Defensive Methods
Often White will not be able to utilize one of the winning methods. Black has several defensive methods available, depending mainly on the position of the pawn and his king.
If the defending king is in front of the pawn and the attacking king and pawn have not yet reached their sixth rank, the Philidor position (or Philidor defense) easily works to secure a draw. If the defending king can not get in front of the pawn but is not cut off, the short side defense can be used. If the pawn is a rook pawn or knight pawn, the back rank defense can be used. The back rank defense can also be used when the pawn is on other files if the attacking king has not reached the sixth rank. If the king is cut off along a file, the frontal defense may work, depending on the file of the pawn and how far advanced it is.
Read more about this topic: Rook And Pawn Versus Rook Endgame
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