3
Semi-Finals, Sverdlovsk, Russia, Rc8 12.Bc2 Re8 13.Qd3 g6
14.Bh6 Nxc3 15.bxc3 Qc7
(Round 15), 1957 16.Ng5 Nd8 17.Re3 Qa5
18.Rg3 Bb5 19.Qe3 Ba4
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 c5 20.Bxa4 Qxa4 21.h4 Qb3
4.e3 Be7 5.Nc3 0-0 6.Bd3 22.h5 Qb2 23.Re1 Qxa3
d5 7.0-0 dxc4 8.Bxc4 Nbd7 24.Nxh7! Kxh7 25.hxg6+
9.Qe2 a6 10.a4 cxd4 11.exd4 fxg6 26.Qe5! Bf8 27.Qf6 1-0
Nb6 12.Bb3 Bd7 13.Ne5
Be8 14.Rd1 Nbd5 15.Rd3
Rc8 16.Rg3 Kh8 17.Bg5 ----------- Game #999 -----------
Nb4 18.Rd1 Rc7 19.Rh3 g6?
White finds another method of
Black weakens his kingside for working over the weak squares
White. around the Black King.
20.Qf3 Rg8? 21.Ne4 Nh5 (W) Miguel Najdorf
22.Qxf7!! Bc6
(B) Alexander Kotov
The game is over as Black both [E55] Mar del Plata, Argentina,
had to capture the White Queen Round 15, 1957
and could not capture it. From
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4
here White easily mops up. 4.e3 0-0 5.Nf3 d5 6.Bd3 c5
23.Qxe6 Rg7 24.d5 Bd7 7.0-0 dxc4 8.Bxc4 Nbd7
25.Bxe7 Rxe7 26.Qd6 Qe8 9.Qe2 a6 10.a4 Nb6 11.Bb3
27.Nf6 Nxf6 28.Qxf6+ Rg7 cxd4 12.exd4 Bd7 13.Rd1
29.d6 1-0 Rc8 14.Rd3 Nbd5 15.Nxd5
Nxd5 16.Qe4 Bc6 17.Ne5
Nf6 18.Qh4 Bd5 19.Bg5
----------- Game #999 ----------- Be7 20.Rh3 Re8
While Black is Pawn grabbing on
the queenside, White is busy
executing the plan of attack.

(W) Alexander Baburin

(B) Bela Lengyel
 30.Ng6#) 24.Bxf6 fxg6 25.Qxh5
uuuuuuuu gxh5 26.Rg3+ Kh7 29.Rg7+ Kh8
sdr1rdkd 30.Ng6#;
dpdsgp0p 22. ... Rf8 23.Bxf6 Bxf6
24.Bxf7+ Rxf7 25.Qxh7+ Kf8
pdsdphsd 26.Ng6+ Ke8 27.Qg8+ Kd7
dsdbHsGs 28.Ne5+ Kd6 29.Qxc8 with a
winning position.
Pds)sds!
dBdsdsdR 23.Bxf7+ Kf8 24.Bh6! Ne8
25.Qf4 Bf6 26.Bxg7+ Ke7
s)sds)P) 27.Bxe8 Bxg7 28.Rxh7 1-0
$sdsdsIs ----------- Game #999 -----------
llllllll
Black was unwilling to weaken his (W) Ivan Farago (2495)
kingside Pawn structure with the (B) Petar Velikov (2460)
move 20. ... h6?, as White would [D68] Albena, Bulgaria, 1983
have surely just ripped it off with 1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nc3 Nf6
21. Bxh6!. The basic issue with 4.Nf3 e6 5.Bg5 Be7 6.e3
20. ... Re8 is the vulnerability of Nbd7 7.Rc1 0-0 8.Bd3 dxc4
the f7 square. 9.Bxc4 Nd5 10.Bxe7 Qxe7
11.0-0 Nxc3 12.Rxc3 e5
21.Bd1 13.Qc2 exd4 14.exd4 Qd6
15.Ng5
White commences a Bishop trek
to attack the weakness (f7). White wastes no time working
over the weak light squares
21. ... Qa5 22.Bh5! Red8 around the Black Monarch.
