Pillsbury-Lasker: An Explosive Rivalry

Pillsbury without question was the most dangerous opponent that Lasker faced during the first years of his reign. Between 1893 and 1904 these two magnificent gladiators battled in 12 tournament games. The final score was +5 -4 =3 in Lasker’s favor.

I would like to introduce you to two games that were awarded the brilliancy prize! First, Pillsbury-Lasker, St Petersburg 1896; this was Lasker’s masterpiece. His attack on the Queen side was a classic! It can only compare, in my point of view, with another classic game Keres-Botvinnik, Leningrad 1941. The second game, Pillsbury-Lasker, Cambridge Spring 1904 was a wonderful revenge! Pillsbury learned his lesson; he analyzed the game and found an interesting novelty he kept secret for 8 years! We must learn this example and analyze our own games. This is the best way to improve in chess!

How dangerous was Pillsbury for Lasker? For a reference you can see the games: Lasker-Pillsbury, St Petersburg (1) 1895-96: Pillsbury-Lasker, St Petersburg (6) 1895-6 and Pillsbury-Lasker (!!), Nuremberg 1896.