Bobby Fischer, who died this week at the age of 64, was the greatest American player ever, and also the most tragic, a gloomy real-life version of Luzhin, the chess genius in Nabokov’s novel, The Defense, who suffers a mental breakdown during his quest for the world championship.

Fischer’s brilliance was on display at an early age. In 1956, all of 15 years old, he won the U.S. championship. Over the course of the next decade and a half, he mercilessly crushed one great player after another. In 1972, he became world champion, emerging victoriously over the Russian Boris Spassky in a match in Reykjavik, Iceland, that was the most spectacular in the history of the game. But Fischer’s triumph was the beginning of his own seemingly systematic self-destruction. Being American, he became anti-American. Being Jewish, he became, anti-Semitic. Being the consummate chess genius, he abandoned chess. It was only some two decades later that Fischer returned to chess to play a re-match with Spassky. But the venue was Yugoslavia, then under U.S. sanctions. In short order, Fischer was indicted for violating American law. Facing trial and imprisonment in the U.S., the mentally unstable genius wandered around the globe giving half-mad and wholly mad interviews. Now his body and soul fittingly rest in Iceland, the country of his triumph.

Fischer’s encounter with Donald Byrne in 1956, played when Fischer was 14 years old, has been called “the game of the century.”

BYRNE VS. FISCHER

(White) (Black)

Gruenfeld Defense

1. Nf3 Nf6

2.c4 g6

3. Nc3 Bg7

4.d4 0-0

5. Bf4 d5

6. Qb3?!

A dubious line. Modern theory recommends 6.e3!? or 6. Rc1!?

6… dxc4

7. Qxc4 c6

8.e4 Nbd7?! Some commentators have recommended 8…b5! 9. Qb3 Qa5 and b5-b4. For example 10. Bd3 Be6 11. Qd1 c5!? with an unclear game. 9. Rd1 Deserving of attention was 9.e5!? Nd5 10. Nxd5 cxd5 11. Qb3 and white’s position is preferable. 9… Nb6 10. Qc5 White’s position is superior after both 10. Qb3 and 10. Qd3 Be6 11. Be2. 10… Bg4 11. Bg5? Trying to create pressure on e7 and halt the maneuver 11. Nfd7, white permits black to unveil a combination brighter than 1,000 suns.. The quiet 11. Be2 Nfd7 12. Qa3 Bxf3 13. Bxf3 e5 14. dxe5 Qe8 15. Be2 Nxe5 16.0-0 in Flear-Morris1991 gave white a pleasant position. 11… Na4!! 12. Qa3! White had here a wide array of sad choices. Accepting the sacrifice by 12. Nxa4 Nxe4 A) 13. Qxe7 Qa5+ (13…Qxe7 14. Bxe7 Rfe8) 14.b4 Qxa4 15. Qxe4 Rfe8 16. Be7 Bxf3 17. gxf3 Bf8; B) 13. Bxe7 Nxc5 14. Bxd8 Nxa4; C) 13. Qb4 Nxg5 14. Nxg5 Bxd1 15. Kxd1 Bxd4 16. Ke1 Qd5 17. Nf3 Qe4+ 18. Kd1 Rfd8; D) 13. Qc1?! 13…Qa5+ 14. Nc3 Bxf3 15. gxf3 Nxg5 was simply bad. Worse than the move in the game was 12. Qb4?! Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nxe4 14. Bxe7 Qe8 15. Rd3 c5! 16. Qxb7 Nd6 17. Qc7 Nf5 and black wins. 12… Nxc3 13. bxc3 Nxe4! 14. Bxe7 Qb6 Now 14…Qe8? 15. Rd3! was in white’s favor. 15. Bc4 Once again, the only defense. Equally bad was 15. Bxf8 Bxf8 16. Qb3 Nxc3! and 15. Be2 15…Rfe8 16.0-0 Nxc3; and 15. Bd3 Nxc3!

(See Diagram)

15… Nxc3! Starting a new combination entailing a queen sacrifice. Nothing was promised by 15…Rfe8 16.0-0. 16. Bc5 White has no choice: 16. Bxf8 Bxf8 17. Qxc3? Bb4 would lose a queen. 16… Rfe8+ 17. Kf1 White lose after 17. Kd2 Ne4+; or 17. Ne5 Bxe5! 18. Bxb6 Bd6+ 17… Be6!! 18. Bxb6 After the queen sacrifice white only had a choice of different ways to lose: 18. Bxe6 Qb5+ 19. Kg1 Ne2+ 20. Kf1 Ng3+ 21. Kg1 Qf1+! 22. Rxf1 Ne2#; or 18. Qxc3 Qxc5! 19. dxc5 Bxc3 20. Bxe6 Rxe6; or 18. Bd3 Nb5; or 18. Be2 Nb5!; or 18.d5 Bxd5 19. Rxd5 Qb1+] 18… Bxc4+ 19. Kg1 Ne2+ 20. Kf1 Nxd4+ 21. Kg1 Ne2+ 22. Kf1 Nc3+ 23. Kg1 axb6 24. Qb4 Ra4 25. Qxb6 Nxd1 26.h3 Rxa2 27. Kh2 Nxf2 28. Re1 Rxe1 29. Qd8+ Bf8 30. Nxe1 Bd5 31. Nf3 Ne4 32. Qb8 b5 33.h4 h5 34. Ne5 Kg7 Threatening 35…Bd6 36. Qe8 Be6 winning the knight. White resists until mate is delivered. 35. Kg1 Bc5+ 36. Kf1 Ng3+ 37. Ke1 Bb4+ 38. Kd1 Bb3+ 39. Kc1 Ne2+ 40. Kb1 Nc3+ 41. Kc1 Rc2# 0-1