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Bobby Fischer
Tribute to Bobby Fischer 9th March 1943 - 17th January 2008
I had just come home after round 6 of the New Zealand Major Open on Friday 18th January 2008 and saw the news - Bobby
Fischer had passed away. He will be remembered as the most famous chess player of all time, a world champion who gave the
game of chess world recognition. He was and still is the hero of a whole generation of youngsters from the 1970s. He was
aged 64, or one year for every square on the chess board (Stan Yee). Photo and article from bobby-fischer.net.
Robert James "Bobby" Fischer (born March 9, 1943), won the World Chess Championship on September 1, 1972 and lost the title
when he failed to defend it on April 3, 1975. He is considered to be one of the most gifted chess players of all time and,
despite his prolonged absence from competitive play, is still among the best known of all chess players.
Robert James Fischer was born in Chicago, Illinois at the Michael Reese Hospital by the banks of Lake Michigan on March 9th,
1943. His father Gerhardth Fischer was born in Berlin, Germany in 1909, he was a biophysicist. His mother was Regina Wender.
They separated when Bobby was 2 years old, and Regina had custody of Bobby and his older sister Joan who was then 7 years
old. She was a qualified registered Nurse and wanted to take a Master's Degree at New York University in Nursing Education.
She decided to move to Brooklyn. It is there that the legend of the world's greatest Chess player begins.
In May 1949, Bobby and his sister Joan learned how to play the game with a Chess set given to them as a present. Both, six
and eleven, learned the moves from the instructions that went with the set. Even as a six-year-old, Bobby became increasingly
fascinated with Chess and enjoyed enough success in solving its complexities. By age seven, he was so thoroughly absorbed
that his mother became worried. "Bobby isn't interested in anybody unless they play Chess and there just aren't many children
who like it" she once said.
She also attempted to place an ad in the Brooklyn Eagle inquiring whether there might be other children of Bobby's age who
would come and play Chess with him. On January 17, 1951 Bobby played a game against master Max Pavey who was giving a
simultaneous exhibition and Bobby lost in 15 minutes. A few weeks later Bobby joined the Brooklyn Chess Club, headed by
Mr. Carmine Nigro, President of the Brooklyn Chess Club and for the next few years he rarely missed a Friday evening.
In 1953, Bobby Fischer played his first Chess tournament at the Brooklyn Chess Club Championship when he was ten. He was
placed fifth. In 1955, Bobby scored 4 ˝ - 3 ˝ in a Washington Square Park Swiss tournament. In May he scored three points in
the U.S. Amateur Championship in Lake Mohegan, New York. He joined the Manhattan Chess club in June 1955 and soon won the
class C championship and the class B Championship.
He often was given the opportunity of playing against the Club's finest masters. Reshevsky gave a simultaneous blindfold
exhibition in which Bobby competed and he was ecstatic when he defeated the Grandmaster. In July he won 2 games, drew 6
games, and lost 2 games at the U.S. Junior Championship in Lincoln, Nebraska. He took 3rd place in the U.S. Junior Speed
Championship.
In March 1956, Bobby travelled with the Log Cabin Chess Club to Cuba and gave a simultaneous exhibition at the Capablanca
Chess Club. His U.S.C.F. rating was published at 1726. In April he won the class A Championship at the Manhattan Chess Club.
In May he played in the U.S. Amateur Championship in Asbury Park, New Jersey, winning three games, drawing two, and losing
one. At thirteen, he was the youngest player in the event.
In July he took first place at the U.S. Junior Championship in Philadelphia with eight wins, one draw, and one loss. His
U.S.C.F. rating in the event was 1830. At 13 years and 4 months, he was the youngest player to win the U.S. Junior
Championship. A few weeks later he played in the 57th U.S. Open in Oklahoma City, winning 5 games, drawing 7 games and tied
for 4th-8th place. In September he tied for 8th place at the Canadian Open in Montreal.
