Lone Pine International
Encyclopedia
Lone Pine International was a series of chess
tournaments
held annually in March or April from 1971 through 1981 in Lone Pine
, California
. Sponsored by Louis D. Statham (1907–1983), millionaire engineer and inventor of medical instruments, the tournaments were formally titled the Louis D. Statham Masters. The events were seven- to ten-round Swiss system tournament
s, with entrance requirements that made them the strongest recurring Swiss tournaments in the U.S. in the 1980s. Former United States Champion and Grandmaster Isaac Kashdan
served as the tournament director.
masters
(rated 2200+) and Experts
(rated 2000–2199).
The field of 33 had an average Elo rating of 2190.
Grandmaster Larry Evans
(USA) won the $1000 first prize in the seven-round event with the score 6–1.
Second place was a four-way tie between Svetozar Gligorić
(Yugoslavia), James Tarjan
(USA), William Martz
(USA), and Walter Browne (USA) with 5 points each.
Expert rating was required for juniors (under age twenty-one); adults needed to be masters.
The field of 35 had an average rating of 2262.
GM Svetozar Gligorić
(Yugoslavia
) won the $2000 first prize in the seven-round event with the score 6–1.
Second place was a four-way tie at 5–2 between James Tarjan
, Anthony Saidy
, Andrew Karklins, and Paul Brandts (all USA).
The field grew to 48, with an average rating of 2322.
GM Arthur Bisguier
(USA) won with the score 6–1.
Second–third places with 5½–1½ were Walter Browne (USA) and László Szabó
(Hungary).
Next at 5–2 were Edward Formanek (USA), John Grefe
(USA), and Tony Miles
(England).
Also for the first time some masters were also excluded, as any player who was not a junior required a rating of 2250 or more or the FIDE International Master or Grandmaster title to qualify.
Despite the more stringent entrance requirements the field grew again to 53, with an average rating of 2310.
Walter Browne (USA and Australia) won with a score of 6–1, the first time the highest rated entrant (2612) was the victor.
Tied for second with 5½ points were Pal Benko
and John Grefe
, and next with 5 points were Larry Evans
, Julio Kaplan
, Kim Commons, and Andrew Karklins (all USA).
Entrants needed an IM or GM title or a rating of 2350 or higher (2250 for juniors) to qualify.
The field shrank slightly to 44, but included 22 GMs and the average rating increased to 2428.
The tournament was lengthened to ten rounds, which allowed it for the first time to be rated by FIDE.
(Previous tournaments had been USCF rated only.)
This made FIDE titles
and norms
available for the first time.
In order to enhance title and norm chances for the participants, some flexibility was introduced into the Swiss system pairings in the later rounds.
These adjustments led to some controversy, as a last-round pairing was disputed.
Norman Weinstein (USA) earned a GM norm, and Kim Commons (USA) and Alla Kushnir
(Israel) earned IM norms.
Kushnir was the first woman to compete at Lone Pine and defeated GM Larry Evans
in the first round.
Vladimir Liberzon
of Israel
won the $4000 first prize with the score 7½–2½.
Evans (USA) placed second at 7–3, and there was a six-way tie at 6½–3½ for positions three through eight between Walter Browne (USA), Florin Gheorghiu
(Romania), Weinstein, Oscar Panno
(Argentina), Miguel Quinteros
(Argentina), and Svetozar Gligorić
(Yugoslavia).
The field increased to 57, including 11 GMs and 10 IMs, but the average rating dropped to 2371.
The event was returned to the seven-round length, and as a result was expected to be rated only by the USCF as it did not meet FIDE requirements for Swiss system tournaments.
In a controversial decision, FIDE made an exception to rate the tournament anyway.
Subsequent Lone Pine tournaments would be nine-round events and thus meet FIDE requirements for rated Swiss tournaments.
Former World Champion
Tigran Petrosian
(USSR) won the $8000 first prize, with a 5½–1½ score, the lowest winning seven-round score in Lone Pine history.
