The English Opening
Here are some chess puzzles from the English (ECO A20).
1.c4 e5 w/o 2.Nc3
Solutions are between the brackets under each puzzle.
Drag your cursor from one bracket to the other.
White to move and win except where noted.
a)
Horst Mueller vs F Fluck, BRD, 1953
2kr3r/1ppb1ppp/p1n5/3R4/q3P3/B1P2PP1/P3B2P/2Q1K2R w K - 0 1
[ Bd1 if Qc4 Bb3 ]
b)
Jaime Emma vs Otto Benitez, Fortaleza, 1975
r1bq1rk1/p1p2pp1/1p5p/3nN3/8/3P2P1/P2QPPBP/R1R3K1 w - - 0 1
[ Nc6 if Qd6 Bxd5 ]
c)
Cano De Arribas vs Francesco Rojas Delgado, Centelles, 1996
rnb2rk1/pppq1p1p/3p1bp1/4p3/2B1P2N/P1NP4/1PPQ1P1P/2K3RR w - - 0 1
[ Nxg6 if hxg6 Rxg6+ Bg7 Qh6 mates ]
d)
White mates in 3.
Sergey Akchelov vs Alexander Shukan, Alushta, 1997
r1bn1b2/ppk1n2r/2p3pp/5p2/N1PNpPP1/2B1P3/PP2B2P/2KR2R1 w - - 0 1
[ Nb5+ if cxb5 Be5+ ]
e)
Michael Wais vs Jivan Cuba, Oberwart, 1997
r3kb1r/ppq1n1pp/2p3b1/4n1p1/4PB2/2N3P1/PPQ2PBP/2KR3R w kq - 0 1
[ Nb5 if Qb8 Bxe5 Qxe5 Ne6+ Kd8 Nxe5 ]
1d)
mate in 3
Sergey Akchelov vs Alexander Shukan
A20 Puzzles, Part II.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
Reinhard Blodig vs Helmut Appel, Kaufbeuren, 1998
1rb2rk1/p2q2pp/2pb4/2Bp1p2/6n1/1N1Q2P1/PP2PPBP/R4RK1 w - - 0 1
[ Bxd5+ cxd5 Qxd5+ ]
b)
Mihai Suba vs Eladio Benito Alba, La Coruna, 1999
3r1rk1/pp1nbppp/2pp1n2/q3p3/2PPP3/2N1BBP1/PP1Q1P1P/R4RK1 w - - 0 1
[ Nd5 if Qxd2 Nxe7+ ]
c)
Aleksander Delchev vs Verter Cugini, Imperia, 2000
r1bqk2r/pp1pnpbp/2n3p1/1N2p3/2P5/B5P1/3PPPBP/R2QK1NR w KQkq - 0 1
[ Bd6 if 0-0 Bc7 Qe8 Nd6 ]
d)
Jacques Coin vs Francois-Eric Mallassagne, Montpellier, 2001
r1b2rk1/ppq2ppp/8/3p4/1Q1Pn3/P1P3P1/4P1BP/2R1K1NR b K - 0 1
[ ...Nxg3 if Bxd5 Nxh1 Bxh1 Qxh2 or if hxg3 Qxg3+ Kf1 Qf4+ ]
e)
White mates in 3.
Franz Hoelzl vs Michael Schwarz, Austria, 2003
r1b1r1k1/ppp1np1p/2np2pQ/5qN1/1bP5/6P1/PP2PPBP/R1B2RK1 w - - 0 1
[ Qxh7+ Kf8 Ne6+ ]
2c)
Aleksander Delchev vs Verter Cugini
A20 Puzzles, Part III.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
White mates in 2.
Piotr Maslanka vs Jozef Szamrej, Polanica Zdroj, 2010
r2qkb1r/pp1b3n/5p1p/2pPp1p1/2P5/3PB1PP/PP4B1/R2QNRK1 w kq - 1 0
[ Qh5+ Ke7 Bxc5# ]
b)
Bernd Peschek vs Franz Roehrbacher, Vienna, 2011
r4rk1/ppp2pp1/2n1bq1p/3np3/Qb6/2NP1NP1/PP1BPPBP/R4RK1 w - - 1 0
[ Nxd5 Bxd5 Bxb4 ]
c)
Antonio Palacios vs V Byelopolskiy, Moscow, 2012
r2qk2r/1pp1nppp/1bnp4/pN3b2/2PP1B2/P5P1/1P2NPBP/R2QK2R w KQkq - 1 0
[ c5 if dxc5 Nxc7+ or if Ba7 cxd6 ]
d)
Dag Sodtholt vs Kieran O'Driscoll, Eilat, 2012
r1bqk2r/ppp2ppp/2n5/3nN3/1b1Pp3/6P1/PP2PPBP/RNBQ1K1R b kq - 0 1
[ ...Nxe5 dxe5 Ne3+ ]
e)
Mark Szymanski vs Jonah Willow, England, 2015
r2qk2r/ppp2ppp/1nn2b2/4p3/4P1b1/1P1P1NPP/P4PB1/RNBQ1RK1 b kq - 0 1
[ ...Bxf3 Bxf3 Qd4 ]
f)
Black mates in 5.
Gerald Loew vs Arturs Neiksans, Wunsiedel, 2015
r2qk2r/pp3ppp/1np5/6N1/2b1P1n1/5KP1/PPQN2BP/R1B4R b kq - 0 1
[ ...Qf6+ Kxg4 Be6+ if Nxe6 h5+ or if Kh4 Qh6# ]
g)
Max Orteu Capdevila vs Llibert Cespedes Llaverias, Barcelona, 2016
r1bqk2r/ppp2pp1/2np1n1p/4N3/Q1P5/2b3P1/PP1PPPBP/R1B1K2R w KQkq - 1 0
[ Nxc6 if bxc6 Qxc6+ or if Bd7 Nxd8 Bxa4 Nxb7 Be5 Nxd6+ Bxd6 Bxa8 ]
3d)
Dag Sodtholt vs Kieran O'Driscoll
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