Tal—Fischer Blitz
by Bill Wall
On April 8, 1970, at 4 PM at the Hotel
Plaza in Herceg Novi, Yugoslavia (now
Montenegro) Mikhail Tal (1936-1992)
and Bobby Fischer (1943-2008) sat
down to play the first game in the
Herceg Novi blitz (5-minute)
tournament. This was the strongest blitz
tournament ever held. It was considered
the unofficial "Speed Chess
Championship of the World." Fischer
was the only one to win both games in
round one, and he did it against Tal. Bill Wall
However, Fischer was very lucky in
both games. Fischer should have lost
his first game in the endgame after
having a better position in the opening
and middlegame. Fischer could have
lost both games to Tal and still won the Every chess master was once a
tournament. Beating Tal twice probably beginner. - Chernev
put Fischer in a better mood for the rest
of the tournament and Tal in a worse
mood for the rest of the tournament (but
he did take 2nd place).
The Herceg Novi blitz tournament had
11 grandmasters (including 4 world
champions) and 1 International Master
that played in this double round-robin.
The only major players missing were
Boris Spassky and Bent Larsen. After
the first round, Fischer led with a 2-0
score, followed by Tigran Petrosian and
David Bronstein, each with 1.5 points.
Petrosian beat Viktor Korchnoi in one
game and drew the other. Bronstein
beat Wolfgang Uhlmann in one game
and drew the other. For the rest,
Reshevsky-Ostojic, Hort-Matulovic,
and Smyslov-Ivkov split their games,
one each. When it was over, Fischer
scored 19 out of 22 (+17 -1 =4) and
finished 4.5 points ahead of 2nd place
finisher, Tal. Fischer's only loss was to
Viktor Korchnoi (1931-2016).
Fischer dominated the Soviet players,
beating these players 8.5 to 1.5. He
soundly defeated three world
champions, Tal, Petrosian, and
Smyslov, beating them in both games.
Fischer spent no more than 2 and 1/2
minutes on any game. No one has been
as dominant at blitz since Fischer's
results from this tournament.
Of course, anything can happen in blitz
chess. Of the 11 classical games that
Fischer and Tal played, Fischer won 2,
lost 4, with 5 draws. As Tal got older,
he was less of a threat. In classical
games, Garry Kasparov defeated Tal
twice, with 9 draws. In blitz chess,
Kasparov one 1 game against Tal, lose
one, and drew 2 games.
In August, 1971, Fischer scored 21.5 —
0.5 in the strong Manhattan Chess Club
blitz championship. Counting the
Herceg Novi blitz event, Fischer scored
40.5 — 3.5 (+38 — 1 =5), or 92
percent, in his two blitz tournaments. If
these tournaments were rated, Fischer
would have had a 2950 rating. Fischer
is considered the best blitz chess player
who ever lived. His only rival may have
been Jose Capablanca, and he avoided
Capablanca by being born after Capa
died.
After the Herceg Novit blitz
tournament, Bobby Fischer rattled off
all his 22 games from memory (see
games below), around 1,000 moves!
(source: Profile of a Prodigy by Brady,
p. 164).
In 1988, the first official World Blitz
chess championship was held. The
winner was former world chess
champion, Mikhail Tal.
Speed chess include games full of
blunders and overlooked moves. Most
of the games are lost on time rather than
a checkmate, stalemate, or draw. Speed
chess is a good testing ground for
opening ideas and tactical play.
For Internet chess players, some feel
that speed chess is the real test of chess
prowess. Slower games may be played
by an unknown opponent with a chess
engine, but speed chess, especially
bullet chess, takes away the likelihood
that someone is using a chess computer.
It is just too fast for someone with a
chess engine to input the moves and
wait for the computer to respond, then
make the move. Strong chess masters
and grandmasters dominate the Internet
rating for speed chess (blitz or bullet
chess).
For street hustlers, speed chess is the
preferred game of choice. A speed
game is generally played for money,
usually a 5-minute game with no
increments.
For speed chess, the player must play
much more quickly of course. A player
will go from making 2 or 3 moves
every 10 minutes in a regular game to
making hundreds of moves in 10
minutes time. The speed player must be
more physically alert. Once a move is
decided, which is usually in a few
seconds, he then must move quickly
and also quickly hit the chess clock.
One needs good preparation to play
speed chess. A player must know the
hand movements for capturing pieces,
castling, and promoting a pawn to
another piece before the move happens.
If a player is about to promote a pawn,
he better put a piece (preferably a
Queen) ready in the other hand on his
opponent's time so that he won't waste
valuable seconds on the chess clock
looking for a piece to promote. When
capturing, it is best to move your own
piece with one hand and pick up the
opponent's piece with the other hand in
a single fluid motion, then hit the chess
clock with the bottom of the piece you
just captured so that you don't waste
any time putting the captured piece
down, then hitting the clock.
Opinions vary whether blitz or speed
chess is good for your general chess at
regular time controls. Some feel that
playing a lot of speed chess leads to
superficial thought processes and
rushed decision-making. Others say that
speed chess helps with recognizing
tactical play and awareness. Speed
chess helps a player at making quick
decisions, which is helpful when a
player is in time-trouble in longer
games.
(Mikhail Tal - Robert James Fischer
[Siclian Defense, B50]
Herceg Novi blitz (game 1), 08.04.1970
[Comments by Bill Wall]
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Nc3 [3.d4 Nf6]
3...e5 [3...Nf6] 4.Bc4 Be7 [4...Nc6]
5.d3 Nf6 [5...Nc6] 6.0-0 Nc6 7.Ne1
[7.Ng5; 7.a4] 7...0-0 8.f4 [8.Nf3]
8...a6N [8...exf4 9.Bxf4 Be6; 8...Bg4
9.Nf3 Nd4] 9.a4 [9.f5; 9.Nf3] 9...exf4
[9...Bg4] 10.Bxf4 Be6 11.Bxe6
[11.Nd5] 11...fxe6 12.Bg3 [12.a5]
12...Qb6 13.Qd2 [13.Rb1] 13...Ng4
[13...Nh5 14.Bf2 Nd4] 14.Nf3 Nd4
15.Rab1 Nxf3+ [15...Bf6] 16.gxf3 Ne5
17.Kg2 [17.f4] 17...Ng6 [17...Qb4]
18.Ne2 [18.f4] 18...Nh4+ [18...d5]
19.Bxh4 Bxh4 20.b4 Qc7 21.bxc5 dxc5
22.a5 [22.f4] 22...Rf6 23.f4 Raf8
24.Rb6 [24.Qc3] 24...Bg5?! [24...g5
25.e5 Rg6] 25.e5 Rf5 [25...R6f7]
26.Rxe6? [26.Qe3 Qf7 27.Qe4]
26...Qf7 27.Rd6 [27.Rb6] 27...Bxf4?
