Testposition 60 - Bishop vs Knight

[Kyodai]

This is merely a discussion (and a celebrated game!) of B vs Kn in an ending with pawns on both flanks.
Such an ending is very difficult to hold for white

[D]6k1/p2b1ppp/8/8/3N4/1P5P/5PP1/6K1 b - - 0 1

[pgn][Event "Bishop Superiority"]
[Site "The Hague"]
[Date "1928.??.??"]
[Round "?"]
[White "Stoltz"]
[Black "Kashdan"]
[Result "0-1"]
[Annotator "Larsson"]
[SetUp "1"]
[FEN "6k1/p2b1ppp/8/8/3N4/1P5P/5PP1/6K1 b - - 0 1"]
[PlyCount "39"]
[EventDate "1928.??.??"]

{This position is from Stoltz-Kashdan 1928. A celebrated ending where the
existence of pawns on both wings on an open board emphasizes the bishop's
superiority over the knight.} 1... Kf8 2. Kf1 Ke7 3. Ke2 Kd6 4. Kd3 Kd5 5. h4
Bc8 {Black's bishop helps push the white king backwards, enhancing the scope
of his own king.} 6. Nf3 Ba6+ 7. Kc3 h6 8. Nd4 g6 9. Nc2 Ke4 10. Ne3 f5 11. Kd2
f4 12. Ng4 h5 13. Nf6+ Kf5 14. Nd7 Bc8 15. Nf8 g5 16. g3 gxh4 17. gxh4 Kg4 18.
Ng6 Bf5 19. Ne7 Be6 20. b4 Kxh4 {and the passed h-pawn carried the day.} 0-1[/pgn]

[Werner]

Hi Sune,
yes really complicated. My programs here prefer
9. b4 or 9. f3 instead of 9. Nc2

I wish you all the best for 2013!

[Eelco de Groot]

I tried to locate a more exact date but could not find it online, did not search any databases. Here is a picture of Isaac Kashdan playing against the great Alexander Alekhine, (world champion at the time I think?), in Pasadena 1932. There are two other famous chessplayers in the photo, the one on the far right I had no trouble with, but the player next to him I did not recognize, even after I knew he was in the picture somewhere ( had to look up other photographs to tentatively confirm his identity. Does anybody see who this American chessplayer is, without looking up the picture?


Alekhine vs. Kashdan

[acase]

I'm going to take a guess here (based on the date)...is it Rueben Fine?

[Houdini]

This is merely a discussion (and a celebrated game!) of B vs Kn in an ending with pawns on both flanks.
Such an ending is very difficult to hold for white

Without looking at the game or at any engine analysis, I find it hard to believe that this position would be lost for White.
Maybe Black has a very slight advantage with the bishop against knight, but I cannot believe it's enough for the win.

[Eelco de Groot]

I'm going to take a guess here (based on the date)...is it Rueben Fine?

Yes! That is very good Andrew! But I have to go on his hairline, eyebrows and the shape of his ears mostly, because in later pictures he had a much broader face. But I think that that is Fine. The only book I have of him is "The Ideas behind the Chess Openings", I do not have his work on endgames. I think that is still a useful book today as an introduction to opening theory, even though I can't say that I have studied it much.

Eelco

[Kyodai]

This is merely a discussion (and a celebrated game!) of B vs Kn in an ending with pawns on both flanks.
Such an ending is very difficult to hold for white

Without looking at the game or at any engine analysis, I find it hard to believe that this position would be lost for White.
Maybe Black has a very slight advantage with the bishop against knight, but I cannot believe it's enough for the win.

Well, actually I would go a couple of steps further with this position - i.e.
I would rather call it "a distinct or clear advantage" for black. The main
issue for the bishop's supremacy is of course pawns on both flanks.

Yesterday I looked around a bit to see if this game was carefully commented somewhere. But couldn't find anything that could cast further
light over this issue (won for black or not?)

Merely a feeling - but I don't expect any GM to really state that this is
a winning position for black - more like it practically is very very difficult to defend for white. But I don't know - will check up with a GM of elo 2580,
maybe also with endgame specialist Karsten Muller.

[Kyodai]

"I tried to locate a more exact date but could not find it online, did not search any databases. Here is a picture of Isaac Kashdan playing against the great Alexander Alekhine.."

Eelco: This is really a very relaxed, concentrated and beautiful picture!
It's very nice to look at the old photos from chessmasters and tournaments!
The game mentioned was played at the Olympics in Haag 1928 - will have
a look at the database when I get back home today.

[Kyodai]

Looks like the game Stoltz-Kashdan was played 30/7 1928 in the Hauge

Btw - here is another picture from 1942 (scroll to page 4/11)

http://www.chesscafe.com/text/urcan16.pdf

[Houdini]

Well, actually I would go a couple of steps further with this position - i.e.
I would rather call it "a distinct or clear advantage" for black. The main
issue for the bishop's supremacy is of course pawns on both flanks.

I would be shocked if this game were forcibly won for Black, or even if were considered as a clear advantage for Black.
It would strongly violate the near-equality of Knight and Bishop in chess.

Robert