I never think it's correct to go for a draw. If you aren't sure if the game is dead drawn or not, then playing it out is the best way to find out. You might lose, but you'll learn something, and that will make you a better player in the long run.
As for this specific position, I honestly don't know. I'm not that good at this type of endgame. Were you white or black?
--Fromper
Yes maybe your right I should have played the game to the end, but I think I had one eye on my rating!!!
I was playing white, I should have specified earlier.
Thanks
There is nothing wrong with a draw!
I see black as having an advantage here, but even if you could have won... a draw is a fine ending.
A draw means you fought, attacked, defended, and evenly countered your opponent. It means he did the same. It means you conspired with one another to play a beautiful game and neither of you made a serious losing mistake.
To offer a draw is to say,"we could go on and fight to the death but I would be relying on luck to gain any advantage. I see our positions as equal and have no plan to better my situation; lets both walk away from this battle with our honor intact." If yor opponent accepts, he is saying the same.
Congratulations on a good game!
I think a draw is a good move here. Like Fromper said, you might learn something, but in this game there is no advantage for either side to milk into a victory. To try for a win in games like this one would be more of an endurance contest to see who can go the longest without making a big mistake.
Ray, I didn't think there was more for me. In fact I was convinced I would lose and so happy to draw. My intention of posting the game was to see if anybody thinks there is any hope for white and if so, how?
Thanks for the feedback though.
I'm white, it's my move if I move Re1 then black would just take Re1 and that would be checkmate to black?!!
There is hope for white..to draw. Rook and pawn endings are difficult to win, many are still drawn a pawn up, and rarely two pawns up.
If white asked for a draw then it should be black's turn to move actually. What I mean is that the right way to make a draw offer is to move and then offer a draw. It is actually a bit unfair to not move and then aks for a draw.
Anyway I agree with others that said that black has the better position, but probably not enough to play for a win. I suppose that endgame experts are needed to evaluate that.
I have a book with positions that looks very much like drawn positions and your task is to find the winning plan. So it is not problems with a winning combination or mate in x moves or something of that nature, it is problems where you need to find a winning plan. Thus you know that those positions do contain a winning plan. All the positions are from real games, and the players that played them didn't have that knowledge until they carried out the plan and succeeded.
So does the position in this topic have a winning plan for black? Black didn't see one so he agreed to a draw. That makes sense. No reason to try to prove something that you don't know how to.
Can anyone see a way that I could have won and if so how? Or was I right to go for the draw.
I haven't annotated the game and only show the finishing position.
I would appreciate the feedback, thanks.