Computers, Moscow and Euro-Champs by Luis Busquets Echoing along the halls of the dog-bone chess circuit these days are several interesting tales, including news of the Spassky-Polgar match, battles with a computer and tournament results from Moscow and Hungary. None of it is likely to alter the course of human evolution, but neither is it quite as dull as TV's evening news. Meanwhile, please notice that we've posted the Deeper Look for Fischer-Spassky game 30. Spassky-Polgar You may recall that we have loudly and often predicted a match soon between 16-year-old GM Judith Polgar and Fischer. Indeed, on several occasions we passed along titillating rumors that negotiations for such a match were already underway. Consistent with our previous record in matters of prophecy, events have once more proved us almost completely wrong. As it turns out, Polgar will play Boris Spassky, not Fischer, a 12-game match beginning Jan 31 in Novi Sad, Yugoslavia. With $120,000 going to the winner and a mere $80,000 to the loser, the two will play 6 games in Novi Sad, and the final 6 in Monte Carlo. The purse will be paid for by the same man of mystery who paid for Fischer Spassky II, Jezdimir Vasilievich. Polgar was rated 2575 on the last list, 2600 after the New York International, 2620 after her last tourney in Aruba. Spassky's rated 2545, and would have gained 70 points or so for his match with Fischer, had it been a rated match. So, Polgar-Spassky is really too close to call. They both play superb chess. Moody and emotionally unpredictable, Spassky tends to play a positional game, aiming for containment, except when he comes unglued, as he did now and then against Fischer. By contrast, GM Polgar is a very aggressive attacking player, very booked. Yes, she needs work on her endgame and strategy, but she'll get all that soon enough. At the very least, we expect her to give us all a few brilliant lessons in tactics. Bronstein vs Deep Thought II Russian Grandmaster David Bronstein recently visited the US to play a number games at time controls ranging from 15 to 20 minutes per side with a prototype of Deep Thought II, the world's strongest chess computer. They played over the Internet Chess Server, which links universities and many research and communications companies around the US and the world. Anyone with an Internet account can line up to play the electronic whiz year round. Its handle is "Scratchy" on the Internet Server. If you can get an account through a University, company, or even your local computer bulletin service, you then address Telnet Valkyries.Andrew.cmu.edu 5000 to play chess, possibly even with the monster itself. But lookout. Here's a sample of how it handled the man who 40 years ago drew a match for the World Championship with Mikhail Botvinnik. Bronstein is now in his 60's and rated 2415 Fide, about International Master strength. It would not be fair to call this a match, and the score, which was overwhelmingly in the machine's favor, is not strictly significant, since Bronstein was working with a research team, describing his thought processes and reactions to the computers play and testing the machine's tactical prowess in particular. Of which, it showed plenty. Here's just a sample: Deep Thought II-Bronstein,D 11/12/92 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. f4 O-O 6. Nf3 c5 7. d5 e6 8. Be2 ed5 9. cd5 Re8 10. e5 de5 11. fe5 Ng4 12. Bg5 Qb6 13. o-o Ne5 14. Ne5 Re5 15. Qd2 Bf5 16. Bc4 Nd7 17. Rac1 Rae8 18. Bf4 a6 19. Be5 Ne5 20. Rfe1 Qd8 21. Bf1 Qh4 22. Ra1 Rd8 23. h3 Ng4 24. hg4 Bd4 25. Re3 Bg4 26. Qf2 Qf2 27. Kf2 Re8 28. Kg3 Re3 29. Kg4 f5 30. Kf4 Kf7 31. d6 Ke6 32. Rd1 h6 33. Bc4 Kd6 34. Bf7 g5 35. Kf5 b5 36. Ne4 Ke7 37. Bd5 Re2 38. b4 Rg2 39. bc5 Be3 40. Re1 Bd4 41. Ng5 Kd7 42. c6 Kd6 43. Bg2 hg5 44. Rd1 1-0 Bronstein,D-Deep Thought II 11/12/92 (20+30) 1. e4 c5 2. b4 cb4 3. a3 d5 4. ed5 Qd5 5. Nf3 Bg4 6. ab4 Qe4 7. Be2 Bf3 8. gf3 Qb4 9. Na3 Qa5 10. Bb2 Nc6 11. c4 Qg5 12. Qb3 O-O-O 13. d4 Qg2 14. o-o-o Qf2 15. d5 Na5 16. Qb5 Qe3 17. Kb1 Qe2 18. Qa5 a6 19. Rhe1 Qf2 20. c5 Nf6 21. Be5 Nd5 22. Nc4 Qe1 23. Re1 f6 24. Nb6 Nb6 25. Qb6 Kd7 1-0 Bronstein,D-Deep Thought II 11/13/92 (20+20) 1. d4 f5 2. Bg5 g6 3. h4 Bg7 4. Nc3 d5 5. e3 c6 6. Nf3 Nf6 7. Ne5 Nbd7 8. Nd3 Ne4 9. Bf4 Nc3 10. bc3 Qa5 11. Qd2 b6 12. f3 Ba6 13. h5 O-O-O 14. a4 Rde8 15. h6 Bf6 16. Ne5 Bb7 17. c4 Qd2 18. Kd2 g5 19. Bg3 Be5 20. de5 dc4 21. e6 Nc5 22. Bc4 Rhg8 23. Be5 Rd8 24. Kc3 Ba6 25. Ba2 Na4 26. Kb4 Bb5 27. Rad1 Nc5 28. Bd4 Na6 29. Ka3 c5 30. Bg7 Bc6 31. Bc4 Nb4 32. Bb3 Nd5 33. Rd3 b5 34. c4 b4 35. Kb2 Nb6 36. Rd8 Rd8 37. Ra1 Rd2 38. Kc1 Rg2 39. Ra7 Re2 40. Be5 Na8 41. Re7 Re3 42. Rh7 Re5 43. Rg7 Re1 44. Kd2 Re6 45. h7 Rh6 46. Rg8 Kb7 47. h8Q Rh8 48. Rh8 Bf3 49. Rf8 Be4 50. Rf7 Kc6 51. Bc2 Nb6 52. Rf6 Kc7 53. Be4 Nc4 54. Kd3 Ne5 55. Kc2 fe4 56. Rf5 Kd6 57. Rg5 c4 58. Rg8 Nc6 59. Rg5 Nd4 60. Kb1 e3 61. Rg3 e2 62. Re3 Kd5 63. Ka2 c3 0-1 Deep Thought II-Bronstein,D 11/13/92 (20+20) 1. e4 d5 2. ed5 Nf6 3. d4 Nd5 4. Nf3 Bg4 5. Be2 Nd7 6. o-o e6 7. c4 N5f6 8. h3 Bh5 9. Nc3 Be7 10. Bf4 O-O 11. d5 ed5 12. Nd5 Nd5 13. Qd5 Nf6 14. Qb7 Rb8 15. Qa7 Rb2 16. Rfe1 Qa8 17. Qd4 Ra2 18. Bc7 Rc8 19. Be5 Rd8 20. Ra2 Qa2 21. Qe3 Bf3 22. Bf3 Qa3 23. Qa3 Ba3 24. Bf6 gf6 25. Ra1 Bc5 26. Ra5 Rc8 27. Bd5 Rc7 28. g4 Kg7 29. Kg2 f5 30. gf5 Kf6 31. Kg3 h5 32. f4 Bd4 33. Ra6 Kf5 34. Rh6 Bf6 35. h4 Ra7 36. Rh5 Kg6 37. Kg4 Ra1 38. Be4 Kg7 39. c5 Rg1 40. Kh3 Rc1 41. c6 Rc4 42. Bd5 Rc5 43. Rf5 Rc3 44. Kg4 Kg6 45. h5 Kg7 46. h6 Kg6 47. Be4 1-0 Meanwhile, In Moscow... Alekhine Memorial Moscow, just finished 1 - Anand and Gelfand 4.5 Gelfand of Bielo Russia, Anand is the man to watch. And Boris Gelfand has got the right stuff though he's lost out to Adams at Tilburg in the finals. 