ADaily News New York, New York Wednesday, October 27, 1971 - Page 49
Fischer Wins Tourney, Will Face Spassky by Robert Byrne
Buenos Aires, Oct. 26 — The United States' Bobby Fischer took game nine for a smashing 6½ to 2½ match triumph over Russia's Tigran Petrosian in the Teatro General San Martin here tonight. Fischer now becomes the official challenger for the world chess championship and winner of the $7,500 purse.
After getting off to a rocky start in the best-of-12-game series, Bobby caught fire in game six and brilliantly swept the last four in a row. Petrosian, a former world champion, who is used to counting his career losses on his fingers, had never been beaten in such a one-sided manner before.
It's Been a Long Time
No American has ever held the world title and this is the first time in 23 years that anyone except a Soviet grandmaster has even been a challenger. Petrosian, 42, was world champion from 1962 to 1969. Fischer next spring will challenge current world champion Boris Spassky of the Soviet Union for the title.
The playoff site will be determined by the International Chess Federation.
The brilliant, Brooklyn-born Fischer, 28, started off the ninth game in a deceptively quiet way, startling the fans by his exchange of pawns on the fifth move. Was he about to back into the match victory by drawing this and the next game?
Winningest Player
That was all he had to do, but it was not enough for the winningest player in chess history. In short order, he doubled the queen's bishop pawn and grabbed the king's file with both rooks. When Petrosian succeeded in getting rid of the bishops on his 18th move and the queens two moves later, it looked as though he had avoided all difficulty.
But Bobby sprang into action at once, shifting the theater of operations to the queen's bishop file by his sharp moves 21 to 23, which resulted in crippling the black position with doubled, isolated queen's pawns.
Petrosian, despairing of holding such a game together by passive defense, went over to counterattack by bringing his knight to the king's side at his 24th move, sacrificing three pawns in the process.
Although the mating threats from the rooks and knight were dangerous, Fischer coolly repulsed them, ending all hopes for his opponent by the knight sacrifice at move 40, and taking game and match.
