Draw with two pawns up?

Hello,

Is the following position a draw? 

As far as I can see, this position is indeed a draw. 

 And the board looks like figure 2:

From here on I'd say the black king would be able to prevent the pawn from promoting.

Aren't there perhaps a rule-of-thumb that can be used here?

Regards,

Jacques 

The second position is theoretically drawn, but it's not Philidor, and White has practical winning chances if he has a better knowledge of rook endings than his opponent... even a super-GM was recently scalped in a similar position.

Magnus Carlsen vs Boris Gelfland is the recent game where a super-GM lost a similar position. Play becomes complicated if both players are good. 
 

But just remember King on Short, Rook on Long and you'll usually draw.

In Magnus Carlsen vs Boris Gelfland, was the losing move 64... Kg8?

Thank you for all the great comments! 

What about the following position?

Is there a rule on how to play with a King and Queen against a King and Rook?

Exactly, 64...Kh6 was the drawing move. If you spotted that, you're examining the moves critically, and should do fine in your own games!

1... Rd3+ 2. Ke4 Ke2 3. Rg2 Rg3 4. Rxg3 f1=Q. But do yourself a favor and spend 15 minutes studying Lucena and Philidor here:  Rook Endings

"Is there a rule on how to play with a King and Queen against a King and Rook?"

If your opponent separates his rook and king, a series of checks followed by a fork usually wins. If he keeps them together, just keep forcing him backwards until you reach Philidor's Queen vs Rook position:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Philidor_position#Queen_versus_rook

That's the theory, anyway, and it works against most opponents. Note, if your opponent's a computer or the rare human who has studied the ending extensively--and you haven't--your practical chances approach zero.

The rule is that a King and Queen can force a win against a King and Rook. It is incredibly hard and I would never be able to 'think up' the proper moves in a game.

Fortunately, I have already invested a lot of hours into the study of the position. There are a few stalemates to look out for and the solution is not straight forward. I could beat any GM or computer in the world with a Queen aginst their Rook (oddly enough, I've never managed to get material superiority against a GM except when they sacrificed for a forced mate)

The trick for me is to not make a mistake that would require extra moves and then run afoul of the fifty-move rule.

The first thing to cross my mind when I read the title of this post was 'opposite colored Bishops.' What in the world are rooks doing here? After loking at the game I was surprised to see such useless pawns.

One of my current games is a rook pawn ending with me two pawns up but I can already see the forced win. My last move forced a Rook trade. ^_^

That 'move to the King to the short side of the board' defense has saved me quite a few times in my chess career.

Basic Chess Endings have allowed to turn a lot of losses into draws. (Thanks Reuben Fine!)

"I could beat any GM or computer in the world with a Queen aginst their Rook."

Wow! I know enough to avoid stalemate positions and defeat the average player, but tablebase-powered computers draw me 75% of the time. How often do you practice to remain proficient? It's amazing how many GMs haven't been able to convert this win against a computer or well-practiced opponent!

'After 54.Kf6 in the diagrams labelled "Improper Defense" and "Proper Defense"  a simple way to draw is 54...Rh6+ followed by 55...Rb6.'

Nice catch! Basically, you found a way to transpose to Philidor after the inaccurate attack 54.Kf6. I should have had White play the more accurate attack 54.Ke6... then the short-side defense I explained is absolutely necessary.

yes hon....

Try to reach this position w/ black to move & you'll win everytime....

If it's white to move ?....just triangulate like this & it's black's move:

So if 1....Kc8  2. Qe8#

or 1...Ka8 Qa1  2. Ra7 Qh8# 

And as far as being (2) pawns up ?....almost every position I can think of is a win for white when (2) pawns up. Whether it's 4-2 or 3-1 or 2-0. But R + p endings are not simple and I feel it's what makes a master a master.