3 - Kamsky 4.0 US Champion 4 - Karpov, Salov and 3.5 Old Anatoy going down? Yusupov 7 - Shirov 3.0 Rising young Latvian Grand top 5 in world 8 - Timman 1.5 (World Champion Candidate!) Last, this in from Reuter's on the Euro Team Championship DEBRECEN, Hungary, Nov 29, Reuter - World champion Garry Kasparov led the formidable Russian team to victory in the European men's team chess championships on Sunday. Favorite Russia outclassed Georgia 2 points to 1 on the final day of competition to finish with 25 out of a possible 36 points for the nine-round tournament. Ukraine took second place with 22 points, adding itself to the list of qualifiers for the world team championships next year. England looked a good bet for bronze with its 21, but Israel still had a slim chance to overtake them as its final game stretched into the night. Ukraine snatched the women's division championship. Its 1 to victory over Spain in the final round gave it 13 out of a possible 18 points, ahead of Georgia's 13 and Azerbaijan's 12. Kasparov was solid for the Russians, taking six out of eight possible points in the tournament, while his 17-year- old teammate Vladimir Kramnik impressed with six of seven points. Kramnik recently made 9.5 out of 10 versus grands to win the Gold metal on 4th board at the Chess Olympics. His rating, rising by hundreds of points this year, will soon put him in the top 5 or so. Definitely World Championship potential. Kasparov beat him 2 games at Immopar in Holland recently. But that may turn out to have been just a historic setback on the road to glory for young Kramnik who's been winning everything else he plays in. Stay tuned. When Kasparov Played A Polgar Line Though World Champion Garry Kasparov is almost certainly the best chess player in the world, there are days when he too wished he'd stayed in bed. Here in notation is an interesting example of when he went down, playing a line similar to the animated Polgar game now showing on a menu near you. Then we have an example of Big K victory. One possible excuse Garry might have for losing a game is that he was playing 12 people simultaneously, including 3 grandmasters. Still, Kasparov overcame 6 of the best Argentine players, young and old, in a 2-round clock simultaneous in Buenos Aires recently, 9-3. Grandmasters Panno and Rubinetti and 4 young hopefuls, among them young Claudia Amura, the winner of the recent semi-finals of the Argentine championship, and Pablo Zarnicki, the surprise winner of the World Junior Championship, also held recently in Buenos Aires, proved no match for the world champion, who won in convincing style. Kasparov's Elo performance was 2630, even against six internationals at once! Here are two games from that event. For some background on the variation in the 1st, see our recent article on Judith Polgar vs Granda, and the accompanying theoretical article on the E97 line with 8.Be3. You should be able to download this to your own programs. If not, let us know by dropping us a line with E- mail to WPMM05A. Thanks King's Indian, E97 Ricardi-Kasparov 1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. d4 0-0 6. Be2 e5 7. 0-0 Nc6 8. Be3 Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 10. Bc1 f5 11. Bg5 Bf6 12. Bf6 Qf6 (Kasparov's novelty varies from his 12...Nf6 versus Portisch at Linares 1990, for which, see our theoretical.) 1 13. h3 Nh6 14. d5 Nd8 15. c5 Ndf7 16. cd6 Nd6 17. Nd2 Bd7 18. Rc1 Nhf7 19. ef5 Bf5 20. Nb3 Ng5 21. Bg4 b6 22. Bf5 gf5 23. Qh5 (Black's game looked good here. He should have continued 23...Kh8!. But instead... 23...e4? 24. Ne2! f4 25. h4 Ngf7 26. Qg4 Kh8 27. Qf4 Qe7 28. Nbd4 Rg8 29. Rc7! Qc7 30. Qf6 Rg7 31. Ne6 Ne8 32. Qg7 Ng7 33. Nc7 Rc8 34. Ne6 1-0 Now here's a good example of the champ's enterprising style, never flinching from sacrificing to obtain counterplay. To better understand Kasparov's play here, start by reading his book, Sicilian: ...e6 and d6 Systems, published by Batsford press. Sicilian B84 Zarnicki-Kasparov 1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 e6 3. d4 cd4 4. Nd4 Nf6 5. Nc3 d6 6. Be2 Be7 7. 