In this rook-versus-pawn position, White wins by cutting off the black king with 1.Rg5!. The rook controls the fifth rank, so the king on b6 cannot follow its a-pawn. The natural 1.Rg8?, preparing to put the rook behind the pawn on the a-file, lets the king advance; perfect play then draws.
Use Back and Forward to replay the idea. Copy the FEN at any step to study that exact position, or open the full Endgame School board to continue from the original setup.
See the king behind the pawn
Black has only a king on b6 and a pawn on a5. White has a rook on g7 and a king on h8. The pawn is already on the fifth rank, but the black king is the piece that could make it dangerous: if it reaches c5 or b5, it can stay near the pawn as it runs.
The rook can control a whole rank from a distance. On g5 it attacks b5 and c5, the nearby entry squares the black king wants. Black cannot simply walk through that line. This is a king cutoff, not a race between rook and pawn alone. The public Lichess study of this position gives the same starting FEN and compares the two rook plans.
Why is 1.Rg5! the useful move?
After 1.Rg5!, Black can push 1...a4, but its king remains cut off. White has time for 2.Kg7. If the pawn continues 2...a3, the rook changes jobs: 3.Rg3 a2 4.Ra3 blocks promotion. The rook did not need to sit behind the pawn from move one. It first prevented the king from helping, then arrived in front of the pawn when the timing was right.
The Syzygy tablebase for the starting position shows a win for White and identifies Rg5 as the only move that preserves it. Every displayed lesson state keeps that result. These are exact facts about this four-piece setup, not a claim that every rook-versus-pawn position wins.
Why does the rear-rook plan fail here?
1.Rg8? prepares to move toward the a-file, where the rook would stand behind Black's pawn. But the first move leaves the fifth rank open. Black can play 1...Kc5 and keep its king near the pawn. Syzygy calls the resulting position a draw. In the Lichess study's legal example, White eventually has to trade its rook for a promoted pawn, leaving bare kings.
This does not make the rook-behind-the-pawn technique wrong. It answers a different position. The first question here is whether the defending king can escort the pawn. A rear rook is too late if it gives that king a safe path. Check the king's entry squares before applying a general rule.
Memory rule: stop the helper, then stop the pawn. If the enemy king can cross toward its pawn, use the rook's long reach to block its route. Move the rook to intercept only when the pawn has gone ahead alone.
When does this cutoff idea change?
A different king location, pawn file, rook square, or side to move can change the tablebase result. A rook cannot hold a useful rank when it is under attack or when the pawn can advance with a protected king. Calculate the pawn's next moves and the king's legal crossing squares in the position you actually face. The Rule of the Square is a separate shortcut for whether a king can catch an unsupported pawn; here the rook creates a barrier that changes the race.
Continue from this exact setup
Choose Endgame Student or Endgame Master above to play White from the original FEN in Endgame School. The board receives the White side, the K+R vs K+P scenario, the chosen opponent, and autostart while retaining its normal controls. Read the actual reply and decide whether to maintain the cutoff or intercept the pawn. The practice opponent can choose any legal move.
For the larger family of rook positions, continue with the rook endgame guide. It covers the different jobs a rook can perform when both sides still have rooks.
Ask whether the opposing king can follow its pawn. If it can, look for a rank or file cutoff before moving the rook behind the pawn. In this exact position, Rg5 keeps the win and Rg8 gives up that advantage.
Verification: Olivers Grants wrote this lesson and Uldis Briedis is the technical reviewer. The public Lichess study supplies the instructional setup. chess.js 1.4.0 replayed every displayed move and FEN; Syzygy checked the main line and the rear-rook alternative on October 5, 2026. Tablebase results do not predict a practice opponent's reply.