2 thoughts on “Lesson #18: Candidates – Thinking Outside The Box… Or Not?”
The position at 20:59 (Re1+) is a skewer not a pin. A skewer is the exact opposite of a pin because the piece of higher value (the King in this case) is attacked and must move, allowing the capture of Black’s rook on e8.
Because I can play very dogmatically (meaning, with little imagination and following the “rules” of chess), it was helpful for me to see these ten “outside the box” positions and ideas. The move that really sticks in my mind is the retreat by White, Bh4!, apparently allowing the bishop to be trapped. Following dogma without exploring the specific positional and tactical factors of this position would most likely eliiminate the possible consideration of that move, because we learn very early the danger of having a bishop trapped by a move like…g5. Yet, in this position, a sacrificial possibility overrides the importance of the dogma.
The position at 20:59 (Re1+) is a skewer not a pin. A skewer is the exact opposite of a pin because the piece of higher value (the King in this case) is attacked and must move, allowing the capture of Black’s rook on e8.
Because I can play very dogmatically (meaning, with little imagination and following the “rules” of chess), it was helpful for me to see these ten “outside the box” positions and ideas. The move that really sticks in my mind is the retreat by White, Bh4!, apparently allowing the bishop to be trapped. Following dogma without exploring the specific positional and tactical factors of this position would most likely eliiminate the possible consideration of that move, because we learn very early the danger of having a bishop trapped by a move like…g5. Yet, in this position, a sacrificial possibility overrides the importance of the dogma.