Second place at 5–2 was shared by Larry Christiansen (USA), Vasily Smyslov
(USSR), Oscar Panno
(Argentina), Miguel Najdorf
(Argentina), Miguel Quinteros
(Argentina), Tony Miles
(England), Ken Rogoff (USA), Győző Forintos
(Hungary), and Walter Browne (USA).
No FIDE norms were available at this tournament due to its seven-round length.
For the first time, there was no clear winner. Also for the first time, a woman shared the top of the score card.
The increase in the number of entrants in 1976 required that the qualification standards be increased in 1977, so the requirements were returned to those of 1975.
The field of 48 had an average rating of 2410.
Yuri Balashov
(USSR), Oscar Panno
(Argentina), Dragutin Sahović
(Yugoslavia), and Nona Gaprindashvili
(USSR) tied for first with the score 6½–2½.
Fifth and sixth place at 6–3 was shared by William Lombardy
and Larry Christiansen (both USA).
Gaprindashvili, the Women's World Champion
, earned a grandmaster norm
and would be the first women to attain the grandmaster title.
Sahović also earned a GM norm. IM norms were earned by Jack Peters, Roy Ervin, and Ken Regan (all USA).
The field of 68 was a record, with a greater number of international participants and an average rating of 2431.
GM Bent Larsen
(Denmark) won with the 7½–1½, the best score in Lone Pine history.
The larger number of international participants made norm opportunities more plentiful than before, and the eleven norms achieved set a record for an individually-paired Swiss or round-robin tournament
. (The Olympiads
are paired by team rather than individual.)
GM norms were earned by Jack Peters (USA), Vitaly Zaltsman (USA), Ken Rogoff (USA), and Peter Biyiasas
(Canada).
IM norms were earned by Yasser Seirawan (USA), Tim Taylor (USA), Jaime Sunyé
(Brazil), Jon Speelman
(England), Haukua Angantysson (Iceland), Margeir Petursson (Iceland), and Helgi Ólafsson
(Iceland).
(rating 2400+), or junior rated over 2300 required for entrance.
The field grew to a new record of 73 including players from 18 countries, and 27 GMs and 22 IMs.
The average rating was 2444.
Again there was no clear winner, with four players tying for the top score. Svetozar Gligorić and Vladimir Liberzon became the first repeat winners, joined by Vlastimil Hort
(Czechoslovakia
) and Florin Gheorghui (Romania
) with the score 6½–2½.
The newly created FIDE Master (FM) title was available for the first time.
Yasser Seirawan (USA) earned a GM norm; Walter Morris (USA), Jack Peters (USA), Joe Bradford (USA), Nick de Firmian
(USA) and Paul van der Sterren
(Holland), earned IM norms; and Doug Root (USA) and David Strauss (USA) earned FM norms.
Eligibility requirements were increased to Grandmaster, adults rated over 2450, and juniors rated over 2350.
The average rating of the field of 43 jumped to 2487.
Roman Dzindzichashvili
(Israel) won with the score 7–2.
Dzindzichashvili had emigrated from Israel to the U.S. the year before and would subsequently become a U.S. citizen.
Michael Wilder, Jay Whitehead, Doug Root, and Ron Henley
(all USA) earned IM norms; Joel Benjamin
(USA) earned an FM norm.
GM Viktor Korchnoi
topped a field of 61 with the score 7–2 to win the $15,000 first prize.
Three grandmasters tied for second with 6½–2½: Yasser Seirawan (USA), Gennadi Sosonko
(Netherlands), and Svetozar Gligorić
(Yugoslavia).
The tournament included two Soviet grandmasters, Artur Yusupov
and Oleg Romanishin
, making it the first tournament aside from the Olympiads
since Korchnoi's 1976 defection from the Soviet Union in which a Soviet player competed with him.
No U.S. players earned title norms at this tournament.