0-0 0-0 8. f4 a6 9. Be3 Qc7 10. Qe1 b5 11. Bf3 Bb7 12. a3 Nbd7 13. Qg3 Rac8 14. Rae1 Ba8 15. Kh1 Kh8 16. Qf2 Qb8 17. Bc1 Nb6 18. g4 d5 19. e5 Ne4 20. Ne4 de4 21. Be4 Bc5 22. c3 Bd4 23. Qd4? Rc4 24. Qd3 Rd8 25. Qf3 Re4 26. Re4 Na4 27. b4 Rc8 0-1 Computers At Play Here in notation are games played recently by computers named Chess Machine/Schroeder, Bebe, Cray Blitz and BP. You should be able to download this to your own programs. If not, let us know by dropping us a line with E-mail to WPMM05A. Thanks CHESS MACHINE/SCHROEDER vs. BEBE 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 c5 3.dxc5 e6 4.b4 a5 5.c3 b6 6.cxb6 axb4 7.Be3 Nd5 8.Bd4 Nxb6 9.e4 Bb7 1O.a3 Bxe4 11.cxb4 Nc6 12.Bc3 Nd5 13.Bb2 d6 14.Nbd2 Bxf3 15.Nxf3 Qb6 16.Rc1 h5 17.Qc2 Ncxb4 18.axb4 Qxb4+ 19.Kd1 Rd8 20.gb1 Qc5 21.Qa4+ Ke7 22.Bd4 Qc7 23.Bc4 Rb8 24.Rxb8 Qxb8 25.Bxd5 Rg8 26.Ng5 1-O CRAY BLITZ vs. BP 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.O-O Be7 6.Bxc6 dxc6 7.d3 Nd7 8.b3 c5 9.Be3 b6 10.Nbd2 Bb7 11.c3 O-O 12.Qc2 Bd6 13.Rad1 Re8 14.d4 exd4 15.cxd0, 16.Bxd4 c5 17.Bb2 Bf4 18.Nc4 Bc6 19.Nfe5 Qc7 20.Nxd7 Bxd7 21.g3 Bh3 22.gxf4 Qxf4 23.Qc3 Qg4+ 24.Qg3 Qxg3+ 25.hxg3 Bxf1 26. Kxf1 Re6 27.Rd7 Rae8 28.f3 f6 29.Ke2 Kf8 30.Ba3 Kg8 31.Kd2 h5 32.Ke2 g5 33.Ne3 g4 34.Bb2 gxf3+ 35.Kxf3 Rf8 36.Nf5 b5 37.Nh6+ Kh8 38.Kf4 c4 39.Kf5 Ree8 40.Kg6 Rg8+ 41.Kxf6 Rxg3 42.Bd4 Re7 43.Rxe7 1-0 The Girl Who Would be Queen by Luis Busquets Bobby Fischer, the self-proclaimed world chess champion, is said to be negotiating to play a 12-game exhibition match for $2,500,000 early next year. The bearded old chess lion's next opponent may well be a charming young girl of 16, Grandmaster Judith Polgar, Champion of Hungary, who ranks among the top 30 players in the world. Boris Spassky may also play a match against this young woman. This being the real world, the trifling matter of money may determine which of the two former world champs takes on Grandmaster Polgar. What, a woman grandmaster? Get used to it. Judith has been on the road to the world championship since 1980, when she began her training at age 4. And it seems to run in her family. Her oldest sister, Zsuza, became a grandmaster 2 years ago, and middle sister, Sophia, 17, is an International Master. Before the appearance of the Polgar prodigies, outside of Soviet Russia women had not achieved any comparable success in chess. But Judith is the higest-rated woman in chess history, as well as the youngest grandmaster ever, eclipsing even Bobby Fischer's record by a few months. Fischer once said he could spot any woman in the world a knight. Yet somehow he's not offering Polgar that advantage. Must have forgotten. There is, however, a strange rumor that he wants to give her the slight advantage of playing white in every game. Needless to say, it is very unlikley that Grandmaster Polgar will accept such terms. Fischer could probably get twice as much money for a match with former world champion Karpov. On the other hand, Karpov will still be rated almost a hundred points higher than Polgar on the next FIDE list. Yet at 2620, Judith will hardly be a pushover for Bobby, who performed only at that level against Spassky, according to our unofficial calculations. Our guess is that Fischer will overcome Judith in a hotly contested match, but not before taking some spectacular drubbings. If he continues to play the King's Indian as passively as he did against Spassky, he will almost certainly lose the match. So now we're showing an example of what Fischer might face, if he takes on little Judith. In her game earlier this year with Peruvian Grandmaster Julio Granda-Zuniga, Polgar shows just what happens when a great player fights hard for the win with the black pieces in the King's Indian. Her opponent is no patzer (pot-zer). Granda was rated 2615 when they met over the board in Aruba this year, and since then he has taken 1st place at a grandmaster tournament in New York City. If you want to look beyond my move-by-move comments and take a closer look at this King's Indian Classical variation, select my Deeper Look for this game. Granda Zuniga,J - Polgar,J Aruba 1992 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.Nc3 0-0 5.e4 d6 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 f6 10.Bc1 f5 11.dxe5 Ngxe5 12.exf5 Bxf5 13.Be3 Qf6 14.Rc1 Rae8 15.b3 h6 16.Qd2 g5 17.Nd4 Nxd4 18.Bxd4 g4 19.Kh1 Qg6 20.Rg1 Qh5 21.Nd5 Be4 22.Nxc7 Nf3 23.gxf3 Rxf3 24.Rg2 Qh3 25.Rcg1 Re5 26.Bxf3 Bxf3 27.Bxe5 Bxe5 28.Qd5+ Kh8 0-1 Granda-Polgar 1992 by Luis Busquets For those of you who would like to play as well as Judith Polgar, here are some notes that might help you to imitate her success in the line with which she defeated Julio Granda Zuniga at Aruba (See our Animated Game). Granda-Polgar 1992 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.Nc3 0-0 5.e4 d6 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 f6 [Compare the modern continuation Judith employed against Granda to the older line 9...Bf6 10.Bf6 Nf6 11.d5 Ne7 12.Ne1 Nd7 13.Nd3 f5 14.ef gf (14...Nf5!?) 15.f4 += 1-0 60, Reshevsky-Fischer, Match (1) Los Angeles, 1961] 10.Bc1 f5 11.Bg5 [11.d5 Ne7 12.Ng5 (12.b4 Nf6 13.Ng5 h6 14.Ne6 Bxe6 15.dxe6 Nxe4 16.Nxe4 fxe4 17.Qc2 c6 18.Qxe4 d5 19.Qg4 Rf6 20.Bb2 Qd6 21.f4 Rxf4 22.Rxf4 exf4 23.c5 Qc7 24.Bxg7 Kxg7 25.Rf1 Rf8 26.g3 g5 27.Bd3 Qe5 28.Kg2 Nf5 29.Bxf5 Qxf5 30.Rxf4 Qc2+ 31.Kf1 Rxf4+ 32.gxf4 Qc1+ 33.Ke2 Qxf4 34.Qh3 Qxb4 35.a3 Qe4+ 36.Kd1 d4 37.Qb3 Qh1+ 38.Ke2 Qg2+ 39.Ke1 Qg1+ 0-1 Uhlmann- Donner, La Habana-- Informant 8/651 1969) 12...Nf6 13.ef5 Nf5!? (13...gf5 14.f4 Ng6!{14...e4 15.Be3+= -- Ftachnik, Miles-Rogers, Manila 1990 49/473}15.Kh1 Qe7 16.Bh5 Bd7 17.a4 exf4 18.Bxg6 hxg6 19.Re1 Ne4 20.Bxf4 Nf2+ 21.Kg1 Qxg5 22.Bxg5 Nxd1 23.Raxd1 Bxc3 24.bxc3 Bxa4 25.Rb1 b6 26.Re7 Rf7 27.Rxf7 Kxf7/+ 0-1, 63 Piesina- Zaitsev, Moscow, 1992) 14.Bd3 Nd4 (14...c6!? 