Chapter Six The Reshevsky Ye ars (1936-1942)

"The advantage of a tournament seems The idea of a tournament was a logical to lie in the factthat several aspirants forthe one but also a necessary way out of the prob­ title can have their opportunity to win it and lem posed by Marshall's age and the hard times that the issue will necessarily be decided in a of the Depression. Since 1931, when 26-year­ comparatively short time. A tournament also old Isaac Irving Kashdan was placed ahead of is distinctly more interesting .... " With these Marshall on first board of the U.S. Olympic words in December 1935, Frank Marshall re­ team, it had become obvious that the holder signed as U.S. champion and urged the adop­ of the championship citle was no longer che tion of regularly scheduled tournaments to best player in the country. Attempts to arrange choose his successors. The idea of a tourna­ a Marshall-Kashdan match were periodically ment had been kicking around American launched and abandoned, all victims of the circles foryears but no one had a clear idea of economic climate and the champion's condi­ what such an event would mean. How many tions. Marshall wanted a guaranteed prize fund of the nation's best players would be willing to of $5,000. After all, had de­ compete - to give up jobs and family for sev­ manded - and gotten - arrangements for his eral weeks in hopes of winning a $600 first last world championship match such that he prize? How would the entrants be chosen? How went home with 55 percent of the $20,000 could the event be financed? And, perhaps most prize fundeven though he resigned the match important, wouldn't it mean a new champion halfway through it. Didn't Marshall deserve a every time a tournament was held- a revolv­ comparable retirement fund, he wondered? ing door title? But the Marshall-Kashdan match orga­ The last question was pertinent because nizers could raise no more than $900. And the revival of tournament championships co­ with the sparkling successes in Europe by Sammy incided with one of those periodic explo­ Reshevsky in 1935 and the quick progress of sions - like the 1920s and lacer the 1980s - of young rivals such as and Arthur native chess talent. There was not just one Dake, it made sense to drop the match com­ claimant to Marshall's tide, but several. Ac pletely and devote the organizers' energies and least three young masters were considered the treasury towards the first modern champion­ Old Swindler's equal. Another half dozen were ship tournament. In late 1935 Harold Phillips, raced of international caliber - the kind who a veteran Chess Club leader whose could very easily win a strong round-robin personal relations with top players stretched championship tournament if they were the back to a close friendshipwith Wilhelm Stein­ beneficiaries of a strong start and a bit ofluck. itz, helped persuade Marshall to step aside and

45 46 The Chess Championship

relinquish his title. The title, and a "Frank eral hours a day, seven days a week during his Marshall championship trophy, " would go to high school years. A restless energy character­ the winner of a round-robin tournament to be ized his play and it was also revealed by his held the following spring. constant walking back and forthacross a tour­ All of the contenders on the eve of the nament hall ("sentry-wise" as it was described) March, 1936, event were relatively young. while his opponent was chinking. Kashdan was 30, Reshevsky gave his age as 25, But if there was a slight favorite in 1936 Fine was only 21. They were the it was neither Kashdan nor Fine but Sammy elite of U.S. chess and each would have a se­ Reshevsky. He had been the best-known of the ries of European successes and some world American players ever since his highly publi­ championship hopes. Just below them in stat­ cized tours as a reputed nine-year-old chess ure were another crop of young masters - 22- prodigy shortly after his family brought him year-old , 26-year-old Dake, fromPoland to America in 1920. The boy had 28-year-old I.A. "Al" Horowitz and 30-year­ met President Harding, played members of old . Of the few others who Congress and, as recorded in one memorable could be considered of possible champion cal­ photograph, played 20 West Point cadets si­ iber were Marshall, 58; his 1923 challenger, multaneously. (Sammy, dressed in a sailor suit, , then 50; and Abraham Kup­ didn't lose a game.) chik, 44, a Manhattan Chess Club regular In his new country Reshevsky went into nearing the end of a vigorous career. Marshall a brief chess retirement and graduated from and Lasker declined invitations to play in the college with a degree in accounting. Almost tournament, leaving their places to a younger all the leading masters held at least part-time generation that would dominate the champi­ jobs - Kashdan sold insurance, Horowitz sold onship for15 years. insurance and edited Chess Review, and Re­ Of the tournament entrants, the young shevsky was preparing for a business career. magazine Ch ess Review wrote, "none can boast Ye t when Sammy began to play again in 1934 of as imposing a record as ." Up he seemed to have hardly been away fromthe to then "Kash" had played in 11 international board. Because so many of the championship tournaments, scoring fourfirst-places and five contenders lived in and around New Yo rk City, seconds. He led the U.S. Olympic team four his winning a first prize ahead of chem in, the times, twice to the gold medals, and had racked state congress at Syracuse in 1934 established up a remarkable personal record in team Reshevsky as one of the two or three best play­ play - 40 wins, 20 draws and only fourlosses. ers in America. Sammy added international He was being talked of as a challenger to laurels a year lacer when, on his first return to champion Alexander Alekhine for the world Europe in 14 years, he won a solid tournament title, and had scored six draws and only one at Margate, England, ahead of Capablanca. loss in his seven meetings with the then almost Physically small, Reshevsky was a scrappy unbeatable Alekhine. fighter atthe chessboard - and a worthy match On the other hand, Reuben Fine, fresh forFi ne's own aggressive nature. Later in 1936 out of college, had played just once as an in­ at the great international tournament in Not­ dividual abroad. But his easy victory at Hast­ tingham, England, their individual game ings, England, three months before the 1936 dragged on with Reshevsky holding the better national tournament was no less impressive of a while Fine sarcastically commented than any ofKashdan's victories. Fine, who had on the position. Eventually tournament won the championship of the Marshall Chess officials had to intervene to avoid what they Club three times and the Western Open once, feared would end up in a fistfight between the liked to say he had never read a chess book two American representatives. Kashdan, on the until he had become a master. But he made up ocher hand, seemed calm and cool, and many forhis lack of book knowledge by playing sev- of his colleagues would agree with Sidney The Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 47

Bernstein who called Kash a "great player, bur would have been interested most in the play lacking in the iron determination of a Re­ oftwo unheralded New Yo rkers and of a some­ shevsky." time resident of the city. The New Yo rkers So Reshevsky was a slight favorite in the were George Nelson Treysman and Albert C. first modern championship. But who could say Simonson. Treysman, then 55, had never played with certainty how a single 15-round event in a tournament before but was in fact prob­ would turn out? Also, it would be followed ably the most experienced player in the event. two years later by another championship, and He was a professional coffeehouse player, earn­ then another two years after that. Perhaps the ing dimes at speed and offhand games- often rapidly improving Fine would win the first after concedingup to queen odds - at one of event. Or maybe Reshevsky in 1936 and then the many rundown East Side clubs that flour­ Kashdan in 1938. Or one of the others such as ished in Manhattan. Simonson, the youngest Dake, Steiner, Denker or Horowitz? Who would player in the tournament, was an unknown have thought that one man would dominate who had played almost half of his chess at the the championships, winning every tournament Manhattan Chess Club and was recognized as (and one title match) that he entered in the one of the better bridge and backgammon next 10 years? players in the city. The third attraction was Dake. While Treysman and Simonson eventually finished 1936· Th e First Last Round surprisingly well, Dake appeared destined to finishnothing short of clear first. The dapper The first modern championship set the Portland, Oregon, master already had earned tone and many of the recurring themes of the an international reputation (and a special medal) tournaments of the 1930s and '40s. The orga­ when he amassed the best score -13 wins, 5 nizers had planned fora substantial number of draws - in the Olympiad team tournament entries, to be split into preliminary round­ the previous year in Warsaw. Dake, whose robins that would select eight qualifiers forthe original name was Dakowski, was, like Re­ 16-man finals.The eight qualifierswould meet shevsky and Kupchik, of Polish heritage and eight seeded players -Reshevsky, Fine, Dake, this led another Pole, Savielly Ta rtakower, to Kashdan, Kupchik, Steiner, Horowitz and remark about the American victory at War­ Manhattan Chess Club Champion Alexander saw: "Our victories are everywhere." Kevitz. But so few advance entries forthe pre­ Dake also had defeated Steiner of Los An­ liminaries were received that the organizers had geles, in a match for the Pacific Coast cham­ to drop the registration fee from $10 to $5. pionship a few months before, but was ac­ Eventually 48 players entered. corded a more impressive role when he visited All games, preliminaries and finals, were New Yo rk in March. The visitor was asked to held in New Yo rk, and this was simply a mat­ play forthe Marshall club in the annual match ter of convenience. Eleven of the finalistswere against the rival Manhattan Chess Club - and from New Yo rk and most of the high-placing he was on firstboard, ahead of Fine, Marshall, nonqualifiers were also from the metropolitan and Reshevsky. (A strong team, yet the Man­ area. The few strong out-of-towners included hattanites with Horowitz, Simonson, Kupchik Steiner, Illinois state champion Samuel Fac­ and Kevitz won the match.) tor, 's Harold Morton and the colorful Dake and Kashdan took off likea shot in New England champ We aver Adams, who in­ the 1936 championship, winning game after sisted that 1 e4 simply won by force and who game. Kashdan led at firstwith a perfect 4-0 had begun to write a never-ending stream of score, followedby Treysman a half point back. articles and pamphlets to prove it. But both men were upset the next day and But a spectator who paid 50 cents at the Dake assumed sole first place. By Round 9 he Hotel Astor grill to see one of the early rounds had collected five wins and four draws, with 48 The United States Chess Championship no losses, and seemed to be fulfilling his prom­ Reshevsky probably counted on acquir­ ise. ing a grip of the light squares after 9 e5 Qg6 Where was Reshevsky? "For me," he lacer or 9 Nc3 dxe4 10 Nxe4 Qg6. Now his pieces wrote, "the tournament will long remain some­ become seriously dislodged from their mutual thing of a nightmare." Sammy knew he had support. A third loss in a tournament barely to win about half his games but also to lose not half over would snuff out all hopes of first more than rwo games. Three losses meant al­ prize. most certain elimination in the race for first place. Ye e after a win and a draw in the first 10 ... Ne5 11 Nb5 0-0 two rounds he blundered badly against the wily Bernstein and was completely outplayed There was no real choice. Black is over­ by Horowitz in Round 4. And when Reshevsky run after 11 ... Kd8 12 d6. did resume his baccle for firsthe was the bene­ ficiary of an extraordinary letdown from one 12 Nxc7 Rb8 13 Bxa7? of che main contenders: Such an obvious and consistent move de­ serves a better face. Kashdan didn't consider 045 Scotch Game the full strength of Black's counterattack with white Kashdan, black Reshevsky two powerfully centralized knights. He should have delayed any material gain in favor of 1 e4 e5 2 NB Nc6 3 d4!? eXd4 4 Nxd4 Bc5 pushing Black around with 13 BgS Qd6 5 Be3 Qf6 6 c3 Nge7 7 Qd 2 14 NbS! followed by d5-d6, e.g. 14 ... Qd7 15 d6 N7c6 16 0-0-0!.

