70 Chess Puzzles by Mikhail Tal

Here are some chess problems taken from the games of Mikhail Tal. The dot on the right side indicates which side moves first.

3) Black Mates in 3. --------------------------

6) Black Mates in 4. ----------------------------

4) --------------------------------

7) ------------------------------

1) White Mates in 6 -----------------------------

2) White Mates in 8. -------------------------------

5) Black Mates in 5. -----------------------------

8) ---------------------------------

9) ---------------------------------

12) Black Mates in 6. ---------------------------------

15) ---------------------------------

10) -------------------------------

13) --------------------------------

16) ------------------------------

11) --------------------------------

14) White Mates in 6. -------------------------------

17) --------------------------------

18) White Mates in 2. ---------------------------------

21) ----------------------------------

24) ---------------------------------

19) -------------------------------

22) --------------------------

25) ----------------------------------

20) ------------------------------

23) -------------------------------

26) --------------------------------

27) --------------------------------

28) --------------------------------

29) White Mates in 5. --------------------------------

30) --------------------------------

31) --------------------------------

32) --------------------------------

33) --------------------------------

34) --------------------------------

35) --------------------------------

36) ---------------------------------

39) --------------------------------

42) --------------------------------

37) --------------------------------

40) --------------------------------

43) White Mates in 3 --------------------------------

38) --------------------------------

41) --------------------------------

44) --------------------------------

45) --------------------------------

46) White Mates in 7 --------------------------------

47) White Mates in 4. --------------------------------

48) White Mates in 7. --------------------------------

49) --------------------------------

50) --------------------------------

51) White Mates in 5. --------------------------------

52) --------------------------------

53) --------------------------------

54) White Mates in 4. --------------------------------

55) White Mates in 4. --------------------------------

56) --------------------------------

57) White Mates in 5. --------------------------------

60) --------------------------------

58) --------------------------------

61) White Mates in 4. --------------------------------

59) --------------------------------

62) --------------------------------

63) White Mates in 4. --------------------------------

66) White Mates in 5. --------------------------------

69) --------------------------------

64) --------------------------------

67) --------------------------------

70) ----------------------------------------------Solutions 1) White Mates in in 6.  Tal vs Boris Gulko, exhibition, 1949 [ Rf7+ ]

2) White Mates in in 8.

65) --------------------------------

68) --------------------------------

 Tal vs Israel Zilber, Riga, 1949 [ Ne6+ w/Qg7+ ]

3) Black Mates in 3. Igor Glek vs Tal, Riga, 1955

9) Tal vs Bent Bent Larsen, Larsen, Reykjavik, 1957 [ b4 w/Ra3 ]

[ ...Qf5+ Kh4 Nf6+ ]

4) A Os Ostrauskas trauskas vs Tal, Tal, Vilnius, 1955

10) Tal vs Konstantin Klaman, Moscow, 1957 [ Rxe7+ w/Qh4+ ]

[ ...Bg2+ Kxg2 Rf2+ ]

5) Black Mates in 5. Kira Zvorykina, Vilnius, 1955 [ ...d3 if Ke1 Rc2 or if  Rxd3 Rc1+ ]

6) Black Mates in 4. E Chukaev vs Tal,  Tbilisi, 1956 [ ...Re1+ if Bd1 Rxd1+ Ka2 Qxa3+ ]

11) Anatoly Bannik vs  Tal, Moscow, 1957

[ ...Rxd1+ Rxd1 Qg4 Ne1 Qxd1 ]

[ ...Nxf1 ]

17) Alexandre Abrosimov Abrosimov vs Tal, Riga, 1959 [ ...Rad8 if Rfd1 Rxe4 ]

18) White Mates in in 2. 12) Black Mates Mates in in 6. Hector Rossetto vs Tal, Portoroz, 1958

 Tal vs Pal Benko, Bled, 1959 [ Rh8+ ]

[ ...Qh2+ Kf1 Rxe3 ]

13) Tal vs Harry Golombek, Munich, 1958

14) White Mates in in 6.  Tal vs P Skuja, Latvia CH, 1958 [ Ne7+ ]

8) Tal vs Alexander Koblenz, Riga, 1957 [ Rf6+ w/Bh6+ ]

16) Max Blau vs Tal, Tal, Zurich, 1959

[ ...Nxe2+ ]

[ Rf4 w/Rxh4 ] 7) Mark Taimanov vs  Tal, Moscow, 1957

[ Qxd7+ ]

15) Tal vs Georgy  Tringov, Munich, 1958

19) Tal vs Vasily Smyslov, Bled, 1959 [ Qxf7 ]

20) Tal vs Robert Fischer, Yugoslavia, 1959 [ Nd4 w/Ne6+ ]

21) Tal vs Dieter Keller, Zurich, 1959 [ Rb7+ ]

22) Tal vs vs Klaus Klaus Darga, Darga, Hamburg, 1960 [ Re6 w/Rd6 ]

23) Tal vs Mikhail Botvinnik, Moscow, 1960 [ Rxa6+ ]

[ ...Ra1+ Kc2 Na5 ] 29) White Mates in in 5.  Tal vs Georgy Tringov, Amsterdam, 1964 [ Bxf7+ ]

[ Bxf7+ w/Qb3+ ]

[ ...Nxd4 ]