Chess
Chess is a two-player board game played on a chessboard, a square-checkered board with 64 squares arranged in an eight-by-eight grid. It is one of the world's most popular games, played by millions of people worldwide at home, in clubs, online, by correspondence, and in tournaments.Each player...
tournaments
Chess tournament
A chess tournament is a series of chess games played competitively to determine a winning individual or team. Since the first international chess tournament in London, 1851, chess tournaments have become the standard form of chess competition among serious players.Today, the most recognized chess...
held annually in March or April from 1971 through 1981 in Lone Pine
Lone Pine, California
Lone Pine is a census-designated place in Inyo County, California, United States. Lone Pine is located south-southeast of Independence, at an elevation of 3727 feet . The population was 2,035 at the 2010 census, up from 1,655 at the 2000 census. The town is located in the Owens Valley, near the...
, California
California
California is a state located on the West Coast of the United States. It is by far the most populous U.S. state, and the third-largest by land area...
. Sponsored by Louis D. Statham (1907–1983), millionaire engineer and inventor of medical instruments, the tournaments were formally titled the Louis D. Statham Masters. The events were seven- to ten-round Swiss system tournament
Swiss system tournament
A Swiss-system tournament is a commonly used type of tournament where players or teams need to be paired to face each other for several rounds of competition. This type of tournament was first used in a Zurich chess tournament in 1895, hence the name "Swiss system". The Swiss system is used when...
s, with entrance requirements that made them the strongest recurring Swiss tournaments in the U.S. in the 1980s. Former United States Champion and Grandmaster Isaac Kashdan
Isaac Kashdan
Isaac Kashdan was an American chess grandmaster and chess writer. Kashdan was one of the world's best players in the late 1920s and early 1930s. He was twice U.S. Open champion...
served as the tournament director.
Summary
| Year | Dates | Rounds | Field | Avg. Elo | Top score | Winners |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1971 | March 14–20 | 7 | 33 | 2190 | 6 | |
| 1972 | March 12–18 | 7 | 35 | 2262 | 6 | |
| 1973 | March 18–24 | 7 | 48 | 2322 | 6 | |
| 1974 | March 24–30 | 7 | 53 | 2310 | 6 | |
| 1975 | April 13–24 | 10 | 44 | 2428 | 7½ | |
| 1976 | March 7–13 | 7 | 57 | 2371 | 5½ | |
| 1977 | March 20–30 | 9 | 48 | 2410 | 6½ | |
| 1978 | April 1–12 | 9 | 68 | 2431 | 7½ | |
| 1979 | March 25–April 4 | 9 | 73 | 2444 | 6½ | |
| 1980 | March 16–26 | 9 | 43 | 2487 | 7 | |
| 1981 | March 29–April 8 | 9 | 61 | 7 |
1971
The first Louis D. Statham tournament was open to all USCFUnited States Chess Federation
The United States Chess Federation is a non-profit organization, the governing chess organization within the United States, and one of the federations of the FIDE. The USCF was founded in 1939 from the merger of two regional chess organizations, and grew gradually until 1972, when membership...
masters
Chess master
A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he/she can usually beat chess experts, who themselves typically prevail against most amateurs. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context....
(rated 2200+) and Experts
Chess expert
Chess expert is a title given by the United States Chess Federation . It is awarded to chess players rated from 2000 to 2199. Players rated above that are masters while players below that are class players. Approximately 400,000 chess players have USCF ratings, of which approximately 4000 are rated...
(rated 2000–2199).
The field of 33 had an average Elo rating of 2190.
Grandmaster Larry Evans
Larry Evans
For the football player of the same name, see Larry Evans .Larry Melvyn Evans was an American chess grandmaster, author, and journalist. He won or shared the U.S. Chess Championship five times and the U.S. Open Chess Championship four times...
(USA) won the $1000 first prize in the seven-round event with the score 6–1.
Second place was a four-way tie between Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
(Yugoslavia), James Tarjan
James Tarjan
James Edward Tarjan is an American Grandmaster of chess.Tarjan was just 17 when he was selected to the American team for the 1969 World Students' Olympiad, at Dresden. He was a member of the winning American side at Haifa 1970, and was selected again at Graz 1972...