13 ... Bg4 14 Bxb8 Rxb8 15 Nb5 N7g6 16 Rel Nf4!

After 7 Qd2

After 16 ... Nf4

Ka shdan-Reshevsky, 1936

The Scotch had enjoyed a fling of popu­ larity shortly beforechis game - as it did after the 1990 Kasparov-Karpov match. Here the Ka shdan-Reshevsky, 1936 move 7 ... d5 had been known since the 1860s as an antidote to White's usual 7 Qd2. The White's king is caught in the center and theorists believed Black could sacrificeheavily faced with a big knight check on d3. He must for the attack after 7 ... d5 8 exd5 Nxd5 cry to return material. 9 Nb5 Bxe3 10 fxe3 Be6 11 c4 Ndb4! 12 Nxc7+ Ke? 13 Nxa8 Rd8 or 8 Nb5 Bxe3 17 Rc3 N5d3+ 18 Bxd3 exd3! 9 fxe3 0-0. Reshevsky gets the right idea but in the wrong sequence. The winning move. Now 19 ... Re8+ and 20 ... Re2 or 19 ... Nxg2+ will inflict heavy 7 ... Bxd4?! 8 cxd4 d5 9 Nc3! dxe4 10 d5! damage. White cannot cascle safely because of The Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 49

19 ... QgS!, which threatens mate (20 ... Bf3 The other leader, Simonson, was not cau­ 21 g3 Nh3) as well as the queen (20 ... Nh3+ ). tious either. He had Whice and a chance for Kashdan held out foronly 11 moves: immortality as well as a six-win streak:

19 0-0 QgS! 20 h4 Nh3+ 21 gxh3 Qx d2 A28 English Opening 22 hxg4 Qe2! 23 Rc4 d2 24 Rd4 QxbS white Simonson, blackFacto r 25 Rdl Re8 26 R4xd2 Re4 27 f3 Re2 28 Rel hS 29 Rcc2 Qb6+ and White resigns l c4 eS 2 Nf3Nc6 3 Nc3 f5 d44 e4 5 Nd2

The first of many remarkable Reshevsky Today White's best strategy is known to recoveries and of several hard foughtchampi­ be 5 BgS so chat his bishop will be outside his onship games with Kashdan. pawn shell afterhe solidifies it with e2-e3. But After his disastrous start Reshevsky be­ Simonson hurries to attack Black's e-pawn came a new man. He won nine and drew only with f2-f3 and therefore doesn't want to part once in the next ten games. Fine, on the other with the piece that best defends e3, his QB. hand, had not been able to extricate himself froma mire of draws, while Dake suddenly fe ll 5 ... Bb4 6 e3 Nf6 7 f3 0-0 8 fx e4 Nxe4! apart. The Oregonian scored only two points 9 N2xe4 fx e4 in his final six games - beginning with a de­ pressing loss co Reshevsky in a lengthy end­ White faces the prospect of being over­ game grind. run on the kingside (10 ... Qf6 or 10 ... QgS) But Simonson's late surge was nearly as but hopes thac winning the e-pawn will solve remarkable as Reshevsky's. His only previous all his problems. claim to famewas a mediocre performanceon one of the U.S. Olympiad teams. But here in 10 Bd2 Bxc3! 11 Bxc3 d6 12 Qc2 the strongest event of his life , the young mas­ ter defeated Monon, Fine, Bernstein, Horo­ witz, Denker and Milton Hanauer in succes­ sive rounds. Treysman also had a surprising string of successes, beating Denker, Hanauer, Faccor, and Kashdan in a row before losing to After 12 Qc2 Reshevsky. On the next to last round he knocked off the fading Dake. And che final round began on May 16th with these stand­ ings: Reshevsky and Simonson 11, Treysman 10�, and Fine 9Y2. The key pairings insured an exciting finish: Kupchik vs. Reshevsky, Simonson vs. Factor, Simonson-Factor, 1936 and Treysman vs. Fine. In cheir brief tourna­ ment experience the future grandmasters Fine 12 ... Bg4! and Reshevsky had learned how to wait. That day they played cautiously with che Black Now White has no choice but to grab the pieces knowing that a drawn might turn out pawn because he can no longer castle quietly to be as useful as a win. When Kupchik de­ (13 Be2 Qh4+ 14 g3 Qg S). And he has no veloped slowly in a quiet English, Reshevsky other plan. began to make his move on the kingside. Meanwhile, Fine was neatly repulsing Treys­ 13 Qx e4 Qh4+ 14 g3 QgS man's bold opening - which, if successful, might have given him first prize. Here the threats are 15 ... Bf3 as well as First U.S. Championship To urnament, New Yo rk, April 25-May 16, 1936

To tals R s F T K D K K H F D s B H A M w D L Points

1. Reshevsky x Yi lfi 1 1 1 Yi 1 0 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 10 3 2 l l 1h-3Yi 2. Simonson Yi x 1 1 0 Yi Yi Yi 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 9 4 2 11-4 3-4. Fine Yi 0 x 1 1 Yi Yi Yi Yi Yi Yi 1 1 1 1 1 7 7 1 l0Yi-4Yi 3-4. Treysman 0 0 0 x 1 1 Yi 1 Yi 1 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 9 3 3 l0Yi-4Yi 5. Kashdan 0 1 0 0 x Yi 1 Yi 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 9 2 4 10-5 6-7. Dake 0 Yi Yi 0 Yi x 1 Yi Yi 1 1 0 Yi 1 1 1 6 6 3 9-6 6-7. Kupchik Yi Yi Yi Yi 0 0 x 1 Yi 1 1 Yi Yi Yi 1 1 5 8 2 9-6 8. Kevitz 0 Yi Yi 0 Yi Yi 0 x 1 0 1 0 1 Yi 1 1 5 5 5 7Yi-7Yi 9. Horowitz 1 0 Yi Yi 0 Yi Yi 0 x 1 0 1 Yi 1 0 Yi 4 6 5 7-8 10. Factor 0 1 Yi 0 0 0 0 1 0 x 1/i 1 0 1 1 Yi 5 3 7 6Yi-8Yi 11-12. Denker 0 0 Yi 0 0 0 0 0 I Yi x I Yi 1 1 Yi 4 4 7 6-9 11-12. Steiner 0 0 0 0 0 1 Yi 1 0 0 0 x 1 Yi 1 1 5 2 8 6-9 13. Bernstein 1 0 0 Yi 0 Yi Yi 0 Yi 1 Yi 0 x Yi 0 0 2 6 7 5-10 14. Hanauer 0 0 0 0 1 0 Yi Yi 0 0 0 Yi Yi x 1 Yi 2 5 8 4Yi-10Yi 15-16. Adams 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 1 0 x 1 3 0 12 3-12 15-16. Morton 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 lfi Yi Yi 0 1 Yi 0 x 1 4 10 3-12 The Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 51

