Karsten Müller

Karsten Müller is considered to be one of the greatest endgame experts in the world. His books on the endgame - among them "Fundamentals of Chess Endings", co-authored with Frank Lamprecht, that helped to improve Magnus Carlsen's endgame knowledge - and his endgame columns for the ChessCafe website and the ChessBase Magazine helped to establish and to confirm this reputation. Karsten's Fritztrainer DVDs on the endgame are bestsellers. The mathematician with a PhD lives in Hamburg, and for more than 25 years he has been scoring points for the Hamburger Schachklub (HSK) in the Bundesliga.

Recent news

Pin and draw

1/21/2025 – Pure opposite colored bishop endings have a large drawish tendency. In the diagram position Black is a pawn down but can draw. How?

Mate ends the game

1/14/2025 – Despite the reduced material, mating attacks can still occur in endgames and should be kept in mind. In the diagrammed position, it is White to move, and he has a chance to attack Black's king and win. How?

Endgame Magic #286: Endgame highlights from the World Championship Match Gukesh vs Ding

1/13/2025 – In the Endgame Magic Show #286 Karsten Müller looks at endgame highlights from the World Championship Match Gukesh vs Ding Liren in Singapore, one of the highlights of the chess year 2024. | You can watch the Endgame Magic Show on-demand with a ChessBase Premium account.

Tricky rooks

1/7/2025 – If two rooks fight against a queen, coordination and harmony are crucial. In the diagram position the rooks have to fight against the queen and two passed pawns. But Black can draw the game. How?

How a 12-year-old demystified Tal

12/30/2024 – It happened during a training session we arranged for three young talents in the ChessBase office. It was conducted by Dr. Karsten Müller, who is a leading endgame expert. Some time later, Karsten wrote an article in the (German language) Chess Calendar describing how the pre-teen Dommaraju Gukesh refuted a Tal brilliancy by the legendary Mikhail Tal. Here's an English translation of Karsten's article.

The best endgames of the year

12/22/2024 – The chess tournament scene has exploded in recent years. And in addition to many exciting attacking games, there are also many amazing and instructive endgames. Karsten Müller is one of the world's greatest endgame experts. The sensitive radar of the grandmaster from Hamburg hardly misses an instructive endgame that has been played on this planet. At the end of the year, Müller shared with us the best, most interesting and most instructive endgames of the year.

Counterplay counts

12/31/2024 – The duel knight against bishop is often difficult and complicated but in general bishops prefer dynamic positions while knights like static positions. In the diagram position Black is better, but White can hold. How?

Active kings

12/24/2024 – Having an active king is often important in endgames. But sometimes the king is too eager. The diagram shows a position from a game Vidit Gujrathi and Arjun Erigaisi played at the Chennai Grand Masters tournament 2024. Most of the game White had been clearly better, but now Black has a chance to turn the tables around. What should he do?

Gukesh's knights rule

12/17/2024 – Knights are tricky pieces and using their power often requires precise calculation. In the diagram position, which is from a game Gukesh and Wei Yi played at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest 2024, Gukesh found a way to win with his knights. What did he do?

The sharpest endgame weapon

12/10/2024 – Zugzwang is a typical endgame weapon. Usually the attacker uses it to force concessions, but when both sides are in zugzwang things can be different. In the diagram position it is White to move and draw. What should she do?

Breaking the fortress

12/3/2024 – In the diagram position White plays with a queen against a rook. However, as only a few pawns are left on the board, Black has chances to create a fortress and save the draw. What should White do to win the game?

Passed pawns can be dangerous

11/26/2024 – Passed pawns create problems - how to stop them, how to advance them. In the diagram position it is White to move and while he dreams about advancing his own passed pawns to win, he first has to stop Black's passed pawn. What should he do?

Be careful!

11/19/2024 – You should be extra careful before liquidating into a pawn endgame. In the diagram position it is Black to move and win. What should he do?

Is activity always called for?

11/12/2024 – One rule of thumb in rook endings is to get active - with your king and with your rook. But this is just a rule of thumb. In the diagram position it is Black to move and draw. What should she do?

The last pawn

11/5/2024 – When only a few pawns remain on the board, the attacker must be careful to keep at least one of them. In the diagram position it is Black to move. He still has two pawns and he has a way to win. What should he do?

A classic: knight vs bishop

10/29/2024 – In the diagram position it is Black to move, and he has to find a way to stop White's h-pawn from queening. In theory, Black's knight is up to this difficult task, in practice he was not and White won the game. Can you do better?

Always tricky: bishop vs knight

10/22/2024 – In the diagram position White has still all the pawns he had at the beginning of the game, but he also has a bad bishop because he put all those pawns on the colour of his bishop. And though he is a pawn up, White is in trouble and has to fight for a draw. What should he do?

The power of passed pawns

10/15/2024 – In an endgame a strong passed pawn is usually a big asset. In the diagram position it is White to move and win. What would you do?
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