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Chess/Is it a draw

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Expert: - 12/17/2009


Question
are either of these positions a draw or a win with white to move?
White: Pg3, Kg4 Black Kg6
White: Pg3, Kh4 Black Kh6

Answer
They are both drawn with White to move (and wins for White if Black has the move).  It is a situation known by the German word Zugzwang, where the privilege to move has (unfortunately for the player in question) become an obligation.

In order to find out more about the specifics of either position, I advocate using the following link:

http://www.k4it.de/index.php?topic=egtb&lang=en

Enter the indicated position into the diagram, and the tablebase will provide ALL of the variations possible from either situation (it is indeed a remarkable resource, and free of charge!).

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Tony D'Aloisio

Expertise

I've read a good deal on the subject and I can answer a lot of chess history questions (or at least I'll know where to look them up). Also questions regarding analyzing specific positions (although with the advent of powerful chess software, this isn't likely to have the importance it once did).

Experience

I was a national master in the US for a number of years. My peak USCF rating was 2290, and I was ranked in the top 150 in the state of California. My current published rating is 2177.

Education/Credentials
B.A. Sonoma State University 1984 (English major with Communications emphasis)

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