15 ... Rae8. Simonson makes the best of a bad clearly dominant there in the city that then lot by entering an inferior endgame. Treysman had a virtual monopoly on America's strong also had a bad endgame with Fine at this players. In 1938 he won the Manhattan Chess point, while Reshevsky was on the verge of Club tournament again and, even more im­ winning material in his game. Unfortunately pressively, crushed Simonson 4-0 in a brief for Simonson, his opponent was one of the match. The three grandmasters - Fine, Re­ best Americans at consolidating a positional shevsky and Kashdan - were the prohibitive advantage. There followed: favorites of the 1938 U.S. championship. The tournament was worthy of the play­ 15 Qd 5+ Qxd5 16 cxd5 Bf3 17 Rgl Bxd5 ers. Organizers had rented our che Radio City 18 Bg2 Bxg2 19 Rxg2 Rae8 20 Re2 dS! Auditorium, a nearly appointed space on the 21 Kd2 Re4! 22 a4 a5 23 Ra3?! b6 24 Rb3 seventh floor of theRCA Building in the glis­ Rf5 25 Kd3 Kf7 26 Bel? Nxd4! tening new Rockefeller Center complex of midtown Manhattan. From comfortable And White lost the exchange (27 Rc3 leather chairs the 17 finalists would make Nxe2 28 Rxc7+ Re7 or 27 exd4 Rf3+) and moves that were quickly translated on giant saw his game and chances for the title end on wallboards which became the focusof atten­ the 60th move. tion of scores of well-dressed spectators. The Reshevsky, watching this, agreed to a lure of seeing top-flightchess played in such draw in a position he could have won if the an impressive setting attracted an audience point were needed, while Fine, looking ahead chat included Emanuel Lasker and three vet­ to 1938, finished offTr eysman and tied him erans of U.S. tide matches - 65-year-old John for third place. Next time Fine would play Barry, 76-year-old Albert Hodges, and Mar­ more aggressively. shall - as well as newsreel cameramen, re­ porters and chess fans."No American tourna­ ment, I chink has ever aroused so much 1938: Chess in Radio City popular enthusiasm," wroce , the prolific chess author who was then fighting for When the second championship tourna­ an even score. ment opened two years later, Fine and Re­ The finalists were 10 seeded players plus shevsky were no longer just promising young seven who qualified from a confused prelimi­ players. Both had earned international laurels nary stage marred by several withdrawals and that rivaled, or exceeded, Kashdan's. Fine in forfeited games. The survivors from the pre­ particular had made a name for himself in Eu­ liminaries included Reinfeld, young Marshall rope, where he lived much ofl937-1938. After Chess Club star Anthony Santasiere, and ocher tying for third place with Reshevsky at the youngsters such as 19-year-old Walter Sues­ great Nottingham tournament ofl936, he had man and 20-year-old George Shainswir. But finished firstat Moscow, Ostend, Margate and otherwise the field was pretty much the same Stockholm in 1937 and then tied forfirst prize as had competed two years before - talented ahead of all the world's best players at the AVRO amateurs and professionals in their 20s or 30s, supertournament. Also in 1937 he had been most of whom lived in New Yo rk. In fact 11 of selected by world champion Max Euwe to be the 17 finalists had played in the big local event his second in Euwe's tide defense against of the year, the Manhattan-Marshall chess Alexander Alekhine - quite a tribute for a 23- clubs match shortly before the championship. year-old. Reshevsky avoided the disastrous start of Reshevsky had also played abroad, scor­ his first tide event two years before and soon ing impressive results in 1937 at Kemeri and assumed the lead. The time limit had been Hastings. Kashdan, his European exploits in speeded up to 40 moves in two hours (a half the past, stuck to New Yo rk. But Kash was hour less than in 1936) and Sammy was in time 52 The United States Chess Championship

pressure almost every game. But his play was given him an advantage Reshevsky has toyed so firm and sure that it didn't seem to matter: with for the last 20 moves. Lengthy maneu­ In one early round Harold Morton, playing vering failed to crack Dake's defense of the a­ White, was completely tied up afterthe open­ pawn and of the kingside, especially the key ing and as a result had even less time than Re­ target, White's g2. But now Reshevsky realizes shevsky - just seconds with 10 moves to go. where his pieces will be optimally placed. His When Reshevsky delivered his 31st move - bishop should not be on the b7-g2 diagonal, 31 ... Qe2 mate- the New Englander grabbed but on e6 where it attacks the c-pawn. Then, his king to move it, swirled it around wildly a frontalassault on the weak a-pawn will force looking for a square and only then realized it White to give ground. had none. This year Fine stayed with Reshevsky to the end. His score was uneven - scoring more wins than anyone, 11, but also losing two games. Fine managed to knock offmany of

the weaker players easily while Reshevsky had After 45 Ral to concede four drawsto them. Both men also went through the other contenders like ma­ chines, each silencing Kashdan and Dake. But Fine made two slips - losses to Santasiere and to public school teacher Milton Hanauer, who had a horrible position at move 20 but man­ aged to turn the tables when Fine misjudged Dake-Reshevsky, 1938 the endgame. One move by Fine would have forced the win of two pawns, another would 45 ... Be6! 46 Qcl Qf8 ! 47 Nb2 Qa8 hand over a powerful initiative. Fine miscal­ culated, overlooking a simple capture in one White's two weak pawns cannot be pro­ key variation, and lost a valuable point in 68 tected on their current squares and Dake is moves. now forcedto play a4. While this seems only The race forfirst place was close formuch to enhance his game, actually it grants Re­ of the way. After 10 rounds Fine and Reshevsky shevsky the big steppingstone he needs - the were tied at 81/2-ll/2 while Kashdan stood at b4 square. On that point he can attack both 8-1 with a bye - that is, an earlier free day weak pawns with a rook and build up pressure. caused because there was an odd number of 48 a4 Rb6! 49 Qc2 Rb4 50 Rb3 Qe4! finalists. But a loss to Suesman on the Black side of a Bishop's Gambit was the beginning This powerful centralization forces White of the end forKash, who "seemed to be hand­ to turn Black's blocked pawn mass into an icapped by a lack of interest," according to offensive force, Dake cannot avoid the ex­ Chess Review. change of queens (51 Qdl Qxf4 ; 51 Rel? Qxc2 In the final week, Reshevsky pulled out 52 Rxc2 Rxb3), but worse, he cannot avoid ahead with a string of impressive results. Un­ an exchange of rooks that will give Black his like 1936 he didn't lose a game. Also, his play third passed pawn. was much smoother, always keeping the posi­ tion under control. His demolition of Dake, 51 Qxe4 fxe4 52 Rxb4 cxb4 53 h3 h5 whose business career had left him rusty, was 54 Rel e3 55 Kfl g5! typical of a maturing Reshevsky. In many ways it was the game of the tournament (see dia­ Whether White captures his pawn or not, gram). Black's king will now have a path of penetra­ Black's bishop and stronger pawns have tion: ... Kg6-f5-e4. The Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 53

56 Rdl c5 57 fxg5 Kg6 58 Ke2 Kxg5 Has White founda drawing line?: 67 ... 59 Rfl Ke6 68 e8(Q) +! Bxe8 69 Kxe3.

67 ... Ke4!

The pawns cannot be stopped and, in fact,White is in danger of being mated when his king is shunted to dl and Black's king ad­ After 59 Rfl vances to support ... e2+.