(USA), William Martz
William Martz
William "Bill" Edward Martz was an American chess International Master, who was active from 1963 until his death....
(USA), and Walter Browne (USA) with 5 points each.
1972
For the second year of the tournament, eligibility requirements were increased slightly.Expert rating was required for juniors (under age twenty-one); adults needed to be masters.
The field of 35 had an average rating of 2262.
GM Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
(Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia
Yugoslavia refers to three political entities that existed successively on the western part of the Balkans during most of the 20th century....
) won the $2000 first prize in the seven-round event with the score 6–1.
Second place was a four-way tie at 5–2 between James Tarjan
James Tarjan
James Edward Tarjan is an American Grandmaster of chess.Tarjan was just 17 when he was selected to the American team for the 1969 World Students' Olympiad, at Dresden. He was a member of the winning American side at Haifa 1970, and was selected again at Graz 1972...
, Anthony Saidy
Anthony Saidy
Anthony Saidy is an International Master of chess. He has played many times in the U.S. Chess Championship. He won the 1960 Canadian Open Chess Championship. He is the author of several chess books, including The Battle of Chess Ideas, and The World of Chess...
, Andrew Karklins, and Paul Brandts (all USA).
1973
The third year of the tournament, masters were allowed as well as any juniors with a rating over 2100.The field grew to 48, with an average rating of 2322.
GM Arthur Bisguier
Arthur Bisguier
Arthur Bernard Bisguier is an American chess Grandmaster, chess promoter, and writer. Bisguier won two U.S. Junior Championships , three U.S. Open Chess Championship titles , and the 1954 United States Chess Championship title. He played for the United States in five chess Olympiads...
(USA) won with the score 6–1.
Second–third places with 5½–1½ were Walter Browne (USA) and László Szabó
László Szabó (chess player)
László Szabó was a prominent Hungarian Grandmaster of chess.Born in Budapest, he burst onto the international chess scene in 1935, at the unusually young age of 18...
(Hungary).
Next at 5–2 were Edward Formanek (USA), John Grefe
John Grefe
John Alan Grefe is an American International Master of chess. His best result is a tie for first with Lubomir Kavalek in the 1973 U.S. Championship. FIDE awarded him the title of International Master in 1975. Grefe and Stuart Rachels are the only players since 1948 to win or share the U.S...
(USA), and Tony Miles
Tony Miles
Anthony John Miles was an English chess Grandmaster.- Early achievements in chess :Miles was born in Edgbaston, a suburb of Birmingham...
(England).
1974
In the fourth tournament, for the first time an Expert rating was not sufficient for entrance, even for juniors.Also for the first time some masters were also excluded, as any player who was not a junior required a rating of 2250 or more or the FIDE International Master or Grandmaster title to qualify.
Despite the more stringent entrance requirements the field grew again to 53, with an average rating of 2310.
Walter Browne (USA and Australia) won with a score of 6–1, the first time the highest rated entrant (2612) was the victor.
Tied for second with 5½ points were Pal Benko
Pál Benko
Pal Benko is a chess grandmaster, author, and composer of endgame studies and chess problems.- Early life :Benko was born in France but was raised in Hungary. He was Hungarian champion by age 20. He emigrated to the United States in 1958, after defecting following the World Student Team...
and John Grefe
John Grefe
John Alan Grefe is an American International Master of chess. His best result is a tie for first with Lubomir Kavalek in the 1973 U.S. Championship. FIDE awarded him the title of International Master in 1975. Grefe and Stuart Rachels are the only players since 1948 to win or share the U.S...
, and next with 5 points were Larry Evans
Larry Evans
For the football player of the same name, see Larry Evans .Larry Melvyn Evans was an American chess grandmaster, author, and journalist. He won or shared the U.S. Chess Championship five times and the U.S. Open Chess Championship four times...