[27...Rxe5 28.Rf2 (28.fxe5 Qxf1+
29.Kg3 Qf3#) 28...Rd5] 28.Rxf4 Rxf4
29.Nxf4 [29.Qxf4] 29...Qxf4 30.Qxf4
Rxf4 31.Rd7 [31.Rd5 c4 32.d4 Rg4+
33.Kf3] 31...Ra4 32.e6 Kf8 33.Rf7+
Ke8 34.Rxg7 Rxa5 35.Rxb7 Ra2
36.Kf3 [36.Rxh7 Rxc2+ 37.Kf3]
36...Rxc2 [36...h5 37.c3] 37.Rxh7 c4
38.d4 [38.dxc4 Rxc4] 38...c3 39.d5
[39.Ke4] 39...Rd2 40.Ke4 c2 41.Rc7
Kd8 42.Rc4 [42.Rc5] 42...a5? [42...Ke7
43.h4] 43.h4 [43.Ke5! Rxh2 (43...Ke7
44.d6+ Kf8 45.Rc8+ Kg7 46.d7 Re2+
47.Kf4 Rf2+ 48.Ke3) 44.Kd6 (44.d6
Re2+ 45.Kd5 Rd2+) 44...Re2 45.Rc6 a)
45.Rh4 Kc8 46.Rh8+ Kb7 47.Rh1 Kc8
48.e7; b) 45.Rc7 a4 46.Rc3 a3 47.Rxa3
Kc8 (47...c1Q 48.Ra8+ Qc8 49.e7+
Rxe7 50.Rxc8+ Kxc8 51.Kxe7)
48.Ra8+ (48.Rc3+ Kb8 49.Kd7)
48...Kb7 49.Ra1 Kb6 50.e7 Kb5 51.Rc1
Kb4 52.Rxc2 Rxc2 53.e8Q; 45...a4
46.Rc3] 43...a4? [43...Ke7 44.h5]
44.Ke5 a3 [Diagram #1]
45.d6? [45.Kd6! Re2 (45...Rxd5+
46.Kxd5 a2 47.Kd6 a1Q 48.e7+ Ke8
49.Rc8+ Kf7 50.e8Q+ Kf6 (50...Kg7
51.Rc7+ Kh6 52.Qe3+ Kg6 53.Qg5#)
51.Qe6+ Kg7 52.Rg8+ Kh7 53.Qg6#)
46.h5 (46.Rg4 Kc8 47.Rg1 a2 48.e7
(48.h5) 48...Kb7 49.h5) ] 45...Re2+
46.Kf5?? [46.Kd5 Rd2+ 47.Ke5
Re2+=] 46...Rf2+ [46...a2! 47.d7 Ke7]
47.Kg4 a2?! [47...Re2 48.d7 Ke7=]
48.d7?? [48.e7+ Kd7 49.Rc7+ (49.Re4
Rf4+ 50.Rxf4 a1Q; 49.Rc8 Re2
50.Rd8+ Kc6) 49...Kxd6 50.e8Q Kxc7
(50...a1Q?? 51.Qd8+ (51.Qe7+ Kd5
52.Rc5+ Kd4 53.Qe5+) 51...Ke5
52.Re7+ Kf6 53.Qd6#) 51.Qe5+= Kc6
52.Qb2; 48.Ra4 c1Q 49.Ra8+ Qc8
50.Rxc8+ Kxc8; 48.Rb4 c1Q 49.Rb8+
Qc8 50.Rxc8+ Kxc8 51.e7 Kd7]
48...Ke7 49.Rc8 Rd2 50.Re8+
[50.d8Q+ Rxd8 51.Rc7+ Kxe6 52.Rxc2
Rg8+] 50...Kf6 [50...Kd6] 51.e7 Rxd7
[51...c1Q] 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "1.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Mikhail Tal"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "B50"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "102"]
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Nc3 e5 4. Bc4 Be7
5. d3 Nf6 6. O-O Nc6 7. Ne1 O-O 8. f4
a6 9. a4 exf4 10. Bxf4 Be6 11. Bxe6
fxe6 12. Bg3 Qb6 13. Qd2 Ng4 14. Nf3
Nd4 15. Rab1 Nxf3+ 16. gxf3 Ne5 17.
Kg2 Ng6 18. Ne2 Nh4+ 19. Bxh4 Bxh4
20. b4 Qc7 21. bxc5 dxc5 22. a5 Rf6
23. f4 Raf8 24. Rb6 Bg5 25. e5 Rf5 26.
Rxe6 Qf7 27. Rd6 Bxf4 28. Rxf4 Rxf4
29. Nxf4 Qxf4 30. Qxf4 Rxf4 31. Rd7
Ra4 32. e6 Kf8 33. Rf7+ Ke8 34. Rxg7
Rxa5 35. Rxb7 Ra2 36. Kf3 Rxc2 37.
Rxh7 c4 38. d4 c3 39. d5 Rd2 40. Ke4
c2 41. Rc7 Kd8 42. Rc4 a5 43. h4 a4
44. Ke5 a3 45. d6 Re2+ 46. Kf5 Rf2+
47. Kg4 a2 48. d7 Ke7 49. Rc8 Rd2 50.
Re8+ Kf6 51. e7 Rxd7 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "1.2"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Mikhail Tal"]
[ECO "A00"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "89"]
1. g3 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} g6 2.
Bg2 Bg7 3. Nf3 c5 4. c3 Nf6 5. O-O O-
O 6. d4 {I played this opening in
Benko's style.} d6 {? The ensuing
endgame is clearly better for White
because his Bishop on g2 is more active
than Black's on g7 and Black has
weaker squares. Neither is particularly
recommendable 6...Qb6!? 7 d5! as in
Benko-Fischer, Curacao 1962, when
Black's Queen on b6 was misplaced.
Correct for Black was 6...cxd 7 cxd d5!
with an equal game as in Smyslov-
Fischer in this same Blitz tournament.}
7. dxc5 dxc5 8. Qxd8 Rxd8 9. Be3 Na6
10. Na3 Nd5 11. Rfd1 Bg4 12. Bd2 h6
{To keep White out of g5; if 12...Nac7
but after 13 Nc4 b6? (otherwise 14 Na5
with pressure) 14 Nce5 Be6 (14...Bxe5
Nxe5 Bxe2 16 Re1 Ba6 17 c4 Nf6 18
Bc3 threatening 19 Nc6 and 19 Ba8
should win) 15 e4 Nf6 16 Nc6! Re8 17
Bf4 Na6 18 Bf1 c4 19 Ng5, Black is
lost.} 13. h3 {Nb5, or Re1 were
probably more exact.} Be6 14. Nb5
Ndc7 {14...Nb6 gave more counter
play.} 15. a4 Bb3 16. Rdc1 Nxb5 17.
axb5 Nc7 18. Be3 {!} Nxb5 19. Bxc5
b6 {?? It was not necessary to give
away a Pawn. Correct was 19...e6 still
after 20 e3 threatening Nd4, White
keeps an edge.} 20. Bxe7 Re8 21. Ba3
Rad8 {21...Rxe2 22 Bf1! wins the
exchange.} 22. e3 {A Pawn up and a
powerful square on d4, the position is
easily winning for White.} a5 23. Nd4
Nxa3 24. Rxa3 Bc4 25. Bf1 Bd5 26.