Dake-Reshevsky, 1938 After 67 ... Ke4 Black's threat was ... Kf5-e4 followed by breaking the blockade of his pawns with a well-timed ... d3+, e.g. 59 Ral Kf5 60 Rfl+ Ke4 6! Rf6 ? Bxc4+ 62 Nxc4 d3+ and 63 ... Rxa4. Dake-Reshevsky, 1938 59 ... Rxa4!! 68 Rbl Bb5+ 69 Kdl Kd4! and White re­ One of Reshevsky's finest combination, signs perhaps his best in a championship. The passed The threat was 70 ... Kc3, but White is pawns now go through. almost out of moves anyway, e.g. 70 Rb2 Ba4+ or 70 Ral Kd3! 60 h4+! Kg4! 61 Nxa4 Bxc4+ 62 Kel Fine's score was worthy of a first prize, and would have been good enough to earn him The point of White's 60th was to divert the Frank J. Marshall Championship trophy the Black king (60 ... Kxh4?? 61 Rhl+ and two years before. But Reshevsky had an even 62 Nxa4 wins) and also help create a passed better tournament and found himself needing pawn in this devilish variation: 62 ... Bxfl only a draw in the last round once again to 63 Kxfl Kf5 64 Nxc5 Kxe5 65 g4! hxg4 take the title. 66 h5 Kf5 67 Ke2! and White draws since Black must go after the passed h-pawn. 1940: Fine'sFa tal(istic) Flub 62 ... d3!! It was only the third championship but it was already the last to bring Reuben Fine, Reshevsky had to see this farwhen he Sammy Reshevsky and Isaac Kashdan together. sacrificed his rook. He will remain the ex­ All three would remain active during the 1940s change down but the force of his passed pawns but never again would they all be competing is unlimited. The first threat, and a continu­ in the same tide event. Eventually Kashdan ing one, is 63 ... d2+, queening. and Fine abandoned the chase and retired from tournament chess, leaving the field to Re­ 63 Rhl d2+ 64 Kdl Bb3+ 65 Ke2 Bxa4 shevsky, who held it until a new generation 66 e6 KfS 67 e7 emerged after Wo rld Wa r II. Second U.S. Championship To urnament, New Yo rk, April 2-24, 1938

To tals R F S H K D P K B S T C H R S M S W D L Points l. Reshevsky X 1/z 1 Y2 l 1 1 Y2 1/2 Y2 1 Y2 10 6 0 13-3 2. Fine Y2 XY2 l 1 1 Y2 l 1 0 0 11 3 2 12Yi-3Yi 3. Simonson 0 Yz X 1 Yz Yz Yz 01Yi Y2 8 6 2 11-5 4. Horowitz Yi 0 0 X Yi 1 Yi Yi 1 0 Y2 Yi 7 6 3 10-6 5. Kashdan 0 0 Y2 Y2 X 0 0 Y2 0 8 3 5 9Y2-6Yi 6-7. Dake 0 0 Y2 0 X 1 OY2 l Yi Y2 Yi Y2 6 6 4 9-7 6-7. Polland 0 Y2 Y2 Y2 0 0 X 1 Y2 Y2 0 Y2 6 6 4 9-7 8. Kupchik Y2 0 1 Y2 0 0 XY2Y2Y2 Y2 Yi 0 5 7 4 8Y2-7Yi 9. Bernstein Y2 0 0 0 0 Y2 Y2YiXY2 Yi Y2 0 4 7 5 7Y2-8Yi l 0-1 1. Santasiere 0 Y2 1 0 0 Y2 Yi Y2 X 0 0 Y2 Y2 Y2 Y2 3 8 5 7-9 10-11. Treys man 0 0 0 0 0 Y2 l 1/2 0 1 X 1 Y2 0 Yi 5 4 7 7-9 12-14. Cohen, S. Y2 0 0 0 Yi O OY2 l 0 X Y2 0 Yi 4 5 7 6Y2-9Y2 12-14. Hanauer 0 1 Yi 0 Yz Yz 0 Yi 0 Yi 0Yi x 0 1 Y2 3 7 6 6Y2-9Y2 12-14. Reinfeld Y2 0 0 0 0 Yi Yi 0 Yi Yi Yz l 1 X 0 Y2 3 7 6 6Yz-9Yz 15. Shainswit, G. 0 0 0 Yz 0 0 0 Yz 1 Yz 0 Yz X 1 Y2 3 5 8 5Y2-lOY2 16. Monon 0 0 0 Yz 0 0 0 1 0 Yi I 0Yz Yi 0 X 1 3 4 9 5-11 17. Suesman W. 0 0 0 0 1 0 0 0 0 0 Yi 0 0 0 Yi 0 X 2 13 2-14 Th e Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 55

That they remained fervent competitors two knights were so strong that even at the forso long was a tribute to their thirst for the cost of a pawn he had the better chances. Then, championship ride. There still wasn't much after more exchanges, at move 37 there was financial reward in the game. The champi­ nothing left but queens, kings and pawns. onship prize fund had not grown bur in fact A second game was beginning: had been reduced berween 1936 and 1938, and the organizers in 1940 sought - unsuccess­ fully - to drop first prize down to $400. (Compare this with the $600 third prize at the Sixth American Congress more than half a cen­ After tury before.) 37 ... Qb7 Some players, such as Simonson, found themselves devoting less and less rime to chess because of the chronic need formaking a liv­ ing. And when, in 1938, the losing contenders asked the tournament organizing committee to return their $20 entry fees - since the tour­ nament had ended with slight profiton top of Ka shdan-Reshevsky, 1940 total expenses of $3600- they were politely refused. Times were hard. Despite the number of pawns and their Reshevsky later described the 1940 cham­ apparent weakness, it is their nearness to the pionship as a personal duel between him and eighth rank that counts most heavily in queen­ Fine. Ir is true that their last-round game to­ and-pawn endings. Here Kashdan is in desper­ gether was the big story of the tournament, ate straits because of the pregnant Black d­ and determined firstprize, but calling it a duel pawn. For example, 38 Qc3 Qa8! 39 b4 would oversimplify. It would overlook, for ex­ permits Black to push his pawn home with ample, the strong fourth-place finish of A.S. 39 ... Qa2+ and 40 ... Qc2. White needs coun­ Pinkus, another Manhattan Chess Club regu­ terplay, and in this kind of ending that can come lar who was returning to the game nearly a fromcreating your own passed pawn - too late decade after he had scored several fine sue- here - or from perpetual check. cesses. It would also ignore Kashdan's fiercest 38 Qd8+! Kg7 39 g5! f5 challenge to date. The 34-year-old Brook­ lynite, then raising a familyand selling insur­ The perpetual was there after39 ... fxg5 ance, developed an early lead over another 40 Qxg5+ Kf8 41 Qd8+. But now the posi­ good field.After 12 rounds he still ran slightly tion of White's own king would kill his chances ahead of Reshevsky. Fine was some distance after, say, 40 Qf6+ Kg8 41 g6 d2! 42 gxf7+ back, having lost in the fifth round to the Qxf7 43 Qd 8+ Kh7 44 Qh4+ Kg7! super-solid Kupchik. To maintain his hopes 45 Qg3+ Qg6! White was nothing useful to into the finalfew days Kashdan, with the White do now but wait and hope that Black misplaces pieces, would have to score at least a half point his queen. his Round 13 game with Reshevsky. A victory would virtually ice the tournament. 40 Kf2 Qx b2+ 41 Kg3 Qb7 42 Kf2! Kh7 The rwo players gave a good account of 43 h4? themselves to one another in a vigorous Ruy Lopez with Kashdan building upon the king­ After denying Black all the natural win­ side while Reshevsky opened up the center. ning cries (42 ... d2 43 Ke2; 42 ... Qb2+ Kashdan then exchanged minor pieces to ob­ 43 Kg3 Qe2 44 Qf6+) White gets sloppy. tain his beloved rwo bishops, bur Reshevsky's With 43 Qf6 the position is likely to be drawn. 56 The United States Chess Championship

43 ... f4 ! After 52 ... Kg8 White can draw with 53 Qe8+ Kg7 54 Qe7+ Qf7 55 h6+!, e.g. Again, the number of pawns doesn't count 55 ... Kg8 56 h7+! Qxh7 57 Qe8+ followed as much as their proximity to a queening by interminable checks at e7, g5, h6 or some­ square. Black's move threatens 44 ... Qb2+ where on the eighth rank. now that g3 is covered and the move other­ wise forces the creation of two passed pawns. S2 ... Kh6! S3 QgS+ Kg7 S4 Qxg6+?? The only criticism of 43 ... f4 is that Black would also have excellent winning chances A terrible slip for White after such a re­ with the immediate 43 ... Qb2+ 44 Kg3 Qe2 sourceful defense. As soon as the game was 45 g6+ Kg7!!. There followed: over Reshevsky pointed out 54 Qe7 + Qf7 55 h6+!, which leads to the drawing line men­ 44 exf4 d2 4S Ke2 e3 46 Qf6 Kg8 tioned above. 47 Qd8+ Kh7 48 Qf6 Qc7! S4 ... Kf8 SS Qd6+ Ke8! and White resigns ... after which Black threatens to check at c4 and queen. He might have been able to Black's king walks to the queenside and promote under similar circumstances but with safety. Kashdan was badly unnerved by this the queen at c4 Black will also protect f7 last-minute reversal. He lost the next day to a against perpetual check attempts. White has brilliant Weaver Adams attack. Having led the one last chance. tournament for two thirds of the way, Kash finally ended up two and a half points behind 49 g6+! fxg6 SO hS! the winner. But there was still Fine. He had overcome This fine move secures a draw (50 the Kupchik loss to pile up 10 wins and four gxh5 51 Qf5 +) even though Black may get a draws -a score comparable to his 1938 finish. second queen. One remarkable line that might Reshevsky, who had shaken offan early illness, have worked was 50 d5 (closing the diagonal had rolled up a score oflO wins and fivedraws . that leads to f7) Qc4+ 51 Kxe3 and now Black And Sammy had not lost a game in a cham­ avoids checks and wins all the pawns with pionship since the fourth round in 1936. All 51 ... dl(N)+! 52 Kd2 Qxd5+ 53 Kel Nb2! he had to do to earn his third title was get by 54 Qxb2 Qhl+. Fine on the final day.

