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Chess Notebook 20 Sep 1959, Sun The Boston Globe (Boston, Massachusetts) Newspapers.com
Chess Notebook By Lyman Burgess
A couple of weeks ago there appeared here what was naively thought to be a harmless observation on what seemed to be a trend toward more draws in the upper echelons of master chess. I evoked the memory of the once sainted Capablanca and referred to his comments on the possibility of chess dying the “death of the draw”.
Your humble servant was wrong on two counts:
(1) thinking his words, meant what he meant them to mean; and (2) thinking the latest generation would know or care what a world champion said 30-odd years ago. One young man asked whether Chess Notebook planned to return to the days when no gentleman refused a gambit. A prime insult.
Several players seemed to think that the opinions expressed indicated that I didn't like drawn games, thought they should be abolished and felt that grandmasters drew a large number of games simply because they were too lazy to work out wins.
Well, first of all Capablanca was no tyro. Certain romantics in the 20's were troubled by the high percentage of draws and wanted to legislate against them. In defense of chess Capa agreed, conditionally, with the romantics, but for entirely different reasons. Capa knew that draws among masters had come from the gradual spreading out of power in the top class and improved technique all down the line. He believed that, if the trend continued without check, chess would become, in the highest class, as draw-ridden as checkers.
This would come about not because masters were lazy or spiteful but because technique bad become common property.
Capa was wrong. The “dynamic” school took over and re-examined everything. Now, all this column suggested was perhaps that infusion is now reaching the end of its power.
Some of my best friends are chess masters. None of them is lazy and all of them want to win. It is extremely doubtful that Tigran Petrosian gives a thought to anything but the position and his score before he gives a draw. (Incidentally, seven of the first eight games in the rugged challengers' tournament were wins.)
And now a draw from Round II of the N.E. tourney. See, I like 'em.
Dr. Julian Keilson (white) vs. David Ames (black)
Zukertort Opening
