attack · recognise → explain → apply

Use a pawn check to tighten a mating net

A pawn can check the exposed king while controlling its next escape square.

Explanation styleChoose any style. Age is not playing strength; no birth date is needed.

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Choose an example

Garry Kasparov – Lajos Portisch

Niksic · 1983.08.28 · 1-0

32... Kf5 · White to move

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What to notice at 32... Kf5

Kasparov played 33.g4+ as Black’s king moved through the centre. The rook and queen then continued the forcing pursuit with the king’s options restricted.

A legally replayed historical example, not a claim that every move is best. A game’s result does not prove every defensive position was lost or drawn.

Game source ↗

Your thinking first

Name the signal, choose a plan, and test the opponent’s most challenging response.

What do you notice?What is your plan, and why?How could the opponent resist?

Recall and explain

1. A pawn can check the exposed king while controlling its next escape square. How would you apply “use a pawn check to tighten a mating net”, and which defensive reply must you check?

Explain it in your own words before revealing.

Make it memorable

A small check can close a big exit.

Teach this to a friend in one minute. Then return to a different example and look for the same signal without being told its name.

Reflect and revisit

This is your self-assessment, not an engine grade or a promise of mastery.

Connect the ideas

Practise pawn transformations →

Sources and further reading

Original LumaChess teaching and game analysis. Topic references are credited below; no affiliation or endorsement is implied.