The Asztalos Memorial in Gyula

The eighth Lajos Asztalos Memorial was held in Gyula, the birthplace of Ferenc Erkel. One of Hungary's finest chess players, Asztalos occupied an important place in Hungarian chess life for three decades and for many years served as president of the Hungarian Chess Federation. Gyula's major chess traditions also include the long-running Bástya and Sakk tournaments and the almost annual youth events organized by the Ferenc Erkel Chess Club, one of the federation's founding clubs. Reviving these traditions, the tournament was organized by Enyedi G. Sándor, chairman of the executive committee of the Gyula City Council, together with local chess officials. In both the strength of the field and the quality of the organization, this year's event deserves a leading place among the earlier editions.

Among the previous Asztalos Memorials, only the 1962 tournament in Kecskemét and the event held the following year in Miskolc had been of a comparable standard. Even in those fields, however, it would be difficult to find a player of the international stature of Viktor Korchnoi. The Soviet grandmaster had recently reached the final of the USSR Championship unbeaten for the second time, won the 79-player zonal tournament by a margin of two points, and had already scored three outright victories in international tournaments. In Gyula he achieved a fourth.

Korchnoi's superiority was evident from the early stages. At first it created the deceptive impression that the other competitors were playing below their usual level, but the four-point gap between Korchnoi at the height of his powers and the rest of the field was real. Such a margin cannot be explained simply by the weakness or poor form of the opposition. Most leading players, once first place is secure, relax, accept more draws and avoid taking risks in unclear positions. Korchnoi usually followed that practical approach as well, but in Gyula he had the special ambition of avenging a defeat by Flesch in Belgrade the previous year and a loss to Bilek in the Hungary-Soviet Union match. He was able to settle the first of those accounts directly.

Barcza Opening, Round 12

Flesch-Korchnoi. The game began 1. Nf3 d5 2. g3 c5 3. Bg2 Nc6 4. d4 e6 5. O-O Nf6 6. c4 Be7 7. cxd5 exd5 8. dxc5 Bxc5 9. b3. Korchnoi gradually seized the initiative and won after 23. Bxc2 Bxd8 24. Rxe6+ fxe6 25. c5?, when White's position was hopeless. Score: 0-1.

A lead of five and a half points in a tournament of this strength requires more than determination; it also requires good fortune. Korchnoi reinforced his efforts with formidable psychological pressure, assisted by his seconds, Forintos and Borisenko. Some opponents appeared intimidated, especially the youngest player in the tournament.

King's Indian Defence, Round 8

Csom-Korchnoi. Csom obtained promising attacking chances but then went badly astray. After 15. Kd2 Rb2 16. Be2 Bg4!! he overlooked the simple point of Korchnoi's idea and resigned. Score: 0-1.

The Hungarian master's almost tragicomic stumble is worth setting beside another failed attack against a foreign opponent.

Hungarian Opening, Round 1

Csom-Kolarov. Csom launched a frontal attack in the spirit of an earlier game by Lengyel, but the Bulgarian international master defended accurately and won. Score: 0-1.

The federation had originally planned a FIDE Category I/A tournament. Negotiations were conducted with another foreign grandmaster, while Sorokin was intended to be the fifth grandmaster in the field. The former was prevented from taking part by an overcrowded international programme and the latter by an illness requiring two weeks of treatment. As a result, two local players, János Flesch and Flórián, were admitted at almost the last moment. The grandmaster norm consequently rose to 10.5 points. Although the tournament became Category II/A, a first international-master norm was no longer sufficient for the title. István Csom, brought in to replace Polgár, again had to demonstrate his strength despite having already exceeded the international-master norm by a wide margin.

Once Korchnoi had broken away, the struggle for second place remained comparatively close, with all the contenders scoring around sixty per cent. Grandmaster Lengyel, who had initially been near the bottom, joined the race with a splendid finish. His only interruption of Korchnoi's winning run made his own result even more valuable. The strongest achievement after the winner's was produced by Honfi, who relatively early acquired a good chance of making a grandmaster norm, but the tension of the final rounds proved too much.

Csom's high placing after entering the event with little preparation was the most pleasant surprise. His middlegame play was good apart from one exception, though his opening preparation still left much to be desired. Forintos compensated for a disastrous defeat against Flórián with a rare piece of good fortune and then nearly set off on the path towards a master norm. Most of Haág's games showed that, after a long period of uncertainty, his career was again moving upward, although he spoiled several attractive positions. Kolarov had shared a middling place at Kecskemét three years earlier. Here, two early defeats had a beneficial effect: he stopped playing over-cautiously and became more combative.

Flesch arrived disappointed by the unsuccessful continuation of his interzonal campaign and began poorly. His early draws against supposedly beatable opponents were more embarrassing than a clear defeat. In the end he lost only to Korchnoi, and with better technique he might have scored another point and a half.

Borisenko, who had played hardly any tournament chess for a year and a half, showed signs of rust. In the USSR Championship he had needed to defeat Forintos in the final round to complete the master norm. In Gyula he was still in the lower half of the table after round eight, then lost only to Günsberger and climbed steadily.

The negative side of Flórián's performance was his record against the foreign players: only four draws and three losses. As Budapest champion he nevertheless produced varied and colourful chess. After an accidental draw with Śliwa he missed the norm by only a small margin.

Accepted Queen's Gambit, Round 7

Flórián-Śliwa. Flórián obtained the better game and reached a winning position, but after 19. b4! he allowed 19...Ra2, followed by perpetual-check ideas, and the game was drawn.

Pirc, as he later told the author in Budapest, deliberately adopted a somewhat quieter style in the hope of avoiding premature decisions. This approach worked only against opponents who were already slightly worse. Günsberger began with three defeats but then defended stubbornly and collected many points. Śliwa started as he finished: with a sequence of five losses. Forintos was his unlucky opponent, while Csom and Paoli also defeated him with some assistance from fortune. Even so, Śliwa's game against Korchnoi was one of the tournament's greatest sensations.

The performances of the lower-placed competitors also showed that chess knowledge alone did not decide everything. The oldest participant, Paoli, already almost regarded as an honoured veteran, contributed much more than the final table suggests. In several lost games he obtained the advantage and remained a dangerous opponent throughout.

In a tournament of this kind the organizers are examined as closely as the players. The Gyula Asztalos Memorial passed that test with distinction. The town loves chess, and its active social life embraced the event almost as a local festival. The large audiences and their enthusiasm were clear evidence. The success also showed that the organizers treated every player as a friend, and the competitors repaid them with ambitious, sporting and uncompromising play.

Gedeon Barcza

Photograph captions

The organizers and participants of the Asztalos Memorial in Gyula. Standing include Lengyel; András Krivik, chairman of the Békés County MTS Council; Enyedi G. Sándor, chairman of the Gyula City Council; Pirc; Gábor Zoltán, chief accountant of the Hungarian Chess Federation; Korchnoi; István János, first secretary of the Gyula MSZMP organization; Flórián; László Balogh, competition official; and Dr Paoli. Seated are Kluger, Günsberger, Forintos, Haág, Śliwa, Ferenc Dömőny, chairman of the Békés County MTS Chess Federation, Kolarov, Gasztonyi, Flesch, Barcza, Csom, Honfi, Lázár Gyöngyösi, tournament director, and József Hargitai, chairman of the city MTS council.

Viktor Korchnoi, winner of the tournament.

Final standings