SO ..• Qc4+ SI Kxe3 dl(Q) S2 Qe7+ CS9 Tw o Knights Defense white Fine, black Reshevsky

I e4 eS 2 N8 Nc6 3 Bc4! Nf6 4 NgS dS S exdS NaS 6 BbS+ c6 7 dxc6 bxc6 8 Be2 h6 9 N8 e4 10 NeS Bd6 11 f4

After 52 Qe7+ Fine began with a good - psychologically good- choice of opening: His opponent needed only a draw. But in this 4 Ng5 varia­ tion Black is virtually forced to sacrifice a pawn, and this places Reshevsky in the un­ comfortable situation of having to play for Ka shdan-Reshevsky, 1940 sharp positions when he would prefer quieter ones. Also, he must do so in unfamiliar wa- Now the significanceof 50 h5 is revealed. ters. Th e Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 57

The recommended line, which leads to a The Black queen would be too far away rough equality, is 11 ... 0-0 which permits from the center of action if it retreated ro the Black ro regain his pawn after 12 N c3 Re8 queenside (20 ... Qb6 21 Qg3!, threatening 13 0-0 Bxe5 14 fx e5 Qd4+ and 15 ... Qxe5. both 22 Bc7 and 22 Bxh6). In the line played, however, White doesn't have ro spend a tempo on the somewhat use­ 21 Qd6! Bg4? less Khlmove. This brings Reshevsky to rhe brink of de­

11 ••• Qc7? 12 0-0 0-0 13 Nc3 Bxe5 14 fxe5 fe at. The tournament site was once again the Qx eS 15 d4! exd3 16 Qx d3 Astor Hotel grill and many of the dozens of spectators there realized after White's next Here White is a bit better developed than move that the defending champion had erred. m the line cited above and has excellent prospects in rhe form of the two bishops and 22 Ba6! superior pawn structure. Black's QN is our of play but his other pieces are temporarily ac­ The Black bishop is needed at e6 to help tive. Reshevsky tries ro make the most of rhe the knight back ro civilization The threat of latter while Fine goes after rhe former. 23 b4 or a queen attack on the knight costs Black time. Fine plays skillfullyon both wings: 16 ... Ng4 22 ... Bc8 23 Bd3! Be6 24 Qb4 Qh S 25 Bc7! Nc4

This could almost be called desperation. The knight has been encircled and only tac­ tics can rescue it. According to wirnesses, Re­ After 16 ••• Ng4 shevsky was in tears as he considered the hope­ lessness of the situation. Reinfeld, his good friend,called it the most miserable moment in Sammy's life.

26 Bxc4 Qh4 Fine-Reshevsky, 1940

17 Bf4?!

Now the psychology begins to work against Fine. He sees that 17 Bxg4 Bxg4 18 Bf4 Qc5+ After 26 . . . Qh4 19 Khl would give him excellent winning chances. Bur the exchange of pieces also cre­ ates the possibility of an endgame with bish­ ops of opposite color - a likely draw. To avoid that, and meet the threat of17 ... Qxh2 mare, he makes a promising bur unnecessary ex­ Fi ne-Reshevsky, 1940 change sacrifice. Now 27 Rf4 will win Fine a United States 17 ... Qc S+ 18 Khl Nf2+ 19 Rxf2 Qx f2 championship. Black may get some counter­ 20 Rfl Qh4 play from 27 ... Qg5 28 Bxe6 fxe6 but Fine Third U.S. Championship, New Yo rk, April 27-May 19, 1940

To tals R F K P S K D B P R S A S G H W L W D L Points

1. Reshevsky XY2 1 1 Y2 1 1 /2 V2 V2 V2 10 6 0 13-3 2. Fine 1/2 X Y2 Vi 0 Vi Y2 1 10 5 12Y2-3Vz 3. Kashdan 0 Y2 X Y2 1 Y2 Y2 Vi 0 1 Vi Y2 7 7 2 lOV2-5Y2 4-5. Pinkus, A. 0 Y2 Vi X 1 Y2 0 Vi Vi Vi Y2 1 V2 6 8 2 10-6 4-5. Simonson Vi 0 0 0 x 1 Vi 0 Yz Vi 1 8 4 4 10-6 6-7. Kupchik 0 1 0 Vi 0 X Vi Y2 Vi Y2 Y2 1 1 Yz 6 7 3 9V2-6Vz 6-7. Denker 0 Vi 0 1 Vi Vi x 1 0 Yz 0 1 1 V2 7 5 4 9V2-6V2 8-11. Bernstein 0 0 Y2 Yz Vi 0 x 1 Vz Yz 0 0 1 0 5 5 6 7V2-8Vz 8-11. Polland 0 Y2 Yz Vi 0 Y2 1 0 x 1 Vi Y2 0 0 Yz 4 7 5 7V2-8V2 8-11. Reinfeld Y2 0 Vi Yz Yz Vi Yz Y2 0 x Vi Y2 Vi Y2 Vi Vi 13 2 7V2-8V2 8-1 1. Shainswit Y2 0 O 0 Vi Y2 1 Y2 Y2 Y2 X Y2 Y2 Vi 1/2 Vi 2 11 3 7Vz-8Vz 12-13. Adams 0 0 1 Vi 0 0 0 O Vi Y2 X 0 1 V2 5 4 7 7-9 12-13. Seidman Yz 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 Vi Yz Vi 1 X V2 1/2 4 6 6 7-9 14-15. Green, M. Yz 0 Yz Yz 0 0 0 0 Yz Y2 0 Yz X Yz Y2 2 8 6 6-10 14-15. Hanauer 0 0 0 0 0 Vi Vi 0 Y2 Vi 1h Yz Y2 X Yz 2 8 6 6-10 16. Woliston, P. 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 Yz 0 0 0 0 Y2 x 1 2 2 12 3-13 17. Littman, G. 0 0 Y2 0 0 0 0 0 113 0 Yz 0 0 Yz 0 0 x 0 4 12 2-14 Th e Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 59

had consolidated much more difficultpositions 1941: Th e Vagabond Ma tch in his career. However, Fine sees a more in­ rricare winning rry, involving rhree forcing One man who wasn't around for the rhird moves followed by an apparent killer. After championship was Al Horowitz - he was lucky weighing rhe rwo alrernarives, he decides to be alive. In February 1940 the genial 32- against 27 Rf4!. year-old publisher of Chess Review had been on one of his periodic national exhibirion tours 27 Bf4?? wirh his close friend and coeditor, Harold Morron. One nighr while driving near Carroll­ ton, Iowa, rheir car was caughr in a tragic ac­ "A miracle happened." - Reshevsky. cident. Morron was killed instantly, Horowitz "I must confess rhar I was overcome by was severely injured. rhe fantastic feeling rhar norhing could possi­ Yet Horowitz quickly bounced back and bly win forme ."- Fine. within months had resumed his duries at the midtown Manhattan officeof rhe magazine he 27 ... Bxc4 28 Qx c4 g5 29 g3 Qg4 had foundedseven years before. Chess Review was never a financial success in rhose days - All foreseen by Fine. Now he intended the sales of books and sers and Horowitz' tours rhe knockout blow, 30 Ne4, which rhrearens were essential to keep it from bankruptcy. But 31 N f6+ and relieves rhe pin on rhe fourrh it had grown into rhe nation's mosr popular chess rank. Thar would permit Whire to keep his magazine. Horowirz-"a super coffee house rwo minor pieces fora rook under circum­ player," according to Sidney Bernstein - had stances more favorable rhan after 27 Rf4 , earned a good deal of arrention as a player. He bur. .. won rhe U.S. Open in 1936 and shared first place in it wirh Kashdan rwo years later. Brim­ 30 Qx c6 ming wirh confidence and rapidly regaining his health, Horowitz decided in lare 1940 rhat his big chance to wrest Reshevsky's more pres­ ...before he could play 30 Ne4, Fine saw tigious ride was now. Rather rhan wait forthe to his horror rhat Black has 30 ... Qe6!! as an nexr tournament, two years off,he challenged answer. After31 Qxe6 fxe6, forexample, there Reshevsky to a march in rhe spring. is a new pin, this rime on the f- file. And on Reshevsky, of course, was the favorite,and 31 Qd4 Black plays 31 ... f5 ! 32 Nc5 Qe2 had a slight plus-score against Horowitz in pre­ 33 Rf2 Qel+ 34 Kg2 gxf4. Fine had miscal­ vious games. But the challenger had beaten him culated. The win was gone: in rhe 1936 tournament and was one of a very few Americans to have defeated Reshevsky any­ 30 . . . gxf4 31 Rxf4 Qe6 32 Qf3 f5 ! where in the previous five years. Besides a 33 Qd5 Rae8 34 Kg2 Qxd5+ 35 Nxd5 healthy prize fu nd rhe match may have held an­ Re2+ 36 Rf2 Rxf2+ 37 Kxf2 Kf7 38 c4 other atrracrion for Reshevsky: His results at a5 39 h3 Re8 40 a3 Rc8 41 Nc3 Ke6 home and abroad had made him (along wirh 42 Ke3 Ke5 43 Kd3 Rh8 44 Nb5 Rd8+ Fine) one of the half dozen likely candidates for 45 Kc2 h5 46 b4 aXb4 47 aXb4 h4! 48 c5 the world championship ride held by Alexander hxg3 49 hxg3 Kd5 50 Kd3 Rg8 Alekhine. Alekhine was known to be fleeing from rhe European war zone and was reported and rhe game was drawn in another dozen to be on his way to America. Ir seemed likely moves after sevenhours of play. It was enough at rhe time rhar rhe only world championship to discourage even Fine and he never entered match rhar could be arranged until peacetime another U.S. championship when Reshevsky would be Reshevsky vs. Alekhine. And Re­ was around. shevsky had never played any kind of match. 60 The United States Chess Championship

