'Characteristic Puzzles in the Opening' series



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

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

a)
Alexander Graf vs Edvins Kengis, Tashkent, 1983
8/pRr1qpk1/2P3p1/3Br2p/3N1QbP/1P4P1/5P2/6K1 w - - 1 0
[ Ne6+ ]

b)
Alexander Graf vs Oleg Kalinin, Kaliningrad, 1986
6k1/pp4n1/2ppb3/4q3/1PP1N1Pp/7P/P4QB1/6K1 w - - 1 0
[ Nf6+ if Kh8 Qxh4+ ]

c)
Alexander Graf vs Panayotis Pandavos, Ikaros, 1994
r5k1/1bq1bp1p/p1r2np1/1pNpQ3/1P1P4/1B2P3/1B3PPP/R1R3K1 w KQkq - 0 1
[ Nxb7 Qxb7 Rxc6 Qxc6 Qxe7 ]

d)
Alexander Graf vs A Kovalev, Cappelle la Grande, 1996
- - 0 1
[ Bxe5 if Rxe5 Qh5 h6 Bh7+ Kxh7 Qxf7+ ]

e)

White mates in 4.
Alexander Graf vs A Kunte, Calcutta, 1996
2Q5/4ppbk/3p4/3P1NPp/4P3/5NB1/5PPK/rq6 w - - 0 1
[ g6+ if Kxg6 Nxe7+ or if fxg6 Ng5# ]

1d)
Alexander Graf vs A Kovalev

Alexander Graf Puzzles, Part II.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
Alexander Graf vs Alexander Kaliksteyn, New York, 1998
8/p5k1/2p1q1p1/2Pn3p/3Pp3/P3b2P/2QN1rP1/2B1R2K w - - 1 0
[ Qxe4 if Qxe4 Nxe4 Rf4 Bxe3 Rxe4 Bh6+ ]

b)
Alexander Graf vs Stelios Halkias, Poros, 1998
4r1k1/p1r2pp1/b1p1p2p/q1Nn4/Pp1P3P/6P1/1P1Q1PB1/2R1R1K1 w - - 1 0
[ Nxa6 Qxa6 Bxd5 ]

c)
White mates in 4.
Alexander Graf vs G Papageorgopoulos, Chania, 1999
3qrkr1/pp2pp2/2np4/3N2Q1/2P1P3/1P1n2P1/P4R1P/4R2K w - - 1 0
[ Rxf7+ Kxf7 Rf1+ ]

d)
Alexander Graf vs Lutz Mattick, Lubeck, 2001
r3k2r/pp2np2/3p4/2pPpq1p/2P5/2P2QP1/P6R/2B1K2R w Kkq - 1 0
[ Qxf5 Nxf5 Rxh5 Rxh5 Rxh5 Ke7 Rxf5 ]

e)
Alexander Graf vs Roland Schmaltz, Germany, 2003
2rr1k2/2Rb1ppp/p3p3/1p1p4/3P4/2R3P1/PP3P1P/5BK1 w - - 1 0
[ Rxd7 ]

2a)
Alexander Graf vs Alexander Kaliksteyn

Alexander Graf Puzzles, Part III.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
Alexander Graf vs Magnus Carlsen, Sanxenxo, 2004
2b3k1/5ppp/4rn2/2p5/2P5/4N1P1/5PBP/3R2K1 w - - 1 0
[ Bc6 ]

b)
Alexander Graf vs Anton Shomoev, Warsaw, 2005
6k1/2r2pbp/2q3p1/1Q2p3/8/2P1B1P1/r3PP1P/1R3RK1 w - - 0 1
[ Qxc6 if Rxc6 Rb8+ mates ]

c)
Alexander Graf vs Mika Karttunen, Goteborg, 2005
r6k/5pbp/1pN3p1/pPn5/8/4B2P/P2R1PP1/6K1 w - - 0 1
[ Bxc5 bxc5 b6 ]

d)
David Baramidze vs Alexander Graf, Bad Zwesten, 2006
3b1rk1/1q4pp/p2p4/3P1P2/br2p3/RNR1B3/1PQ2PPP/6K1 b - - 0 1
[ ...Bf6 if Rc7 Qxd5 Qd2 Bxb3 ]

e)
White mates in 4.
Alexander Graf vs Jha Sriram, Dresden, 2007
r4r1k/2R3Rp/p2P4/1p3b1q/7P/1Q1B1p2/1P3b2/3K4 w - - 1 0
[ Rg8+ Rxg8 Qc3+ ]

3e)
mate in 4
Alexander Graf vs Jha Sriram

Alexander Graf Puzzles, Part IV.
The color disk on the diagram indicates who moves first.
a)
White mates in 3.
Alexander Graf vs Umut Atakisi, Athens, 2008
q1r5/p3kp1p/4pp2/2P5/8/Q3P1P1/5P1P/3R2K1 w - - 1 0
[ c6+ Ke8 Rd7 ]

b)
Alexander Graf vs Michael Babar, Bad Wiessee, 2012
r3r3/pp2q2k/2p3np/3P2p1/4p3/PBQ3B1/1P4PP/5RK1 w - - 1 0
[ d6 if Qd7 Rf7+ ]

c)
White mates in 2.
Alexander Graf vs Rares Hofmann, Bad Wiessee, 2014
6rk/1q3p1p/3p1PpQ/3Np3/P1p5/1nPn1R2/6PP/3R2K1 w - - 1 0
[ Qxh7+ ]

d)
Alexander Graf vs Armin Farmani Anosheh, Germany, 2017
3rr1k1/1p1b1pbp/p2p1np1/2p1q1B1/PnP4Q/1PN2P2/4N1PP/1BR2R1K w - - 1 0
[ f4 if Qe7 Ne4 or if Qe6 f5 ]

4a)
mate in 3
Alexander Graf vs Umut Atakisi

More German GMs
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