Black cannot defend this position 15. ... Nf6 16.Rf3 g6 17.Qb3
as White has too many attackers Nd5 18.Ne4 Qd8?
circling the Black King.
Black cracks due to the immense
Black’s most obvious defensive pressure of the White pieces.
choices (g6 and Rf8) went
19.Bxd5 cxd5 20.Nf6+ Kg7
nowhere: 21.Qe3 h5 22.Qe5! Kh6
23.Nxh5 Bg4 24.Qg7+ Kg5
22. ... g6 23.Bxg6 h5 (23. ... fxg6 25.Rg3 1-0
24.Bxf6 h5 25.Qxh5 gxh5
26.Rg3+ Kh7 27.Rg7+ Kh8
----------- Game #999 -----------
Same line as the last game, except uuuuuuuu
this time White attacks the weak rdbds4sd
light squares in a different fashion
and more aggressively (I know,
0pdsdsip
how can that be?). sdp1s0pd
dsds$sHs
(W) Lputian
(B) Yuri Balashov
sds)sdsd
[D68] Yerevan, Armenia, 1986 dQdsdRdP
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nf3 d5 P)sds)Pd
4.Nc3 Be7 5.Bg5 0-0 6.e3
Nbd7 7.Rc1 c6 8.Bd3 dxc4
dsdsdsIs
9.Bxc4 Nd5 10.Bxe7 Qxe7 llllllll
11.0-0 Nxc3 12.Rxc3 e5 22.Re8!! a5
13.Qc2 exd4 14.exd4 Nf6
15.Re1 Qd8 16.h3 Nd5 In case you are wondering, yes,
17.Bxd5 Qxd5 18.Re5 Qd6 the White Rook on e8 is poison.
19.Ng5 g6 20.Rf3 f6? Black would be checkmated after:
Black feels his King is safe and his 22...Rxe8 23.Qf7+ Kh6
24.Qxh7+ Kxg5 25.h4+ Kg4
light squares are adequately 26.Qxg6+ Kxh4 27.Rh3+! Bxh3
covered. However, looks can be 28.g3+ Qxg3+ 29.fxg3#.
very deceptive, as we shall soon
23.Rxc8 1-0
witness.
21.Qb3+ Kg7 ---------- Game #999 ------------
White blows open the Black
kingside and must repeat the
position a multitude of times
“Black can have problems
(likely to gain time on the clock)
developing the light-squared before figuring out how to
Bishop and his queenside.” proceed.

(W) Artur Yusupov

(B) Vassily Ivanchuk
[E43] Brussels, Belgium,
(Round 8), 1991
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Bb4 White wins the Black Queen after
4.e3 b6 5.Bd3 Bb7 6.Nf3 23. ... Qxe6 24. Qh6+ Kh8 25.
0-0 7.0-0 c5 8.Bd2 cxd4 Bf5+.
9.exd4 d5 10.cxd5 Nxd5
11.Rc1 Nc6 12.Re1 Rc8 24.Qh6+ Kh8 25.Bf5+ Kg8
13.Re4 Nce7 14.Nxd5 Nxd5 26.Qg5+ Kh8 27.Qh4+ Kg8
15.Rh4 g6 16.Rxc8 Qxc8 28.Qg5+ Kh8 29.Qh4+ Kg8
17.Ng5 Be7 18.Qg4 30.Qg3+ Kh8 31.Qh3+ Kg7
32.Qg3+ Kh8 33.Qh3+ Kg7
White loads up on the kingside in 34.Bxe6 Qxe6 35.Qxe6 Bd8
preparation for just blasting 36.g4 Re8 37.Qf5 Bc4 38.g5
through Black’s defenses. 1-0

18. ... Ba6 ---------- Game #999 ------------

Black attempts to eliminate some After what appears to be a rather
of the White firepower. ordinary looking move, White
19.Qh3 h5 20.Rxh5! gxh5 counters with an amazing game-
21.Bh7+ Kg7 22.Qxh5 winning shot.
