Great Players of the Past: Mikhail Tal

Check out Ben's Chessable courses here! www.chessable.com/author/BenF... GM Ben Finegold discusses four games of Mikhail Tal as part of the Great Players of the Past series. This lecture was recorded January 28, 2020, at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta (CCSCATL) in Roswell, Georgia. Originally posted on the CCSCATL Channel on January 31, 2020. So yes, you've probably seen this one before.
8:22
Tal, Mikhail vs. Fischer, Robert James
Bled-Zagreb-Belgrade Candidates (1959)
18:22
Gurgenidze, Bukhuti vs. Tal, Mikhail
USSR Championship (1957)
29:13
Tal, Mikhail vs. Tringov, Georgi
Amsterdam Interzonal (1964)
34:29
Tal, Mikhail vs. Petrosian, Tigran V.
8th Soviet Team Cup (1974)
Recorded at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Atlanta on November 6, 2018 and originally posted on the CCSCATL Channel on April 16, 2019. So yes, you've probably seen this one before.
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Intro and concluding music: “Da Jazz Blues,” by Doug Maxwell; • Da Jazz Blues - Doug M... . Thank you Doug!
#chess #GMBenFinegold #MikhailTal

[@notsogoodduck5580]

Ben: "who did petrosian beat to become world champion?" Kid: "uhhh... you?" Ben: "close"

[@chanky1000]

I don't know which answer was more hilarious - ben or magnus

[@DrMocktopus1]

“Fischer wouldn’t play that now, you know what the reasons are? He’s not alive.”😂😂

[@thomaswyss5828]

But his spirit, the spirit in which he played and understood is not. I use it as a chesstrainer.

[@thomaswyss5828]

Fisher was but a kid then. When Fischer is hyped, it is the 68-72 period..

[@_nemo174]

Classical Finegold.🤣😂🤣

[@briliantinoprihandikakhari6754]

the kids were silent LOL

[@xibal3405]

Your sense of humor will never get old

[@bhargavabhat9227]

It will never be shown in the great humor of the past

[@attaynez6043]

@@bhargavabhat9227 cuz it will always be the best

[@SeddincY]

37:24 "And then he moved his pawn back, and they agreed to a draw." His delivery of that line as if it's something that really happened really made me cracked up. Ben never fails combining chess and comedy. I just love it

[@tonyennis1787]

When Tal was ill and in the hospital, Fischer was the only chess player who visited. he brought Tal some chess books to read.

[@GraemeCree]

Yeah, Fischer wanted to make sure he was really sick, and not up to something.

[@madanalym4165]

​@@GraemeCree😂😂

[@civil_leuthie]

8 minutes in, thinking "I swear I've heard this before" then I finally read the description. Kinda feel cheated, but watching the rest of it anyway.

[@Evilanious]

Always repeat!

[@nicholasdupont9097]

yeah I was so hyped for more tal (and more fischer a couple weeks prior!)

[@MordimersChessChannel]

The second game was played with white pieces by Hanging Pawns couple of months ago as his training. His opponent was probably the happiest person ever for getting into this variation :)

[@joeybashaw3909]

Tal was the chess Doc Holliday. "I'm your Huckleberry.."

[@arnislapsa1619]

greetings from Latvia, Ben!

[@siIverspawn]

Took me several seconds to parse the Obi-van Benoni R2D2 joke. No chance to do that in real time.

[@swettyf745]

the hozier joke was genius

[@tiagohello]

Great video! Thank you so much! ❤

[@filipsand3290]

Thanks Ben, great lecture..

[@1010tuta]

We absolutely love your lectures ben!

[@tobiass3540]

Would love to see a lecture about Ivanchuk. Some great attacking games to pick from. I know, he is still playing, but he was also playing in the past, so maybe that still works :)

[@yosefcohen483]

27:13 is beautiful - the white rook that is about to be taken with 'check', is the piece supporting the queen to give mate. Rooks are good support beams.

[@gavinjones8543]

Love that domination of Fischer by good'ol zugs!.. Im sure he took it well and congratulated Tal like a true gentleman.

[@haroldbeck4351]

For Ben's 'Great Players of the Present series it would be a lot of fun, if he did an episode on his old nemesis Ginger GM Simon Williams.

[@Chris.4345]

he’s about to haha

[@GraemeCree]

One problem with Tal is that whenever he suffered any kind of reverse, people automatically blamed his health. Like when Polugaevsky knocked him out of the 1980 Candidates, everybody said "Oh, Tal must be sick again." It wasn't until the internet let you look it up and see that Tal was only +2-8=22 against Polugaevsky lifetime that you start to think maybe Polugaevsky did win that match fair and square after all.

[@nicholasdupont9097]

god dammit, got so excited for an ostensibly new Tal lecture.

[@Al.2]

23:08 I love it 😂

[@briliantinoprihandikakhari6754]

"He used to be young, oh, maybe that's not Tal" LMAO

[@PsychedelicRealities]

Go Ben!

[@Alex-xk6md]

Haha this guy is veey entertaining, love the dry humor, also loved your overview of english positions in yasser matches

[@footyking265]

Great lecture!