, Julio Kaplan
Julio Kaplan
Julio Argentino Kaplan Pera a Puerto Rican chess player and former world junior champion.Born in Argentina, he emigrated in 1963 to Puerto Rico, where he was raised and studied, and then later in his life to the United States, where he works for Autodesk. Earlier in his career, In the 1980s he...
, Kim Commons, and Andrew Karklins (all USA).
1975
In 1975 the eligibility requirements were increased again.Entrants needed an IM or GM title or a rating of 2350 or higher (2250 for juniors) to qualify.
The field shrank slightly to 44, but included 22 GMs and the average rating increased to 2428.
The tournament was lengthened to ten rounds, which allowed it for the first time to be rated by FIDE.
(Previous tournaments had been USCF rated only.)
This made FIDE titles
FIDE titles
The World Chess Federation, FIDE , awards several performance-based titles to chess players. Titles generally require a combination of Elo rating and norms . Once awarded, FIDE titles are held for life...
and norms
Grandmaster norm
A norm in chess is one of the requirements to receive a title such as Grandmaster from FIDE.- Grandmaster norm :In order to qualify for the title of Grandmaster of chess, a title awarded by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, a player must achieve three or more grandmaster norms in events covering a...
available for the first time.
In order to enhance title and norm chances for the participants, some flexibility was introduced into the Swiss system pairings in the later rounds.
These adjustments led to some controversy, as a last-round pairing was disputed.
Norman Weinstein (USA) earned a GM norm, and Kim Commons (USA) and Alla Kushnir
Alla Kushnir
Alla Shulimovna Kushnir is a Russian–born Israeli chess Woman Grandmaster.Kushnir was thrice Women's World Chess Championship Challenger. She lost matches for the title to Nona Gaprindashvili:* +3 –7 =3 at Riga 1965;* +2 –6 =5 at Tbilisi–Moscow 1969;...
(Israel) earned IM norms.
Kushnir was the first woman to compete at Lone Pine and defeated GM Larry Evans
Larry Evans
For the football player of the same name, see Larry Evans .Larry Melvyn Evans was an American chess grandmaster, author, and journalist. He won or shared the U.S. Chess Championship five times and the U.S. Open Chess Championship four times...
in the first round.
Vladimir Liberzon
Vladimir Liberzon
Vladimir Mikhailovich Liberzon was a Russian–born Israeli chess grandmaster.-Biography:Liberzon played in several Soviet championships, his best result being fourth at the 36th Championship, Alma-Ata 1968/69...
of Israel
Israel
The State of Israel is a parliamentary republic located in the Middle East, along the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea...
won the $4000 first prize with the score 7½–2½.
Evans (USA) placed second at 7–3, and there was a six-way tie at 6½–3½ for positions three through eight between Walter Browne (USA), Florin Gheorghiu
Florin Gheorghiu
Florin Gheorghiu is a Romanian chess player and university lecturer in foreign languages.Born in Bucharest, his prodigious talent for the game was evidenced by his many early achievements; he became an International Master in 1963 and Romania's first Grandmaster just two years later...
(Romania), Weinstein, Oscar Panno
Oscar Panno
Oscar R. Panno is an Argentine chess Grandmaster.Panno won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1953, and also won the championship of Argentina the same year....
(Argentina), Miguel Quinteros
Miguel Quinteros
Miguel Quinteros is an Argentine chess grandmaster.He won the Argentine Chess Championship at the age of 18 and in 1969 took eighth place at the Mar del Plata Zonal tournament...
(Argentina), and Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
(Yugoslavia).
1976
In 1976 the eligibility requirements were made slightly less strict, with the required rating for adult masters lowered to 2300.The field increased to 57, including 11 GMs and 10 IMs, but the average rating dropped to 2371.
The event was returned to the seven-round length, and as a result was expected to be rated only by the USCF as it did not meet FIDE requirements for Swiss system tournaments.
In a controversial decision, FIDE made an exception to rate the tournament anyway.