Bg2 Bc4 27. Ra4 Bd3 28. b4 {!} axb4
29. Rxb4 Rd6 30. Rd1 Bc2 31. Rd2 Bf5
32. Rdb2 Rc8 {32...Rb8 ofcourse was
slightly more tenacious, but after 33
Nxf5 gxf5, Black's pawn structure on
the King side is hopeless.} 33. Rxb6
Rxb6 34. Rxb6 Rxc3 35. Nxf5 gxf5 36.
Bd5 {Rb5 was more precise.} Rc7 37.
Rb5 Re7 38. Bc4 Re5 {?} {Better to
give up the Pawn on f5 with 38...f4 or
Bf8 it is just a matter of time in any
case.} 39. Rb7 Kh7 40. Rxf7 Kg6 41.
Rc7 Bf8 42. Rc6+ Kg7 43. Bd3 Be7 44.
Bc2 Ra5 45. Kg2 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "10.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Viktor Korchnoi"]
[ECO "C19"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "109"]
1. e4 e6 2. d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 Ne7
5. a3 Bxc3+ 6. bxc3 c5 7. a4 Qa5 8.
Bd2 Nbc6 9. Qg4 O-O 10. Nf3 f6 11.
Bd3 f5 12. Qg3 c4 13. Be2 b5 14. O-O
bxa4 15. Ng5 Nxd4 16. cxd4 Qxd2 17.
Qh4 h6 18. Nf3 Ng6 19. Nxd2 Nxh4
20. Rxa4 Ng6 21. Rfa1 a6 22. Nb1 Ne7
23. Ra5 Nc6 24. R5a4 Nxd4 25. Bd1 f4
26. Nc3 Nc6 27. Ne2 Nxe5 28. Nd4
Rb8 29. h4 Rb6 30. h5 Nc6 31. Ne2 e5
32. Nc3 Rd8 33. Bf3 e4 34. Be2 Nd4
35. Bf1 Bb7 36. Rd1 Nb5 37. Nxe4 Rc8
38. Nd2 Nc3 39. Rda1 Nxa4 40. Rxa4
Bc6 41. Ra5 Bb5 42. Nf3 c3 43. Nd4
Bxf1 44. Kxf1 Rb4 45. Rxd5 a5 46.
Ke2 a4 47. Kd3 Ra8 48. Kxc3 Rb1 49.
Rb5 Rxb5 50. Nxb5 a3 51. Nxa3 Rxa3+
52. Kd4 Ra2 53. Kd3 Kf7 54. g3 fxg3
55. fxg3 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "10.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Viktor Korchnoi"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "E97"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "62"]
1. d4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} Nf6 2.
c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 d6 5. Be2 O-O
6. Nf3 e5 7. O-O Nc6 8. d5 Ne7 9. Nd2
{This move is apparently considered
best by the Russians. In the "Turner
Mira" 1970, Petrosian played 9 b4 Nh5
10 Nd2!? Nf4 11 a4, but without great
success against Gligoric.} c5 {I think
this is a logical move. Black takes a
tempo from his King side play to slow
down White's Queen side initiative
which usually comes quite quickly with
b4, c5, etc.} 10. a3 Ne8 11. b4 b6 12.
Rb1 f5 {! Having made all the
necessary precautions on the Queen's
side Black is now ready to attack on the
King's flank.} 13. f3 {Maybe better is
13 Nb3 as in the game Gligoric-
Tringov, Belgrade, 1969.} f4 14. a4 g5
15. a5 Rf6 {!} 16. bxc5 {? This is, as
Korchnoi pointed out afterwards, a
"terrible mistake" because now it is
impossible for White to get any
initiative on the Queen side.} bxc5 17.
Nb3 Rg6 18. Bd2 Nf6 {or ...h5!} 19.
Kh1 g4 {Maybe more exact was
19...h5} 20. fxg4 {Forced because of
the threat of 20...g3 and then white
cannot play 21 h3 because of 21...Bxh3
etc.} Nxg4 21. Rf3 {? 21 Bf3! was
better, with a more tenacious defence..}
Rh6 22. h3 Ng6 23. Kg1 Nf6 24. Be1
Nh8 {!! This attacking manouver is
decisive.} 25. Rd3 Nf7 26. Bf3 {h4!?
held out a little longer.} Ng5 27. Qe2
Rg6 28. Kf1 {Or 28 Kh2 Qd7 threatens
29...Nxh3 etc.} Nxh3 29. gxh3 Bxh3+
30. Kf2 {At this moment my hand
hovered over White's Pawn on e4, but
at the last second I realized that
30...Nxe4 is answered by 31 Qxe4 and
White wins.} Ng4+ 31. Bxg4 Bxg4
{And here Korchnoi thought for about a
minute and a half and not seeing a
defence to the double threat of
31...Bxe2 and 32...Qh4+ resigned.} 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "6.2"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian"]
[ECO "C18"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "81"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer.} e6 2.
d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 c5 5. a3 Bxc3+
6. bxc3 Qc7 7. Nf3 {I could have
played Qg4 but was influenced against
it because Petrosian as Black had
recently beaten Diez Del Corral at
Palma de Mallorca in this line.} Ne7 8.
a4 Bd7 {An interesting idea, Black
plays his Bishop to c6 the knight's
square and his Knight to d7, the
Bishop's square.} 9. Bd3 Bc6 10. O-O
Nd7 11. Ba3 {To prevent 11...Nb6. But
clearly 11 Ng5! offered excellent
prospects on the King's flank for White,
ie: 11...h6 12 Qh5 g6 (or 12...O-O? 13
Nh7 Re8 14 Nf6+ gxf 15 Qh6 f5 16
Bg5! and wins) 13 Qh3 or Qh4.} h6 12.
Re1 b6 13. Nd2 {!? A standard way of
indirectly protecting the a-Pawn.} Bxa4
{? Risky.} 14. dxc5 {Possible also was
14 Qg4 and if 14...c4 15 Bxc4! dxc4 16
Bxe7 with advantage to White. But a
better chance for Black is 14...O-O 15
dxc5 b5 16 c6 Nxc6! 17 Bxf8 Rxf8
with compensation for the exchange.}
bxc5 {? I was afraid of 14...Nxe5 15
cxb6 axb6 16 Bf1 ( White is not
without some compensation for the
Pawn, ie: 16...Qxc3? 17 Re3 Qc7 18
Bb2 or 16...Ne5g6 17 c4 but best for
Black is 16...Bc6!} 15. Qg4 {!} Bc6 16.
Qxg7 Rg8 17. Qxh6 Nxe5 18. Bxc5 {?
Qf4 was crushing as after 18...c4! (only
move) 19 Bf1 Ne7g6 18 Qg5 Black is
practically in zuzwang and white
threatens 19 h4 and h5.} d4 19. Be4
dxc3 20. Bxc6+ N7xc6 {?? Of course
20...Qxc6! 21 Ne4 Nf3+ 22 Kh1 (22
Kf1 Nd2+ 23 Nxd2 cxd2 wins a piece)
Nxe1 23 Rxe1 O-O-O! and Black
should win because 24 Bxe7 is met by
24...Qxe4!! and mate in four moves -
For 23 Nf6+ Kd8 24 Bxe7+ Kxe7 25
Nxg8+ Rxg8 26 f3! Nxf3 27 Rxa7+
Kd6 28 Qf4+ Ne5 and Black should
win after some more checks. If 26 Ra7+
at once Ke8 27 f3 Qc4 mates quickly}
21. Ne4 O-O-O {21...Nf3+ 22 Kh1
Nxe1 23 Nf6+ and Nxg8 wins.} 22.