uuuuuuuu (W) Artur Yusupov (2601)
sdqds4sd (B) Dimitri Gurevich (2515)
0sdsgpiB [A46] HB Global Chess Challenge,
Minneapolis, MN, (Round 8),
b0sdpdsd 05/22/2005
dsdndsHQ 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 e6 3.e3 c5
sds)sdsd 4.Bd3 b6 5.0-0 Bb7 6.c4
Be7 7.Nc3 cxd4 8.exd4 d5
dsdsdsds 9.cxd5 Nxd5 10.Ne5 0-0
P)sGs)P) 11.Qh5 Nf6 12.Qh4 g6
13.Bg5 Nc6?
dsdsdsIs
This move hardly seems like a
llllllll blunder, but it is.
22. ... Nf6??

Either 22. ... Bxg5 or 22. ... Bb4

would have maintained the
equilibrium.
23.Nxe6+!! fxe6
 11.Bg5 Nb4 12.Bb1 b6
uuuuuuuu 13.Ne5 Bb7 14.Re3
rds1rdkd White lifts his Rook to gain
0bdsgpdp another attacker on the kingside.
s0ndphpd 14. ... g6 15.Rg3
dsdsHsGs
White finds the proper place for
sds)sds! his Rook as we shall soon see.
)sHBdsds 15. ... Rc8 16.Bh6 Re8 17.a3
s)sds)P) Nc6
$sdsdRIs uuuuuuuu
llllllll sdr1rdkd
14.Ba6! 0sdsgpdp
Black is busted and the game s0sdphpG
continuation is all but forced
(right down to Black’s
dsdbHsds
resignation). sds)sdsd
14. ... h6 15.Bxh6 Nd5 )sHsds$s
16.Qh3 Nxc3 17.bxc3 Bxa6
18.Nxc6 Qd6 19.Nxe7+
s)sds)P)
Qxe7 20.Bxf8 Rxf8 21.Rfe1 $BdQdsIs
Bc4 22.Qh6 1-0
llllllll
18.Nxg6!!
---------- Game #999 ------------
White’s plan is to sacrifice two
White attacks the light squares in
minor pieces to wipe out all of
a unique and instructive fashion.
Black’s Pawn cover.
(W) Raymond Keene 18. ... hxg6 19.Bxg6! fxg6
(B) Anthony Miles 20.Qb1!
[D42] Hastings, England, 1975
The g6 square cannot be
1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 c5 3.Nc3 adequately defended by Black and
Nc6 4.e3 e6 5.d4 d5 6.cxd5 the game comes to an abrupt end.
Nxd5 7.Bd3 cxd4 8.exd4
Be7 9.0-0 0-0 10.Re1 Nf6 20. ... Ne5 21.dxe5 Ne4
22.Nxe4 Kh7 23.Nf6+ Bxf6
24.Qxg6+ Kh8 25.Bg7+
Bxg7 26.Qxg7# 1-0 17.Rg3 Bd6 18.Rc1 Qb8
19.Qe2 g6 20.Bg5 Be7?
---------- Game #999 ------------
Another mistake would have been
White bashes the light squares 20. ... Nh5 21.Qxh5 gxh5
22.Be7+ Kh8 23.Bf6#.
around the Black King during a 12
Game Blindfold Simul! George uuuuuuuu
“Kolty” Koltanowski, a very r1s4sdkd
imaginative and creative player,
once played 56 blindfold simul
0bdsgpdp
games at once in 1960, a world s0sdphpd
record. He was best known for his dsdsHsGs
promotion of chess, including his
famous Knight Tour. He could sds)sdsd
move a Knight from any starting dsdBds$s
square to every other square on
the board without ever landing on
P)sdQ)P)
any square more than once. ds$sdsIs
llllllll
Kolty was also well-known for his 21.Bxg6!! fxg6 22.Nxg6! Kf7
incredible photographic memory
exhibitions. After 22. ... hxg6, White wins with
23.Qxe6+ Kf8 24.Bxf6 Bxf6
25.Qxf6+ Ke8 26.Re3+ Kd7
(W) George Koltanowski 27.Qe6#.