So, Horowitz would at least be good 9 h3?! 0-0 10 Bd3?! Bxd3 11 Qx d3 Qc7 practice, Reshevsky's backers felt. They helped 12 e4 arrange a busy march schedule which would take the two players to seven different playing Despite appearances, White's quiet treat­ sites for 16 games in three weeks. Considering ment of chis then-popular opening has left him travel rime, the match was scheduled so tightly with no advantage and, in fact, he faces the chat often the players had to rush fromone site danger of losing the initiative after ... e5. to another, and che event, as Reshevsky later said, "became a matter of endurance rather 12 ... e5 13 Bg5 Rad8! than chess generalship." The firstgame was held at the penthouse Now White's queen is misplaced because home of , a wealthy in­ of the imminent opening of the d-file and his vestment banker and publisher of the liberal failureto reinforce d4 with 13 Be3. So far, the monthly, Th e Na tion. We rtheim had just been champion looks out of form. elected president of the Manhattan Chess Club and he invited most of che city's leading play­ 14 Qe2?! exd4 15 Nxd4 Rfe8 16 Qc2 ers and several visitors to his spacious apart­ ment to see the first championship match game since 1923. More than 150 players - including the 1923 combatants, Marshall and Edward Lasker - turned out to see a hardfoughtQueen's Gambit, the opening Reshevsky chose when­ After 16 Qc2 ever he had the chance. The first game was drawn, as were the next three, played at the Marshall and Manhattan clubs. But Reshevsky drew first blood when the challenger botched a King's Indian De­ fensein the fifth game. The match moved on to Philadelphia, then Lakewood, N.J., Bing­ Reshevsky-Horowitz, 1941 hampton, N.Y., and Washington, D.C. All games were drawn except the ninth, when This last move was prompted by threats Horowitz hung a pawn in a different position to the e-pawn ( ... Bb4xc3) and by Reshevsky's and was ground down in 82 moves. realization that his misplaced queen was again At that point the champion enjoyed a 2-0 lined up against an enemy rook. Now with lead wich only six games left. Horowitz con­ 16 ... Ng4!, threatening mate as well as ... tinued to play 1 P-K4 but made little progress Bxg5, Horowitz could have seized the initia­ in a variety of Sicilian Defenses and Ruy tive and made the match a fight. But this is Lopez's. To keep up with the schedule the exactly when he seemed to go to sleep. players had to have a game virtually every day and the strain was beginning to be apparent 16 . . . Bd6? 17 Radl h6? 18 Bh4 Be5?! on both players. For the 11th game the two 19 Nde2 Nf8 20 Rxd8! Qx d8 21 f4 ! Bd4+ weary opponents made their way back to New 22 Nxd4 Qx d4+ 23 Bf2 Qb 4 York's Staten Island. In just a few moves it is White, not Black, 018 Queen's Gambit Declined who now holds the bishop-vs.-knight and bet­ white Reshevsky, black Horowitz ter control of the center. Moreover, Reshevsky has a direct winning plan - the advance of his 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nf3 Nf6 4 Nc3 dxc4 center pawns. His opponent was already get­ 5 a4 Bf5 6 e3 e6 7 Bxc4 Nbd7 8 0-0 Be? ting into time pressure: The game was being The Reshevsky Years (193 6-1942) 61

played at the home of bookseller Albrecht ered 42 ... Nxf5 43 Qg6+ and ocher lines for Buschke and had been delayed from its lace­ ten minutes, then capped che table, smiled and evening starting time when Reshevsky showed said "Very pretty, Sammy. I resign." le was 5 up lace. The rime limit was adjusted to 32 A.M. The march referee left the playing site - moves in two hours rather than 40 in 2Y2, and and found his car had been stolen. Horowitz simply forgot chat he had only five Ye e the match had to go on because the minutes lefr for the next nine moves. players had committed themselves to 16 games regardless of the scores. So on virtually no sleep 24 e5! Nd5 25 Ne4! Ne6 26 g3 Nd4 they dragged themselves chat afternoon to 27 Qd3 NfS 28 b3 g6 29 BcS Qa 5 30 g4! Woodside, Queens, for the 12th game - and Ng7 31 Bd6 Qb 6+ 32 Khl aS it turned out to be even more of a marathon than the 11th. A careless blunder in a king­ and-pawn endgame threw away Horowitz' only winning position in the match and he had to cry to win a queen ending chat finallyended afrer 99 moves and more than 10 hours. A draw. After Although the two men had to be offon 32 . . . a5 the noon train forHa zleton, , and game 13, the lase fourgames were anticlimaxes. Reshevsky deflected all complications and the match ended 3-0, with 13 draws, in his favor. And three weeks lacer, he got married. Reshevsky-Horowitz, 1941 May 4-May 29, 1941 R. Yi Yi Yi l 'h Yi Yi With seconds to spare, Horowitz avoided Yi Yi I 1/2 Yi Y1 I Yi 1/i =9Y1 H. 'h Yi Yi 0Yi Yi Y1 Y1 0 1/2 0 Yi Yi 'h 1/2 Yi =6Yi 32 ... Ne6 because of the complications fol­ lowing 33 f5 N6f4. Actually White would then have had a forced win with 34 fxg6! be- 1942: Chess at Wttr cause 34 ... Nxd3 loses outright to 35 gxf7+ and 34 ... fxg6 35 Nf6+ Kh8 36 Qe4 or The most controversial championship of 34 ... Nxg6 35 Qf3 only prolong the pain. che generation began April 10, 1942, just five Here the same was adjourned, at 1:45 months afrer Pearl Harbor. Ocher countries A.M., and the hoses invited the players and had known wartime conditions and more than some 50 ocher guests, including Frank Mar­ once had seen international tournaments can­ shall and Albert Hodges, to a post-midnight celed because ofthe arrival of advancing troops. buffe t supper. Afrera brief interlude Horowitz Bue chis was entirely new to America and there and Reshevsky, longtime friends, agreed to was doubt at first that there would be a U.S. finish offthe game chat night. And so it was championship for several years. resumed at 3:30 A.M. (!) The United States Chess Federation, then just three years old, had become che official 33 fS ! gxfS 34 gxfS Kh8 35 e6! f6 36 Bc5 organizing body of the national tournament Qa6 37 Qf3 Rg8 38 Rgl Ne8 39 Qh5 and in January its top officers sent our an an­ Rxgl+ 40 Kxgl Ng7 41 Qxh6+ Kg8 nouncement canceling the championship set for the spring of 1942. "The United States Here Reshevsky thought for a while and Government has issued a call for an all-our played 42 Bf8! which threatens mate. The struggle in a war which has been thrust upon bishop cannot be taken because of 43 Qh8+ us," the Federation declared. "Our way of life Ke7 44 Qxg7 + and mates. Horowitz consid- is in great peril ... [and] che present time is not 62 The United States Chess Championship