15.Nge4 Nxe4 16.Bxe4 Nd4 J.Polgar) 15.Ne2 (15.Be3 Ng4 16.Nce4 Nxe3 17.fxe3 Nf5 18.Qd2 h6 19.Nf3 c6 J.Polgar) 15...Nf5 16.Ng3 c6 17.N3e4 h6!? (17...cxd5?! 18.Nxf6+ Qxf6 19.cxd5 h6 20.Ne4 Qf7 21.Qb3!{21.Nc3 1/2 in 45 Farago-Polgar,J Hungarian Championship1991} Nd4 22.Qb4 Bf5 23.Be3+= or +/ J.Polgar) 18.Nxf6+ Qxf6 19.Ne4 Qf7 J.Polgar] 11...Bf6 12.Bf6 Nf6 13.exf5 [13.dxe5 dxe5 14.Qxd8 Rxd8 15.Nd5 Nxe4 16.Nxc7 Rb8 In the Yugoslav Encyclopedia Ftachnik gives this as = and Kasparov gives it as unclear, in effect. But we say =+ based partly on the result 0-1 in 28 Portisch-Kasparov Linares 1990 Informant. 49/game 742; 13.d5?!Ne7!? (13...fxe4 14.dxc6 exf3 15.cxb7 Bxb7 16.Bxf3 c6 17.Qe2 Qe7 18.Rad1 Rad8 19.Qe3 Ba8 20.Rfe1 Rfe8 21.Na4 unclear 1-0 41 Adla-Fiorito, Buenos Aires1990) 14. Ng5 c6 and we like Black.] 13...gxf5!? [13...ed4?! 14. Nd4 Nd4 15. Qd4 Bf5 16. Bf3 ; 13...Bf5?! 14.Qd2 (14.d5!? Ne7 15.Ng5 c6 16.Bd3! Bg4 17.Qd2 Qb6 18.h3 Bd7 19.dxc6 Nxc6 Ftachnik) 14...Qe7 15.Rae1+= Kasparov] 14.de5! de5 15.Qd8 Rd8 16.Nd5+= Ne8 17.Rfd1 Be6 18.Kf1 Cebalo-Ivanovic, Yugoslavia 1990 += In short, I don't know what Judith would have played against 11.Bg5. The best I can come up with leaves White with +=, unless the terra incognita after 13...ed4!? pans out. But I 'll bet that Judith's opening preparation surpasses mine. The other big move for Judith to over come in this line is 10.Bh4. I end with an obscure game to go with an unclear position. What does Judith know about 10.Bh4 that I don't? You could ask her, but she's probably saving it for bigger game! 1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 g6 3.c4 Bg7 4.Nc3 0-0 5.e4 d6 6.Be2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Be3 Ng4 9.Bg5 f6 10.Bh4 g5 11.Bg3 Nh6 12.de [12.d5 Ne7! (12...g4) 13.Nd2 Ng6 14.Re1 Nf4 15.Bf1 a5 16.a3 Bg4 17.Qc2 unclear (17.f3?! Bd7 18.b4 g4! 19.Rc1{19.c5 axb4 20.axb4 Rxa1 21.Qxa1 f5 22.Qa7 Nh5 f4!}19...axb4 20.axb4 f5 21.fxg4 Nxg4 22.exf5 Bxf5 23.Nde4 Nh5 )] 12...fxe5 13.h3 g4 [13...Nf7 14.Nd2 (14.c5 dxc5 15.Bc4 h6 16.Qd8 Rd8 17.Nb5 Rd7 18.Rfd1 Re7= Dumitrache-D.Paunovic, Istanbul 1988) 14...Nd4 15.Bg4 Nh8 16.Nb3 c6 17.Bxc8 (17.c5 dc 18. Nc5 Ng6 Sax, Hazai) 17...Rxc8 18.Nxd4 exd4 19.Ne2 c5 20.Nc1 (20.f4 Qe7! 21.Qd3 Rce8) 20...Be5 21.Bxe5 dxe5 22.Nd3 Ng6 23.Qg4+= Chekhov ] 14.hg4 Bg4 15.Qb3 Bf3 16.Bf3 Nd4 17.Qb7 Rb8 unclear Trifunovic-Riemersma, Belgrade 1988. The Winnah, But Still Champeen? by Luis Busquets and John Grefe After 30 hard-fought games and 2 grueling months of intense mental combat, the legendary Robert James (Bobby) Fischer finally reached the magic 10-point total against fellow former World Champ Boris Spassky. With a 27-move win from the Black side of a King's Indian Defense, the American Grandmaster walked away with the largest cash prize in the history of chess--$3.35 million. Fischer also received a laurel wreath proclaiming him World Chess Champion, while Spassky received $1.65 million as the loser, but no wreath. This purse easily eclipses the $3 million fund slated for next year's FIDE World Chess Championship in Los Angeles and Montreal. The Fischer-Spassky match, which some considered to be in violation of UN sanctions against Yugoslavia, also clearly garnered more publicity, negative and positive, than any other chess event since the two met for the World Championship at Reykjavik in 1972. Whether or not we liked the 1992 re-match or agreed with its political implications, the whole world watched as these two old foes battled in black and white. Yet opinion varied markedly about the meaning of this match. Certainly, it was not for the world title, now held by Garry Kasparov. So the press hedged: the November 6th San Francisco Chronicle, for example, carried the banner headline on its front page "Fischer Wins Bizarre Chess Match." By contrast, The New York Times proclaimed that Fischer had carved, "a New Niche For Himself in Chess." Even less clear was the overall quality of play and the true strength of these two champions as compared to Kasparov, the present FIDE world champ. Expert opinion was by no means unanimous. NY Times columnist Grandmaster Robert Byrne lauded Fischer's, "audacious," "provocative" and "coldblooded" defense in the final game, whereas Grandmaster George Koltanowski, writing in the San Francisco Chronicle, emphasized Spassky's "ghastly blunder" on his 18th move. After that Koltanowski says, "Spassky loses a piece outright--there is no compensation, no kingside attack, nothing." Koltanowski added that Garry Kasparov would, "eat Bobby for breakfast". But Fischer apparently hopes to play himself into shape in a series of matches before sitting down to dine with Garry. Negotiations are underway for the graying boy wonder, who was the youngest grandmaster up to his time, to play a match early next year with another stellar prodigy, 16-year-old Hungarian Grandmaster Judith Polgar. Polgar is the strongest woman chess player and the youngest Grandmaster ever, ranked considerably higher by FIDE than Spassky is. Polgar's rating, which has been rising steadily, should place her in the chess world's top 40 or so by the time of the match, which many expect will be hotly contested. Less credible rumors speak