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An Appreciation of Robert J. Fischer

This month I shall publish an extended tribute to the prowess of the late Bobby Fischer.  This game, played when he was 13, was instantly dubbed the “game of the century” and it had the effect of propelling his name  on to the world stage.  The notes to the following game are based on those by Bob Wade in The Games of Robert J. Fischer (Hardinge Simpole Publishing – www.hardingesimpole.co.uk.)

White: Donald Byrne
Black: Bobby Fischer
New York 1956

Grünfeld Defence

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.Nc3 Bg7 4.d4 0-0 5.Bf4 d5 6.Qb3 dxc4 7.Qxc4 c6 8.e4 Nbd7 9.Rd1 Nb6 10.Qc5 Bg4 11.Bg5

11.Be2 followed by 12.0-0 would have been more prudent.  The bishop move played allows a crescendo of tactical points to be uncovered by Fischer.  Fischer’s overall aim is to open up the centre while the white king remains uncastled, and to break up White’s pawn centre.

11...Na4!! 12.Qa3

If 12 Nxa4 Nxe4 13 Qb4 Nxg5 14 Nxg5 Bxd1 15 Kxd1 Bxd4 16 Qd2 Bxf2 with a clear advantage.

12...Nxc3 13.bxc3

13…Nxe4!!

This sacrifice to force open the e-file is a natural consequence of the previous combination.

14.Bxe7 Qb6 15.Bc4

15 Bxf8 Bxf8 16 Qb3 Nxc3 17 Qxb6 axb6 18 Ra1 Bxf3 19 gxf3 Ba3 20 Kd2 Bb2 21 Re1 Nd5 gives Black a very strong attack.

15...Nxc3 16.Bc5 Rfe8+ 17.Kf1

Byrne must have expected that Black would now opt out with 17 ... Nb5 when 18 Bxf7+ gives White a winning attack.

17 ... Be6!!

This is the move that raises this game to an immortal level.

At its simplest there is the Philidor mate after 18.Bxe6 Qb5+ 19.Kg1 Ne2+ 20.Kf1 Ng3+ 21.Kg1 Qf1+ 22.Rxf1 Ne2 mate.  Other lines are 18.Qxc3 Qxc5 exploiting the pin on the diagonal and 18.Re1 which is well met by 18...Bxc4+.

18.Bxb6 Bxc4+ 19.Kg1 Ne2+ 20.Kf1 Nxd4+ 21.Kg1 Ne2+ 22.Kf1 Nc3+ 23.Kg1 axb6

24.Qb4

If 24.Qd6 Nxd1 25.Qxd1 Rxa2 followed by ... Ra1.

24...Ra4 25.Qxb6 Nxd1

Black has a rook, two bishops and a pawn for the queen.

26.h3 Rxa2 27.Kh2 Nxf2 28.Re1 Rxe1 29.Qd8+ Bf8 30.Nxe1 Bd5 31.Nf3 Ne4 32.Qb8 b5 33.h4 h5 34.Ne5 Kg7 35.Kg1 Bc5+ 36.Kf1 Ng3+ 37.Ke1 Bb4+ 38.Kd1 Bb3+ 39.Kc1 Ne2+ 40.Kb1 Nc3+ 41.Kc1 Rc2 0-1 checkmate

My tribute to Bobby Fischer continues with a fine game against a fellow American grandmaster.

White: William Lombardy
Black: Bobby Fischer
Monte Carlo 1967

Reti Opening

1.Nf3 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.b3 Bg7 4.Bb2 0-0 5.g3 d6 6.Bg2 e5 7.0-0 Nc6 8.Nc3 Nh5 9.e3 f5 10.d3

10 ... g5!

10...Bd7 11.Qd2 Be8 12.Nd5 Bh6 13.Ne1 g5 14.f4 [diagram, below right] is Reti – Yates, Moscow 1925.  White had the advantage as Black’s attack could proceed no further.  Fischer’s method is more dynamic.  He intends to cast an iron hoop of pawns around the white king, while simultaneously setting up a barrier of pawns along the h1-a8 diagonal.  Thus White’s bishops lack scope and any middlegame operations will find White’s king jeopardised to a greater extent than Black’s.

11.Ne1 g4 12.f3

White must get some breathing space.

12...Nf6 13.f4 Ne7 14.Qd2 Ng6 15.Nd5 Ne8

Note the difference between this position and Reti – Yates.  Here Black has already pushed his pawn to g4 and threatens ... h5 – h4.  His e-pawn is well protected against any pressure and queen’s bishop has not been prematurely committed.

16.Rd1 c6 17.Nc3 exf4 18.exf4 h5

Now if White tries to advance with 19.d4 there follows 19...h4 20.d5 h3 and White’s king’s bishop will never see the light of day again.

19.Nc2 h4 20.Rfe1 Nf6 21.Ne2 Bd7 22.Bd4 Rf7 23.Bf2 h3

24.Bh1

White wants to execute the standard flank advance with a4, b4 and b5.  However, if the position is opened up then his own king will be  exposed to mating threats.