(B) Leu
[D05] 12 Game Blindfold Simul, 23.Ne5+ Kf8 24.Bh6+ Ke8
25.Rg8+ 1-0
Zurich, Switzerland, 11/1936
1.d4 d5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.e3 e6 White would follow with
4.Bd3 c5 5.c3 Nbd7 6.Nbd2 25. ... Nxg8 26.Qh5#.
Be7 7.0-0 0-0 8.e4 dxe4
9.Nxe4 cxd4 10.cxd4 Nxe4
11.Bxe4 Nf6 12.Bd3 b6
13.Ne5 Bb7 14.Re1 Qc7 “Oh, it was only a 12 Game
15.Bf4 Bb4 16.Re3 Rfd8
Blindfold Simul!”
On 16. ... Nd5, Black loses after
17.Bxh7+ Kxh7 18.Qh5+ Kg8
19.Rh3.
--------------------------------------- 23. ... h6 24.Rxb7 Rac8 25.b3
Rc2 26.a4 Be2 27.Nh4 h5
Queenside Play 28.Nhxg6 Re8 29.Rxf7+
Kh6 30.f4 a5 31.Nh4 Rxe5
--------------------------------------- 32.fxe5 Kg5 33.g3 Kg4
34.Rg7+ Kh3 35.Ng2 1-0
Another less employed plan for
White is the possibility of play on Black resigned because of White’s
the queenside, especially if White next move, Nf4#.
has complete control over the
c-file. Later on, White may shift ---------------------------------------
his focus to the kingside much like
the following example:
This Is Not Just A
White Thing – Black
---------- Game #999 ------------
Can Do It Too
White sifts deep into Black ---------------------------------------
territory via the c-file before
switching his focus to the Black If you think the Isolated d-Pawn is
kingside. just a White attacking idea, think
again. The next two games
(W) Jose Capablanca illustrate how Black can imitate
(B) Alexander Alekhine the White Isolated d-Pawn attack.
[D30] Match, St. Petersburg,
Russia, (Game 1), 12/14/1913 ---------- Game #999 ------------
1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.e3 Nf6 (W) Alik Gershon (2533)
4.Nf3 e6 5.Nbd2 Nbd7 (B) Zviad Izoria (2607)
6.Bd3 Be7 7.0-0 0-0 8.Qc2
dxc4 9.Nxc4 c5 10.Nce5 [D32] Athens Acropolis GM,
cxd4 11.exd4 Nb6 12.Ng5 g6 President Hotel, Athens, Greece,
13.Ngf3 Kg7 14.Bg5 Nbd5 (Round 3.6), 03/08/2005
15.Rac1 Bd7 16.Qd2 Ng8
17.Bxe7 Qxe7 18.Be4 Bb5 1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 a6 4.e3
19.Rfe1 Qd6 20.Bxd5 exd5 Nf6 5.Nf3 c5 6.cxd5 exd5
21.Qa5 a6 22.Qc7 Qxc7 7.Be2 Bd6 8.0-0 0-0 9.dxc5
23.Rxc7 Bxc5 10.b3 Nc6 11.Bb2
Ba7 12.Rc1 Re8 13.Na4 Ne4
White has penetrated the Black 14.Bd4 Nxd4 15.Nxd4 Qg5
seventh rank. 16.Qd3 Bh3 17.Bf3 Rad8
18.Nc3 Bb8 19.Nde2 h5
We see the same Pawn structure uuuuuuuu
weakening ideas.
