Quotation Time: Six Kinds of Chess Players
Thursday, April 14, 2011 at 10:27AM Who said it?
I divide chess players into six categories. The first ones are the killers. Players who, figuratively speaking, are trying to kill their opponent. The second type is that of the fighters. They try to win with all means, but it's not necessary to kill. The third type are the sportsmen. For them chess is a sport like any other kind of sport. Number four are the 'players' or gamblers. Karpov, for instance, is a typical player. He wants to play any game. These four all have very strong motivation. Then we have two more, number five the artists, for whom not only the result is important, and number six the explorers.
In a follow-up post, I'll mention who the author put in what category, but you might think of the same things, and where you'd put yourself as well. For now, though, it's a quiz!
Reader Comments (8)
I place myself in a seventh category which, for lack of a more respectable or less discreditable term, I'll simply call "the patzer".
But I'm trying to think of who would write in such a style as you quote. I'm going to say Jeremy Silman.
[DM: Not Silman!]
I could see Rowson writing something like this... But I'm guessing it was written during a time that Karpov was an active player so my official guess is going to be Seirawan because I suspect a U.S. Championship tie in.
As far as current top 10 GM's go, I can't think of any that I'd put in the Killer category. Nakamura, Carlsen, Topalov, Aronian --> fighters. Kramnik, Karjakin, Mamedyarov --> players Anand-->Sportsman and I'd say Ivanchuk is a fighting artistic explorer.
[DM: Not Rowson, and no US Championship tie-in, in case anyone else is misled in that way.]
Pretty sure I remember reading that in one of Rowson's books.....Chess for Zebras, maybe? Even if I read it there, he may have been quoting someone else.
[DM: Maybe he mentioned it, or gave some vaguely similar sort of classification, but it's not his.]
Well, Kramnik is definitely the artist (painter). I don't know anybody who fits "killer" category besides Fischer and Kasparov.
Botvinnik was also a killer. And Alekhine at his peak - at least where Capablanca was concerned! Walter Browne would be a fighter, and Emanuel Lasker of course. I would put Tal in the sportsman category. Bronstein was clearly of the artistic bent.
I have no idea who is being quoted.
IOf the current players: Topalov is the only one who might be considered a killer, but I'm not quite sure I buy it. Kramnik (as mentioned) and Ivanchuk would be artists. Anand is a sportsman. Carlsen and Aronian are fighters. Nakamura might be a killer.
I remember reading this classification in an interview with Dirk Jan ten Geuzendam. I guess it is from Averbakh.
[DM: We have a winner! You are correct on both counts.]
It's Averbakh! And he thought Botvinnik was a killer ...
[DM: Yes! Right on both counts.]
It's Averbakh, I remember being at his lecture at the Marshall Chess Club couple of years ago and he mentioned this in detail. He also talked about his disagreement with describing chess as a war game and play as a fight. He preferred to compare chess to a 'play' (as in Shakespeare's play), where we see drama, comedy, tragedy, horror, action and adventure ! He mentioned this latter comparison was done by one of his friends, whose name I sadly forgot. He went on to show examples for each of the above with games and studies. Wonderful chap !