Subsequent Lone Pine tournaments would be nine-round events and thus meet FIDE requirements for rated Swiss tournaments.
Former World Champion
World Chess Championship
The World Chess Championship is played to determine the World Champion in the board game chess. Men and women of any age are eligible to contest this title....
Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Petrosian
Tigran Vartanovich Petrosian was a Soviet-Armenian grandmaster, and World Chess Champion from 1963 to 1969. He was nicknamed "Iron Tigran" due to his playing style because of his almost impenetrable defence, which emphasised safety above all else...
(USSR) won the $8000 first prize, with a 5½–1½ score, the lowest winning seven-round score in Lone Pine history.
Second place at 5–2 was shared by Larry Christiansen (USA), Vasily Smyslov
Vasily Smyslov
Vasily Vasilyevich Smyslov was a Soviet and Russian chess grandmaster, and was World Chess Champion from 1957 to 1958. He was a Candidate for the World Chess Championship on eight occasions . Smyslov was twice equal first at the Soviet Championship , and his total of 17 Chess Olympiad medals won...
(USSR), Oscar Panno
Oscar Panno
Oscar R. Panno is an Argentine chess Grandmaster.Panno won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1953, and also won the championship of Argentina the same year....
(Argentina), Miguel Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf
Miguel Najdorf was a Polish-born Argentine chess grandmaster of Jewish origin, famous for his Najdorf Variation....
(Argentina), Miguel Quinteros
Miguel Quinteros
Miguel Quinteros is an Argentine chess grandmaster.He won the Argentine Chess Championship at the age of 18 and in 1969 took eighth place at the Mar del Plata Zonal tournament...
(Argentina), Tony Miles
Tony Miles
Anthony John Miles was an English chess Grandmaster.- Early achievements in chess :Miles was born in Edgbaston, a suburb of Birmingham...
(England), Ken Rogoff (USA), Győző Forintos
Gyozo Forintos
Győző Victor Forintos is a Hungarian chess master and by profession, an economist.He first participated in the Hungarian Championship as early as 1954 and became the national champion in 1968/9....
(Hungary), and Walter Browne (USA).
No FIDE norms were available at this tournament due to its seven-round length.
1977
The 1977 tournament had a number of firsts.For the first time, there was no clear winner. Also for the first time, a woman shared the top of the score card.
The increase in the number of entrants in 1976 required that the qualification standards be increased in 1977, so the requirements were returned to those of 1975.
The field of 48 had an average rating of 2410.
Yuri Balashov
Yuri Balashov
-Chess career:He was awarded the grandmaster title in 1973. Balashov was Moscow Champion in 1970 and 2nd to Anatoly Karpov in the 1976 USSR Chess Championship. In 1977 he won Lithuanian Chess Championship. He finished 1st= at Lone Pine 1977 and 1st= at Wijk aan Zee 1982.Balashov represented the...
(USSR), Oscar Panno
Oscar Panno
Oscar R. Panno is an Argentine chess Grandmaster.Panno won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1953, and also won the championship of Argentina the same year....
(Argentina), Dragutin Sahović
Dragutin Sahović
Dragutin Sahović was a chess Grandmaster.He tied for first place in the 1977 Lone Pine International tournament.-External links:...
(Yugoslavia), and Nona Gaprindashvili
Nona Gaprindashvili
Nona Gaprindashvili is a Georgian chess player, the sixth women's world chess champion , and first female Grandmaster. Born in Zugdidi, Georgia , she was the strongest female player of her generation....
(USSR) tied for first with the score 6½–2½.
Fifth and sixth place at 6–3 was shared by William Lombardy
William Lombardy
William James Lombardy is an American Grandmaster of chess, writer, teacher, and one-time Catholic priest.- Life and career :...
and Larry Christiansen (both USA).
Gaprindashvili, the Women's World Champion
Women's World Chess Championship
The Women's World Chess Championship is played to determine the women's world champion in chess. Like the World Chess Championship, it is administered by FIDE....
