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Hook Mate

A rook mates next to the king, a knight protects the rook, and a pawn protects the knight — three pieces hooked together, with the pawn also covering an escape square.

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Introduction

The hook mate is a chain: the rook gives mate right next to the king, the knight guards the rook, and a pawn guards the knight. Each piece holds the next, and the pawn usually takes away an escape square as well. It appears most often when a king has been driven to the second rank — or onto the edge — and its own pawns still stand around it.

Lesson Content

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The hook mate is a chain of three: a rook gives mate next to the king, a knight protects the rook, and a pawn protects the knight. Here the pieces are one move from linking up. The knight on d7 can reach f6 with check, where the pawn on g5 guards it; the rook on h3 covers the h-file, so the king's one square will be g7 — and then the rook slides to h7, protected by the knight, for checkmate.

Mating NetKing Attack
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1. ..Nf6+

Nf6+ checks the king, and the pawn on g5 makes sure the knight cannot be taken. The king cannot use the h-file — the rook on h3 covers it — so 1. ..Kg7 is its single square. Then Rh7 is checkmate: the rook is protected by the knight, the knight covers g8, and Black's own pawns on f7 and g6 and the bishop on f8 close the rest.

Mating NetKing Attack
Alternative Moves
Rh8+ — Rh8+ looks like the hook, but nothing protects the rook on h8: 1...Kxh8 wins it, and with Black's pawn on c2 one square from queening, White is lost.
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2. Rh7#

Checkmate — the hook. The rook on h7 is held by the knight on f6, the knight is held by the pawn on g5; the knight covers g8, the rook covers h8 and h6, and f7, g6 and f8 are Black's own pieces.

Mating NetKing Attack
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The pieces can link up in a different order. Here the knight on g6 and the pawn on f5 are already hooked together, and only the rook is missing. Rd8+ drives the king off the back rank, to f7 or h7 — and the rook simply follows it: Rf8 or Rh8 is checkmate, protected by the knight on g6, which the f5-pawn protects in turn.

Mating NetKing Attack
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3. Rd8+

Rd8+ checks along the back rank. The king must step forward, to f7 or h7 — and the rook follows it. On f7, Rf8 is checkmate: the knight guards f8 and covers e7, the pawn on f5 covers e6. On h7, Rh8 is checkmate: the knight guards h8, and g7 and h6 are Black's own pawns.

Mating NetKing Attack
Alternative Moves
Ne7+ — Ne7+ checks but breaks the hook: after 1...Kf7 the knight is loose and has to run, the pawn on f5 falls to the king, and Black's two rooks take over — White is losing.
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3. ..Rf8#

Checkmate — hook number two. The rook on f8 is protected by the knight on g6, the knight by the pawn on f5, and the same pawn takes e6 away from the king. Rook, knight, pawn: each one holding the next.

Mating NetKing Attack
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White's knight on e5 is protected by the pawn on f4, and it covers f7 and g6. Black's king on f6 is boxed in by its own pawns on e6, f5 and g7. Which rook move is checkmate?

Mating NetKing Attack
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Which three pieces form the hook, and how do they hold each other?

Mating Net

Key Takeaways

  • Each piece protects the next: the king can take none of them.
  • Drive the king onto the file or rank where the knight already guards the mating square.
  • The pawn does double duty — it holds the knight and closes a flight square.

Now play it through

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

Practice Interactively

Related Lessons

Dovetail Mate

Sacrifice and King Attack

Anastasia's Mate

Summary

Hook mate: rook next to the king, knight guarding the rook, pawn guarding the knight — and the pawn often covers an escape square too. When a king has been driven forward with its own pawns around it, look for the three-piece chain.

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Practice Interactively

Next in this course

Kill Box Mate

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