Red1 {Many other moves were more
tenacious.} Ng4 {? A pleasant surprise;
22...Nf3+ 23 Kh1 (23 Kf1 Nxh2+ Ke2
Qe5 etc.) 23...Rh8! 24 Bd6 Rh6 25 Bc7
Kc7 26 gxf Rdh8 with good chances for
Black.} 23. Qh4 {White plays on
Black's weak d6 square and a safe King
position. White takes over the
initiative.} Rxd1+ 24. Rxd1 f5 25.
Nd6+ Kb8 26. Nb5 Qg7 {or 26...Qa5
27 Qh7!} 27. Bd6+ Kb7 28. Rb1 Kc8
29. Qg3 {Bg3! was crushing.} Qb7 {?
...Nf6 gave more chances for saving the
game.} 30. Nxc3 {Maybe Black was
playing for traps, ie: 30 Bf4 Rd8! and
31 Nd6+? Rxd6 or 31 h3? Qxb5! or 31
Nxc3? Qxb1+ etc. } Qa6 31. h3 {31
Qf3!} Nf6 32. Qh4 {Qf3 was better.}
Nd7 33. Qh7 Rd8 34. Qf7 Qc4 35. Rb3
Qd4 {?? ...Nd4!} 36. Qxe6 {The rest is
simple enough.} Qf6 37. Qd5 Nde5 38.
Nb5 Qf7 39. Qc5 Nf3+ 40. Rxf3 Kd7
41. Rd3 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "6.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "E77"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "84"]
1. c4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} Nf6 2.
Nc3 g6 3. d4 d6 4. e4 Bg7 5. Bd3 {This
is not the best move, but Petrosian did
not like to play blitz games according to
the analyses. He left the analyses for the
tournament games.} c5 6. d5 O-O 7.
Nge2 e6 8. Bg5 {Uhlman used to be
fond of this system many years ago.}
h6 {!} 9. Bd2 {More consistent was 10
Bh4.} Nbd7 10. b3 {With b3 White
weakens the diagonal a1-h8, If 10 f4
e5! 11 f5 gxf5 12 exf5 e4! with good
play for Black.} exd5 11. cxd5 a6 12.
O-O b5 13. f4 {? a bad move.} c4 {!}
14. bxc4 Nc5 15. Bc2 {15 Qc2 is better,
when Black has compensation for the
Pawn.} b4 16. e5 {!} dxe5 17. fxe5
Ng4 18. Na4 Nxa4 19. Bxa4 Bxe5
{White has no hope.} 20. Bf4 Qb6+
{Black threatens on both sides.} 21.
Kh1 Bxa1 {Better is 21...Bxf4 22 Rxf4
Nf2+ winning easily} 22. Qxa1 Nf2+
{?! 22...g5 is better, this way White has
got a chance.} 23. Rxf2 Qxf2 24. Bxh6
f6 25. Bxf8 Kxf8 26. Ng1 Bg4 {? A bad
move because after h3 the bishop has to
move back.} 27. Qb1 {h3 was also
sharp.} Kg7 28. h3 Bf5 29. Qxb4 Ra7
30. Bd1 Qxa2 31. Bf3 a5 32. Qc5 Rb7
33. d6 Rb1 34. d7 Bxd7 35. Qe7+ Kh6
36. Qxd7 {!??} Qf2 { White could
make a draw with Qf8+ or Qf6.} 37.
Kh2 Qxg1+ 38. Kg3 Qe1+ 39. Kh2
Qe5+ 40. g3 Rb2+ 41. Bg2 Qe4 42.
Qd5 Rxg2+ 0-1
[Event "Blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi (Yugoslavia)"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "7.1"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "David Bronstein"]
[ECO "C16"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "93"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} e6 2.
d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. e5 b6 5. a3 Bf8
{For a time Robert Byrne, the
American grandmaster, enjoyed
considerable success with 5...Bxc3+ 6
bxc3 Ne7 7 Qg4 but apparently he
found a clear refutation because this
sharp defence has dissappeared from
his opening repertory. "Undeveloping"
pieces though as with 5...Bf8?! has little
to recomend it.} 6. f4 Nc6 {Intending to
castle Queenside. If 6...c5 7 Nf3 Nc6 8
Ne2?! gives White a clear advantage.}
7. Nf3 Nh6 8. Bd3 {Bb5 was more
precise.} Nf5 9. Ne2 h5 {...Nh4!? was a
good chance to free Black's game
slightly.} 10. g3 Bb7 11. c3 Qd7 12.
Qc2 O-O-O 13. b4 f6 14. Bd2 Kb8 15.
O-O Nfe7 {Better was 15...Be7 and
White would answer 16 a4.} 16. Rfb1
h4 {Black takes a last chance for
counterplay.} 17. Nxh4 g5 {!} 18. fxg5
fxe5 19. Rf1 {!} exd4 20. cxd4 Bg7 21.
Bc3 e5 22. Rf7 exd4 23. Rxg7 {Bb2!}
Rxh4 {Correct was 23...dxc3 with good
chances for black.} 24. gxh4 Qg4+ 25.
Ng3 dxc3 26. Qxc3 d4 27. Qd2 Ne5 28.
Rf1 Nd5 29. Bf5 {? Qe2 with a winning
endgame in sight.} Nf3+ 30. Rxf3 Qxf3
31. Be4 Qxa3 32. Qxd4 Qc1+ 33. Kf2
Rf8+ 34. Nf5 Nc3 {? 34...Qf4+ and
35...Rf5 wins for Black.} 35. Bxb7
Rxf5+ 36. Bf3 Nd5 {36...Qc2+ 37 Ke1
Rxf3?? 38 Qd8+ Kb7 39 Qxc7+ Ka6 40
Qc4+ Nb5 41 Qc8 mate.} 37. Rg8+
Kb7 38. Qe4 Qd2+ 39. Kg3 c6 40.
Qxf5 {?? Rg7+ Ka6 41 Qc4+ forced
mate.} Qe1+ {A very clever trap
considering it was 5 minute chess.} 41.
Kg4 {or 41 Kh3 Qf1+ 42 Kg3 Qe1 and
draws. But being ahead on time I
decided to play for a win.} Ne3+ 42.
Kf4 Nxf5 43. Kxf5 Qxb4 44. Rg7+ Kc8
{44...Ka6 gave Black more chances for
a win.} 45. Be4 Qf8+ 46. Kg6 Qe8+ 47.
