Answers.Body: <p>Here's another example each of a rook promotion and a bishop promotion from actual play. Neither specific promotion was <em>quite</em> absolutely necessary (you'll see what I mean), but neither one was at all a superfluous underpromotion either.</p>
  
  <p>In the game <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1271474" rel="noreferrer">Sajtar-Benko (Budapest 1954)</a>, the following position was reached after <code>85...Kh6</code>:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "8/5KP1/7k/8/6P1/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  [Result "1-0"]
  
  1.g8=R! (1.g8=Q??=) (1.g8=B?? Kg5=) (1.g8=N+ Kg5 2.Nf6 $18) (1.g5+ Kxg5 2.g8=Q+ $18) Kh7 2.Rg6 Kh8 3.Rh6#
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Here promotion to a queen is stalemate, while promotion to a bishop allows Black to capture the remaining pawn with a draw by insufficient material. So the only promotions that win here are <code>86.g8=N+</code> (which is a long, drawn out win after <code>86...Kg5 87.Nf6</code>) and <code>86.g8=R!</code>. Unfortunately, neither underpromotion is strictly necessary, as White could instead win more prosaically by just releasing the stalemate trap with, say, <code>86.g5+</code> followed by promotion to queen. But still, the rook promotion is the move Sajtar played, and it's also the best, yielding mate in three.</p>
  
  <p>The next position is from the game <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1287069" rel="noreferrer">Tomic-Winzbeck (Dortmund Open 1993)</a>:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "2rRb2k/2P4p/6pP/p2B1pP1/Pp2pP2/1P2K3/8/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  [Result "1-0"]
  
  1...Rxd8 2.cxd8=B! (2.cxd8=Q?? $10) (2.cxd8=R?? $10) (2.cxd8=N $18) 2...Bf7 3.Bf6+ (3.Bxf7?? $10) 3...Kg8 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Bd8 $18
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Black played <code>43...Rxd8</code>, to which White responded <code>44.cxd8=B!</code>, since promotion to either queen or rook would yield stalemate. Not unlike before, while promotion to anything stronger would give up a draw, it's also the case that the bishop promotion wasn't the only option: a knight promotion would win easily enough here too. Still, the bishop promotion was actually played, and is the most natural, immediately threatening <code>45.Bf6#</code>. Black resigned after the promotion, but could have set up one more not-so-subtle trap by playing <code>44...Bf7</code>, when <code>45.Bxf7??</code> would again be stalemate. White would instead need to play something like <code>45.Bf6+ Kg8 46.Bxf7+ Kxf7 47.Bd8</code> and win easily with the extra bishop.</p>
  
  <hr>
  
  <p>This is a bit off-topic, but since we're talking bishop promotions, I can't resist mentioning another example from "actual play," this one the rather silly online blitz game <a href="http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1497429" rel="noreferrer">Rybka-Nakamura (ICC 2008)</a>. The six bishop promotions in this game are of course entirely unnecessary, but the game itself is a good illustration of how an engine can go horribly wrong in a completely closed position in which it insists on trying to win with an entirely illusory material advantage that it has. The final position after <code>271...Bbc6#</code>:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "K7/2bb4/1bbb4/3k4/8/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  </code></pre>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2012-08-22T05:50:49.497Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2016-01-06T13:12:36.407Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2016-01-06T13:12:36.407Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: ETD
Answers.Body: <p>There are a number of examples from international level games on this page: <a href="http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/minor.htm" rel="nofollow noreferrer">Practical Underpromotion</a></p>
  
  <p>Here I have copied some of the more interesting ones. </p>
  
  <p><strong>Vasuikov - Tukmakov, Erevan 1976</strong></p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "8/5p2/4p3/4P3/4K1k1/7r/7p/7R w - - 0 1"]
  
  1.Rg1+ hxg1=R! ( 1...hxg1=Q??= )
  </code></pre>
  
  <p><strong>Simonson - Lasker, New York, 1892</strong></p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "2k5/8/2PK4/P7/8/8/8/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...Kb8 2.Kd7 ( 2.c7+?? Kc8= ) 2...Ka8 3.c7 Ka7 4.c8=R! ( 4.c8=Q??= ) 
  </code></pre>
  
