1963 – 1st Piatigorsky Cup

Keres and Petrosian

Paul Keres and Tigran Petrosian shared first-place honors at the inaugural Piatigorsky Cup Chess Tournament. Touted as the most significant tournament on American soil since Dallas 1957, the event took place at the Ambassador Hotel in Los Angeles, California, from July 2 to July 30, 1963. It was organized by Jacqueline Piatigorsky, the wife of famed cellist and chess enthusiast Gregor Piatigorsky.

The original plan was for the tournament to be held every two years, featuring eight world-class players (with no more than two from any single country) in a double round-robin format. Shortly after invitations were sent, the Soviet Union announced that Petrosian and Keres would represent them. This marked the first time in 30 years that a reigning world champion played in an American tournament, as Petrosian had dethroned Mikhail Botvinnik earlier that year.

Samuel Reshevsky and Bobby Fischer were invited to represent the United States. However, Fischer declined for unknown reasons. It was quietly rumored that he refused to participate because he did not receive his requested $2,000 appearance fee. Pal Benko ultimately took the second American spot in Fischer’s place. The remaining four invitations were accepted by Miguel Najdorf and Oscar Panno of Argentina, Svetozar Gligoric of Yugoslavia, and Fridrik Olafsson of Iceland.

The tournament faced challenges early on, as both Reshevsky and Keres contracted the flu, leading to postponed games and a more strenuous schedule for the players. Keres had just adjourned two games in winning positions (against Benko and Panno) when he fell ill. In a great act of sportsmanship, both players immediately resigned their games to him.

Benko, Gligoric, Olafsson, Najdorf, Petrosian, Reshevsky, Keres, Panno

At the halfway point of the tournament, there was a complete logjam for first place, with Gligoric, Najdorf, Keres, and Olafsson all tied at 4½ points each. Petrosian and Reshevsky were only half a point behind, while Benko and Panno trailed with 3 points each.

Petrosian had a strong second half, and Keres overcame his illness to force a tie for first place with the reigning world champion. Panno proved to be the workhorse of the tournament, playing a tournament-high 645 moves. This included a grueling 111-move marathon game against Petrosian in the fourth round, which ultimately ended in a draw.

Approximately 500 spectators attended each round. The closing ceremony and awards banquet were held at the Beverly Hills Hotel on July 30, with a little over 200 people in attendance. Isaac Kashdan served as the tournament’s chief arbiter and later wrote the official tournament book.