of other possible Fischer challengers, including the rising Indian superstar Viswanathan Anand and former world champion Anatoly Karpov. It was Karpov who in 1975 inherited the world title from Fischer, when Bobby refused to defend it against him under FIDE rules. Fischer has also declared his wish for a match with Kasparov, though Fischer expects to be defending the title as reigning champ. Recent reports indicate that Kasparov may agree to some sort of world championship match with Fischer, in 1994, if Fischer can shine against some of the other challengers. But Kasparov has declared he will first honor his commitment to meet the winner of the upcoming Short-Timman match to be held in January in Barcelona. The FIDE World Championship match would follow in August or September of 1993. When asked whom he expected to be his next opponent for the title, Kasparov replied:"It will be Short, and it will be short". As if all this weren't enough, the specter of an electronic monster, Deep Thought, has arisen anew in a deadlier form to cast a growing shadow over the future of chess. Kasparov easily defeated an earlier version of the thing in a short match in 1990. But he recently announced his acceptance of a new challenge from an improved computer, in 1994. The machine's designers promise to increase Deep Thought's processing power a thousand fold for the next match, while a prototype of Deep Thought II has already demonstrated deepened analytical abilities in its profound and detailed commentaries on the Fischer-Spassky match. Fischer has already said that he expects to be the last human world chess champion. But if Fischer is to achieve that title in other than his own eyes, he will have to overcome a number of factors which hampered him throughout these last 30 games. Twenty years of rust obscured a lot of the old Fischer brilliance, though not exactly in the way that some expected. By and large, Fischer seemed surprisingly sharp tactically whenever slam came to bang. Just as surprisingly, however, his long-term strategic sense seemed dull. For example, his ostrich-like treatment of the King's Indian Saemisch with Black, in which he repeatedly headed straight for passive defensive positions devoid of all counterplay, is normally a sure prescription for disaster. He also surprised us somewhat by an unchar- acteristic lack of precision in a winning endgame in game 2, and by a long series of muffs in the ending of game 19. These were all the more unexpected because tireless energy in the exploitation of small advantages and ruthless efficiency in the coup de grace were once Fischer's hallmarks. Though age may have been a factor in those errors, the inordinate length and unusually high number of sessions per week may well have been more to blame for both Fischer and Spassky's late move blunders. True, at 49, Fischer must overcome an age differential of 20 to 30 years or more with the other contenders for the world title. But a number of leading grandmasters, such as Korchnoi, Polugaevsky, or Smyslov retained nearly their full strength in even later years. More damaging may have been Fischer's lack of physical conditioning. He has gained some 40 pounds since Reykjavik and has led a relatively sedentary life style for almost 20 years. Whereas the most successful grandmasters, young or old, are usually fairly athletic and in good trim. The greatest hurdle of all for Bobby Fischer may well be his own personality. It is not merely that he is driven to continually and publicly deprecate the character and morality of his major rivals, and even their capacity to play chess at all well. That, alas, is a tendency which he shares with not a few great champions, including Garry Kasparov. Must be a kind of occupational hazard for the greatest chess geniuses. But, sadly, Fischer's peculiarly virulent brand of disdain extends much further than merely to those who share his chess abilities. Sad too, that many in the press, uncritical or spurred by sensationalism, seem to take Fischer's fantasies at face value. At this point in history, his ability to see communist cells where others see only chess federations smacks more of Quixote than McCarthy. Even Yugoslav reporters at a press conference in which Fischer expounded his conspiratorial theories felt it necessary to ask if Fischer had heard of the collapse of the Soviet Union. As chess masters, we have to wonder if his psychological condition may not eventually deprive him of even the modicum of objectivity needed to properly assess one's own strengths and weaknesses. After all, he'll have to study and train wisely if he is to have any real chance against Kasparov. His foibles today are little changed from 20 years ago, but back then his moves, if not his words, always showed a keen respect for his opponent's possibilities over the board. This time, judging by his moves alone in several games, he may be falling victim to his own larger-than-life myth. Fischer was generally well-prepared to play White. At times, the sharpness of his attacking conceptions (see game 11) or the steady pressure he generated from deceptively quiet positions (game 1) could be exceptional. But with Black his play was uninspired. He