  <p><strong>Badestein - Otto, Wernigerode 1952</strong></p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "5R2/8/4k3/8/8/8/5p1K/6r1 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...f1=R! ( 1...f1=Q?? 2.Re8+ Kd6 ( 2...Kd7 3.Rd8+ Kxd8= ) ) 
  </code></pre>
  
  <p><strong>Sokolsky - Ravinsky, USSR 1938</strong> This is a very interesting game, but unfortunately, a <em>lot</em> of variations have been analysed, and unfortunately, I do not have the patience to convert them to PGN. :)</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2024-12-13T05:49:31.087Z
Answers.Text: "Sokolsky - Ravinsky, USSR 1938": Do you at least have the moves they played?
Answers.UserDisplayName: Christopher Heckman
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2012-12-05T14:30:22.980Z
Answers.Text: Would you mind to extract at least one for display, in case the link dies, and for the answer not to be a link no more ? ([More explanations here](http://meta.stackexchange.com/q/8231/197593).)
Answers.UserDisplayName: Nikana Reklawyks
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2012-12-05T14:35:01.793Z
Answers.Text: Sure, I will extract them and edit this post in a few days time.
Answers.UserDisplayName: Masked Man
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2012-12-05T12:51:10.963Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2019-04-19T07:34:26.800Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2019-04-19T07:34:26.800Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Masked Man
Answers.Body: <p>Tim Krabbé has an extensive page on B- and R-promotions
  in his Chess Curiosities site, including many examples
  from actual play:</p>
  
  <p><a href="http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/minor.htm">http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/minor.htm</a></p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2015-11-29T23:03:43.097Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2015-11-29T23:03:43.097Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: Noam D. Elkies
Answers.Body: <p>The <a href="http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promotion_%28chess%29#Promotion_to_rook_or_bishop" rel="noreferrer">wikipedia entry on promotion</a> gives a position from a 2006 game at the Irish Chess Championship, in which a promotion to queen would allow stalemate:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "8/8/4Q3/8/5q2/8/1p2K2k/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...b1=R! $19 (1...b1=Q?? 2.Qh3+! Kxh3 $10)
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>The same entry also points to the 1972 game between Aron Reshko and Oleg Kaminsky, where promotion to a queen or rook would allow stalemate, and promoting to a knight would be insufficient to win:</p>
  
  <pre><code>[FEN "4Q3/Pq4pk/5p1p/5P1K/6PP/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  
  1.a8=B! (1.a8=Q?? Qf7+! 2.Qxf7 $10) (1.a8=R?? Qf7+! 2.Qxf7 $10) 1...Qb3 2.Qd7 $18
  </code></pre>
  
  <p>Rook and Bishop promotion is very rare in world class play.  Knight promotion is more common, but not as much as Queen promotion.  From the looks of it, it looks like Knight promotion is popular when promoting to any other piece would result in its immediate capture where as a Knight promotion would often be used to fork a King and a another piece resulting in material gain.</p>
  
Answers.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Answers.CreationDate: 2012-06-04T01:44:28.493Z
Answers.LastActivityDate: 2012-11-21T05:10:51.237Z
Answers.LastEditDate: 2012-11-21T05:10:51.237Z
Answers.UserDisplayName: xaisoft
Body: <p>I understand the theory, and have seen examples, of endgames where a pawn promoted to a queen creates a draw and instead the player typically promotes to rook. My question is, has this ever occurred in a game at the international level?</p>
  
  <p>Instances of a pawn promoted to a knight would be interesting, but not really the target of this question. I am interested in notable games where a pawn was promoted to either a rook or a bishop.</p>
  
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 3.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2012-10-11T00:28:01.603Z
Comments.Text: I remember a puzzle Paul Morphy composed when he was very young (I believe?) where he under-promoted a pawn
Comments.UserDisplayName: ajax333221
Comments.ContentLicense: CC BY-SA 4.0
Comments.CreationDate: 2020-05-22T09:33:51.123Z
Comments.Text: See also this Board & Card Games Stack Exchange question: [Is pawn promotion to rook or bishop something that is seen in play?](https://boardgames.stackexchange.com/q/6739/12315)
Comments.UserDisplayName: Glorfindel
Tags: <pawn-promotion>
Title: What are some examples of promoting a pawn to a rook or bishop?
ThreadText: # What are some examples of promoting a pawn to a rook or bishop?
  
