Mona May Karff
Encyclopedia
Mona May Karff was an American
competitive chess
player. Karff dominated U.S. women's chess in the 1940s and early 1950s and had an extended career. She held seven U.S. Women's Chess Champion
titles and four consecutive U.S. Open
titles.
She was born Mona May Ratner in Bessarabia
, a province in Tsarist Russia
, on October 20, 1914. Sometime after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, her family moved to Tel-Aviv, in what was then Palestine
. Her father, Aviv Ratner, a wealthy Jewish land-owner, had taught her to play chess when she was 9 years old. Because of her natural ability, she started playing in tournaments in Tel-Aviv and developed into a strong player.
In the 1930s, she moved to Boston
. There she met and married her cousin, an attorney named Abe Karff. The marriage was brief and, though she never remarried, her long-time romantic relationship with Edward Lasker
(a five-time U.S. Chess Open Champion) was never a secret.
She played in three Women's World Chess Championship
s: 1937 Stockholm, playing for Palestine and placing sixth (won by Vera Menchik
); 1939 Buenos Aires, playing for the U.S. and placing 5th (also won by Menchik); 1949 Moscow, playing for the U.S. (won by Lyudmila Rudenko
). When FIDE established titles in 1950, Mona May Karff was one of four American women to receive the title of Woman International Master.
Karff, along with Gisela Kahn Gresser
and Mary Bain
, dominated U.S. women's chess in the 1940s and early 1950s. Mona May Karff won her first U.S. Women's Chess Champion title against Adele Rivero in 1938. She competed and won the title six more times, in 1941, 1943, 1946, 1948 (sharing it with Gresser), 1953 and in 1974 (at age 66). She also won four consecutive U.S. Open titles.
Mona May Karff was a private person; besides being a driving force in women's chess, she was a shrewd stock investor who was worth a small fortune. She spoke eight languages fluently and traveled extensively. As a lover of the arts, she spent a good portion of her fortune on modern art. She died in Manhattan
on January 10, 1998, at age 89.
United States
The United States of America is a federal constitutional republic comprising fifty states and a federal district...
competitive chess
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...
player. Karff dominated U.S. women's chess in the 1940s and early 1950s and had an extended career. She held seven U.S. Women's Chess Champion
U.S. Women's Chess Championship
The U.S. Women's Chess Championship tournament is to determine the woman chess champion of the United States.-List of U.S. Women's Chess Champions:*1937 Adele Rivero*1938 Mona May Karff*1940 Adele Rivero*1941 Mona May Karff*1942 Mona May Karff...
titles and four consecutive U.S. Open
U.S. Women's Open Chess Championship
The U.S. Women's Open Championship is an open chess tournament that has been held held irregularly. From 1934 through at least 1966 it was held in conjunction with the annual U.S. Open Chess Championship...
titles.
She was born Mona May Ratner in Bessarabia
Bessarabia
Bessarabia is a historical term for the geographic region in Eastern Europe bounded by the Dniester River on the east and the Prut River on the west....
, a province in Tsarist Russia
Russia
Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects...
, on October 20, 1914. Sometime after the Bolshevik Revolution of 1917, her family moved to Tel-Aviv, in what was then Palestine
Palestine
Palestine is a conventional name, among others, used to describe the geographic region between the Mediterranean Sea and the Jordan River, and various adjoining lands....
. Her father, Aviv Ratner, a wealthy Jewish land-owner, had taught her to play chess when she was 9 years old. Because of her natural ability, she started playing in tournaments in Tel-Aviv and developed into a strong player.
In the 1930s, she moved to Boston
Boston
Boston is the capital of and largest city in Massachusetts, and is one of the oldest cities in the United States. The largest city in New England, Boston is regarded as the unofficial "Capital of New England" for its economic and cultural impact on the entire New England region. The city proper had...
. There she met and married her cousin, an attorney named Abe Karff. The marriage was brief and, though she never remarried, her long-time romantic relationship with Edward Lasker
Edward Lasker
Edward Lasker was a leading German-American chess and Go player. He was awarded the title of International Master of chess by FIDE. Lasker was an engineer by profession, and an author.-Background:...
(a five-time U.S. Chess Open Champion) was never a secret.
She played in three Women's World Chess Championship
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....
s: 1937 Stockholm, playing for Palestine and placing sixth (won by Vera Menchik
Vera Menchik
Vera Menchik was a British-Czech chess player who gained renown as the world's first women's chess champion. She also competed in chess tournaments with some of the world's leading male chess masters, defeating many of them, including future World Champion Max Euwe.The daughter of a Czech father...
); 1939 Buenos Aires, playing for the U.S. and placing 5th (also won by Menchik); 1949 Moscow, playing for the U.S. (won by Lyudmila Rudenko
Lyudmila Rudenko
Lyudmila Vladimirovna Rudenko was a Soviet chess player and the second Women's World Chess Champion from 1950 until 1953.She was awarded the FIDE International Master and Woman International Master titles in 1950, and the Woman Grandmaster title in 1976...
). When FIDE established titles in 1950, Mona May Karff was one of four American women to receive the title of Woman International Master.
Karff, along with Gisela Kahn Gresser
Gisela Kahn Gresser
Gisela Kahn Gresser was one of the first two female chess players in the United States, and one of the first seventeen players in the world, to be awarded the title of Woman International Master in 1950 when FIDE created official titles. She was also the first American woman to be inducted into...
and Mary Bain
Mary Bain
Mary Bain was an American chess master.She was a Women's World Chess Championship Challenger in 1937 and 1952 and the first American woman to represent the U.S...
, dominated U.S. women's chess in the 1940s and early 1950s. Mona May Karff won her first U.S. Women's Chess Champion title against Adele Rivero in 1938. She competed and won the title six more times, in 1941, 1943, 1946, 1948 (sharing it with Gresser), 1953 and in 1974 (at age 66). She also won four consecutive U.S. Open titles.
Mona May Karff was a private person; besides being a driving force in women's chess, she was a shrewd stock investor who was worth a small fortune. She spoke eight languages fluently and traveled extensively. As a lover of the arts, she spent a good portion of her fortune on modern art. She died in Manhattan
Manhattan
Manhattan is the oldest and the most densely populated of the five boroughs of New York City. Located primarily on the island of Manhattan at the mouth of the Hudson River, the boundaries of the borough are identical to those of New York County, an original county of the state of New York...
on January 10, 1998, at age 89.