Kf5 1/2-1/2
[Event "Blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi (Yugoslavia)"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "7.2"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "David Bronstein"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "B22"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "98"]
1. e4 c5 2. c3 Nf6 3. e5 Nd5 4. d4 cxd4
5. Qxd4 e6 6. Nf3 Nc6 7. Qe4 d6 8.
Nbd2 Be7 9. Bd3 dxe5 10. Nxe5 Nxe5
11. Qxe5 O-O 12. Bc2 Bd6 13. Qh5 f5
14. Nf3 Nf4 15. Bxf4 Bxf4 16. O-O g6
17. Qh3 Qf6 18. Rad1 b6 19. Rfe1 Kh8
20. g3 Bc7 21. Qh6 Qg7 22. Qxg7+
Kxg7 23. Bb3 Re8 24. Nd4 Kf6 25. f4
a6 26. Nf3 Re7 27. h4 h6 28. Kf2 Bb7
29. Ne5 Rae8 30. a4 g5 31. hxg5+ hxg5
32. fxg5+ Kxg5 33. Rd4 Rh7 34. Nf3+
Kf6 35. Rh4 Rxh4 36. gxh4 e5 37. h5
e4 38. Nd4 f4 39. Rg1 e3+ 40. Ke2 Be4
41. Bc2 f3+ 42. Kxe3 Bxc2+ 43. Kxf3
Be4+ 44. Kf2 Bh7 45. h6 Re7 46. Rg4
Bg6 47. Rh4 Rh7 48. Kf3 Kg5 49.
Rg4+ Kxh6 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "5.1"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Vlastimil Hort"]
[ECO "A50"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "69"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 c6 3. Nc3 d5 4. cxd5
cxd5 5. Bf4 e6 6. e3 Nc6 7. Bb5 Bd6 8.
Bxd6 Qxd6 9. f4 Bd7 10. Nf3 Ne4 11.
Nxe4 dxe4 12. Nd2 Qb4 13. Qb3 Qa5
14. Qa4 Qxa4 15. Bxa4 Nb4 16. Bxd7+
Kxd7 17. Ke2 f5 18. Nc4 Rhc8 19.
Rhc1 Nd3 20. Ne5+ Nxe5 21. dxe5
Rxc1 22. Rxc1 Rc8 23. Rxc8 Kxc8 24.
Kd2 Kd7 25. Kc3 Kc6 26. Kc4 b6 27.
a4 a6 28. b4 b5+ 29. axb5+ axb5+ 30.
Kd4 Kb6 31. h3 g6 32. g4 h5 33. gxh5
gxh5 34. h4 Kc6 35. Kc3 1/2-1/2
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "5.2"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Vlastimil Hort"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "A48"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "68"]
1. d4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} Nf6 2.
Nf3 g6 3. Bg5 h6 {Forcing White to
decide at once on which diagonal to
place his Queen's Bishop.} 4. Bh4 Bg7
5. Nbd2 g5 6. Bg3 Nh5 7. e4 d6 8. Bd3
{? Five minute chess...Better was 8 c3.}
g4 {! Wins a Pawn.} 9. Nh4 Bxd4 10.
c3 Bf6 11. Nf5 Nxg3 {But not 11...e6
12 Qg4 and White regains his Pawn.}
12. fxg3 {Dubious since it cedes control
of the e5-square to Black. Apparently
White was not interested in positional
fine points at this stage. But in any
event after 12 hxg3, ...h5 or ...e6, white
would be a Pawn down without any
initiative. Now at least White has the f-
file to work with.} e6 13. Ne3 h5 14. O-
O Nd7 15. Qe2 Qe7 16. Rae1 Ne5 17.
Ndc4 Bd7 18. Na5 {!?} b6 {But not
...O-O-O?? 19 Ba6! Bc6 20 Nxc6 Nxc6
21 Bxb7+! etc.} 19. Nac4 {Maybe 19
Nb3 gave more tactical chances for
White.} O-O-O 20. Nxe5 Bxe5 21.
Ba6+ Kb8 22. Nc4 Bg7 23. a4 {!?
White offers his a-Pawn for the
initiative.} h4 {!? Black offers his g-
Pawn for the initiative! All very
interesting.} 24. a5 hxg3 25. hxg3
{White had no time to open tha a-file,
ie: 25 axb6 Rxh2 26 bxc7+ (or 26
bxa7+ Ka8! not ...Kxa7 27 Qe3+! and
28 Qxg3 etc.) Kxc7 27 Qg4 Rg8! 28
Qxg3 Be5! 29 Qxg8 Qh4 and wins.} b5
26. Ne3 c6 27. c4 {?? Weakens d4
irretrievably, he should take the g-
Pawn.} b4 28. c5 Bd4 {!} 29. cxd6
Qxd6 30. Rf4 Rh5 31. Rd1 {??} Bxe3+
32. Qxe3 Qxd1+ 33. Rf1 Qd6 34. Rc1
c5 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "11.1"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Milan Matulovic"]
[ECO "C63"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "65"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} e5 2.
Nf3 Nc6 3. Bb5 f5 {This is Matulovic's
specialty the same as his gambit in the
Sicilian defence. In blitz games there is
no problems for White because of the
Black King's weaknesses. I know this
variation very well and because of that I
was surprised at Matulovic's choice.} 4.
Nc3 fxe4 5. Nxe4 d5 6. Nxe5 dxe4 7.
Nxc6 Qg5 {7 Qd5 gives probably more
problems for White.} 8. Qe2 Nf6 9. f4
Qxf4 10. d4 Qh4+ 11. g3 Qh3 {The
same was played in the game
Gheorghiu-Maric, Skopge 1968.
Georghiu played 12Na7+ but he did not
get any advantage in this position. I
analyzed this position all night with
Robatch and Gheorghiu in Vinkovci.
Gheorghiu showed me that game
against Maric and it was very
interesting for me. Our idea was 12
Bg5} 12. Bg5 a6 13. Ba4 Bd7 14. Bxf6
gxf6 15. Qxe4+ Kf7 16. Ne5+ fxe5 17.
Rf1+ Ke7 {Black has many problems.
If 17...Kg8 18 Rf6! Re8 (if 18...Bxa4
19 Qd5+ with Qf7 mate) 19 Bb3+ Kg7
20 Rf7+ Kh6 21 dxe5 with a winning
attack. If 17...Qxf1 18 Kxf1 Bxa4 19
Qf5+ wins.} 18. Bxd7 Kxd7 {If
18...Qxd7 19 O-O-O and Black's King
and Queen are attacked.} 19. Rf7+ Ke8
{?? Be7!! gave good chances for a
successful defence.} 20. Rxc7 Bd6 21.
Rxb7 Rc8 22. O-O-O Qxh2 23. dxe5
Be7 24. Rxe7+ {After this move Black
has no hope. Maybe I had an easier way
to win , but thought I had not enough
time. As a matter of fact I had three
minutes.} Kxe7 25. Qb7+ Ke6 26.
Qd7+ Kxe5 27. Qd5+ Kf6 28. Rf1+
Kg6 29. Qf5+ Kh6 30. Qe6+ Kh5 31.
Rf5+ Kg4 32. Rf4+ Kxg3 33. Qg4# 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "11.2"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Milan Matulovic"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "B97"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "88"]
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4
Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. Bg5 e6 7. f4 Qb6 8.