was partly to blame for several dry Queen's Gambit Accepted endgames which went nowhere fast. And he regularly mishandled the King's Indian Defense. In the final game of the match, for example, it seemed to us that by systematically stripping his kingside of defenders (9...Nd7, 11...Nb4) and dallying with his queenside pawns (10...a5, 12...b6) without undertaking any immediate counter attack, Fischer simply lowered his guard and dared Spassky to take his best shot at his exposed king. So an exhausted or over-excited Spassky delivered a mighty blow to the air just in front of the enemy monarch. Though 18.Nf5?? may have shaken the pennants in the tournament hall with the force of its murderous intent, it made no impression on Fischer's king, still well shielded by its own and by Spassky's advanced pawns. In short, Spassky simply fell from the force of his own blow and knocked himself out. In the very unlikely event Fischer ever dares to repeat that 11th-move position against a young tigress like Judith Polgar, let alone Kasparov, the world's #1 chess machine and terminator of grandmasters, Fischer will quickly find his castled position overrun or dismantled by more patience: the tooth-pulling maneuver Qd2 and Bh6, and standard development with 0-0-0, to connect White's queen's rook to the kingside. All these before the final assault on Black's overextended and under-defended kingside pawns with the well known pry bar, g4. Only then, possibly, could come some Nf5 sacrifice. Will Fischer be able to begin the long hard process of remembering or relearning that dynamic opening, the KID, whose foremost exponent he once was? Will he be able to face squarely the poverty and passivity of the middlegame conceptions which led him into what should have been fatal positions? And will he be able to honestly contrast his lumbering defensive setups with those of the young Russian dynamo who now wields the Sicilian and the King's Indian Defense with the same verve and will to win from all positions that Fischer once displayed? When Fischer overcame Spassky in 1972 he did it with painstaking preparation and practice, with an attitude of respect for a feared opponent. Will his present lofty vision of himself as the greatest player of all time keep him from approaching Kasparov with the same cautious and objectively critical eye? And must his ongoing battle with his childhood phantoms, his tragic internalization of the hostility and incomprehension of others, eventually rob him of the one-pointed energy he will need to call on in his quest for the crown? Surely, in order for the over grown child prodigy to finally grow up he will need help to distinguish between his illusions of grandeur and his true greatness as a player, between his delusions of persecution, and the real hostility which his hateful words and absurdly abrasive public persona may have engendered. Which means that, even more than grandmaster sparring partners and coaches to teach and train him in the newest sharpest opening weapons or middlegame techniques, he'll need a real friend, someone who can dare to tell him what he may not be able to tell himself about his chess and his mental state in general. Though with Fischer's tender ego, there may not be anyone left to wake him up. His last hope may be that his 19-year-old Hungarian girl friend, Zita Rajcsanyi, herself a player of nearly master strength (who is rumored to have recently married Fischer in secret), not only really loves him, but has the wisdom and the psychological acumen to find a way to tell him what must be plain to everyone who wishes him well. He will need a fairer eye, indeed, truth speaking mirrors, to reveal who is really the strongest in the land, in which to study his sharply semitic features and take full note of his graying beard, and to gauge the original meaning of that sparkle which, even in recent photos, his eyes still retain. Perhaps Zita, who recently described herself in an interview as a student of abnormal psychology, could begin by playing that last game out with him a few times, slowly, varying with 12.Qd2. And if she somehow failed to beat him or to at least get a clearly winning game from that position, she might get him to try his hideous KID lines on a computer. Not Deep Thought II necessarily, just one of the better, master-level, commercially available programs. That might teach him a truth or two about his game. And then maybe Zita could tell him a few more things about himself, and about what he might still really achieve. Wouldn't it be great for chess if, after all these lost years, Bobby really woke up? --Luis Busquets and John Grefe bc-fischer:110pes Editors: Note content Fischer blames 'world Jewry' for 20-year absence from chess By DEJAN ANASTASIJEVIC BELGRADE, Yugoslavia (UPI) -- Former world chess champion Bobby Fischer blamed ``world Jewry'' Friday for his 20-year- long self-imposed absence from public competition and called the world's top players ``creeps and criminals.'' Fischer also said he had not decided if he would return to the United States, where he faces possible civil and criminal charges for playing his Russian arch- rival, Boris Spassky, in violation of U.N. economic