  (Asked by: username_0 on 2012-06-04)
  
  I understand the theory, and have seen examples, of endgames where a pawn promoted to a queen creates a draw and instead the player typically promotes to rook. My question is, has this ever occurred in a game at the international level?
  
  Instances of a pawn promoted to a knight would be interesting, but not really the target of this question. I am interested in notable games where a pawn was promoted to either a rook or a bishop.
  
  **Tags:** pawn-promotion
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_1**: I remember a puzzle Paul Morphy composed when he was very young (I believe?) where he under-promoted a pawn  
  > **username_2**: See also this Board & Card Games Stack Exchange question: [Is pawn promotion to rook or bishop something that is seen in play?](https://boardgames.stackexchange.com/q/6739/12315)  
  
  ---
  
  ## 4 answers
  
  ### Answer by username_8 on 2012-06-04. Score: 15 | Accepted answer
  
  The [wikipedia entry on promotion](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Promotion_%28chess%29#Promotion_to_rook_or_bishop) gives a position from a 2006 game at the Irish Chess Championship, in which a promotion to queen would allow stalemate:
  
  ```
  [FEN "8/8/4Q3/8/5q2/8/1p2K2k/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...b1=R! $19 (1...b1=Q?? 2.Qh3+! Kxh3 $10)
  
  ```
  
  The same entry also points to the 1972 game between Aron Reshko and Oleg Kaminsky, where promotion to a queen or rook would allow stalemate, and promoting to a knight would be insufficient to win:
  
  ```
  [FEN "4Q3/Pq4pk/5p1p/5P1K/6PP/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  
  1.a8=B! (1.a8=Q?? Qf7+! 2.Qxf7 $10) (1.a8=R?? Qf7+! 2.Qxf7 $10) 1...Qb3 2.Qd7 $18
  
  ```
  
  Rook and Bishop promotion is very rare in world class play. Knight promotion is more common, but not as much as Queen promotion. From the looks of it, it looks like Knight promotion is popular when promoting to any other piece would result in its immediate capture where as a Knight promotion would often be used to fork a King and a another piece resulting in material gain.
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_3 on 2012-08-22. Score: 14
  
  Here's another example each of a rook promotion and a bishop promotion from actual play. Neither specific promotion was *quite* absolutely necessary (you'll see what I mean), but neither one was at all a superfluous underpromotion either.
  
  In the game [Sajtar-Benko (Budapest 1954)](http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1271474), the following position was reached after `85...Kh6`:
  
  ```
  [FEN "8/5KP1/7k/8/6P1/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  [Result "1-0"]
  
  1.g8=R! (1.g8=Q??=) (1.g8=B?? Kg5=) (1.g8=N+ Kg5 2.Nf6 $18) (1.g5+ Kxg5 2.g8=Q+ $18) Kh7 2.Rg6 Kh8 3.Rh6#
  
  ```
  
  Here promotion to a queen is stalemate, while promotion to a bishop allows Black to capture the remaining pawn with a draw by insufficient material. So the only promotions that win here are `86.g8=N+` (which is a long, drawn out win after `86...Kg5 87.Nf6`) and `86.g8=R!`. Unfortunately, neither underpromotion is strictly necessary, as White could instead win more prosaically by just releasing the stalemate trap with, say, `86.g5+` followed by promotion to queen. But still, the rook promotion is the move Sajtar played, and it's also the best, yielding mate in three.
  
