Scott Massey Lecture

Introduction | Game One | Game Two

2004 Kenilworth Chess Club Champion and National Master Scott Massey lectured on Bobby Fischer in November 2004. Scott began by getting the members to discuss the question of whether or not Bobby deserved to be arrested in Japan for violating prohibitions against doing business in the former Yugoslavia. He then launched into an interesting discussion of Bobby’s childhood and the various controversies surrounding him.

We then analyzed two of Fischer’s better games — one from his youth that is often called the “Game of the Century” and then game thirteen from the 1972 championship match with Spassky, which Botvinnick considered one of the greatest fighting games of all time.


No, that’s not Scott at the demo board. That’s just the image of Bobby Fischer we would all prefer to remember.








 

 
GruenfeldD92
5.Bf4 

Donald Byrne
Robert J Fischer

Rosenwald Memorial (8)
New York, New York, USA, 1956


1. Nf3 Nf6 2. c4 g6 3. Nc3 Bg7 4. d4 O-O 5. Bf4 d5 6. Qb3 c6 7. Rd1 dxc4 8. Qxc4 Nbd7 9. e4 Nb6 10. Qc5 Bg4 11. Bg5 Na4 12. Qa3 Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nxe4! Black risks material in order to exploit the vulnerable position of White’s King. Saferwas 13… h6 14. Bxf6 exf6= 14. Bxe7 Qb6! 15. Bc4 15. Bxf8 Bxf8 16. Qb3 Qxb3! 17. axb3 Re8-> 15… Nxc3! 16. Bc5 16. Qxc3 Rfe8 17. O-O Rxe7-/+ 16… Rfe8+ 17. Kf1 Be6!! 18. Bxb6 18. Qxc3 Qxc5 19. dxc5 Bxc3 20. Bxe6 Rxe6-/+ 18… Bxc4+ 19. Kg1 Ne2+ 20. Kf1 Nxd4+ 21. Kg1 Ne2+ 22. Kf1 Nc3+ 23. Kg1 axb6 24. Qb4 Ra4 25. Qxb6 Nxd1 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 If instead 36. Kh2 Nd2! and mate is also unavoidable. 36… Ng3+ 37. Ke1 Bb4+ 38. Kd1 Bb3+ 39. Kc1 Ne2+ 40. Kb1 Nc3+ 41. Kc1 Rc2# 0-1

 








 

 
Alekhine’s DefenseB04
Modern 
Keres Variation 

Boris V Spassky (2660)
Robert James Fischer (2785)

