EndgamesPlay as white

Two Pawns vs One

Learn how to win with two pawns against one: use your outside passed pawn as a decoy to drag the enemy king away, win the last black pawn with your king, then escort your remaining pawn home.

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Introduction

An extra pawn in a pawn endgame is usually enough to win — but only if you know how to use it. The most important technique is the outside passed pawn: a free pawn far away from everything else. The enemy king has to run over and stop it, and while it is busy there, your own king eats the enemy pawns and escorts your last pawn to promotion. Here White has pawns on a2 and c5, Black has a lone pawn on f4, and the kings stand on f2 and e7. Take the a-pawn off the board and this is a dead draw — the black king walks over and wins the c-pawn. With the a-pawn it is a win, but a fragile one: of White's nine legal moves only one keeps the win. Watch how the a-pawn works as a decoy: it drags Black's king to the queenside, White's king wins the f-pawn, and then the king comes back to break the blockade and push the c-pawn home.

Lesson Content

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1. a4

Create a threat on the far side of the board that the black king cannot ignore — and make it as fast as possible.

Launch the decoy — at full speed. a4 threatens to run to a8 and queen, so the black king must drop everything and head for the queenside; that means abandoning the f-pawn and giving up any hope of attacking the c-pawn in peace. Speed is everything here. The pawn needs four more steps to queen and the king needs three to reach b7, so Black is just in time — but only just. Every other white move lets the black king win the c-pawn and catch the a-pawn afterwards, and the game is a draw.

Passed PawnDecoy

Alternative Moves

a3 — Draws! One step too slow: after ♔︎d7 the black king reaches c6 next move, attacks the c-pawn and wins it, and with the a-pawn still so far back the king catches that one too — no pawn ever queens.

♔︎f3 — Draws! Going for the f-pawn first costs the decisive tempo: ♔︎d7 and then ♔︎c6 wins the c-pawn, and the a-pawn alone cannot beat a king that has already reached the queenside.

c6 — Draws! ♔︎d6 and the pawn falls (c7 ♔︎xc7), leaving a lone a-pawn — a rook pawn against a king that reaches the corner never queens.

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1. ..♔︎e6

Black has no choice: ♔︎e6 starts the run to the queenside, because the a-pawn would otherwise queen in four moves. Going after the f-pawn or staying put would let it through. The decoy is already working — the black king is turning its back on its own pawn.

DecoyPawn Race

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2. a5

The black king is on its way — keep your queenside threat one step ahead of it.

♔︎eep running. a5 keeps the pawn one step ahead of the king: Black still has to spend every move on reaching the queenside, and has no time to turn on the c-pawn. Stop the pawn now and the black king wins the c-pawn, catches the a-pawn afterwards, and the win is gone.

Passed PawnTempo

Alternative Moves

♔︎f3 — Draws! ♔︎d5 wins the c-pawn — the king attacks it and nothing defends it — and after that the black king also catches the a-pawn: both white pawns are gone or stopped.

c6 — Draws! The black king simply walks over and takes the unprotected pawn, and the a-pawn alone cannot win against a king that gets back in front of it.

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2. ..♔︎d7

♔︎d7 — the king hurries on, heading for c7, the one square from which it can watch the a-pawn and block the c-pawn at the same time. Black is just in time to stop the pawn, but nothing more.

Pawn Race

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3. a6

Chain the black king to the queenside for good before you turn to the f-pawn.

Tie the king down. a6 fixes the decoy on the sixth rank. From here it is a permanent threat: the moment the black king wanders away from b7, a7 follows and the pawn queens. Black's king is now chained to the queenside for the rest of the game — which leaves the f-pawn with no defender at all.

Passed PawnDecoy

Alternative Moves

c6+ — Draws! ♔︎xc6 — the pawn is unprotected, and the lone a-pawn that remains cannot win: the black king gets back in front of it and sits in the corner.

♔︎e2 — Still wins, but one move slower. The king move changes nothing on the queenside, so the black king gets a free step to c7 — fix the decoy first, then turn to the f-pawn.

