42...Kc6! which forces White’s king onto a most unfortunate square indeed. The point is that after 43.Ka6 f3 44.b7 f2 45.b8Q f1Q is CHECK!

Here White has to choose between 46.Ka7 allowing 46...Qa1 mate, or 46.Ka5 which loses the queen and the game after 46…Qa1+ 47.Kb4 Qb1+.

Note that if White tries to catch the f-pawn with 40.Kb4, Black simply cuts him off with 40…Kd4. 41.Ka5 will then transpose to our main line after 41…f5 42.b4 f4 43.b5 Kc5 44.b6 Kc6!.

What can we learn from this example?

1.Keep it simple! There was no reason for Ljubojevic to allow a complicated pawn ending (where he had no winning chances whatsoever) when the rook ending was easily drawn.

2.Don’t trust your opponent! I’m pretty sure Browne trusted Ljubojevic’s calculation in this ending. Hence my comment about him being resigned to splitting the point. Nobody in their right mind would go from a drawn rook ending to a lost pawn ending, right?

- Einar Gausel