Chess Puzzle #097S5 — Beginner, White to move, middlegame

Rating 963 · Beginner · mate, mate in 1, middlegame, one move, smothered mate.

Position

White: king g1; queen g8; rooks d7/f1; knight h6; pawns a2/e2/f2/g3/h2. Black: king h8; queen b2; rooks e4/f8; bishop f6; knight c6; pawns a7/b7/c5/g7/h7. Black is ahead by 3 points of material. White to move.

Solution (1 move)

  1. Opponent setup: Rxg8 — rook f8→g8, captures queen. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Nf7# — knight h6→f7, delivers checkmate.

Tactical themes

mate, mate in 1, middlegame, one move, smothered mate. The combination ends with Nf7# delivering checkmate.

Position data

FEN: 5rQk/pp1R2pp/2n2b1N/2p5/4r3/6P1/Pq2PP1P/5RK1 b - - 1 22

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Puzzle data from the Lichess puzzle database (CC0). Analysis powered by Stockfish 18 in your browser.