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Viktors Pūpols (born July 31, 1934) is an American
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 3.Nxe5 Qf6 4.d4 d6 5.Nc4 fxe4 6.Nc3 Qg6 7.Ne3 Nf6 8.Bc4 c6 9.d5 Be7 10.a4 Nbd7 11.a5 Ne5 12.Be2 0-0 13.0-0 Bd7 14.Kh1 Kh8 15.Nc4 Nfg4 16.Qe1 Rf7 17.h3 Nf6 18.Nxe5 dxe5 19.Bc4 Rff8 20.Be3 Nh5 21.Kh2 Bd6 22.Bb3 Nf4 23.Bxf4 exf4 24.Qxe4 f3+ 25.g3 Bf5 26.Qh4 Rae8 27.Rae1 Be5 28.Qb4 Qh6 29.h4 g5 30.Rh1 gxh4 31.Kg1 h3 32.dxc6 bxc6 33.Qc5 Qg7 34.Kh2 Qf6 35.Qxa7 Bd4 36.Qc7 Bxf2 37.Rxe8 Rxe8 38.Rf1 Bd4 39.Rxf3 Bxc3 40.bxc3 Re2+ 41.Kh1 Be4 42.Qc8+ Kg7 43.Qg4+ Qg6 44.Qd7+ Kh6 0–1Fischer-Pupols, U.S. Junior Championship 1955
ChessGames.com. Retrieved on 200-11-23.
Photo of Pupols
used on the cover of NW Chess, Chess Journalists of America winning chess photo, 2009. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pupols, Viktors Latvian chess players American chess players 1935 births Living people
Viktors Pūpols (born July 31, 1934) is an American chess master
A chess title is a title regulated by a chess governing body and bestowed upon players based on their performance and rank. Such titles are usually granted for life. The international chess governing body FIDE grants several titles, the most pres ...
. Known by many local players as "Uncle Vik," he frequently plays at the Tacoma Chess Club. He was the Club Champion in 1955, and some of his games can be viewed online at the club's website. Pupols is currently married to Deborah Petzal-Pupols.
Notable games
In 1955, Pupols played in the U.S. Junior Championship Open inLincoln, Nebraska
Lincoln is the capital city of the U.S. state of Nebraska and the county seat of Lancaster County. The city covers with a population of 292,657 in 2021. It is the second-most populous city in Nebraska and the 73rd-largest in the United Sta ...
, won by Charles Kalme
Charles Ivars Kalme ( lv, Kārlis Ivars Kalme, November 15, 1939 – March 20, 2002) was a Latvian American chess master and a mathematician.
Kalme was born in Riga, Latvia on November 15, 1939. At the conclusion of World War II, Kalme and wh ...
. Pupols beat young Bobby Fischer
Robert James Fischer (March 9, 1943January 17, 2008) was an American chess grandmaster and the eleventh World Chess Champion. A chess prodigy, he won his first of a record eight US Championships at the age of 14. In 1964, he won with an 11 ...
with a Latvian Gambit
The Latvian Gambit (or Greco Countergambit) is a chess opening characterised by the moves:
:1. e4 e5
:2. Nf3 f5
It is one of the oldest chess openings, having been analysed in the 17th century by Gioachino Greco, after whom it is sometimes ...
. This is one of only two games that Fischer ever lost on time (see time control
A time control is a mechanism in the tournament play of almost all two-player board games so that each round of the match can finish in a timely way and the tournament can proceed. Time controls are typically enforced by means of a game clock, ...
). Fischer became the world's youngest grandmaster three years later.
He first played in the Washington State Championship tournament in 1954. He has played in most of the tournaments since, winning outright in 1961, 1974, and 1989, and tying for first in 1978. He won the tournament in 1964, but Gerald Ronning took the title in a match.
In 1975, he tied for 6th-11th in Vancouver (Paul Keres
Paul Keres (; 7 January 1916 – 5 June 1975) was an Estonian chess grandmaster and chess writer. He was among the world's top players from the mid-1930s to the mid-1960s, and narrowly missed a chance at a World Chess Championship match on five ...
won, shortly before his death). In 1980, he won the Keres Memorial in Vancouver. He thrice won the Idaho Open (1984, 1985, and 1986). Just as he first did in 1956 as a teenage ''wunderkind'', Pupols again won the Eastern Washington Open in 2005 after a final round draw with three time Spokane Chess Champion Curt Collyer.
Fischer versus Pupols, U.S. Junior Championship 1955 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 f5 3.Nxe5 Qf6 4.d4 d6 5.Nc4 fxe4 6.Nc3 Qg6 7.Ne3 Nf6 8.Bc4 c6 9.d5 Be7 10.a4 Nbd7 11.a5 Ne5 12.Be2 0-0 13.0-0 Bd7 14.Kh1 Kh8 15.Nc4 Nfg4 16.Qe1 Rf7 17.h3 Nf6 18.Nxe5 dxe5 19.Bc4 Rff8 20.Be3 Nh5 21.Kh2 Bd6 22.Bb3 Nf4 23.Bxf4 exf4 24.Qxe4 f3+ 25.g3 Bf5 26.Qh4 Rae8 27.Rae1 Be5 28.Qb4 Qh6 29.h4 g5 30.Rh1 gxh4 31.Kg1 h3 32.dxc6 bxc6 33.Qc5 Qg7 34.Kh2 Qf6 35.Qxa7 Bd4 36.Qc7 Bxf2 37.Rxe8 Rxe8 38.Rf1 Bd4 39.Rxf3 Bxc3 40.bxc3 Re2+ 41.Kh1 Be4 42.Qc8+ Kg7 43.Qg4+ Qg6 44.Qd7+ Kh6 0–1
ChessGames.com. Retrieved on 200-11-23.
Biography by Larry Parr
A biography of Pupols, ''Viktors Pupols, American Master'', was written by Larry Parr and published by Thinkers' Press in 1983. Viktors describes his encounters with young Grandmaster-to-beYasser Seirawan
Yasser Seirawan ( ar, ياسر سيروان; born March 24, 1960) is a Syrian-born American chess grandmaster and four-time United States champion. He won the World Junior Chess Championship in 1979. Seirawan is also a published chess author an ...
: "I could not even see my opponent. All I could hear was a voice calling out from under the table - Check!!".
See also
*Last Exit on Brooklyn
The Last Exit on Brooklyn was a Seattle University District coffeehouse established in 1967 by Irv Cisski. It is known for its part in the history of Seattle's counterculture, for its pioneering role in establishing Seattle's coffee culture, ...
References
External links
Photo of Pupols
used on the cover of NW Chess, Chess Journalists of America winning chess photo, 2009. * {{DEFAULTSORT:Pupols, Viktors Latvian chess players American chess players 1935 births Living people