Bobby Fischer Loses?
As many local chess players can attest, Viktors Pupols, is a common face in many, if not all, Washington chess tournaments. Having spent many hours before tournaments and between rounds waiting with Viktors Pupols, my dad and I have heard the story about how he beat Bobby Fischer many times. The more times I heard the story, the more I became intrigued by it and now, finally, I have committed to researching how Viktors was able to complete the impossible and become one of the few people who could claim to have beaten one of the best chess players to ever play the game.
The year was 1955, and 25 talented juniors had signed up for the ten-round US Junior Chess Championship that was being held in Lincoln, Nebraska. The prizes, in addition to the trophies and merchandise offered to the top ten finishers, included a $75 (that translates to roughly $728.5 today) suit for first place. During this time, Viktors, 20, had a USCF rating of around 2037 while Fischer, 12, was still relatively unknown and had a rating of around 1830.
Going into the confrontation, Fischer had played stable chess throughout the tournament and had drawn three, won one, and lost one, while Viktors, obviously playing with a riskier style had won three but also lost three. Both were going into round seven with a respectable 3/6 points and during the day before their match they played a few blitz games together. According to Tom Sawyer, “he [Viktors] played blitz vs Fischer, beating Bobby repeatedly with the Latvian Gambit.” He continues to say that “Viktors told him that he would play the Latvian that night vs Bobby in their tournament game. Fischer did not believe him and continued to study the Ruy Lopez and Giuoco Piano all day long.” However, Viktors, did not scream wolf and instead told the truth; that night he crushed Bobby in the Latvian Gambit.
This is the same game but with some analysis and explanations:
Robert James Fischer - Viktors Pupols [C40]
Lincoln ch-US jr Lincoln, NE USA (7), 21.07.1955
[Daniel Shubin]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 [This is what is typically known as the Latvian Gambit (or Greco Countergambit).]
3.Nxe5 [3.Bc4 fxe4 4.Nxe5 d5 5.Qh5+ g6 6.Nxg6 hxg6 7.Qxg6+ Kd7 8.Bxd5° White has three pawns for the piece with the attack; 3.exf5 e4 4.Ne5 Nf6 5.Be2 d6? 6.Bh5+ Ke7 7.Nf7+–]
3...Qf6 4.d4! [4.Nc4 fxe4 5.Nc3 Qf7 6.Ne3 c6 7.d3 exd3 8.Bxd3 d5 9.0–0 Bc5 10.Na4 Bd6]
4...d6 5.Nc4 fxe4 6.Nc3 Qg6 7.Ne3 Nf6 [
Personally, I agree with the computer that white is better than black in this position. They have better development and a safer king (for now?)]
8.Bc4? [Now black gets d5 with a tempo]
[8.Be2 c6 9.0–0 d5 10.f3²]
8...c6 9.d5 [9.0–0 d5 10.Be2 Bd6=]
9...Be7 10.a4 [10.f3 exf3 11.Qxf3 Nbd7 12.dxc6 Ne5 13.Qe2 bxc6 14.0–0 Qh5 15.Qxh5+ Nxh5²]
10...Nbd7 11.a5?! [Fischer just wasted two tempos and now the game has flipped in favor of Viktors]
11...Ne5 12.Be2 0–0 13.0–0 Bd7 [13...c5!? 14.Kh1 Neg4 15.Nxg4 Nxg4 16.Bxg4 Bxg4–+]
14.Kh1 Kh8 15.Nc4 Nfg4 16.Qe1
16...Rf7?! [To slow, allowing white to trade pieces and simplify]
[16...Nf3!! 17.gxf3 exf3 18.Bxf3 Rxf3+– 19.Qxe7?? (19.Rg1 Re8 20.Rg2 …Bh4) 19...Nxf2+ 20.Rxf2 Rxf2 21.Qg5 Rf1+ 22.Kg2 Raf8 23.Qxg6 R8f2+ Mate in 5... Can you find it?]
17.h3 Nf6 18.Nxe5 dxe5 19.Bc4 Rff8² 20.Be3?? [This game is going back and forth.]
20...Nh5 [20...cxd5!! 21.Bb5 (21.Nxd5 Nxd5 22.Bxd5 Bxh3 23.gxh3 (23.Bxe4 Qxe4 Viktors is up a bishop after a potential undefendable combination) 23...Rf3+–) ]
21.Kh2 Bd6 22.Bb3 [22.dxc6 Bxc6 23.Qe2]
22...Nf4 23.Bxf4?? exf4 24.Qxe4?? [ Viktors is completly winning in this position!]
24...f3+!! 25.g3™ Bf5?? [25...Qh5! No way to protect the h3 pawn and white's position falls 26.h4 Rf4]
26.Qh4= Rae8 27.Rae1 Be5 28.Qb4 Qh6 29.h4
29...g5 [29...Bxg3+!! 30.Kxg3 (30.fxg3 Qd2+ 31.Kg1 Qg2#) 30...Qg6+ 31.Kxf3 Bg4+ 32.Kg3 Bf3+ 33.Qg4 Qxg4+ 34.Kh2 Qg2#]
30.Rh1?? [30.Rxe5 Getting rid of black's most dangerous piece. The bishop 30...Rxe5 31.a6 c5 32.Qxc5 bxa6 (32...gxh4) ]
30...gxh4 31.Kg1 h3? [31...c5 32.Qc4 (32.Qxc5 Bxg3 33.Qd4+ Be5 34.Rxe5 Qg7+ 35.Kf1 Rxe5) 32...Bxg3]
32.dxc6? bxc6 33.Qc5 Qg7 [This is too slow. Black can win with an immediate blow]
[33...Bxg3! 34.fxg3 (34.Rxe8 Qc1+ 35.Nd1 Qxd1+) 34...Rxe1+]
34.Kh2 Qf6 35.Qxa7 Bd4 36.Qc7 Bxf2 37.Rxe8 Rxe8 38.Rf1 Bd4 39.Rxf3
¹39...Bxc3 [39...Bg1+ 40.Kxg1 (40.Kh1 Be4 41.Qf4 Bxf3+) 40...Qd4+ 41.Kh2 Qd2+ 42.Ne2 Rxe2+]
40.bxc3 Re2+ 41.Kh1= Be4 [41...Re1+ 42.Kh2 Re2+ 43.Kh1 Re1+]
42.Qc8+ Kg7 43.Qg4+? [43.Qd7+ Black's advantage has dissapeared. It is impossible to defend against all of white's checks. 43...Kh6 44.Qxh3+ Kg7 45.Qd7+=]
43...Qg6 44.Qd7+?? Kh6 According to many sources, Bobby Fischer lost on time in this position. One of only two games where that happened. However, even if there was no time trouble, Viktors is already completly winning in this position!]
45.Qxh3+ Qh5
0–1
After a very complex, back and forth game, Viktors was able to find the knockout blow. In Larry Parr’s book, Viktors Pupols: American Master, Viktor says, “Bobby lost more Latvian Gambits that afternoon than in all the rest of his life!” Whether that is true or not (I believe that it is) is unknown, however, one thing is certain, after that day Fischer probably spent hours studying the opening which he had previously believed was no good.
Viktor finished the tournament with an impressive 5.5/10 points, tying him for 6th place with five other players, while Fischer finished with a respectable 5/10 points to finish 20th on tiebreakers.