In October he took 8th place in the Rosenwald tournament in New York. His win against Donald Byrne (2530) won the brilliancy
prize and has been called the game of the century. In November he tied for 2nd-5th place in the Eastern States Open in
Washington, D.C. In December Bobby won the rapid transit play and took 4th place in the Manhattan Chess Club Championship.
In March 1957, Bobby played 2 games against former world champion Max Euwe in New York, drawing one and losing one. In April
he won the New York Metropolitan League. In July he tied for sixth place at the New Western Open in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. A
few days later he played in the U.S. Junior Championship in San Francisco and took first place and another typewriter. He
also won the U.S. Junior Speed Championship.
In August Bobby Fischer tied for 1st - 2nd at the 58th U.S. Open in Cleveland and won $750. His official USCF rating put him
at 2231, making him the youngest player in the U.S. with a master's rating at that time, at age 14 years and 5 months. In
September he won the New Jersey Open Championship. In December he won the North Central Open in Milwaukee. On January 10,
1958 Bobby Fischer at age 14 years and 9 months won the 1957 / 58 U.S. Championship and Zonal with 8 wins, 5 draws and no
losses.
His USCF rating climbed to 2626. Except for Santa Monica 1966, Bobby Fischer would win every U.S. tournament he played in.
In August he took 5th-6th at the Portoroz Interzonal and gained the Grand- master title. At the same time he became the
world's youngest Candidate for the world championship at age 15 years, 6 months. In January 1959, Bobby Fischer again won
the U.S. Championship with six wins and five draws.
Bobby Fischer later dropped out of school to become a professional Chess player. Fischer's academic records indicated an
I.Q. of 180 with an incredibly retentive memory. In April 1959 he took 3rd-4th at Mar Del Plata, Argentina. In May he took
3rd-4th at Zurich, Switzerland behind Tal and Gligoric, with 8 wins, five draws, and two losses. In September he took
5th-6th at the Bled / Zagrev / Belgrade Candidates tournament, won by Mikhail Tal. Fischer's USCF rating was 2636, behind
Reshevsky's 2693 rating.
In January 1960 again, Fischer won the U.S. Championship with 7 wins, 4 draws, and no losses. In April he tied for 1st-2nd
with Boris Spassky at Mar Del Plata, Argentina, then took first place at Reykjavik, Iceland in October. In November he
played board 1 for the United States at the Chess Olympiad in Leipzig, winning 10 games, drawing 6, and losing 2. His USCF
rating was 2641.
In January 1961, Bobby again won the U.S. Championship with 7 wins, 4 draws, and no losses. In July he started a match with
Sam Reshevsky and tied it with 2 wins, 7 draws, and 2 losses. "I am going to win the World Championship," he predicted to
American journalist Robert Cantwell. In March 1962 he won the Interzonal in Stockholm with 13 wins, 9 draws, and no losses.
This was the first interzonal that a Soviet player did not take first place.
In May he took fourth place at the Curacao Candidates tournament, won by Petrosian. In October he played board one for the
United States at the Chess Olympiad in Varna, Germany and scored 8 wins, 6 draws, and 3 losses. His USCF rating was 2687.
In January 1963, Bobby won the U.S. Championship with six wins, four draws, and one loss (Edmar Mednis). He announced he
was boycotting FIDE tournaments until the Russians stopped fixing Chess.
In July Bobby Fischer won the Western Open in Bay City, Michigan. In September he won the New York State Open with a perfect
score of 7 wins, no draws, no losses. In November he was to play four hundred opponents at once in an exhibition, but it
was postponed because of President Kennedy's assassination. His USCF rating was 2685. On January 1, 1964 Bobby Fischer won
the U.S. Championship with a perfect score of 11 wins. He then began a nationwide simultaneous exhibition for the rest of
the year.