Qd2 Qxb2 9. Nb3 Qa3 10. Bxf6 gxf6
11. Bd3 Nc6 12. O-O Bg7 13. Rf3 f5
14. Rg3 Bf6 15. exf5 Qb4 16. Bf1 d5
17. Re1 Ne7 18. fxe6 Bxe6 19. f5 Nxf5
20. Nxd5 Qxd2 21. Nxf6+ Ke7 22.
Nxd2 Nxg3 23. Nd5+ Kf8 24. Nc7
Nxf1 25. Rxf1 Ke7 26. Nxa8 Rxa8 27.
c4 Rd8 28. Rf2 Rd4 29. Re2 Kd6 30.
Ne4+ Kc6 31. c5 Bc4 32. Re3 Bxa2 33.
Nd6 b5 34. Ra3 Ra4 35. Rh3 Kxc5 36.
Nb7+ Kc6 37. Nd8+ Kc7 38. Rd3 Bc4
39. Rd4 Ra2 40. h4 a5 41. h5 a4 42. h6
a3 43. g4 Rb2 44. g5 a2 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "3.2"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Vasily Smyslov"]
[ECO "A02"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "127"]
1. f4 d5 2. Nf3 Nf6 3. b3 g6 4. Bb2 Bg7
5. g3 O-O 6. Bg2 c5 7. e3 Nc6 8. O-O
d4 9. Qe2 Bf5 10. Ne1 Bxc2 11. Nxc2
d3 12. Qd1 dxc2 13. Qxc2 Nb4 14. Qc4
Rb8 15. a4 b6 16. Rd1 Rc8 17. Na3 e6
18. e4 Qe7 19. e5 Nfd5 20. Nb5 Rfd8
21. a5 bxa5 22. Rxa5 Nb6 23. Qe2 Rd7
24. Rda1 a6 25. Nd6 Rcd8 26. Bc3
N6d5 27. Bxd5 Nxd5 28. Rxa6 g5 29.
f5 Nxc3 30. dxc3 exf5 31. Re1 Qxe5
32. Qxe5 Bxe5 33. Rxe5 Rxd6 34.
Rxd6 Rxd6 35. Rxf5 Rb6 36. Rxg5+
Kf8 37. Rxc5 Rxb3 38. Kg2 Rb2+ 39.
Kh3 Kg7 40. g4 Kf6 41. Kg3 Ke6 42.
h4 h6 43. h5 Rc2 44. Rc6+ Ke7 45. Kf4
f6 46. Kf5 Rf2+ 47. Ke4 Kf7 48. c4
Rg2 49. Kf3 Rg1 50. Rc7+ Ke6 51.
Rh7 Rf1+ 52. Kg2 Rc1 53. Rc7 Ke5 54.
Kg3 Rc3+ 55. Kh4 Rc1 56. c5 Ke6 57.
Kg3 Rg1+ 58. Kf3 Rf1+ 59. Kg2 Rc1
60. Rc8 Rc3 61. c6 Rc4 62. Kf3 Rc3+
63. Kg2 Rc2+ 64. Kg3 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "3.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Vasily Smyslov"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "D79"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "92"]
1. c4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} g6 2.
g3 Bg7 3. Bg2 Nf6 4. Nf3 O-O 5. O-O
c6 6. d4 d5 7. cxd5 cxd5 8. Nc3
{Theory says that Black equalizes
easily against this move. The sharper 8
Ne5 is answered satisfactorily by
8...Bf5 as in the Botvinnik-Smyslov
match 1957, and also in a later game
Benko-Fischer.} Ne4 9. Qb3 Nc6 {!}
10. Be3 {Of course Black's d-Pawn was
taboo.} Na5 11. Qd1 {? Allows a very
bad Pawn formation. Correct was 11
Qb4.} Nxc3 12. bxc3 b6 13. Ne5 Ba6
{Black has ideal play against White's
backward c-Pawn.} 14. Re1 Rc8 15.
Bd2 e6 16. e4 Bb7 {! Of course trading
white squared Bishops highlights White
weaknesses on the white squares.} 17.
exd5 Bxd5 18. Bxd5 Qxd5 19. Qe2
Rfd8 {19...Nc4! was simpler.} 20. Ng4
{!?} Nc4 {? 20...h5 21 Ne3 Qd7, with a
clear advantage.} 21. Bh6 {! Suddenly
White has counterplay; 21...Bxh6 is
impossible because of 22 Nf6+.} f5 22.
Bxg7 Kxg7 23. Ne3 Nxe3 24. Qxe3
Rc6 25. Rac1 Rdc8 26. c4 {? Better
was Qd2.} Rxc4 27. Rxc4 Rxc4 28.
Qxe6 Qxe6 29. Rxe6 Kf7 {!} 30. Re3
{?? 30 d5 gave real chances for a draw,
the rest is easy.} Rxd4 31. Ra3 a5 32.
Rc3 Ke6 33. Kg2 Kd6 34. h4 Ra4 35.
Rc2 b5 36. Kf3 b4 37. Ke3 Kd5 38. f3
Ra3+ 39. Kf4 a4 40. g4 fxg4 41. fxg4
b3 42. axb3 axb3 43. Rc7 Ra4+ 44.
Kg5 Rb4 45. Rc1 Kd4 46. Kh6 Rb7
{Because Black by approaching with
his king can win White's Rook for the
b-Pawn without losing his own h-
Pawn.} 0-1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "4.2"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Samuel Reshevsky"]
[ECO "B40"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "119"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} c5 2.
Nf3 e6 3. c4 Nc6 4. Nc3 Nf6 5. g3 g6
{5...d5 equalizes} 6. Bg2 Bg7 7. O-O
O-O 8. d3 {if 8 d4? cxd4 9 Nxd4 Nxe4!
wins a Pawn.} d6 9. h3 e5 {Weaker is
9...b6? 10d4 with an advantage for
White as in the game Smyslov-
Reshevsky, the match of the century,
Belgrade 1970. Now the position is
symmetrical with White two tempi
ahead.} 10. a3 a5 11. Rb1 Bd7 12. Bd2
Ne8 13. Nd5 Ne7 14. b4 Nxd5 15. cxd5
{?? Very anti-positional. Correct of
course was 15 exd5. Now Black gets a
strong passed a-Pawn, also White's b-
Pawn is isolated.} cxb4 16. axb4 a4 17.
b5 {?! Otherwise 17...Nc7-b5. White
sacrifices a Pawn for complications.}
Nc7 18. b6 Nb5 19. Rb4 Qxb6 20. Qa1
a3 21. Rfb1 {If 20 Rxa4?,... Nc3 wins
the exchange.} Rfc8 {!} 22. Bf1 Rc2
23. d4 a2 24. R1b3 exd4 25. Bxb5
Bxb5 {? 25...d3! won by force. For
example a) 26 Bd7 Ba1 27 Rxb6 Bb2 or
...Bd4 etc. b) 26 e5 Rd2! 27 Nd2 Be5
28 Bd7 Ba1 29 Rb6 Bd4 etc.} 26. Rxb5
Qd8 27. Rd3 Qe7 28. Ne1 Qxe4 29.
Rbb3 Rxd2 {!} 30. Rxd2 d3 31. Rxa2
{!? A last swindle try.} Bxa1 {??
31...Ra2! won easily 32 Qxa2 Qe1+
33Kg2 d2, But as Dr. Tarrasch said
"You must see it"} 32. Rxa8+ Kg7 33.