propitious for holding a championship tour­ nament." The USCF did hold out hope for a big "Victory To urnament" some time after the war, but this did little to mollify the players and After chess fans. Horowitz editorialized against the 44 •.. g5+ cancellation in his magazine, pointing out that Washington had encouraged the continuation of professional sports and that other nations at war - such as Great Britain - had continued the traditions ofchess despite the fighting. De­ Reshevsky-Denker, priving the public of their forms of entertain­ 1942 ment is not a good way to build morale, Horo­ witz, and others, argued. What Denker called "the maddest time Under such pressure, the USCF relented. scramble in which I have ever participated" The nation's top players agreed to foregoap­ had only one move to go before the time con­ pearance fees and guarantees of prize money trol. Reshevsky played: chat they had come to expect, and agreed to play for modest prizes. Nevertheless, it was a 45 Kg3? weaker tournament than had been hoped. Fine was working for the government in Washing­ ...which throws away the only winning ton and Simonson was already in uniform. chance he had left, 45 Rxg5. Dake and Bernstein, among ochers, were un­

available, and in fact, there were only seven 45 ... Rb4! true contenders when play began at the Hotel Astor- Reshevsky, Kashdan, Denker, Steiner, Now Black has an easy draw because his Pinkus, Horowitz and 21-year-old Herbert rook is in position to check along the knight Seidman, the newest star of the Marshall Chess file. And chis was the last move of time con­ Club. trol. Once again the tournament turned out But here an extraordinary thing hap­ to be a race between two grandmasters. Re­ pened: The tournament director, L. Wa lter shevsky and Kashdan ran over the field, tak­ Stephens, was standing behind the board and ing virtually every game, including wins over could not see the clock directly. He picked it the third and fourth-place finishers, Denker up, turned it around and examined the faces. and Pinkus. The leaders began fu riously, scor­ Reshevsky's side showed a few seconds past 12 ing 8V2 out of their firstnin e games, and held because its clock had been set in motion when a joint two-point lead over the fieldwith five Denker made his 45th move. Denker's side rounds to go. But even chis remarkable pair of still had a few seconds left. streaks did not escape controversy: But in turning the clock around, In the sixth round Denker was also Stephens -vice president of the USCF and a among the leaders with 4V2-V2 and faced high school teacher - made an incredible error. Reshevsky with the Black pieces. The cham­ Denker forfeits, he announced. Spectators pion pressed an opening advantage into a stunned by this began grabbing at the clock to heavy-piece endgame as both players began get a look and it was passed back and forth. to run short of time. On the 37th move Denker shouted for attention, arguments en­ Denker managed to exchange queens but be­ sued and, according to Kashdan, "a near riot" cause each side had only seconds left the moves was breaking out. came crashing down as if they were mating Finally a semblance of calm was reached sacrifices. and several witnesses pointed out to Stephens The Reshevsky Years (1936-1942) 63 what he had done in turning the clock around: an easy opponent, the accomplished writer and It was Reshevsky's side, not Denker's, that had collector of chess trivia, Irving Chernev. Re­ exhausted the extra time. But Stephens would shevsky had to meet Horowitz, who had been not change his mind. "Does Kenesaw Moun­ a tough competitor a year beforeand was hav­ tain Landis ever reverse himself?" he asked. ing one of his best championships. AfterKash­ And anyone familiar with the then-commis­ dan won surehandedly he sat down to watch sioner of baseball knew the answer. "No." Reshevsky. Horowitz outplayed the champ and The decision stuck and Denker never re­ adjourned two pawns up: covered. As the tournament continued Re­ shevsky opened up a lead over Kashdan when the latter overlooked a brilliant queen sacrifice by Steiner. Bur the next day, against a rank outsider - Herman Halhbohm of Chicago - Reshevsky could not win against a King's After Gambit. Drawing with the player who finishes 45 ... Bf5 dead last is almost always costly and within two days the champion added another error.

Reshevsky-Horowitz, 1942

"It looks all over to the spectators," Kashdan After 92 QfS later recalled, "but opposite colored bishops and Reshevsky's better placed king offerdraw­ ing chances. I refusecongratulations, wonder­ ing what it will be like to be champion .... It has been three long weeks. I am thinking back to 1934 when I challenged Frank ]. Marshall Pilnick-Reshevsky, 1942 to a match for the American championship and the number of times I have tried forthe White was Carl Pilnick, the 19-year-old star tide since. This is my best. Just a few good of City College who was playing in his first moves, friend Horowitz.... " championship. He had been playing for per­ Friend Horowitz made good use of his petual check formore than 50 moves but the extra pawn in the next dozen difficult moves: game is just about over. His last hope was a trap. 46 Rg8 Kh7 47 Rf8 Be6 48 Be7 Rd2 49 KcS b4! SO Ra8 Rd3 Sl Kxb4 Rxd4+ 92 ... g4?? 93 Qf2 !! S2 KcS Rd3 S3 b4 Ra3 S4 Kb6 d4 SS bS Rb3 S6 Rxa6 d3 S7 KaS d2 S8 Rd6 A shocking, as well as embarrassing, re­ versal forthe champion. He must acquiesce to "Things go along very nicely," Kashdan the stalemate after 93 ... Qxf2(Reshevsky was thinking. "Horowitz now has a passed would fall into a similar, but more intricate pawn on d2. It's all over. .." stalemate trap in a championship 22 years later against another City College graduate, Larry S8 ... Bc4?? Evans). But by the last round it was Reshevsky at "No, wait. The White pawn on b5 12-2 and Kashdan at llY2-2Y2. Kashdan had threatens to sneak in." (The win was 58 ... Fourth U.S. Championship, New Yo rk, April 10-30, 1942

To tals K R D p s H s L L c p B L A G H w D L Points

1-2. Kashdan x Yi 1 1 0 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 11 3 1 l21/i -2Yi 1-2. Reshevsky Yi x 1 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 Yi Yi 10 5 0 121/i -2Yi 3-4. Denker 0 0 x 1 Yi Yi 1 0 1 1 Yi 1 1 1 1 1 9 3 3 10Yi-4Yi 3-4. Pinkus 0 0 0 x Yi 1 1 1 1 1 1 0 1 1 1 1 10 1 4 10Yi-4Yi 5. Steiner 1 0 Yi Yi x 1 1 0 1 1 0 1 1 Yi 1 Yi 8 4 3 10-5 6. Horowitz 0 1/i Yi 0 0 x 1 1 Yi Yi 1 Yi Yi 1 1 1 6 6 3 9-6 7. Seidman 0 0 0 0 0 0 x 1 0 1 1 1 1 Yi Yi 1 6 2 7 7-8 8-9. Levin, J. Yi 0 1 0 1 0 0 x 0 Yi 1 Yi Yi Yi Yi Yi 3 7 5 6Yi-8Yi 8-9. Levy, L. 0 0 0 0 0 Yi 1 1 x Yi 0 1/i 0 1 1 1 5 3 7 6Yi-8Yi 10-11. Chernev 0 0 0 0 0 Yi 0 Yi Yi x Yi 1 0 1 1 1 4 4 7 6-9 10-11. Pilnick, C. 0 Yi Yi 0 1 0 0 0 1 Yi x 0 1 1 0 Yi 4 4 7 6-9 12-13. Baker. H. 0 0 0 1 0 Yi 0 Yi Yi 0 1 x Yi Yi Yi Yi 2 7 6 5Yi-9Yi 12-13. Lessing, N. Yi 0 0 0 0 Yi 0 Yi 1 1 0 Yi x 0 1 Yi 3 5 7 5Yi-9Yi 14-16. Altman,B. 0 0 0 0 Yi 0 Yi Yi 0 0 0 Yi 1 x 1 0 2 4 9 4-1 1 14-16. Green 0 Yi 0 0 0 0 Yi Yi 0 0 1 Yi 0 0 x 1 2 4 9 4-11 14-16. Hahlbohm, H. 0 Yi 0 0 Yi 0 0 Yi 0 0 Yi Yi Yi 1 0 x 1 6 8 4-11