The first international rating list was published by Arpad Elo in 1964. The top two players were Fischer and Petrosian at
2690. His USCF rating was 2734. In August 1965, he participated in the 4th Capablanca Memorial in Cuba by playing through a
teletype machine at the Marshall Chess Club in New York. He tied for 2nd-4th with 12 wins, 6 draws, and 3 losses. In
December he won the U.S. Chess Championship with 8 wins, 1 draw, and 2 losses. Fischer's USCF rating climbed to 2734.
In July 1966, Bobby took 2nd place at the Piatigorsky Cup in Santa Monica, behind Spassky. In November he played Board 1 for
the U.S. at the 17th Chess Olympiad in Havana, scoring 14 wins, 2 draws and 1 loss. In December he won the U.S. Championship
with 8 wins, 3 draws, and no losses. This was his 8th U.S. Championship title. In April 1967, Bobby took 1st place at
Monaco. In August he won at Skopje, Yugoslavia.
In October Bobby Fischer participated in the Sousse Interzonal, but withdrew after leading the event with 7 wins and 3
draws. His USCF rating was 2762. In July 1968 he took first place at Netanya, Israel. In September he took first place at
Vinkovci, Yugoslavia. In 1969 Bobby finished his book, "My 60 Memorable Games." He played Board 1 in a New York Metropolitan
League and won. In April 1970, he played Board 2 in the USSR vs Rest of the World match in Belgrade, beating Petrosian with
two wins and 2 draws.
He then went on to Herceg Novi, Yugoslavia and won the unofficial world 5 minute Championship with 17 wins, 4 draws, and 1
loss. After the tournament he called off from memory all of the moves from his 22 games, involving over 1,000 moves. In May
he took 1st at Rovinj/Zagreb. In August he took 1st place at Buenos Aires. In September he played Board 1 for the U.S. at
the 19th Olympiad in Siegen, Switzerland.
In November, Pal Benko gave up his spot at the Palma de Mallorca Interzonal so that Fischer could play. Bobby won the event
with 15 wins, seven draws, and 1 loss. Fischer won the Chess Oscar for 1970, 1971, and 1972. In June 1971, Bobby Fischer
defeated Mark Taimanov with 6 wins, no draws, no losses in the Candidates quarterfinals in Vancouver, Canada. In July he
defeated Bent Larsen also with a perfect 6-0 score in the Candidates semi-final in Denver, Colorado. His performance rating
was 3060.
In August Bobby won the Manhattan Chess Club 5-minute blitz with 21 wins and 1 draw. In September, Bobby defeated Tigran
Petrosian with 5 wins, 3 draws, and 1 loss in Buenos Aires for the Candidates finals. He now became challenger for the world
Championship. His USCF rating was at its peak of 2825. On July 11, 1972 he began his match with Boris Spassky in Reykjavik,
Iceland for the world championship.
On September 1, 1972 Bobby became world champion after winning 7 games, drawing eleven games, and losing three games (1 on
forfeit). Fischer received $160,000 for his efforts and another $40,000 in royalties. Bobby Fischer's last published USCF
rating was 2810. His FIDE rating was 2785. On April 3, 1975 Bobby Fischer forfeited his title as world Chess Champion to
Anatoly Karpov without playing a single Chess game since winning the world championship.
In 1977 Bobby Fischer played 3 games against the MIT Greenblatt computer program. He turned down $250,000 to play one Chess
game at Caesar's Palace in Las Vegas and $3 million to play in a tournament in the Philippines. In 1978 Bobby Fischer filed
a $3.2 million lawsuit against the publishers of a magazine critical of the Worldwide Church of God. He claimed the writers
taped his conversations without his consent. He then accused the church of reneging on their promise to finance the lawsuit.
On May 26, 1981, Fischer was arrested in Pasadena under suspicion of a bank robber. He was stopped by a police officer who
said he fit the description of a bank robber. Fischer refused to answer some questions as was arrested. In 1982 Fischer
published, "I WAS TORTURED IN THE PASADENA JAILHOUSE." He used the pseudonym Robert James. In 1987 the House of
Representatives passed House Resolution Bill 545 recognizing Fischer as the world Chess Champion.