Rxa1 d2 34. Ng2 Qxd5 35. Rbb1 b5 36.
Rd1 b4 37. Ne3 Qd3 38. Nf1 b3 39.
Rab1 b2 40. Rxb2 d5 41. Rdxd2 Qc3
42. Ne3 d4 43. Nd1 Qc4 44. Rb1 h5 45.
h4 f5 46. Rdb2 f4 47. Rb3 fxg3 48.
Rxg3 Qc2 49. Rb7+ Kh6 50. Nb2 Qe4
51. Rb6 Qe1+ 52. Kg2 Qe4+ 53. Kf1
Qb1+ 54. Ke2 Qc2+ 55. Ke1 Qe4+ 56.
Kd1 Qf5 57. Rbxg6+ Qxg6 58. Rxg6+
Kxg6 59. Ke2 Kf5 60. Kf3 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "4"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[White "Samuel Reshevsky"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "E92"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "93"]
1. d4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} Nf6 2.
c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 O-O 5. Be2 d6
6. Nf3 e5 7. Be3 {!? Reshevsky likes
this flexible system.} c6 {7...Qe7 is the
sharpest here. A game Gligoric-Fischer,
Monaco 1967 continued 8 d5 Ne8 9 h4
f5 10 h5 f4 11Bd2 g5 12h6 Bf6, etc.} 8.
O-O Ng4 9. Bg5 f6 {or 9...Qb6 10 h3!
exd4? 11 Na4!} 10. Bc1 f5 11. h3 exd4
12. Nxd4 Ne5 13. exf5 gxf5 14. f4 Qb6
{!?} 15. Be3 {! or 15 Kh1 Nf7
equalizes, (not 15...Nxc4?? Bc4+ or
15...Ng4?? 16 Nxf5 Nf2+ 17 Rxf2 Qxf2
18 Be3} Ng6 {? After this move Black
is busted. More enterprising was
15...Qxb2! 16 Na4 Qa3 17 Bc1 Qg3 18
fxe5 Bxe5 19 Rf3 Qh2+ 20 Kf2 Nd7
with play.} 16. Nxf5 Qxb2 17. Nxg7
Qxc3 18. Bd4 Qa5 19. Bg4 {Simple but
effective, 19 c5 was snappier though.}
Na6 20. Bxc8 Raxc8 21. Qg4 {!
White's threats are proliferating chiefly
22 Qe6+, but other less brutal moves
like 22 Ne6 or Nh5 or 22 f5 were not
pretty tp contemplate. Also the fact that
Reshevsky had a good 3.5 to 4 minutes
to polish me off was not to pleasing. I
decided here to opt for the endgame.}
Rc7 22. Ne6 {22 f5 was more aggresive
keeping the Queens.} Qf5 {!} 23. Nxf8
{Of course more aggressive was 23
Qxf5 Rxf5 24 g4.} Qxg4 24. hxg4 Nxf8
25. f5 {25 Bxa7 was easier, ie 25...b5
26 Bb6 Rb7 27 cxb5 Rxb6 28 bxa6
Rxa6 29 a4 Ra5 30 Rc1 c5 31 Rb1 etc.}
c5 26. Bc3 Rd7 27. Rad1 Nc7 28. Rfe1
Kf7 29. Re3 b5 30. Red3 {Ba5!} bxc4
31. Rxd6 Rxd6 32. Rxd6 Nb5 33. Rf6+
Ke7 34. Rc6 {?? As Reshevsky pointed
out immediately after the game 34 Ba1!
c3 Rc6! Nd7 36 Re6+ Kf7 37 Re1
won.} Nxc3 35. Rxc5 Nxa2 36. Rxc4
Nd7 37. Ra4 Nc3 38. Rxa7 Ne4 39.
Kh2 Kd6 40. Kh3 Ndf6 41. Kh4 h6 {!}
42. Rg7 Ke5 43. Rg6 Kf4 44. g3+ Kf3
45. Rxh6 Nxg4 46. Rg6 Nxg3 47. Rxg4
{And here Reshevsky proposed a draw
and I accepted.} 1/2-1/2
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "9.1"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Wolfgang Uhlmann"]
[ECO "C15"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "57"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} e6 2.
d4 d5 3. Nc3 Bb4 4. a3 {I chose
Alekhine's move inspite of the fact that
4 e5 was a safer move.} Bxc3+ 5. bxc3
dxe4 6. Qg4 Nf6 {Alekhine
recommended 6...Kf8 but after 7 Qxe4,
White has a big advantage.} 7. Qxg7
Rg8 8. Qh6 Rg6 {Usually it is better to
play this move later, 8...Nbd7 played
Kovacevic against me at "Turnir mira"
in Zagreb. I played 9 Ne2 b6 10 Bg5
Qe7 threatening ...Ng4, 11 Qh4 Bb7
with difficult play.} 9. Qe3 Nc6 10.
Bb2 b6 {At "Turnir mira" Zagreb,
1970, Uhlman played 10...Qd6 but after
11 O-O-O Bd7 12 f3 White had a big
advantage.} 11. O-O-O Bb7 12. h3 h5
{? Weak move because the Pawn at that
place is weak and it is loss of time but
Black wanted to prevent g4.} 13. c4
Qd6 14. Ne2 O-O-O 15. Nf4 Rgg8 {If
15...e5 16 Nxg6 exd4 White has many
interesting possibilities the most sure is
17 Nf4 dxe3 18 Rxd6 Rxd6 19 fxe3 h4
20 Be2 with a winning position in the
endgame with two strong Bishops.} 16.
Be2 Qe7 {If 16...Na5 which is more
active 17 g3.} 17. d5 exd5 18. cxd5
Ne5 {If 18...Na5 19 c4 Ba6 20 Qc3
with good play.} 19. c4 Ba6 20. Qc3
Nfd7 {If 20...Rge8 21 Kb1 and White is
safe because on 21...Qc5 White has
many moves; Black's Knight on f6 is
under attack. Maybe also 22 Rd4.} 21.
d6 {!} cxd6 {? Black overlooked a
piece. Black has got to play 21...Qg5
then 22 g3 is possibly better for White.}
22. c5 {!!} Bxe2 {?? Uhllman was
surprised by the last move and he made
a mistake taking White's bishop on e2 -
He had to play 22...Nxc5 trying for
compensation on the Queen's side. If
22...Nc5 23 Bxa6+ Kb8 24 Bb5
a)...Ncd3+ 25 Nxd3 Rc8 26 Nxe5 with
a winning position b) 24...a6 25 Be2
Rc8 26 Kb1 Ncd3 27 Qd4 Nxf4 28
Bxa6 Rc5 29 Qxe4 with a probably
winning position. Possible is also 27
Nd5.} 23. cxd6+ Nc5 24. dxe7 Rxd1+
25. Rxd1 Bxd1 26. Qxe5 Ba4 27. Kb1
Bc6 28. Nd5 Bxd5 29. Qxd5 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "9.2"]
[Result "1/2-1/2"]
[White "Wolfgang Uhlmann"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "E73"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "52"]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. e4 O-
O 5. Be2 d6 6. Bg5 h6 7. Be3 c5 8. d5
e6 9. Qd2 exd5 10. exd5 Kh7 11. h3
Re8 12. Bd3 Nbd7 13. Nf3 Ne5 14.