(Green withdrew and forfeited seven games.) The Reshevsky Years (193 6- 1942) 65

Ra3+ 59 Kb4 Ra7! and 60 ... Rd7!, getting dance was held in an adjacent hall, the cham­ behind the pawn, e.g. 60 Rxd2 Rxe7 61 b6 pion ran into feverish rime trouble. He had Kg6. Or 58 ... Ra3+ 59 Kb6 - blocking less than five minutes to make 20 moves and White's own pawn - Ra2 and ... Bg4.) then barely 30 seconds for six moves. His po­ sition deteriorated rapidly and he resigned just 59 Rxd2 Rxb5+ 60 Ka4 Rb7 61 Bd8 after makingthe time control. The match went back and forth, with Re­ The exchange of pawns leaves Black with shevsky retaking the lead on Lake Champlain only the slim possibility of a successful sacrifice in Game Three and Kashdan evening it in of his rook fora bishop that would freehis re­ Game Four. When the match returned to New maining pawns. The game ended with: Yo rk City for the fifth game, some 200 fans crowded into the - the 61 ... Kg6 62 Rd4 Be6 63 Ka5 Rb8 largest crowd ever assembled there - to see Re­ 64 Be7 Re8 65 Bd8 Rxd8 66 Rxd8 Kxg5 shevsky take the lead he never relinquished: 67 Kb4 Kf4 68 Kc3 g5 69 Kd2 g4 70 Ke2 g3 71 Rd4+! Ke5 72 Rh4 Drawn (72 ... Bd5 E29 Nimzo-lndian Defense 73 Rg4 g2 74 Kf2 sets up an impregnable white Reshevsky, black Kashdan blockade). 1 d4 Nf6 2 c4 e6 3 Nc3 Bb4 4 a3 Bxc3+ It was another Reshevsky last-round mir­ 5 bxc3 c5 6 e3 0-0 7 Bd3 Nc6 8 Nf3 d6 acle, and it established co-champions for the 9 Qc2 e5 10 d5 Ne7 11 0-0 Kh8?! first time in American history. A playoffwas inevitable. After giving away one of his cherished It was called a playoffbut was in effect a bishops Kashdan begins to play passively. He 14-game match for the title, much like the wants to advance ... f5 bur that would be met Horowitz challenge. The contest began in Oc­ by a vigorous opening of the center with e3- tober and was to be held at U.S. Army camps e4. So, he adopts another strategy, exchanging for the benefit of the troops - Fort Jay on off oneof the enemy bishops in the hope that Governor's Island in New Yo rk Harbor, then White will be left with a bad, pawn-bound Plattsburgh Barracks in upstate New York and QB. so on. Fortunately, rhe pace was more relaxed than in rhe 1941 match and the result was su­ 12 Nell Ne8 13 f4 ! exf4 14 exf4 g6 15 Nf3 perb fightingche ss. BfS 16 BxfS Nxf5 17 g4 Nh6 The big surprise came in Game 2. Re­ shevsky had nor lost in 74 straight U.S. tide games and he added to rhe streak in the first round with a difficultvictory with White. The champion had to think for an hour over his tenth move in Kashdan's Gruenfeld Defense After and didn't look happy. But the tide began to 17 ... Nh6 turn in the early middlegame and a bold Kash­ dan counterattack (with moves like ... g5 and ... f5-4) failed. Kashdan's kingside proved more vulnerable than Reshevsky's and the match stood 1-0 in favor of the champion. Bur in the second game, held at a service Reshevsky-Kashdan, 1942 club in Camp Upton, Yaphank, N.Y., Re­ shevsky's luck ran out. While a theatrical show This is the positional crisis of the game. was going on a few steps away and a noisy White cannot play 18 g5? Nf5 without 66 The United States Chess Championship obtaining a bad game. He has only one con­ Black could have taken the f- pawn on sistent move and that is the sacrifice of a pawn move 24 but, more important, he could safely with 18 f5 !. On 18 Qg2, for example, Black have grabbed c-pawn now. Fine claims a de­ seals the position with 18 ... f5 ! fensible position for Black after 24 ... Nxf6 25 Qxe5 Qxf8 26 Rxf6 Rxf6 27 Qxf6+ Qg7 18 f5 ! Nxg4 or, in the diagram, 26 ... Nxc4 27 Qe2 Nd6 28 Rael Ne8. Kashdan's passive policy leads Black must accept the sacrifice because him into a totally helpless bind in which 18 ... Ng8 would permit White to activate his White can mate even without a queen. bishop favorably at g5 or f4 . 27 Rael h5? 19 h3! Ne5 20 Nxe5 dxe5 21 Bh6 Rg8 22 f6 ! Once again a knight move (27 ... Ne8!) was necessary. Nicely played. Black cannot accept the second pawn because of23 Bg5. Kashdan must 28 Qe7! play very accurately now to meet the coming swarm of White pieces. Black cannot avoid the endgame that fol­ 22 ... g5 23 Qf5 ! Rg6 24 Bf8 Nd6?! lows, an endgame in which White's rooks run 25 Bg7+ Kg8 26 Qxe5 all over the kingside. Black must agree to open lines there with ... g4 because otherwise his rook is stalemated on g6. The rest is relatively easy:

28 ... Qxe7 29 Rxe7 Rd8 30 Rfel Kh7 31 Kg2 g4 32 Rle5! gxh3+ 33 Kxh3 Rgl After26 QxeS 34 Rxh5+ Kg6 35 R7e5 Rhl+ 36 Kg4 Ne4? 37 Rxhl Nf2+ 38 Kf4! and Black resigns

Black saw 38 ... Nxhl 39 Rg5+ Kh7 40 Rh5+ Kg6 41 Rh6 mate. The rest of the match was also easy. Reshevsky continued to Reshevsky-Kashdan, 1942 win with White and held the draw as Black. He finished out with three more wins and

26 .•. Qd7? three draws and the match 7lh-31/2 . Courtesy of theJo hn G. Wh ite Collection, Cleveland Public Library

Above: Paul Morphy (seated, table right) makes move in finals match of First , New Yo rk 1857, against Louis Paulsen, surrounded by New Yo rk fans.

Right: Capt. George Henry Mackenzie, recognized as cham­ pion from the Second American Chess Congress (Cleveland 1871) until his death in 1891.

Courtesy of the John G. Wh ite Colkction, Ckveland Public Library Courtesy of Ma rshallArchives

Two champions - Albert Beauragard Hodges (left) and Frank Marshall - enjoy a casual game in New Yo rk before an unidentified sculptor, circa 1920. Hodges retired after win­ ning the title in 1894 but was a frequent guest at the first championship tournaments, begun after Marshall retired in 1936. Note Hodges' signature and good-humored comment at left. Co urtesy of the john G. Wh ite Collection, Cleveland Public Library

Harry Nelson Pillsbury, twice champion in match victories over (1897, 1898). He held the title until his death in 1906 at age 33. Courtesy of the Russ

Reuben Fine (left) and I.A. ("Al") Horowitz post�mortem their drawn game from the 1944 championship, in which they finished second and third respectively to Arnold Denker. It was Fine's last try for the title and the closest Horowitz ever came to it. Courtesy of the U.S. Chess Federation Courtesy of the Ma rshallArchives

Courtesy of the Russell Collection

Top left : Tw o generations, that of the 1930s and '40s represented by Al Horowitz (second from left) and of the 1950s-60s, represented by and Larry Evans (right)-joined by the man who won the title in 1936 and again in 1981, Sammy Reshevsky. Top right: , 14, ana­ lyzing a Queen's Gambit Declined in his Brooklyn home shortly after winning the championship for the first time in January 1958. Bottom: Four veterans of the postwar era: Champion Larry Evans (frontleft) chats with his successor, Arthur Bisguier, during a round of the 1958-59 championship, one of 10 they each played in. James T. Sherwin (upper left), a contestant in eight championship tournaments, and Edmar Mednis (upper right), a contestant in 11, are deep in thought. Co urtesy of john G. Wh ite Collection, CltvelandPublic Library Co urtesy of Don Schultz

Courtesy of Don Schultz Courtesy of Don Schultz

Clockwise.fromtop left : Lubomir ("Lubosh") Kavalek, only winner of both the Czech championship, and, after becoming a naturalized citizen, the U.S.; he shared first place twice (1971-72 and 1973) and was clear winner in 1978. Lanky Californian Larry Christiansen, a contender for the top prize from 1977 on and co-champion in 1980 and 1983, shown in a characteristic middlegame pose. Joel Benjamin shared the record (with Pal Benko) for most consecutive championships played in -14 from 1981 to 1995 - and shared the title in 1987. Ya sser Seirawan, America's leading player in the 1980s, registered a plus score in nine championships, even more than Fischer. Co urtesy Wo lfPe ter Weber {c)

Co urtesy of Don Schultz

Above: The decisive last-round game of the 1990 championship saw John Fedorowicz (left) outplay surprise tournament leader Alex Sherzer in time pressure.

Right: Alex Ye rmolinsky domin.ated large Swiss System tournaments in the early 1990s and shared the champion­ ship title with ahother former Soviet GM, Alex Shabalov, in 1993. Co urtesy of Don Schultz

Above: With the help of the demonstration board assistant A.J. Steigman, fans in Key Wes t, Florida, followed play in the 1994 championship, such as in this first-round encounter between Alexander Ivanov (left} and Boris Kreiman.

Right: Wal ter Browne, a cham­ pionship contender for more than 20 years (1973-95), won the tournament six times.

Courwy ClevelandPublic Library Photograph Collection