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3. ..♔︎c7

♔︎c7 is the ideal defensive post: the king guards b7, so a7 would simply be met by ♔︎b7 and the pawn falls, and it covers c6, so the c-pawn cannot advance. One king holds two pawns — but only because White's king is far away. That is the problem White's king will now solve.

Key Squares

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4. ♔︎f3

The decoy has done its job — collect what the black king left behind.

Cash in. ♔︎f3 goes after the f-pawn: the black king is chained to the queenside and cannot defend it, so White's king wins it for free. After that the white king walks back to break the blockade — Black's king cannot hold two pawns against a king and two pawns.

DecoyPiece Activity

Alternative Moves

a7 — Draws! ♔︎b7 attacks the pawn and nothing can protect it; after a8=♕︎+ ♔︎xa8 only the c-pawn is left, and the black king is right next to it. Never cash the decoy in — let it stand there and keep the king busy.

c6 — Draws! ♔︎xc6 takes the unprotected pawn, and the a-pawn alone cannot win against a king that sits in front of it.

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4. ..♔︎c6

♔︎c6 attacks the c-pawn — the only active idea Black has left. It looks dangerous, but the pawn is protected from a distance: taking it would let the a-pawn run through, as the next move shows.

Threat

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5. ♔︎xf4

Win Black's last pawn.

♗︎lack's last pawn falls. ♔︎xf4 leaves Black with a bare king against two pawns. Black's only hope is that the king on c6 can keep holding both pawns while White's king is far away — so the plan now is to bring that king back as fast as possible.

Piece Activity

Alternative Moves

♔︎e4 — Still wins, but one move slower. The f-pawn is going nowhere, yet every move it survives is a free move for the black king — take it now and start the march back.

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5. ..♔︎c7

♔︎c7 — Black would love to take the c-pawn, but after ♔︎xc5 the reply a7 queens next move: from c5 the king cannot reach b7 in time. The decoy protects the c-pawn without ever moving. So the black king trudges back to its post.

Passed PawnDecoy

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6. ♔︎e4

Only your king can break the blockade — bring it toward the queenside by the most central route.

The long march. ♔︎e4 heads for the queenside through the centre. The black king alone holds both pawns from c7 — only White's king can break that blockade, and until it arrives the pawns must not move: either push would lose a pawn and the win with it.

Piece ActivityKey Squares

Alternative Moves

c6 — Draws! ♔︎xc6 — the king on c7 takes the unprotected pawn, and the a-pawn alone cannot win against a king that gets in front of it.

a7 — Still wins, but two moves slower: ♔︎b7 attacks the pawn and the king is too far away to protect it, so White has to win with the c-pawn alone. Keep the decoy on a6, where it costs Black a king and costs you nothing.

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6. ..♔︎c6

♔︎c6 attacks the c-pawn once more. Black keeps asking the same question — can you protect the pawn without losing time? — and White has to keep answering it precisely.

Threat

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7. ♔︎d4

Black attacks your c-pawn — defend it with a move that also brings your king closer.

Protect and advance in one move. ♔︎d4 defends the c-pawn and brings the king a step closer at the same time. The black king still cannot take on c5, and it still cannot leave the queenside because of a7 — it can only shuffle while White closes in.

Piece Activity

Alternative Moves

a7 — Still wins, but three moves slower: ♔︎b7 and the pawn is lost, because the white king is too far away to protect it. The c-pawn can still do the job alone — but why give a pawn away?

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7. ..♔︎c7

♔︎c7 — back to the only square that watches both b7 and the c-pawn. Black has no plan beyond this shuffle, and shuffling cannot stop a king that keeps coming.

Key Squares

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8. ♔︎d5

Keep the king marching — the pawn must not move until the king stands beside it.

The king arrives. ♔︎d5 stands next to its pawn and controls c6 — the square the pawn needs next. The blockade is about to break: Black cannot both guard c6 and stay near b7 for ever.

Key Squares

Alternative Moves

c6 — Draws! ♔︎xc6 — one move too early: the king on d4 does not yet protect c6, so Black takes the pawn for free and the a-pawn alone cannot win.