31) Tal vs Kiriukov, Riga, 1965

32) Tal vs A Sh Shmit, mit, Riga, 1965 [ Qh7 w/Nd7+ ]

26) Tal vs vs NN, USSR, 1963 [ Rd6 if Bxd6 Qxe6+ Bc4 & Rf1+ ]

37) Tal vs NN, USSR, 1970 [ Bxg5+ ]

[ Rxe6 ] 25) Ortega vs Tal, Habana, 1963

[ ...Bh3+ if Kxh3 Ng5+ Kg2 Qe4+ mates or if  Kg1 Nf3+ mates ]

30) Tal vs Alexander Koblents, 1965 [ g6 ]

24) Tal vs Wolfgang Unzicker, Stockholm, 1961

36) Anatoly Ufimtsev vs Tal, Moscow, 1967

33) Tal vs Svend Hamann, Kislovodsk, 1966

38) Gedeon Barcza vs  Tal, Tallinn, 1971 [ ...Rd8 if Qe3 Qxc2 mates ]

39) Tal vs Andres Vooremaa, Tallinn, 1971 [ Ne6+ w/Rxf7 Qxf8+ & Qxf7+ ]

[ e5 ] 27) Larry Evans vs Tal, Tal, Amsterdam, 1964 [ ...h5+ Kxh5 Qf3+ Kg5 Qxf6+ ]

40) Karoly Honfi vs Tal, Tal, Sukhumi, 1972 34) Tal vs Robert Wade, Palma de Mallorca, 1966

[ ...Rxc3+ if Kxc3 Bb4+ Kxb4 Qa5+ Kc4 Qa6+ ]

[ Ne6 ] 28) Tal vs vs Pal Benko, Amsterdam, 1964 [ Rd8+ ]

35) Edgar Walther vs  Tal, Habana, 1966

41) Tal vs Orest Averkin, Moscow, 1973

[ Nd5 if Rxa4 Ne7# ] 48) White Mates in in 7. 42) Tal vs William Hartston, Hastings, 1973

 Tal vs Michael Stean, Hastings, 1973 [ h5+ ]

54) White Mates in in 4.  Tal vs Prschibyl,  Tallinn, 1977 [ Qg4+ ]

[ Rxf7 w/Bxg6 & Qh7+ ] 49) Tal vs Rafael Vaganian, Dubna, 1973 43) White Mates in 3. 3.

[ Qh5+ w/Qf3 ]

 Tal vs NN, 1973 [ Rxf7+ ]

44) Tal vs vs NN, 1973 [ Qb5+ if Qd7 Rxe5+ Be7 Bc6 Rxc6 Ra8+ ]

55) White Mates in in 4. Tal vs Ivan Radulov, Leningrad, 1977 [ Rd1 ]

50) Tal vs Zaitsev, Aanval, 1973 [ Rc7+ w/Qxe7+ Qd6+ & Qc5+ ]

56) Tal vs Sergey Makarichev, Tbilisi, 1978 [ Rxb4 w/Qc3+ ]

51) White Mates in in 5. 45) Tal vs Kick Langeweg, Wijk aan Zee, 1973

 Tal vs Anton Deze, Novi Sad, 1974 [ Qe7 ]

[ Qg4 w/Bxg6 ]

46) White Mates in 7. 7.  Tal vs NN, 1973

 Tal vs Igor Platonov, Dubna, 1973 [ Qh6 ]

 Tal vs Yrko Rantanen,  Tallinn, 1979 [ Bxg7+ w/Bh8 ]

52) Tal vs Thomas Paehtz, Halle, 1974 [ Rxe6 ]

[ Qf8+ ]

47) White Mates in 4. 4.

57) White Mates in in 5.

53) Tal vs Tigran Petrosian, Moscow, 1974 [ Rxd7 if Qxd7 Qh4 mates or if Bxd7 Bxf7+ Rxf7 Qxf7+ ]

58) Boris Spassky vs  Tal, Montreal, 1979 [ ...Ng4 if Re1 Rh1+ mates ]

59) Tal vs Boris Spassky, Tilburg, 1980 [ Rg5+ ]

60) Tal vs Iivo Nei, USSR, 1981 [ Qxf8+ ]

61) White Mates in 4. 4.  Tal vs Ricardo Calvo Minguez, Malaga, 1981

 Tal vs Johann Hjartarson, Reykjavik, 1987 [ Ng4+ ]

67) Tal vs Miguel Quinteros, St del Esterol, 1987 [ Rxf5 w/Nce4 ]

[ Qe7+ ]

62) Robert Huebner vs  Tal, Wijk aan Zee, 1982

68) Tal vs Alexander Chernin, St John, 1988 [ g5 ]

[ ...Bxf3 if gxf3 Nh5 ]

63) White Mates in 4. 4.  Tal vs David Bronstein,  Tbilisi, 1982 [ Ng6+ if hxg6 Qd8+ ]

64) Klaus Bischoff vs  Tal, Albena, 1984

69) Siegfried Maus vs  Tal, Germany, 1990 [ ...Re1+ ]

70) Tal vs Vladimir Akopian, Barcelona, 1992 [ Qe5+ w/Rd8+ ]

[ ...Nc4 ]

65) Miguel Quinteros vs Tal, Argentina, 1987 [ ...Bc5 if Nc2 Ra8 ]

66) White Mates in 5. 5.

10,000 chess puzzles www.wtharvey.c om