, earned a grandmaster norm
Grandmaster norm
A norm in chess is one of the requirements to receive a title such as Grandmaster from FIDE.- Grandmaster norm :In order to qualify for the title of Grandmaster of chess, a title awarded by FIDE, the World Chess Federation, a player must achieve three or more grandmaster norms in events covering a...
and would be the first women to attain the grandmaster title.
Sahović also earned a GM norm. IM norms were earned by Jack Peters, Roy Ervin, and Ken Regan (all USA).
1978
The 1978 tournament retained the same entrance requirements and tournament format as 1977.The field of 68 was a record, with a greater number of international participants and an average rating of 2431.
GM Bent Larsen
Bent Larsen
Jørgen Bent Larsen was a Danish chess Grandmaster and author. Larsen was known for his imaginative and unorthodox style of play and he was the first western player to pose a serious challenge to the Soviet Union's dominance of chess...
(Denmark) won with the 7½–1½, the best score in Lone Pine history.
The larger number of international participants made norm opportunities more plentiful than before, and the eleven norms achieved set a record for an individually-paired Swiss or round-robin tournament
Round-robin tournament
A round-robin tournament is a competition "in which each contestant meets all other contestants in turn".-Terminology:...
. (The Olympiads
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
are paired by team rather than individual.)
GM norms were earned by Jack Peters (USA), Vitaly Zaltsman (USA), Ken Rogoff (USA), and Peter Biyiasas
Peter Biyiasas
Peter Biyiasas is a Canadian chess grandmaster. He was Canadian champion in 1972 and 1975, represented Canada with fine success on four Olympiad teams, played in two Interzonals. He moved to the United States in 1979, settling in California. He has been retired from competitive play since the...
(Canada).
IM norms were earned by Yasser Seirawan (USA), Tim Taylor (USA), Jaime Sunyé
Jaime Sunye Neto
Jaime Sunye Neto is a grandmaster of chess.Awarded the IM title in 1980 and the GM title in 1986 he was Brazilian Champion six times, in 1976, 1977, 1979, 1980, 1981, 1982 and 1983 ....
(Brazil), Jon Speelman
Jon Speelman
Jonathan Simon "Jon" Speelman is an English Grandmaster chess player, mathematician and chess writer.-Early life and education:He was educated at Worcester College, Oxford, where he studied mathematics, earning a doctorate.-Career:...
(England), Haukua Angantysson (Iceland), Margeir Petursson (Iceland), and Helgi Ólafsson
Helgi Ólafsson
Helgi Ólafsson is an Icelandic chess grandmaster who won the Icelandic Chess Championship six times and, as of 2009, holds an Elo rating of 2522....
(Iceland).
1979
Requirements were tightened in 1979, with an IM or GM title, USCF senior masterChess master
A chess master is a chess player of such skill that he/she can usually beat chess experts, who themselves typically prevail against most amateurs. Among chess players, the term is often abbreviated to master, the meaning being clear from context....
(rating 2400+), or junior rated over 2300 required for entrance.
The field grew to a new record of 73 including players from 18 countries, and 27 GMs and 22 IMs.
The average rating was 2444.
Again there was no clear winner, with four players tying for the top score. Svetozar Gligorić and Vladimir Liberzon became the first repeat winners, joined by Vlastimil Hort
Vlastimil Hort
Vlastimil Hort is a chess Grandmaster of Czech nationality. During the 1960s and 1970s he was one of the world's strongest players and reached the Candidates stage of competition for the world chess championship, but was never able to compete for the actual title.Hort was born in Kladno,...
(Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia
Czechoslovakia or Czecho-Slovakia was a sovereign state in Central Europe which existed from October 1918, when it declared its independence from the Austro-Hungarian Empire, until 1992...
) and Florin Gheorghui (Romania
Romania
Romania is a country located at the crossroads of Central and Southeastern Europe, on the Lower Danube, within and outside the Carpathian arch, bordering on the Black Sea...
) with the score 6½–2½.
The newly created FIDE Master (FM) title was available for the first time.