Wch Reykjavik (13)
Reykjavik, Iceland, 1972


1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 As Massey points out, the Four Pawns Attack with 4. c4 Nb6 5. f4 is the most aggressive challenge to Black. 4… g6 5. Bc4 Nb6 6. Bb3 Bg7 7. Nbd2?!N This move does nothing about the tension at e5. A number of better moves have been tried, though it isn’t clear that White can hope for an edge here: a) 7. exd6 cxd6!? 8. c3 O-O 9. O-O Nc6 10. Bg5 h6 11. Bf4 Qc7 12. Re1 e5 13. dxe5 dxe5 14. Bg3= Sijarits-Chekhova Kostina,T/Moscow 1972/MCD (21) b) 7. Bf4!? O-O 8. Qe2 a5 9. a4 Nc6 10. Nbd2 dxe5 11. Bxe5 Nxe5 12. dxe5 e6 13. h4 Bd7 14. h5 Bc6 15. hxg6 hxg6 16. Qe3 Qe7 17. Ng5 Rfd8 18. f4 Nd5 19. Bxd5 Rxd5 20. Rh7 Qc5 21. Qh3 Rxe5+ 22. fxe5 Qxe5+ 23. Nde4 Be8 24. Rxg7+ Kxg7 25. O-O-O 1-0 Gurgenidze,B-Yermolinsky,A/Ckhaltubo 1981/EXT 99 (25) c) 7. e6!? fxe6 (7… Bxe6 8. Bxe6 fxe6 9. Ng5|^) 8. Ng5 d5! 9. Qf3 Bf6 10. Qh3 h6?! (10… >= Bxd4!-/+) 11. Nf3 Qd6 12. c3 Kf7 13. Bc2 e5 14. Bxg6+? (>= 14. Qg3!->) 14… Kxg6 15. Qg3+ Kf7 16. dxe5 Qe6 17. Be3 Bg7 18. Qf4+ Qf5 19. e6+ Bxe6 20. Qxc7 Na6 21. Qxb7 d4 22. Nxd4 Bxd4 23. Qxa6 Bc4 24. Qb7 Bd5 25. Qc7 Be5 26. Qc5 Rhc8 27. Qb4 Bc4 28. Bxb6 Qd3 0-1 Haller,P-Hanselmann,J/Ladenburg 1992/GER (28) d) 7. Ng5!? d5 8. f4 “securing better control of space” is recommended by Gligoric e) 7. O-O O-O 8. a4 a5 9. h3 Nc6 10. Qe2= Keres-Kupka, Kapfenberg 1970 7… O-O 8. h3? a5 9. a4? White has wasted too much time with unnecessary moves and now finds himself at a disadvantage. What’s more, his pawn at a4 quickly becomes a target. Better is the “modest” 9. c3 Bf5 10. O-O a4 11. Bc2 Bxc2 12. Qxc2 Nc6 13. Re1 dxe5 14. Nxe5= Gligoric 9… dxe5 10. dxe5 Na6! 11. O-O Nc5 12. Qe2 Qe8 Spassky must lose the a-pawn, so he tries to build up a kingside initiative as compensation. 13. Ne4 Nbxa4 14. Bxa4 Nxa4 15. Re1 Nb6 16. Bd2 a4 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bh4 Bf5?! Massey criticizes this move, suggesting 18… Bd7 19. Nc5 Bb5-/+ 19. g4 19. Nc5 Qc6! taking over the initiative 20. Bxe7 Rfe8-/+ 19… Be6 20. Nd4! Bc4 21. Qd2 Qd7 22. Rad1 Rfe8 22… Bxe5!? 23. f4 Bg7-+ 23. f4 Bd5 24. Nc5 Qc8 25. Qc3 25. e6! Gligoric 25… Nc4 26. Qc1 25… e6 26. Kh2 Nd7 27. Nd3?! 27. Nb5!? Gligoric 27… Nxc5 28. Qxc5 Ra5! 29. Qb4 b6-/+ 27… c5 28. Nb5 Qc6 29. Nd6 Qxd6! 30. exd6 Bxc3 31. bxc3 f6 32. g5 hxg5 33. fxg5 f5 34. Bg3 Kf7 35. Ne5+ Nxe5 36. Bxe5 b5 37. Rf1! The Bishops of opposite colors make for some dangerous attacking chances for White with the idea of Rf1-f4-h4-h7+ 37… Rh8! It is worth more than the exchange to eliminate that dark squared bishop 38. Bf6 a3 39. Rf4 a2 40. c4 Bxc4 41. d7 Bd5 42. Kg3 Ra3+ 43. c3 Rha8 44. Rh4 e5! 45. Rh7+ Ke6 46. Re7+ Kd6 47. Rxe5 Rxc3+ 48. Kf2 Rc2+ 49. Ke1 Kxd7 50. Rexd5+ Kc6 51. Rd6+ Kb7 52. Rd7+ Ka6 53. R7d2 Rxd2 54. Kxd2 b4 55. h4 Kb5 56. h5 c4 57. Ra1 gxh5 58. g6 h4 59. g7 h3 60. Be7 Rg8 61. Bf8 h2 62. Kc2 Kc6 63. Rd1 b3+ 64. Kc3? h1=Q! 65. Rxh1 Kd5 66. Kb2 f4 67. Rd1+ Ke4 68. Rc1 Kd3 69. Rd1+? Necessary was 69. Rc3+ Kd4 70. Rf3 c3+ 71. Ka1 c2 72. Rxf4+ Kc3 73. Rf3+ Kd2 74. Ba3!= Gligoric 69… Ke2! 70. Rc1 f3 71. Bc5 Rxg7 72. Rxc4 Rd7 73. Re4+ Kf1 74. Bd4 f2 0-1