Nxe5 Rxe5 15. O-O Bf5 16. Bf4 Bxd3
17. Qxd3 Re7 18. Rfe1 a6 19. g4 Qd7
20. Qg3 Rae8 21. Rxe7 Rxe7 22. Bxd6
Ne4 23. Nxe4 Rxe4 24. Bxc5 Rxc4 25.
Qd6 Qxd6 26. Bxd6 Rd4 1/2-1/2
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "2.1"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Borislav Ivkov"]
[ECO "B06"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "75"]
1. e4 d6 2. d4 g6 3. Nf3 Bg7 4. c3 Nf6
5. Bd3 O-O 6. O-O Nc6 7. Qe2 e5 8. h3
Nh5 9. Bg5 Bf6 10. Be3 Bg7 11. Nbd2
Re8 12. d5 Ne7 13. c4 Nf4 14. Bxf4
exf4 15. Rab1 Nf5 16. b4 a5 17. bxa5
Rxa5 18. Nb3 Ra8 19. c5 h6 20. Bb5
Bd7 21. a4 Bxb5 22. axb5 Nh4 23.
cxd6 cxd6 24. Nxh4 Qxh4 25. Nd2 Bd4
26. Qf3 Ra2 27. Nc4 Qf6 28. Rbd1 Bc5
29. e5 dxe5 30. d6 e4 31. d7 Rd8 32.
Qxe4 f3 33. Qxf3 Qxf3 34. gxf3 Rc2
35. Na5 Be7 36. Nxb7 Rc7 37. Nxd8
Bxd8 38. Rfe1 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "2.2"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Borislav Ivkov"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "E68"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "72"]
1. Nf3 Nf6 2. g3 g6 3. Bg2 Bg7 4. O-O
O-O 5. c4 d6 6. d4 Nbd7 7. Nc3 e5 8.
e4 exd4 9. Nxd4 Nc5 10. h3 a5 11. Re1
Re8 12. Bg5 h6 13. Bf4 Nfd7 14. Qd2
Ne5 15. Bf1 Ne6 16. Nxe6 Nf3+ 17.
Kg2 Nxe1+ 18. Rxe1 Bxe6 19. Bxh6
Bxh6 20. Qxh6 Qf6 21. Qd2 a4 22. f4
Qe7 23. g4 c6 24. Qd4 f6 25. Rd1 Rad8
26. Nxa4 c5 27. Qd3 Kg7 28. Nc3 Rh8
29. Qd2 Rh4 30. a3 Rdh8 31. Kg3 f5
32. exf5 Rxh3+ 33. Bxh3 Qh4+ 34. Kf3
Qxh3+ 35. Ke2 Bxc4+ 36. Kf2 Qh2+ 0-
1
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "8.2"]
[Result "1-0"]
[White "Robert James Fischer"]
[Black "Predrag Ostojic"]
[ECO "B32"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "103"]
1. e4 {Notes by Bobby Fischer} c5 2.
Nf3 Nc6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4 Nf6 5. Nc3
g6 {A risky continuation.} 6. Nxc6 {!}
bxc6 {on 6...dxc6 7 Qxd8 Kxd8 8 Bc4
White's advantage is clear.} 7. e5 {!}
Ng8 8. Bc4 Bg7 9. Bf4 Qa5 10. O-O
Bxe5 11. Bxe5 {Other possibilities for
the initiative are 11 Re1!? Bxf4 12 Qd4
f6 (possible is 12...d5!?) 13 Qxf4 d5 14
Qd6 or 11 b4!? Qc7 12 Nd5 cxd5 13
Qd5 Nf6 14 Qf7+ Kd8 15 Rfe1 d6 16
Bxe5 dxe5 17 Rad1+ Bd7 18 Be6 Rb8
and the game ended in a draw
eventually after an interesting struggle,
Kurajica-Ostojic, Skopje 1970.} Qxe5
12. Re1 Qc7 {?? Better was 12...Qg7 13
Ne4 d5 14 Bxd5 cxd5 15 Qxd5 Rb8 16
Rad1 with an unclear position
according to Kurajica. Also 12...Qf4! is
a tough defence.} 13. Qd4 f6 14. Bxg8
Rxg8 15. Qxf6 {! Nb5! cxb5 16 Qd5
forking the Rooks was another road to
victory.} d5 {Slightly better was 15...d6
but after 16 Re3 and 17.Rae1 Black's
position was hopeless. Or if 15...e6 16
Ne4.} 16. Re2 {? 16 Rxe7+ Qxe7 17
Qxc6+ Kf7 18 Qxa8 won easily.} Ba6
{? More tenacious was 16...e6 17 Rae1
Qf7!} 17. Nxd5 cxd5 18. Qxa6 Rf8 19.
Rae1 Rf7 20. Qe6 {20 Qa4+! and 21
Qd4 won easily. Now White must be
satisfied with grounding out a long win
with a Pawn ahead endgame.} Rd8 21.
c3 Kf8 22. g3 d4 23. cxd4 Rxd4 24.
Qe5 Qxe5 25. Rxe5 Rd2 26. R1e2 Rxe2
27. Rxe2 Rf6 28. Kf1 Rc6 29. Ke1 e6
30. Kd2 Ke7 31. Re4 Rb6 32. b3 Ra6
33. a4 Kd6 34. Rh4 h5 35. Rd4+ Ke7
{More active was 35...Ke5.} 36. Kc3
Rc6+ 37. Rc4 Ra6 38. Rc7+ Kf6 39.
Kb4 {threatening 40 a5! and 41 Kb5.}
Rb6+ 40. Kc4 a6 41. a5 Rd6 42. b4 Rd2
43. Kc5 Rxf2 44. Kb6 e5 45. Kxa6 e4
46. b5 e3 47. Rc1 Ke5 48. b6 Rg2 49.
b7 Rb2 50. Ka7 g5 51. b8=Q+ Rxb8 52.
Kxb8 1-0
[Event "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Site "Herceg Novi blitz"]
[Date "1970.04.08"]
[EventDate "?"]
[Round "8.1"]
[Result "0-1"]
[White "Predrag Ostojic"]
[Black "Robert James Fischer"]
[ECO "B90"]
[WhiteElo "?"]
[BlackElo "?"]
[PlyCount "52"]
1. e4 c5 2. Ne2 d6 3. d4 cxd4 4. Nxd4
Nf6 5. Nc3 a6 6. a4 Qc7 7. Bd3 g6 8. f4
Bg7 9. Nf3 O-O 10. O-O Nbd7 11. Kh1
b6 12. Qe1 Bb7 13. Qh4 Rac8 14. Bd2
e5 15. Rae1 exf4 16. Bxf4 Ne5 17. Bh6
Bxh6 18. Qxh6 Nfg4 19. Qh4 Nxf3 20.
Rxf3 f5 21. Rf4 d5 22. Rxg4 fxg4 23.
Qxg4 Rf4 24. Qg3 dxe4 25. Bxe4 Bxe4
26. Nxe4 Rxe4 0-1
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