In 1988 Bobby patented the Fischer digital Chess clock which adds two minutes per move. On September 1, 1992, Bobby Fischer
came out of his 20 year retirement and gave a press conference in Yugoslavia. He pulled out an order from the U.S. Treasury
Department warning him that he would be violating U.N sanctions if he played Chess in Yugoslavia. He spat on the order and
now faces ten years in prison and a $250,000 fine if he returns to the U.S.
In addition, he must forfeit his $3.65 million to the U.S. Treasury and forfeit 10% of any match royalties earned. On
September 30, Bobby Fischer began his rematch with Boris Spassky in Sveti Stefan, Yugoslavia. The match was organized by
banker Jedzimir Vasiljevic. On November 11, Fischer won the match with 10 wins, 5 losses, and 15 draws. He received
$3.65 million for his winnings and Spassky received $1.5 million.
The match used the new Bobby Fischer Chess clock. In 1996 Bobby traveled to Argentina to promote his random Chess, where you
set up the pieces in a random manner. This would take away the book knowledge of regular Chess. The President of FIDE
offered Fischer $100,000 and a piece of land in the Kalmyk Republic in redress for copyright violations by former Soviet
publishers.
Death
Bobby Fischer had been suffering at length from an undisclosed illness. He stayed at a Reykjavík Landsspítali hospital in
October and November 2007, but he returned home gravely ill in December apparently rejecting any further Western medicine.
On January 17, 2008, he died from kidney failure at the age of 64 in his home in Reykjavík.
Match of the Century
Background
The match was played at the height of the Cold war. For a long time, the Soviet chess system had had a monopoly on the game
at the highest level. Fischer, the highly eccentric young American, on the other hand, had been outspoken in his criticism
of the system. For instance, he believed that USSR players gained an unfair advantage by agreeing to short draws among
themselves in tournaments. Endowed with a fierce fighting spirit and a hater of agreed draws, Fischer had campaigned against
this practice. He viewed the Soviets as hypocrites. The expectations on Spassky were enormous because for the Soviets, chess
was part of the political system, part of life. While Fischer was no patriot ("Americans want to plunk in front of a TV and
don't want to open a book..."), he too carried the burden of expectation because of the political significance of the match.
Photo and article from bobby-fischer.net.
Fischer was extremely shy of the press. He didn't make it to Iceland for the opening ceremony. For a long time it looked
doubtful that the match would be played at all, for it was proving impossible for FIDE to accommodate Fischer's myriad
demands, such as banning television cameras and a 30% share of the revenue from spectators. He opposed Spassky's proposals
simply because they were Spassky's, and would at times be confounded when his rival's wishes happened to coincide with his
own. Fischer's behavior was full of self-contradictions. He badly wanted to play the match, but would let it fall apart over
apparently trivial issues. Finally, after a surprise doubling of the prize fund and much persuasion, Fischer acquiesced.
Many commentators, particularly from the USSR, have suggested that all this was part of Fischer's plan to "psych out"
Spassky. Fischer's supporters say that winning the World Championship was the mission of his life, and that he simply wanted
the setting to be perfect for it when he took the stage.
Spassky's seconds for the match were Efim Geller, Nikolai Krogius and Ivo Kei. Fischer's was William Lombardy. His entourage
also consisted of lawyer Paul Marshall, whose role in the events of the following months would not be insignificant, and
USCF representative Fred Cramer, who could best be termed 'complainer' in the light of events to follow. The match referee
was Lothar Schmid, without whose extraordinary patience and resourcefulness the match would never have gotten underway.
Before the match, Fischer hadn't won a single game against Spassky. Of their five encounters, Spassky had won three and two
had drawn. However, in the Candidates matches en route to becoming challenger, Fischer had demolished such stalwarts as Mark
Taimanov and Bent Larsen 6-0 (with no draws), and had won four games in a row in his match against former world champion
Tigran Petrosian. He was, therefore, considered pre-match favorite.