sanctions imposed on the rump Yugoslav federation of Serbia and Montenegro. ``I will rest a few days, clear my head and decide on my next move,'' he told a news conference a day after triumphing over Spassky in what was billed as a rematch of the 1971 world championship that he won. Fischer, who took a first-place prize of $3.35 million, launched his anti-Semitic diatribe as he expounded on what he claimed to be unfair international competition rules instituted by the World Chess Federation. ``The world Jewry kept me out of chess while creeps and criminals like (Anatoly) Karpov, (Victor) Korchnoy and (Gari) Kasparov had a privilege to play under the system,'' Fischer said. Fischer was referring to his 20-year absence from international competition that began after he won the 1972 world chess championship against Spassky in Reykjavik, Iceland, and ended with the rematch in rump Yugoslavia. The 49-year-old resident of Pasadena, Calif., has been known for making anti-Semitic statements in the past. He was stripped of the world title in 1975 by the World Chess Federation for refusing to play Karpov. Karpov lost the title to Korchnoy, who was in turn defeated by Kasparov, the reigning champion. Fischer played the rematch with Spassky despite a U.S. Treasury Department order that he withdraw because he would be violating the U.N. sanctions imposed on May 30 against Serbia and Montenegro for underwriting the ongoing Serbian ``ethnic cleansing'' conquests in neigboring Bosnia- Hercegovina. He publicly spat on the ``cease-and-desist'' order during a news conference on the eve of the Sept. 3 opening game of the rematch on the Montenegrin resort island of Sveti Stefan. The tournament moved after 12 games to Belgrade. Fischer could face a fine up to $250,000 and a maximum penalty of 10 years in jail if charged and convicted in the United States of ``knowingly and willingly'' breaching the U.S. government directive. Fischer said that he was unaware that any charges had been filed against him yet. ``This question was not officially raised in America, as far as I know,'' he said. ``I'll think about it if it happens.'' He also refused to disclose his future plans. Spassky, 55, who remained very much in Fischer's shadow during the press conference, is a naturalized French citizen and was not barred from playing by Paris. He collected $1.65 million as the runner-up. He told reporters that he was ``satisfied'' with the match, although he added that he had expected to win at least seven games. ``In some games, I was lucky. In some not. But, in the end, it was my fault,'' he said. The former Soviet grand master won five of the 30 games he played against Fischer, who clinched his requisite 10th victory on the 27th move of Thursday's match. ------------------ upi 11-06-92 01:13 pes BC-CHESS-FISCHER BC-CHESS-FISCHER (MAN IN THE NEWS) FISCHER'S RETURN TO CHESS AS CONTROVERSIAL AS HIS EXIT BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, Reuter - Bobby Fischer, who beat his old world championship rival Boris Spassky Thursday after 20 years in the wilderness, returned to competitive chess with the same storm of controversy as when he left. Fischer, who retired from public life and chess after beating Spassky in 1972, lost none of the outspokenness which marked him as the enfant terrible of chess. He openly reveled in defying a United Nations embargo on Yugoslavia to make a long-awaited comeback -- and spat on a letter from the U.S. Treasury which warned him he could be jailed or fined for playing there. ``I don't support U.N. sanctions because first of all I don't support the U.N.,'' Fischer proclaimed to journalists at the start of the $5 million rematch series organized by a Belgrade-based businessman. Although his temperament appeared little changed in the last 20 years, international chess experts were divided about the standard of his chess against the aging Spassky. ``It's still quite hard to tell precisely how good he is because he's only been playing against one opponent,'' said British grandmaster Jonathon Speelman. Never shy about his abilities, however, Fischer insisted on being addressed as ``World Champion'' and offered only grudgingly to take on current title holder Gary Kasparov. Just why Fischer returned to chess is unclear. Some believe he was broke. Others say his 19-year-old girlfriend, Hungarian chess star Zita Rajcsanyi, lured him out of exile. Whatever the reason, his re-emergence was as quirky as his mysterious drift into obscurity. In 1975, Fischer failed to meet the deadline to defend his crown in Manila. World chess authorities reluctantly awarded it to his challenger, Anatoly Karpov of the Soviet Union. Fischer withdrew further into himself, never playing in public and living on little more than the magic of his name, although millions of enthusiasts continued to regard him as the once and future king of chess. Fischer was born in Chicago March 9, 1943. His family then moved to New York, where he joined the local Brooklyn chess club at the age of 6 and beat every member within weeks. Marked out as one of the great chess geniuses, he was soon known as the ``Mozart of chess.'' But as Fischer's fame grew, his temperament