Philidor position
The Philidor position is the textbook draw for the side with the lone rook: the king blocks the pawn, the rook guards its own third rank, and once the pawn steps onto that rank the rook drops back to check from behind.
Most rook and pawn against rook endings are settled before the pawn gets far, and this setup is the defender's best tool when it is reached in time. The defending king stands right in front of the pawn. The defending rook takes its own third rank and simply moves along it.
Why that rank? The attacking king wants to come up beside its pawn on the sixth rank, where it would shelter the pawn and threaten mate. The rook bars that approach, so the attacker's only way forward is to push the pawn onto the very rank the rook guards. That push is the signal. With the pawn on the sixth rank, the attacking king can no longer shelter in front of it, so the defending rook goes to the far end of the board, ideally the first rank, and gives checks from behind. The attacking king cannot hide, and it cannot approach the rook without abandoning the pawn.
Things go wrong when the rook leaves the guard rank too early, when it starts checking from too close, or when the defending king has already been pushed off the pawn's file. Keeping the rook passively on the back rank instead loses against a center or bishop pawn once the attacking king reaches the sixth rank, so this method is the one to learn.
Compare it with Frontal checks. Frontal checks are rook checks given from in front of the enemy king, facing the direction in which it is moving, as opposed to checks given from behind.
It sits close to Rook and pawn versus rook. Rook and pawn versus rook is the ending where one side has a rook and a single pawn against a lone rook, a common practical ending whose result usually turns on where the defending king stands.
Compare it with Second rank defense. Second rank defense is a rook-ending method in which the defender keeps the rook on its own second rank to stop the enemy king stepping up and to keep checking options open.
Endgame ideas like "Philidor position" are won or lost on small details, which a coach can check in your own games. The first lesson with George Li is where that review starts.
Related terms
The Lucena position is the key winning setup in rook and pawn against rook: the pawn stands on the seventh rank, its king sits on the promotion square, the enemy king is cut off, and building a bridge with the rook wins.
Rook and pawn versus rook is the ending where one side has a rook and a single pawn against a lone rook, a common practical ending whose result usually turns on where the defending king stands.
Second rank defense is a rook-ending method in which the defender keeps the rook on its own second rank to stop the enemy king stepping up and to keep checking options open.
A theoretical draw is a position in which perfect play by both sides leads to a draw, so neither player can force a win no matter how many moves are left.
The Vancura position is a drawing setup against a rook pawn on the sixth rank with its rook in front: the defending rook attacks the pawn from the side, and the defending king waits on the far side of the board.
Guides that go further
What to decide first, the questions to ask, what a first lesson should show and the red flags to avoid.
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A game review, a read on your level and a written study plan from George Li.
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A first lesson starts with your games: George reviews them and builds a study plan around what he finds.