Fischer's disastrous start
In game 1, after regular exchanges in a placid Nimzo-Indian, the position in the diagram on the left was reached after
29. b5. No one knows what went on in Fischer's mind when he blundered with 29... Bxh2? (see algebraic chess notation) in
this rather lifeless position. Every chess beginner learns that the rook pawn is poisoned for the Bishop. Could Fischer
really have missed 30. g3 h5 32. Ke2 h4 33. Kf3 h3 34. Kg4 Bg1 35. Kxh3 Bxf2 36. Bd2, trapping the bishop? Karpov has
suggested that the reason was overconfidence. 29... Bxh2 would become Fischer's most famous move. Surprisingly, Fischer had
good drawing chances with two pawns for the Bishop but he bungled again before adjournment. He resigned on move 56.
Fischer failed to turn up for the second game and lost by forfeit.
This was apparently due to another disagreement about cameras. With the score now 2-0, most observers believed that the
match was over and Fischer would leave Iceland. Surprisingly, he did not, which some attribute to a phone call from Henry
Kissinger and a deluge of telegrams in his support. Due to his sporting spirit and respect and sympathy for Fischer, Spassky
agreed to play the third game in a small room backstage, out of sight of the spectators. This turned out to be a huge
psychological blunder by Spassky.
The turning point
In Lombardy's words:
When Bobby arrived, Boris was, as usual, seated at the table. Bobby did not sit down but went around inspecting the
television equipment, and at this point Boris betrayed indignant agitation. Bobby tested the remote-control camera for
possible sources of noise. Schmid watched the proceedings and became anxious. He felt the match once more was in jeopardy.
Schmid took Bobby by the arm in an effort to get him to the playing table. Bobby brushed off Schmid's entreaties. "The
American grandmaster permitted himself great liberty in his remarks, which were very disagreeable to hear," Spassky said
later. Finally satisfied with the camera, Bobby settled down for the match.
It would be the turning point of the match.
After 1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 c5 4. d5 exd5 5. cxd5 d6 6. Nc3 g6 7. Nd2 Nbd7 8. e4 Bg7 9. Be2 O-O 10. O-O Re8 11. Qc2,
Fischer demonstrated his acute intuitive feel for the position with 11... Nh5! It violates a whole bunch of opening
rules-of-thumb, but in this position Fischer's assessment that his kingside attack trumps the disadvantages of the move is
correct.
Spassky continued in the passive style that he had employed in game 1 and which indeed had characterized his play ever since
he ascended the chess throne. He lost after
12. Bxh5 gxh5 13. Nc4 Ne5 14. Ne3 Qh4 15. Bd2 Ng4 16. Nxg4 hxg4 17. Bf4 Qf6 18. g3 Bd7 19. a4 b6 20. Rfe1 a6 21. Re2 b5
22. Rae1 Qg6 23. b3 Re7 24. Qd3 Rb8 25. axb5 axb5 26. b4 c4 27. Qd2 Rbe8 28. Re3 h5 29. R3e2 Kh7 30. Re3 Kg8 31. R3e2 Bxc3
32. Qxc3 Rxe4 33. Rxe4 Rxe4 34. Rxe4 Qxe4 35. Bh6 Qg6 36. Bc1 Qb1 37. Kf1 Bf5 38. Ke2 Qe4+ 39. Qe3 Qc2+ 40. Qd2 Qb3
41. Qd4 Bd3+ 0-1.
Fischer had won his first game ever against Spassky.
After this game, Fischer's sprits improved. Spassky, on the other hand, stopped believing in himself.
In the fourth game, Spassky employed the Sicilian as Black. He sacrificed a pawn in the opening and backed by some
impressive home analysis, gained a strong attack, but failed to convert it into a win.
The fifth game was another Nimzo-Indian, and Spassky continued his passive style of play. After some aimless wood-pushing,
he got into the position in the diagram on the left. Perhaps his game was lost anyway, but he gifted it to Fischer on a
platter with 27. Qc2?? Bxa4 0-1.
