If Black had played 8. ... K to B sq., White would have played 9. K to R 7.
| ... | 9. | K to R 2 | |
| 10. | P to Kt 6: ch. |
And the pawn cannot be prevented from queening.
KING AND QUEEN AGAINST KING.
The position being as in Fig. 16, the shortest way to checkmate the Black King is as given below:
| WHITE. | BLACK. | ||
| 1. | K to Kt 2 | 1. | K to Q 4 |
| 2. | K to B 3 | 2. | K to K 4 |
| 3. | Q to K Kt 6 | 3. | K to B 5 |
| 4. | K to Q 4 | 4. | K to B 6 |
| 5. | Q to Kt 5 | 5. | K to B 7 |
| 6. | Q to Kt 4 | 6. | K to K 8 |
| 7. | K to K 3 | 7. | K to B 8 |
| 8. | Q to Kt 7 | ... |
Not 8. Q to Kt 3, because Black would then be stalemate, a contingency which White must carefully guard against in similar positions.