Bobby Fischer is the most influential chess player and it has nothing to do with his gameplay

Although Bobby Fischer was a fantastic chess player, I believe he had more influence on the game of chess outside of his gameplay.

He invented two HUGE things that helped chess.

1) Chess960:  This literally is a gamechanger.  I mean literally.  He changed the way the game was played, and people actually regularly use this.

2) The time bonus after a move.  I mean, this is used everywhere.  

Sure, there were ideas that were similar to Fischer's before he came up with these ideas.  But he made them so much better.

And for that, he's the most influential chess player of all time.

He also paved the way for professional play by demanding higher fees.

He was also most influential in reinforcing the stereotype that chessplayers are nuts.

Fischer = Coward

Fischer = Bigot

What stereotype? Never heard that before.

Come on, can't you let me stir the pot just a little bit? Don't you know every Fischer thread is supposed to blow up? ;-)

Getting back to topic, I'll admit that the two contributions mentioned in the OP were significant, but I'm not sure I'd go as far as saying that makes him the most influential chess player of all time.

I mean, whoever came up with the idea of the chess clock in the 1800's could also be a contender for that title. Before the chess clock, players were allowed to take as much time as they liked, and a chess game often evolved into a marathon to see who could best stay awake while the opponent took forever to contemplate his move.

     Many others have had a much greater effect on chess than Fischer. Start with Morphy, a player Fischer admired greatly, whose games (in an extremely brief career) changed everyone's opinion about how to play--development, initiative, positional factors. Steinitz was the first to elucidate positional principles, and Tarrasch refined and amplified them. Reti and Nimzowitsch led the revision of these principles.

     But the most important figures are the unknown players in Renaissance Italy that thought up the rule changes that transformed chess from a long slow struggle into the game we have enjoyed for the last 500 years.

I work in mental health, Bobby needed help that was not available in his day.

This is off topic, but I consider it a near miracle that Fischer even won the '72WC. The entire Western world (including a British millionaire who offered to sweeten the pot) just about had to move Heaven and Earth to get him on that plane to Iceland, and even then, nobody was sure he'd really show up for the match.

Then, during the match, when Fischer refused to play further, Spassky could have easily claimed the title because of Fischer's ridiculous demands. In fact, the Russian officials were pressuring Spassky to do exactly that. One word from Spassky, and Spassky would have been the '72 champ. But Boris wanted to play Bobby despite all of Bobby's demands, so history records that Bobby won the title. I don't think Bobby ever realized how lucky he really was. By all rights, Bobby should have been one of those "missed it by that much" players.

Bobby was a great chess player, no doubt. But you can't believe everything he said. Whether Bobby realized it or not, his off-board antics and ridiculous demands were the perfect psychology.

He was on the cover of Life magazine in Nov., 1971 for his match with Spassky, was a really big deal at the time, and the matches were also televised.  Big promotion for chess and many more people started playing after that. Actually it had a lot to do with his game play.

Well, over the board, sure Morphy was more influential. But as the title says, I'm not even mentioning his over the board talents.

This is the problem with Fischer, and why he doesn't get more credit.  1) He became a recluse.  2) His 9/11 remarks.  3) His ideas were thought of as a total joke at the time 4) His off the wall character.

But he planted two amazing seeds that became humongous trees.  

To be honest, I don't think many people realize the origins of the time bonus or Chess960.  When it comes to positive things Fischer did, most just look at his uber high elo rating, and him beating Spassky in a match that became representative of the cold war.  But those two positives aren't his two most influential things, even if they are what he is most known for.

[Edited moderator SB] religion post 

this is the singlehandledly most antisemitic and racist thing i have ever read

signed, a jew

I interpreted his statement as being Fischer's overall philosophy in his later years. Not sure if I was right in that interpretation.

My sympathies lie with the 911 victims whilst he yelled in real time " Yes, this is all wonderful news...its about time America gets its head kicked in.."