Yasser Seirawan (USA) earned a GM norm; Walter Morris (USA), Jack Peters (USA), Joe Bradford (USA), Nick de Firmian
Nick de Firmian
Nicholas Ernest de Firmian , is a chess grandmaster and three-time U.S. chess champion, winning in 1987 , 1995, and 1998. He also tied for first in 2002, but Larry Christiansen won the playoff...
(USA) and Paul van der Sterren
Paul van der Sterren
Paul van der Sterren is a Dutch chess grandmaster. He won the Dutch Chess Championship twice, in 1985 and 1993...
(Holland), earned IM norms; and Doug Root (USA) and David Strauss (USA) earned FM norms.
1980
In 1980, an International Master title was no longer sufficient for entry.Eligibility requirements were increased to Grandmaster, adults rated over 2450, and juniors rated over 2350.
The average rating of the field of 43 jumped to 2487.
Roman Dzindzichashvili
Roman Dzindzichashvili
Roman Yakovlevich Dzindzichashvili is a chess Grandmaster .-Life and career:Born in Tbilisi, Georgian SSR into a family of Georgian Jews, he won the Junior Championship of the Soviet Union in 1962 and the University Championships in 1966 and 1968. In 1970, he earned the title of International...
(Israel) won with the score 7–2.
Dzindzichashvili had emigrated from Israel to the U.S. the year before and would subsequently become a U.S. citizen.
Michael Wilder, Jay Whitehead, Doug Root, and Ron Henley
Ron Henley
Ronald Watson "Ron" Henley is a grandmaster of chess, chess writer, producer of chess videos and is involved in financial trading funds...
(all USA) earned IM norms; Joel Benjamin
Joel Benjamin
Joel Benjamin is an American chess Grandmaster. In 1998, he was voted "Grandmaster of the Year" by the U.S. Chess Federation. , his Elo rating was 2576, making him the No. 12 player in the U.S. and the 214th-highest rated player in the world.-Life and career:Benjamin is a native of Brooklyn, New...
(USA) earned an FM norm.
1981
The final Lone Pine tournament was held in 1981.GM Viktor Korchnoi
Viktor Korchnoi
Viktor Lvovich Korchnoi ; pronounced in the original Russian as "karch NOY"; Ви́ктор Льво́вич Корчно́й, born March 23, 1931 is a professional chess player, author and currently the oldest active grandmaster on the tournament circuit...
topped a field of 61 with the score 7–2 to win the $15,000 first prize.
Three grandmasters tied for second with 6½–2½: Yasser Seirawan (USA), Gennadi Sosonko
Gennadi Sosonko
Gennadi Borisovich Sosonko is a Dutch chess Grandmaster .At the beginning of his career, in 1958, he won in the Leningrad juniors championship.Sosonko moved from the Soviet Union to the Netherlands via Israel in 1972...
(Netherlands), and Svetozar Gligorić
Svetozar Gligoric
Svetozar Gligorić is a Serbian chess grandmaster. He won the championship of Yugoslavia a record twelve times, and is considered the best player ever from Serbia...
(Yugoslavia).
The tournament included two Soviet grandmasters, Artur Yusupov
Artur Yusupov
Artur Mayakovich Yusupov is a German International Grandmaster of chess, and a chess writer.-Chess career:...
and Oleg Romanishin
Oleg Romanishin
Oleg Mikhailovich Romanishin is a Ukrainian chess grandmaster and former European junior champion.Many honours and awards were bestowed on him as a young man. After winning the European Junior Championship in 1973, he became an International Master the same year...
, making it the first tournament aside from the Olympiads
Chess Olympiad
The Chess Olympiad is a biennial chess tournament in which teams from all over the world compete against each other. The event is organised by FIDE, which selects the host nation.-Birth of the Olympiad:The first Olympiad was unofficial...
since Korchnoi's 1976 defection from the Soviet Union in which a Soviet player competed with him.
No U.S. players earned title norms at this tournament.