Chess Puzzle #PwPGH — Advanced, White to move, middlegame

Rating 1845 · Advanced · advantage, middlegame, short.

Position

White: king g1; queen g3; rooks a1/f1; bishops d2/d5; knight e4; pawns a2/c2/d3/f4/g2/h2. Black: king g8; queen b2; rooks a8/f8; bishops e7/f5; pawns a5/c5/c6/e6/f7/g7/h7. White is ahead by 2 points of material. White to move.

Solution (2 moves)

  1. Opponent setup: cxd5 — pawn c6→d5, captures bishop. Now White to move.
  2. Best move: Bc3 — bishop d2→c3. Opponent replies Qxc3 (queen b2→c3, captures bishop).
  3. Best move: Nxc3 — knight e4→c3, captures queen.

Tactical themes

advantage, middlegame, short. The key move is Bc3.

Position data

FEN: r4rk1/4bppp/2p1p3/p1pB1b2/4NP2/3P2Q1/PqPB2PP/R4RK1 b - - 0 17

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