  The next position is from the game [Tomic-Winzbeck (Dortmund Open 1993)](http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1287069):
  
  ```
  [FEN "2rRb2k/2P4p/6pP/p2B1pP1/Pp2pP2/1P2K3/8/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  [Result "1-0"]
  
  1...Rxd8 2.cxd8=B! (2.cxd8=Q?? $10) (2.cxd8=R?? $10) (2.cxd8=N $18) 2...Bf7 3.Bf6+ (3.Bxf7?? $10) 3...Kg8 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Bd8 $18
  
  ```
  
  Black played `43...Rxd8`, to which White responded `44.cxd8=B!`, since promotion to either queen or rook would yield stalemate. Not unlike before, while promotion to anything stronger would give up a draw, it's also the case that the bishop promotion wasn't the only option: a knight promotion would win easily enough here too. Still, the bishop promotion was actually played, and is the most natural, immediately threatening `45.Bf6#`. Black resigned after the promotion, but could have set up one more not-so-subtle trap by playing `44...Bf7`, when `45.Bxf7??` would again be stalemate. White would instead need to play something like `45.Bf6+ Kg8 46.Bxf7+ Kxf7 47.Bd8` and win easily with the extra bishop.
  
  ---
  
  This is a bit off-topic, but since we're talking bishop promotions, I can't resist mentioning another example from "actual play," this one the rather silly online blitz game [Rybka-Nakamura (ICC 2008)](http://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1497429). The six bishop promotions in this game are of course entirely unnecessary, but the game itself is a good illustration of how an engine can go horribly wrong in a completely closed position in which it insists on trying to win with an entirely illusory material advantage that it has. The final position after `271...Bbc6#`:
  
  ```
  [FEN "K7/2bb4/1bbb4/3k4/8/8/8/8 w - - 0 1"]
  
  ```
  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_4 on 2012-12-05. Score: 11
  
  There are a number of examples from international level games on this page: [Practical Underpromotion](http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/minor.htm)
  
  Here I have copied some of the more interesting ones.
  
  **Vasuikov - Tukmakov, Erevan 1976**
  
  ```
  [FEN "8/5p2/4p3/4P3/4K1k1/7r/7p/7R w - - 0 1"]
  
  1.Rg1+ hxg1=R! ( 1...hxg1=Q??= )
  
  ```
  
  **Simonson - Lasker, New York, 1892**
  
  ```
  [FEN "2k5/8/2PK4/P7/8/8/8/8 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...Kb8 2.Kd7 ( 2.c7+?? Kc8= ) 2...Ka8 3.c7 Ka7 4.c8=R! ( 4.c8=Q??= ) 
  
  ```
  
  **Badestein - Otto, Wernigerode 1952**
  
  ```
  [FEN "5R2/8/4k3/8/8/8/5p1K/6r1 b - - 0 1"]
  [StartFlipped "0"]
  
  1...f1=R! ( 1...f1=Q?? 2.Re8+ Kd6 ( 2...Kd7 3.Rd8+ Kxd8= ) ) 
  
  ```
  
  **Sokolsky - Ravinsky, USSR 1938** This is a very interesting game, but unfortunately, a *lot* of variations have been analysed, and unfortunately, I do not have the patience to convert them to PGN. :)
  
  > **Comments:**
  > **username_6**: Would you mind to extract at least one for display, in case the link dies, and for the answer not to be a link no more ? ([More explanations here](http://meta.stackexchange.com/q/8231/197593).)  
  > **username_4**: Sure, I will extract them and edit this post in a few days time.  
  > **username_5**: "Sokolsky - Ravinsky, USSR 1938": Do you at least have the moves they played?  
  
  ---
  
  ### Answer by username_7 on 2015-11-29. Score: 9
  
  Tim Krabbé has an extensive page on B- and R-promotions
  in his Chess Curiosities site, including many examples
  from actual play:
  
  <http://timkr.home.xs4all.nl/chess2/minor.htm>
  
  
  ---
  
  