---

Rook and pawn endgames can be the great leveller. After a battle in the opening and middle game, entering a rook and pawn endgame can almost be a bit of a reset, especially at the beginner-intermediate level. I raised this in a video a couple of weeks ago, but it’s worth repeating. In this game, I entered the endgame effectively down two points of material, with my opponent at a +5 to +7 advantage. And yet, with a bit of luck and inaccurate play by my opponent in response to aggressive moves, I managed to get the win!

Rook and pawn endgames are just tricky, and can be complex. So where does that leave us? If you’re clearly ahead and winning in the middle game, I would probably try to avoid entering a rook and pawn endgame unless the advantage is such that the win will likely be trivial. On the other hand, if you’re losing positionally but only down a little bit of material, like a pawn, entering a rook and pawn endgame can be a way to reverse your fortunes. Game complexity increases the risk of error, and if you’re losing anyway, it offers a chance to equalise and even win!

I hope you found this game interesting, and thanks for watching!

Game on chess.com: https://www.chess.com/game/live/40700910691

[Event "Live Chess"]
[Site "Chess.com"]
[Date "2022.03.10"]
[Round "?"]
[White "VictorCampillo"]
[Black "vitualis"]
[Result "0-1"]
[ECO "C45"]
[WhiteElo "1306"]
[BlackElo "1300"]
[TimeControl "1800"]
[EndTime "18:02:16 PST"]
[Termination "vitualis won by resignation"]

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d4 exd4 5. Ng5 Ne5 6. Nxf7 Nxf7 7. Bxf7+ Kf8 8. Qh5 d6 9. Bg5 Nf6 10. Bxf6 Qxf6 11. Bc4 Be6 12. Bxe6 Qxe6 13. Qf3+ Ke7 14. O-O Raf8 15. Qg3 Rhg8 16. Nd2 Bb4 17. Nf3 Qf6 18. e5 Qg6 19. Qxg6 hxg6 20. exd6+ Bxd6 21. Rfe1+ Kd7 22. Nxd4 Bc5 23. Rad1 Kc8 24. Re2 Rd8 25. Red2 Bxd4 26. Rxd4 Rxd4 27. Rxd4 Re8 28. g4 c5 29. Rd6 g5 30. Rg6 Re2 31. Rxg5 Rxc2 32. Rxg7 c4 33. Rg5 b6 34. Rb5 Kc7 35. g5 Kc6 36. a4 a6 37. Rb4 Kc5 38. g6 Rd2 39. g7 Rd8 40. Rxb6 Kxb6 41. h4 Rg8 0-1