Pawn endings: outside passer and breakthrough
In short
In pawn endings, an outside passed pawn (far from the other pawns) is a huge asset: it drags the enemy king away while your king eats the remaining pawns.
By the end you can
- Use an outside passed pawn as a decoy
- Count pawn-ending races
The lesson
In pawn endings, an outside passed pawn (far from the other pawns) is a huge asset: it drags the enemy king away while your king eats the remaining pawns.
Before trading into a pawn ending, count carefully. Pawn endings are the most exact part of chess: one tempo decides between win and loss, and there is no piece left to fix a mistake.
Key points to remember
- Outside passer = decoy
- Count every tempo
- King activity decides
- Think twice before entering a pawn ending
Examples
Show the moves
1. b6 cxb6 2. a6 bxa6 3. c6 Kg7 4. c7
Show the solution
48. Kg5 Kxa3 49. Kxg6 Kxb4 50. h5 Ka3 51. h6 b4 52. h7 b3 53. h8=Q
Practise it
Solve puzzles on this idea: pawn endgame puzzles.
Homework
Play the outside-passer practice position until you win it every time.
More endgames lessons
- Mini-games: pawn wars and queen vs pawns (Foundation)
- Can the king catch the pawn? The rule of the square (Novice)
- King and pawn vs king: opposition (Class F)
- Passed pawns and promotion races (Class F)
- The Lucena position: building a bridge (Class E)
- The Philidor defence: holding rook endings (Class E)