The last pawn: king behind the pawn

Also in this lesson we look at positions in which the king stands in front of its own pawn. The difference, however, is that here the pawn has crossed the center line. An important detail, because this means that the side with the extra pawn always wins, regardless of whether he/she has the opposition. The only exception is when the extra pawn is an edge pawn (see Example 4).

In Example 1, you can see that without having opposition, white does not have to do anything other than stepping aside with the king and then let the pawn pass.

In the case of a g- or a b-pawn, some attention is required (see examples 2 and 3). Because the other player's king is close to the edge, you always have to watch out for stalemate. By moving your own king to the edge and then advancing the pawn, you make sure that the other player's king is driven off the edge.

What do you have to do?

Is it your turn and you only have a king? Then make a draw. This is possible against an edge pawn or when the other has played suboptimally with a b- or g-pawn.

Is it your move and do you have a pawn? Then go for the win.