Time to take a break from the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) for a moment and visit with an educational endgame. Well, it helped me get "educated" both during and afterward. The way my opponent disappeared from FICS the moment the game was over, I got the impression that he, two, was going to give the game a good look-over...
perrypawnpusher - cmcj
blitz FICS, 2009
After 50 pretty boring moves followed by 25 rather sloppy ones, White finds himself up a pawn in one of those you-should-know-how-to-play-this endgames.
Kind of looks like the Lucena Position, doesn't it? As opposed to the Philidor Position? Does any of that make sense to you? Do you know how to play either one?Welcome to the club.
76.Ra7Try this instead: 76.Rf4 Rh2 (Black plans to check the White King endlessly) 77.Re4+ Kd6 (The Black King has been bumped away, so that the White King can emerge) 78.Kf7 Rf2+ (as planned) 79.Kg6 Rg2+ 80.Kf6 Rf2+ 81.Kg5 Rg2+ 82.Rg4 Aha! The pawn will advance and promote! White has used the proper plan!
76...Rh4 77.Ra7+ Ke8 78.Rf7
Well, that was fun. What did it accomplish that the simple 76. Rf7+ wouldn't have accomplished? Well, Black's Rook is now on the important 4th rank, but it has to either leave or stop covering the h-file. Black, rightly, leaves his rook on the h-file.78...Rh3 79.Rf5
This is funny. Why? Because the Rook is on the wrong rank. Watch and see.
79...Re3 80.Kh7 Rh3+ 81.Kg6 Rg3+
Just in time White realizes that if he now blocks the check with 82.Rg5, as planned, Black has 82.Rxg5+ Kxg5 83.Kf7 Kh6 84.Kg8 Kg6 stalemate!
82.Kf6 Rg4 Dropping further back, to g2 or g1 was better, although it might not matter in the end.
83.Re5+ Kd7
Great! Now White has 84.Rg5, at last.84.Re7+
Luckily, this is part of a plan that will work.84...Kd8 85.Ra7
85...Rf4+ 86.Kg5 Rf1 
87.g8Q+ Rf8 88.Qxf8 checkmate