sds4s4kd
20.Ng3 h4 21.gxh3? hxg3
22.hxg3 Nxg3 23.fxg3 Qxg3+ dpdsdp0p
24.Bg2 Rxe3 25.Qd4 Qh2+
26.Kf2 Rde8 27.Qxe3 Rxe3
pds1shsd
28.Kxe3 Qxg2 29.Kd3 dsgshsds
Qxh3+ 30.Kc2 Be5 31.Ne2
Qe3 32.Rfe1 g6 33.Rcd1 sds0sHsd
Qe4+ 34.Kc1 d4 35.Ng1
Bf4+ 36.Kb2 Be3 37.Ne2
dPHs)s!s
Bf2 0-1 Pdsds)P)
---------- Game #999 ------------ $sGRdsIs
llllllll
Mikhail Tal plays d4 to rid himself 16. ... dxc3!! 17.Rxd6 Rxd6
of the Isolated d-Pawn. However
White would prefer to win the In a winning, yet complex
Pawn outright rather than have position, Black manages to
Black liquidate it. persevere in the game despite
several errors.
(W) Udris
18.h3 Ne4 19.Qh4 Rd1+
(B) Mikhail Tal 20.Kh2 c2 21.Ne2 Bd6 22.f4
[E00] Riga, Latvia, 1953 Nd3 23.Nd4 g5 24.Qh6 gxf4
25.Nf5 f3+ 26.g3 Bxg3+
1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 c5 27.Nxg3 f5 28.Nh5 Rf7
4.Nf3 a6 5.e3 d5 6.cxd5 exd5 29.Qe6 f2 30.Bd2 Rxd2
7.Be2 Nc6 8.dxc5 Bxc5 9.0- 31.Qc8+ Rf8 32.Qc4+ Kh8
0 0-0 10.b3 Bg4 11.Nd4 33.Rf1 c1Q 34.Qd4+ Nf6
Bxe2 12.Ndxe2 Qd6 13.Nf4 0-1
Rad8 14.Qf3 d4 15.Rd1 Ne5
16.Qg3 ---------------------------------------
White’s idea was to win the Something Different
isolated d-Pawn for nothing. ---------------------------------------
Unfortunately for White, pins only
work when the pin cannot be When you have a reputation of
ignored. beating elite Grandmasters with a
particular opening or attack
system, other players frequently
decide that avoiding your
strength is a wise idea. After the set of circumstances and routs
Isolated Queen Pawn attack wins Black in a unique way.
already shown and other such uuuuuuuu
wins against elite chess players,
including Judit Polgar and Tony rdb4sdkd
Miles, not too many players were 0pgn1p0s
willing to contest Artur Yusupov’s
skills in this area. As a result, Artur
sdpdshs0
had to be creative in order to dsdsdsds
reach such positions. Below is an sds)s)sH
unusual game where his
opponent found himself tricked
dBHsdsds
into an Isolated Queen Pawn P)QGsdP)
middlegame. dsds$RIs
---------- Game #999 ------------ llllllll
With the exception of the Isolated
(W) Artur Yusupov (2583) d-Pawn, this position is nothing
(B) David Baramidze (2569) like any of the games we have
[D46] Bundesliga 0708, Germany examined so far.
(Round 6.3), 12/08/2007 15. ... Qb4 16.Bxf7+!
1.c4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.e3 Nf6
4.Nc3 e6 5.Nf3 Nbd7 6.Qc2 The commencement of the White
Bd6 7.Bd3 0-0 8.0-0 dxc4 forces penetrating Black’s inner
9.Bxc4 e5 10.Bb3 Qe7 sanctum. Most of the Black army
11.Bd2 Bc7 12.Rae1 h6 watches hopelessly from afar,
13.Nh4 Rd8? 14.f4! exd4? unable to repress the White
15.exd4
infiltration.
Through a weird move order, we
16. ... Kxf7 17.Qg6+ Kg8
have reached an Isolated Queen 18.Nf5 Qf8 19.Re7 Ne8
Pawn middlegame. However, the 20.Rfe1 Ne5 21.Nxh6+ Kh8
position is anything but typical. 22.fxe5 Qxe7 23.Nf7+ Kg8
This is no problem for Artur 24.Ng5 1-0
Yusupov, as he adapts to his new