Top 5 Birthday Puzzles from the Games of Savielly Tartakower
Born on February 22, 1887, in Rostov-on-Don, Russia, Savielly Tartakower was one of the leading chess players of the early 20th century and is still remembered today for his contributions to opening theory and his colorful and witty writing style.
Tartakower was a prolific writer who cooperated with various chess magazines and wrote several books and brochures on chess. The most famous of these, Die Hypermoderne Schachpartie (The Hypermodern Chess Game) was published in 1924 and has been issued in almost 100 editions since, introducing the world to the ideas of the hypermodern school of chess.
Savielly Tartakower vs Eduard Lasker, New York 1924 | Photo: Wikipedia
In addition to his writing, Tartakower was a successful tournament player and competed in most of the major tournaments of his time. He had a number of notable victories, including winning the Polish Chess Championship twice (1935 and 1937) and the Hastings International Chess Congress in 1927.
Tartakower lived a long and eventful life; he died on February 4, 1956, in Paris, France. He is still remembered today as one of the great chess players and writers of his time, and his contributions to the game continue to be studied and appreciated by chess enthusiasts around the world.
In celebration of Tartakower's birthday, we're presenting 5 puzzles from his games. We hope these puzzles will inspire you to explore Tartakower's contributions to the game and appreciate his unique playing style.
1. Saviely Tartakower vs M Billecard, Ostende, 1907
White to win
See the solution:
1. Qd8 if 1...Qe4 then 2.Be7 Qxe7 3. Qxe7 wins
2. Saviely Tartakower vs Richard Reti, Vienna, 1920
White to mate in 2
See the solution:
1. Rb6 Rb6 2.Qa8
3. Savielly Tartakower vs Endre Steiner, Budapest, 1921
White to win
See the solution:
1. Rb8+ followed by Nxd7
4. Saviely Tartakower vs Fritz Igel, Vienna, 1928
White to win
See the solution:
1. Qxe6 Qxe6 2. d7 wins
5. Saviely Tartakower vs Nicolas Rossolimo, Paris, 1936
White to win
See the solution:
1. Ng6+ if hxg6 2. Qh6+ mates
Birthdays are a great occasion to read about different chess legends and improve your chess skills by solving puzzles from their games. If you like this format, test your tactical and strategic skills by solving the past birthday puzzles of the chess Grandmasters below:
Top 4 Positions From Magnus Carlsen's World Championship Matches
Chess Puzzles from the Games of Bobby Fischer
Legendary Chess Positions From The Games Of Akiba Rubinstein
Brilliant Chess Tactics from the Games of Maxime Vachier-Lagrave
Chess Puzzles from the Games of Magnus Carlsen
Celebrating Hou Yifan's Birthday with 3 Challenging Chess Puzzles