This column will appear just after the U.S. Presidential election, but the time of writing (eight weeks in advance of publication), the polls made it too close to call, so we can't even guess who won.

But that lead us to the idea of publishing one of those highly irritating "What Result?" problems (but not even close to matching the irritation caused by the just-concluded political season).

BLACK

WHITE
White to Play, What Result?

W:WK30,25,22,18,17,K10:B21,K19,13,K11,9,2.

Were you able to call the election? Can you find the result of this problem, and identify one candidate with White and one with Black?

Give it a go and then click on Read More. We think you'll find the solution both satisfying and appropriate.

Solution

The result is a draw!

18-14 9x18 22x8 13x29 30-26 to a draw.

Neither side really has any winning chances. Sort of like this year's election, in which it was hard to build up much enthusiasm for either candidate.