After this game, Fischer was in a positively upbeat mood. He had drawn level, and although FIDE rules stipulated that the
champion retained the title if the match ended in a tie, the effect of the fiasco of the first two games had been wiped out.
He was confident of winning the match.
The juggernaut continues
In the sixth game, for the first time in his life, Fischer opened with 1. c4, nullifying Spassky's extensive opening
preparation. Yet again, Spassky played passively. After 1. c4 e6 2. Nf3 d5 3. d4 Nf6 4. Nc3 Be7 5. Bg5 O-O 6. e3 h6
7. Bh4 b6 8. cxd5 Nxd5 9. Bxe7 Qxe7 10. Nxd5 exd5 11. Rc1 Be6 12. Qa4 c5 13. Qa3 Rc8 14. Bb5 a6 15. dxc5 bxc5 16. O-O Ra7
17. Be2 Nd7 18. Nd4 Qf8 19. Nxe6 fxe6 20. e4 d4 21. f4 Qe7 22. e5 Rb8 23. Bc4 Kh8 24. Qh3 Nf8 25. b3 a5 26. f5, White had a
crushing attack.
The game continued 26... exf5 27. Rxf5 Nh7 28. Rcf1 Qd8 29. Qg3 Re7 30. h4 Rbb7 31. e6 Rbc7 32. Qe5 Qe8 33. a4 Qd8
34. R1f2 Qe8 35. R2f3 Qd8 36. Bd3 Qe8 37. Qe4 Nf6 38. Rxf6 gxf6 39. Rxf6 Kg8 40. Bc4 Kh8 41. Qf4 1-0
After this game, Spassky joined the audience in applauding Fischer's win. Psychologically, he had already lost the match. He
would later reluctantly refer to this game as the best of the match.
Game 7 was drawn, despite Fischer being two pawns ahead. In game 8, Fischer again played 1. c4, this time an English opening.
Spassky gave up an exchange for little compensation, and it is unclear whether it was a sacrifice or a blunder. Fischer won,
and he was ahead 5-3.
Spassky took a time-out before game 9. By now Fischer's psychological battle was proving impossible for him to handle. The
ninth game ended in a draw in only 29 moves. The players' behavior, however, provided for much entertainment, with Fischer
rocking back and forth in his chair and Spassky imitating him, which one spectator described as "two dead men dancing". At
this point the Soviet establishment asked him to return to Moscow and claim the match by default. At considerable risk,
Spassky refused. Fischer won the tenth game, in a sharp Ruy Lopez opening, a favorite of his. Spassky pulled one back in the
next game with an opening novelty in the Poisoned Pawn variation of the Sicilian Najdorf. The twelveth was drawn. The 13th
game swung one way, then another, and was finally adjourned with Fischer having an edge in a sharp position but no clear
win. The Soviet team's analysis convinced them that the position was clearly drawn. Fischer stayed up until 8 am the
following morning analyzing it (the resumption being at 2.30 pm.) He hadn't found a win either. Amazingly, he managed to set
traps for Spassky, who fell into them and lost. Spassky's seconds were stunned, and Spassky himself refused to leave the
board for a long time after the game was over, unable to believe the result.
