The Most Blatant Opening Chess Trap Ever

Rachel Reeves (right) the current UK Chancellor of the Exchequer
then aged 16 or 17 on the cover of CHESS Monthly July 1995



Black has just played 4...Ng8 - e7??

The opening moves were 1. d4 e5 2. dxe5 Bc5 3. Nf3 d6 4. exd6.

44 Red Hot Players have set this 4...Ne7 trap and incredibly 26 RHP have
taken the Knight. Your first puzzle is what does Black play after 5.dxe7.
Members gregsflat and jebedo6391 have caught two players with this one.
Reveal Hidden Content

H. Walker - C. Graham, Warwick, England 2024 (Black to play)

Reveal Hidden Content
That pinning Bishop trick is well worth knowing. I had one in a skittles game
in 1978 and never forgot it. (I cannot recall the exact position but I can the idea.)

This is close to the position I had. I was Black.

1...Bxa3 2.bxa3 b2 3.Bd3 Bb5 0-1

A few Red Hot Pawn games where ideas in this ending were missed

Quanto - glammuus RHP 2019 (Black to play and draw)

Black missed 79....Bd5 (80. Bxd5 Kxa6) 80.a7 Bxb7 and went onto lose.

Monetalis - kaasbol RHP 2012 (White to play and win)

White played 50. Kb7 50.Be7+ wins outright. White did win...eventually.

Instead of continuing with puzzles let us do this one instead. It s a cracker!

I ve never asked you solve anything I have not solved but this one was very
close to not being seen on here. There is a chance a diagram of the position
could have been found in my pocket after I jumped off a cliff or shot myself.


It all began with a GM David Howell being interviewed on a podcast.


I've never listened to any podcast, chess or otherwise before. You can just
imagine what as a podcast with a chess player would be like. How great it is
to be a good chess player, onto who taught them the moves, onto their favourite
game, an amusing anecdote and finally a big plug for their book or DVD.

Wrong! I have no idea what others are like but this was good. and I m going
to quit while ahead and not listen to another one. Here is the link to podcast.

https://www.perpetualchesspod.com/new-blog/2020/5/5/episode-176-gm-david-howell

David mentions in the amusing anecdote bit that he was having dinner
with some friends and they gave him a study to solve in his head.
He was not allowed to use a board but solve it blindfold so to speak.


Of course I never tried to solve it blindfold and neither should you.
It took David 3 days who was doing it on and off in his mind often
forgetting his surroundings as he tried to solve it. I took about 3 hours
over 1½ days and using a board. Although I got it I missed a neat variation.

White to play and win


Before the solution some attractive looking tries

Another variation that I came across making me think I was getting close.


Then I came up with the idea of winning all the pawns and the Rook and winning
with a Bishop and Knight mate. It messing about with that idea I found the Bh3 key.




The thread accompanying this blog is Thread 200998