April Blitz and Memes

Hello, my fellow blitz lovers, and welcome to another edition of Blitz and Memes. If you're a fan of puzzles taken from amateur online blitz tournaments, then you have come to the right place, because that is what I do.

As always, the tactics have been selected from the Japan Chess Federation's monthly blitz tournament: TGIF Blitz. The tourney takes place on the 3rd Friday of every month, 21:00 JST, right here on chess.com. It consists of seven rounds of blitz, with a time control of 3+2; and is open to all JCF club members.

The memes on the other hand, were harvested from the recesses of the InterWebs...

This months collection of tactics includes four brilliant moves, so it will be no easy task to get all five puzzles correct on the first attempt. 

So, without further ado, lets get to the Blitz and Memes.

Discovering Royalty

Our first tactic is taken from the 5th round. IM rnanjo, playing Black, is able to take advantage of White's knight leaving the g1-a7 diagonal.

Can you discover the solution to this position?

A Dagger to the Heart

In the first round Shibainu_lover01, playing White, was almost able to pull off a major upset over an International Master.

White can gain a slight advantage through an audacious sacrifice.

A Four Letter Word

In the fourth round, Diego_Yokohama_Chess, playing White, came very close to beating an International Master with this stunning sacrifice.

White needs to find a way to open lines.

A Vulnerable Clergyman

Another fourth round match up, this time yuutin, playing Black, is able to outclass IM nekochabo, by taken advantage of an under-protected piece.

White is already lost, but can you finish him off with precision?

Pawn Slaying

In our final puzzle, IM nekochabo, playing White, demonstrates the timeless art of winning a pawn.

This one will take some visualization...good luck!

And that was it, that was April Blitz and Memes...

Congrats to yuutin, who won with a 6/7 score. And let us not forget, congratulations to you few master puzzle solvers, who were able to solve all five tactics on the first attempt.

As always thanks for reading, and feel free to share these puzzles with your friends down at the library or great hall.

Cheers, SheldonOfOsaka.