24...Qc7 25.Nc3 a6 26.Nd4 Nf8 27.b4 Rd8

More accurate is the immediate 27...Kh7.  White should now have seized his chance with the thematic 28.b5, for if 28...c5 then 29.Nd5 Nxd5 30.Bxd5 cxd4 31.Re7.  The move b5 fits in with White’s general plan of weakening Black’s grip on the long diagonal.  Having missed the boat here White is not allowed a second chance.

28.Nb3 Re8 29.Rxe8 Bxe8 30.a4 Kh7 31.Ne2 Re7 32.a5 Kg6 33.Nc3 Bf7 34.Re1 Rd7 35.Qc2 d5

Breaking the position open with a vengeance.  White’s porous king’s position is sufficient to decide the game.

36.Bb6 Qc8 37.Ne2 dxc4 38.dxc4 Re7 39.Bc5 Re8 40.Bf2 Ne4 41.Bd4 Bxd4+ 42.Nexd4 Nd6 43.Re5 Rxe5 44.fxe5 Qe8

Black now penetrates White’s camp – winning pawns by creating mating threats.

45.Qe2 Bxc4 46.Qe3 Bxb3 47.Nxb3 Nc4 48.Qe2 Nxe5 49.Nc5 Qe7 50.Nxb7 Nfd7 51.Qd2 Nc4 52.Qc3 Qe2 53.Bxc6 Nd2 54.Qc1 Ne5 0-1 White resigns

This game, against a solid German grandmaster, attracted the attention of Garry Kasparov for his series, My Great Predecessors.  I have quoted Kasparov’s comments at salient points in what is to come.

White: Bobby Fischer
Black: Wolfgang Unzicker
Siegen Olympiad 1970

Ruy Lopez

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Bxc6 dxc6 5.0-0

In Fischer’s games one can sometimes see the influence of Morphy and Steinitz, but in the given instance he is the successor of Lasker, who played this variation just as masterfully (although using the old 5.Nc3 or 5.d4).

5...f6 6.d4 exd4 7.Nxd4 Ne7 8.Be3 Ng6 9.Nd2 Bd6 10.Nc4 0-0 11.Qd3 Ne5 12.Nxe5 Bxe5 13.f4 Bd6 14.f5

This game is reminiscent of the famous Lasker – Capablanca game at St. Petersburg 1914. White gives himself a backward pawn but gains space on the kingside to compensate.  The idea is very double-edged.

14...Qe7 15.Bf4

White’s plan includes the exchange of the dark-squared bishops followed by e4-e5 or even g2-g4-g5.  As usual in such positions, Fischer acts with  iron consistency.

15...Bxf4 16.Rxf4 Bd7 17.Re1 Qc5 18.c3 Rae8 19.g4 Qd6 20.Qg3 Re7

Black could have considered 20...c5 21.Nf3 Qb6 (but not 21...Bc6 22.g5! with a growing initiative for White).

21.Nf3 c5

Now Fischer sets about consistently converting his extra pawn on the kingside.

22.e5 fxe5 23.Rfe4 Bc6 24.Rxe5 Rfe8 25.Rxe7 Rxe7 26.Ne5 h6 27.h4

27…Bd7

Unzicker has been holding on without making any aggressive moves and just when he  must strike out to save his life (27...Qd5 28.Nxc6 Rxe1+ 29.Qxe1 Qxc6 30.Qe3 Qd5) he finds the strange manoeuvre ... Bc6-d7-c8.

28.Qf4 Qf6 29.Re2 Bc8 30.Qc4+ Kh7 31.Ng6

Black’s king is trapped and his bishop is bad because of the pawn structure.  Also, he never gets time to capture on g4.

31...Rxe2 32.Qxe2

32…Bd7

Like many of Fischer’s other opponents, Unzicker cracks under the prolonged pressure.  After 32...Qd6! it is doubtful whether White could have converted his slight positional advantage, on account of the open position of his king: 33.Ne7 Qg3+ 34.Kf1 Bd7 35.Qe4 Bb5+ 36.c4 Qh3+ with perpetual check, or 33.Qe8 Qg3+ 34.Kf1 Qd3+! 35.Kg2 (35.Qe2? Bxf5!) 35...Qd2+.

33.Qe7 Qxe7 34.Nxe7

A rare instance, when Fischer plays not with a bishop, but a knight against a bishop.  And his knight completely dominates, keeping the black king imprisoned.

34...g5 35.hxg5 hxg5 36.Nd5 Bc6 37.Nxc7 Bf3 38.Ne8 Kh6 39.Nf6 Kg7 40.Kf2 Bd1 41.Nd7

41...Bxg4 42.f6+ Kg6 43.f7 Kxf7 44.Ne5+ wins the bishop.

41...c4 42.Kg3 1-0 Black resigns

The death of Bobby Fischer [Read my obituary of Fischer here.] came as a thunderclap to the chess world.  He is one of the very few champions – Morphy, Capablanca and Kasparov  being perhaps the only others – who have established themselves as intellectual giants among the non-chess-playing public.  Here are further extracts of Fischer’s play:

White: Svetozar Gligoric
Black: Bobby Fischer
Siegen Olympiad 1970

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