'Characteristic Puzzles in the Opening' series



Here are some chess puzzles from the games of Mladen Palac.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.

Solutions are between the brackets under each puzzle.
Drag your cursor from one bracket to the other.

a)
Mladen Palac vs Nikola Ostojic, Belgrade, 1988
r1bqnr2/pp1ppkbp/6p1/n3P3/3N4/2N1B3/PPP2PPP/R2QK2R w KQ - 1 0
[ Ne6 if Kxe6 Qd5+ Kf5 g4+ mates ]

b)
Mladen Palac vs Claude Landenbergue, Prague, 1990
r1n1r2k/2pN1pp1/p1N1p2p/3pP2q/PPbQ2RP/4P3/2P3P1/R5K1 w - - 1 0
[ Rxg7 Kxg7 Nf6 Qg6 Nxe8+ Kf8 Nxc7 ]

c)
White mates in 4.
Mladen Palac vs Nikola Stajcic, Kecskemet, 1991
r7/3R2Q1/p3B3/1pkP4/3q4/8/PPP1p3/1K6 w - - 1 0
[ Qe7+ Kb6 Rb7+ Ka5 Qa3+ ]

d)
White mates in 6.
Mladen Palac vs Siegfried Baumegger, Montecatini Terme, 1997
2b2rk1/1q3ppp/p3p3/1r6/5Q2/1N6/PPP2P1P/1K1R2R1 w - - 1 0
[ Rxg7+ if Kxg7 Rg1+ or if Kh8 Qh6 Qe4 Rxh7+ Kxh7 Qxf8+ ]

e)
White mates in 3.
Mladen Palac vs Artashes Minasian, Pula, 1997
4rk2/4ppbp/2Q3p1/2NN1q1n/8/1PP2P1P/P5P1/3R2K1 w - - 1 0
[ Qxe8+ ]

1b)
Mladen Palac vs Claude Landenbergue

Mladen Palac puzzles, pt. ii.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
Mladen Palac vs Miso Cebalo, Pula, 1997
2r5/4p2k/p4qp1/1p2pp2/1P3P2/1P2Q1Nb/PK5P/6R1 w - - 1 0
[ Ne4 fxe4 Qxh3+ Kg7 Qxc8 ]

b)
White mates in 3.
Mladen Palac vs Blazimir Kovacevic, Porec, 1998
2r3k1/1p2Q1pp/p5b1/8/1P6/P1N5/1KP2R1P/7q w - - 1 0
[ Qe6+ ]

c)
White mates in 5.
Mladen Palac vs Branko Rogulj, Porec, 1998
2bB3r/1rpp1p2/4k1p1/pp2P3/5P1p/2P4P/PP1R1KP1/3R4 w - - 1 0
[ Rd6+ cxd6 Rxd6+ Kf5 Ke3 ]

d)
Mladen Palac vs Branko Kutuzovic, Bizovac, 1999
7k/ppr1pp1r/1n1p1q2/3P4/2P5/1PQ1R2R/P4PP1/6K1 w - - 1 0
[ Qxf6+ exf6 Re8+ Kg7 Rg3+ Kh6 Reg8 mates ]

e)
White mates in 7.
Mladen Palac vs Janez Barle, Geneva, 1999
1Qb2rk1/4Rp1p/2p3p1/8/q1B2P2/2K5/p1P3PP/3R4 w - - 1 0
[ Bxf7+ if Kh8 Qe5# or if Rxf7 Qxc8+ Kg7 Rxf7+ Kxf7 Rd7+ Kf6 Qf6+ ]

2d)
Mladen Palac vs Branko Kutuzovic

Mladen Palac puzzles, pt. iii.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
Mladen Palac vs Djimid Tayeb, Cap d'Agde, 2002
r6r/1b1ppk1p/p3nqp1/5p2/1P3P2/1B2B3/P2Q2PP/R4RK1 w - - 1 0
[ Bd4 Qh4 Bxh8 Rxh8 Qxd7 ]

b)
White mates in 3.
Mladen Palac vs Robert Kempinski, Halkidiki, 2002
r2nR3/1p1r1kp1/p4pp1/8/P6Q/1P3N2/2q3PP/4R2K w - - 1 0
[ Rf8+ Kxf8 Qh8+ ]

c)
Mladen Palac vs Igor Naumkin, Porto San Giorgio, 2002
r4rk1/ppp3p1/6Qp/8/5N2/2P1q3/PP2b1PP/R4R1K w - - 1 0
[ Ne6 Qe5 Rxf8+ Rxf8 Nxf8 ]

d)
Mladen Palac vs Zoran Runic, Slovenia, 2002
r1b2rk1/2q2ppp/p3pn2/1pb1N1B1/8/3B4/PPP1QPPP/2KRR3 w - - 1 0
[ Bxf6 exf6 Bxh7+ if Kxh7 Qh5+ Kg7 Qg4+ mates
or if Kh8 Qh5 Kg7 Qg4+ mates
]

e)
White mates in 5.
Mladen Palac vs Mirko Mikavica, Lausanne, 2003
1r1kq1Q1/4p3/3bP3/3P4/p7/P7/5BPP/2R3K1 w - - 1 0
[ Bb6+ if Rxb6 Qxe8+ Kxe8 Rc8# or if Bc7 Bxc7+ Kc8 Qxe8+ ]

3c)
Mladen Palac vs Igor Naumkin


Back to the Index