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8. ..♔︎c8

♔︎c8 — Black is out of good moves. Any king move lets the c-pawn advance with the white king behind it; stepping back to c8 at least keeps the king on the c-file, in front of the pawn.

Zugzwang

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9. c6

Your king guards the next square on the pawn’s road — use it.

The pawn moves at last. c6 is safe because the king on d5 protects it. Black's king cannot take the pawn, and because of the a-pawn it still cannot leave the queenside — the two pawns and the king now work as one unit.

Passed Pawn

Alternative Moves

a7 — Still wins, but three moves slower: ♔︎b7 and the a-pawn falls, so the c-pawn has to queen alone. The decoy is worth more standing on a6 than cashed in.

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9. ..♔︎b8

♔︎b8 keeps the king within reach of both pawns: it watches c7 and stays next to the a-pawn. It cannot stop the white king from covering the c-pawn’s next square, so this only delays the end.

Defence

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10. ♔︎d6

Don't push yet — make sure the pawn's next square is covered before it goes there.

♔︎ing first, pawn second. ♔︎d6 covers c7 before the pawn steps there, so the pawn can never be taken. Order matters: push the pawn first and the king on b8 simply captures it.

Key Squares

Alternative Moves

c7+ — Draws! ♔︎xc7 — the king on d5 does not protect c7, so Black just takes the pawn, and the a-pawn alone cannot win.

a7+ — Still wins, but three moves slower: ♔︎xa7 and the decoy is gone for nothing. The c-pawn still queens with the king’s help, but you have thrown a pawn away.

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10. ..♔︎a7

♔︎a7 — Black finally turns on the decoy, because stopping the c-pawn is hopeless: the white king guards c7, and if the black king blocks on c8 instead, a7 follows and that pawn queens — the king can neither take it nor get in front of it.

Decoy

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11. c7

Both squares in front of the pawn are covered by your king — the pawn is safe to go.

c7 — with the king guarding it, the pawn reaches the seventh rank. Black can take the a-pawn now, but the c-pawn queens next move whatever Black does.

Passed Pawn

Alternative Moves

♔︎d7 — Still wins, but three moves slower. The pawn was ready to advance under the king’s protection — the king has nothing left to prepare.

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11. ..♔︎xa6

♔︎xa6 — the decoy is finally eaten, and it has done its job completely: it dragged the black king to the edge of the board, let White's king win the f-pawn, and kept the king busy while the c-pawn walked home. The c-pawn now queens.

Decoy

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12. c8=♕︎+

Finish it — promote to the piece that forces checkmate.

Promotion — with check! c8=♕︎+ puts a new queen on the board and hits the king on a6 along the diagonal. Queen against a lone king is an easy win. Remember the plan: push the outside passer as a decoy, let the enemy king chase it, win the pawns on the other side with your king, then bring the king back and escort the last pawn home.

Passed PawnTablebase Win

Alternative Moves

c8=♘︎ — Draws! A king and knight cannot force checkmate against a lone king. Always take the queen here.

c8=♗︎+ — Draws! A king and bishop cannot force checkmate either, even though it gives check.

Key Takeaways

An outside passed pawn is a decoy: the enemy king must run to stop it
Push the decoy at full speed — one tempo too slow and the enemy king wins the other pawn and the game is drawn
A decoy on the sixth rank chains the enemy king to that side of the board for the rest of the game
While the enemy king is chained down, your king wins the pawns on the other side
Bring your king back to break the blockade — a king alone can hold two pawns only while your king is far away
King first, pawn second: never push the last pawn to a square your king does not yet cover

Now play it through

Step through every move on a real board, try the wrong ones, and ask Knighty why they fail.

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Related Lessons

Connected Passed Pawns vs Rook

The Trebuchet

Queen and Pawn vs Queen

Summary

You've learned the most important winning method with two pawns against one: the outside passed pawn as a decoy. Your far-away pawn drags the enemy king to one side of the board and keeps it there. While it is busy, your king wins the enemy pawn on the other side, then walks back to break the blockade and escorts your last pawn to promotion. Without the extra pawn the position was a draw — with it, and with the right first move, it is a forced win.

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Short-Side Defense

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