1. e4 Nf6 2. e5 Nd5 3. d4 d6 4. Nf3 g6 5. Bc4 Nb6 6. Bb3 Bg7 7. Nbd2 O-O 8. h3 a5 9. a4 dxe5 10. dxe5 Na6 11. O-O Nc5
12. Qe2 Qe8 13. Ne4 Nbxa4 14. Bxa4 Nxa4 15. Re1 Nb6 16. Bd2 a4 17. Bg5 h6 18. Bh4 Bf5 19. g4 Be6 20. Nd4 Bc4 21. Qd2 Qd7
22. Rad1 Rfd8 23. f4 Bd5 24. Nc5 Qc8 25. Qc3 e6 26. Kh2 Nd7 27. Nd3 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 Rh8 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+ Ke2
70. Rc1 f3 71. Bc5 Rxg7 72. Rxc4 Rd7 73. Re4+ Kf1 74. Bd4 f2 0-1
The endgame
The next seven games were drawn. Fischer, with a three point lead, was content to inch towards the title, and Spassky seemed
resigned to his fate. The off-the-board antics continued to be as interesting as they ever were, and included a lawsuit
against Fischer for damages by Chester Fox, who had filming rights to the match (Fischer had objected to the camera team,
forcing Fox to sell his rights), a Fischer demand to remove the first seven rows of spectators, and Spassky's claims that
Fischer was using electronic and chemical devices to 'control' him, resulting in an Iceland police sweep of the hall. The
21st was the final game. Spassky played badly in the endgame and the game was adjouned with a big advantage for Fischer.
Spassky resigned the game by telephone, which Fischer made a big fuss about, but could finally be convinced that the rules
allowed it.
The final score was 12.5 - 8.5 in favour of Fischer.
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 1 1-0 Score Fischer 0.0 Spassky 1.0
E56 Nimzo-Indian Defence, Main Line
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 2 0-1 Score Fischer 0.0 Spassky 2.0
Default
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 3 0-1 Score Fischer 1.0 Spassky 2.0
A77 Benoni Defence, Classical Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 4 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 1.5 Spassky 2.5
B88 Sicilian Defence, Sozin System, Fischer Variation
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 5 0-1 Score Fischer 2.5 Spassky 2.5
E41 Nimzo-Indian Defence, Huebner Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 6 1-0 Score Fischer 3.5 Spassky 2.5
D59 Queens Gambit Declined, Tartakower Variation
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 7 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 4.0 Spassky 3.0
B97 Sicilian Defence, Najdorf System, Poisoned Pawn Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 8 1-0 Score Fischer 5.0 Spassky 3.0
A39 English Opening, Symmetrical Variation, Main Line
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 9 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 5.5 Spassky 3.5
D41 Queens Gambit Declined, Semi-Tarrasch Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 10 1-0 Score Fischer 6.5 Spassky 3.5
C95 Ruy Lopez, Closed Defence, Breyer System, Borisenko Variation
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 11 1-0 Score Fischer 6.5 Spassky 4.5
B97 Sicilian Defence, Najdorf System, Poisoned Pawn Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 12 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 7.0 Spassky 5.0
D66 Queens Gambit Declined, Orthodox Defence
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 13 0-1 Score Fischer 8.0 Spassky 5.0
B04 Alekhine Defence, Modern System, Fianchetto Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 14 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 8.5 Spassky 5.5
D37 Queens Gambit Declined, Classical Variation
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 15 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 9.0 Spassky 6.0
B99 Sicilian Defence, Najdorf System, Main Line
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 16 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 9.5 Spassky 6.5
C69 Ruy Lopez, Exchange System, Gligoric Variation
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 17 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 10.0 Spassky 7.0
B09 Pirc Defence, Austrian Attack
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 18 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 10.5 Spassky 7.5
B69 Sicilian Defence, Richter-Rauzer System, Rauzer Attack
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 19 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 11.0 Spassky 8.0
B05 Alekhine Defence, Modern System, Panov Variation
1972 R Fischer vs B Spassky Game 20 1/2-1/2 Score Fischer 11.5 Spassky 8.5
B68 Sicilian Defence, Richter-Rauzer System, Rauzer Attack
1972 B Spassky vs R Fischer Game 21 0-1 Score Fischer 12.5 Spassky 8.5
B46 Sicilian Defence, Taimanov Variation
Fischer's Openings Repertoire
Ruy Lopez 2
English Opening
Sicilian Defence 4
Pirc Defence
Alekhine Defence 2
Benoni Defence
Nimzo-Indian Defence 2
Queens Gambit Declined
Spassky's Openings Repertoire
Sicilian Defence 3
Queens Gambit Declined 3
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