National Scholastic Chess Foundation

The final round of the Championship section in the 2002 Greenburg Spring Classic saw some clever play, but also some missed opportunities. The following endgame miss involved a lost tempo.

Here, Black had a clear winning procedure. He started out correctly by playing 1...Kd5 2.Kd3 Kxe5 3.b4 Kd5, but after 4.b5 he went wrong.

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Black wasted a precious tempo with 4...Kc5? After 5.b6 Kxb6 6.Kxd4 Kc6 7.Ke5 Kd7 8.Kf6 Kd6 9.Kg6 e5 10.Kxh6 both sides queened and the game was drawn.

The correct move here is 4...e5. Black does not have to chase the pawn until it moves again. After 5.b6 Kc6 6.Ke4 Kxb6, White is helpless - he cannot play 7.Kxe5 because of 7...d3 and queens.

Ed Eusebi, content editor, www.nscfchess.org