Chess Puzzle #9E5t7 — Intermediate, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1455 · Intermediate · crushing, endgame, fork, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen c3; rook e1; pawns a4/b3/f2/g2/h3. Black: king g7; queen b6; rook f4; pawns a7/b7/e6/f5/f7/h7. Black is ahead by 1 point of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: f6 — pawn f7→f6. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Qg3+ — queen c3→g3, gives check. Opponent replies Rg4 (rook f4→g4).
  3. Best move: hxg4 — pawn h3→g4, captures rook.

Tactical themes

crushing, endgame, fork, short. The key move is Qg3+.

Position data

FEN: 8/pp3pkp/1q2p3/5p2/P4r2/1PQ4P/5PP1/4R1K1 b - - 4 30

Solve this puzzle interactively on Brilliant Knight — free tactics training powered by Stockfish 18, no signup required.

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