became less controllable. His success soon gained Fischer a reputation for being cocky. He said his favorite moment was when opponents began to feel they would lose. ``I like to see 'em squirm,'' he said. In the World Championship series in 1972, Fischer never looked like being beaten. But he drove Icelandic officials and Spassky supporters to distraction with late appearances and angry complaints about conditions. Fischer had said he continually dreamed of power, wealth and glory. The title brought them all but did not end what one commentator called his ``running battle with the rest of the human race.'' After winning the title, Fischer joined a group known as the Worldwide Church of God, based in Pasadena, Calif., and gave it part of his championship money. He clashed with the FIDE world chess body over conditions for the 1975 match to defend his crown. His career went on indefinite hold after FIDE stripped him of his title. After that he was reported to be living under assumed names in cheap hotels in Pasadena on the outskirts of Los Angeles, surviving mainly on royalties from his books. Whether he will return to the United States is still unclear. He has hinted that he might stay in Yugoslavia. REUTER Reut16:13 11-05 AM-CHESS AM-CHESS VICTORIOUS FISCHER SECRETIVE ABOUT FUTURE MOVES BELGRADE, Yugoslavia, Reuter - U.S. chess veteran Bobby Fischer, back in the limelight after beating his old World Championship foe Boris Spassky, kept chess fans guessing Friday about his future moves. ``Everything is open,'' Fischer told a news conference one day after beating Spassky in their $5 million ``revenge'' series. Asked whom he would pick as a future opponent, Fischer, 49, replied: ``That depends on the offer -- money, and on what pleases me.'' Fischer, who withdrew into obscurity after snatching the world title from Spassky in 1972, took two months and 30 games to clinch the comeback series Thursday night. The match, organized by a Belgrade businessman, was played in defiance of United Nations sanctions on Yugoslavia and a warning to Fischer from the U.S. Treasury that he could be fined or even jailed for sanctions busting. Notoriously temperamental, Fischer surprised journalists by answering questions from the floor rather than insisting on having them submitted to him in writing. But he was not giving much away. He said he did not know if he would return to the United States and appeared unconcerned about the threat of prosecution. ``I understand they haven't done anything yet,'' he said. ``I'm just taking a wait-and-see attitude.'' Chess experts have welcomed Fischer's return to chess with a mixture of awe and doubt as to how he would fare if matched against current world class players. Spassky, now in failing health, has slipped to 101st in world rankings. Never shy about his own abilities, however, Fischer called Spassky a tough and fair opponent and dismissed Soviet chess stars Garry Kasparov, Viktor Korchnoi and Anatoly Karpov as ``creeps and criminals.'' ``It was a great match,'' Fischer pronounced. ``Spassky was a great opponent.'' REUTER Reut14:18 11-06 Jewry or Jewelry? ``The world Jewry kept me out of chess while creeps and criminals like (Anatoly) Karpov, (Victor) Korchnoi and (Gari) Kasparov had a privilege to play under the system,'' Fischer said at a post-match news conference on November 6th. Thus did the 49-year-old former world champ explain his 20-year absence from tournament play after he won the world chess crown in 1972. And he's said this kind of thing before, so let's assume he really believes it. Yet there's a lot less here than meets the eye. By now, there's almost a comical feel to Fischer's boorish tirades. Oh, he means it as he says it. That's clear enough. But like an old Gilda Radner editorial on Saturday Night "Live," Bobby may well be confusing Jewry and jewelry. Blaming his own failings on World Jewelry--maybe nose rings or ID bracelets--would be much more in keeping with the, er, curious personality of this sheltered chess player from Brooklyn. And consider this: Fischer doesn't practice what he preaches. For one thing, most of the people Fischer considers to be his true friends are Jewish or have Jewish ancestors, including those who have encouraged and supported him during his self-imposed exile. Then too, who in this lifetime has Fischer been closer to in spirit and mind than Boris Spassky, a Russian who's mother is Jewish? It is reported that Fischer's own mother is Jewish, so it's even arguable that he is himself a lapsed member of that faith. But pursuing that line of reasoning can lead to the rash assumption that Fischer's ever even met himself, much less discovered who is really is. Coddled, praised and completely insulated in his 64-square world, Fischer might be better qualified for a job as Exhibit A in a Psych 101 lecture than he is as a credible appraiser of world jewelry. Stupid statements like the one he made in the press conference must be loudly condemned for the hurt they intend, and succeed in creating. Bobby, you're capable of playing fine chess, but anyone who says this kind of hooey is, well, rather simple. And anyone who believes it is a very dim bulb indeed. --The Chess Crew