[@Dropbear2024]

I've had this position many times but never at the same time 💀never change ben

[@f.d.3289]

19:24 "If you play the Obi-Wan Benoni, you should play R2 to D2. Right? You agree? Say 'no'."

[@StratteraCapsules]

Was this reuploaded? I feel like I watched this awhile ago? Very memorable lecture!

[@asileris2804]

You are the man Ben, thanks for this

[@RobinZuFALL]

Please make an episode about Ding and nepo before the world championship

[@kylemenos]

Probelm is Ding is a great player of the present not the past.

[@FrankBakulov]

19:30 Obi van Benoni & R2D2 is another brilliant joke from Ben Finegold.

[@Halibut86]

Tal is the man! My only question would be if he is actively looking for these long sequences resulting in forced mate / loss of material every move or if this was rehearsed preparation

[@michaels4255]

Maybe some preparation, but probably not all. Sometimes Tal's attacks were later found to be unsound (which suggests those attacks at least were not prepped), but the positions were so complex that his opponents could not find the defense in time control.

[@brianjacob8728]

that stare after the putative queen sac on the pawn was CLASSIC. lmao.

[@MatthewThornhillTheDoctor]

i watch your videos to remind me that i am bad at chess. thanks!

[@scottscheule]

I know I’ve seen it before. I don’t care. I’m going to watch and pretend it’s new.

[@survivaloftheidiots6239]

ben is on fire as of late

[@johnjable33]

Is this a joke, or are you lucky enough to be viewing these lectures for the first time?

[@yosefcohen483]

Just like lady gaga - Tal was born sick. Thx GM Finegold. Any other pop-stars references? You're so awesome. Not half as awesome as your nemesis - GingerGM, but still.

[@MrHeroicDemon]

Ahh I love ben's teaching style, and explaining fast rather than slow at times with humor. Always thanking him for shortening and having a laugh. They should pay this guy. I love tal's style, It's my favorite, I regularally do piece sac's for pawns to open the king for a good attack. I did it twice in a row, 3 piece sac, bishop bishop knight, and bishop knight and rook, both into check mates with queen. Very awesome feeling, but its on lichess, dont hate me.

[@shikaru1730]

You said you read alot of tal books as a kid, did you ever read tals winning chess combinations by tal and victor khenkin? Thoughts on the book if you have?

[@roqsteady5290]

I had that book. Not sure how much Tal had to do with it though. Was a competent tactics book.

[@kevinstrand4596]

mainly and so forth

[@dw3yn693]

My GOAT

[@roqsteady5290]

6:30 Plus score against almost everyone, except Korchnoi.

[@randyreal5871]

The Claw 😀

[@alhfgsp]

Im sitting here snickering at those relentless puns.

[@gosukiwi]

haha I love when he stares at the camera

[@andriyandriychuk]

Wizard from Riga!

[@luke46219]

7:32 maybe that's not Tal... yeah, I think it was Short. I'll see myself out.

[@nicholasdupont9097]

Holy hell 37:34

[@vorpalinferno9711]

Who wants to see Tal vs Doofus?

[@inspectorlunge3887]

27:28

[@animalntelligence3170]

How do we know that Tal's hand was not the next step in evolution? How can you simply call a physical characteristic of the possessor of one of the greatest minds in history a "deformity" ?? I am serious.

[@animalntelligence3170]

@@willywonka7812 I did say I was serious and if the "next stage in evolution" thing was somewhat fanciful, I see no reason to bring up something that the World Champ found embarassing. He was a very great man who overcame a lot to create some beautiful chess and I who among us is perfect physically let alone mentally?

[@animalntelligence3170]

@@willywonka7812 someone calling him "The Claw" meant to be offensive. My last word.

[@davidgriffiths7696]

Botvinnik I knew it

[@paulmitchell5349]

Tal 's magic has never been replicated. Not even Fischer. Too much of cigarettes or booze or food can kill a person early.............................Ben.

[@h0wnr681]

It's okay, I don't think Ben eats cigarettes

[@_nemo174]

Except for one thing.

[@gustafcederborg9744]

Lol

[@imaginitivenickname6770]

I wouldn’t see the hanging pawn 30:20

[@davidgoble8891]

I really enjoy Ben's dry humor 😂

[@GraemeCree]

Mednis labeled 12... Bf6 as the losing move.

[@Ericapires12]

TAl🎉

[@pirds102010]

Nobodys laughing, but I do often :D

[@srinivasarameshkotikalapud1838]

How much is it to sponsor a lecture?

[@GMBenjaminFinegold]

Email [e-mail] for info on sponsoring lectures! - Ben’s Editor

[@xaosIncorporeal]

Harry Nelson Pillsbury, short lived but certainly an American genius between Morphy and Fisher

[@GraemeCree]

He was a world class player, certainly. I don't know if that makes him a genius, though (other world class players will tell you it does). Of course, these days, doing "this" before you borrow from the bank is genius, so the whole concept of genius has been dumbed down somewhat.

[@unjust7156]

Ben, I just got banned on your Twitch stream after sending my very *first* message, which was "play moore". That was during your break, after your 20-0 streak on today's Titled Tuesday.(grats btw, loved every second even tho I was banned) I requested an unban, but nothing. Just wanted to let you know your mods aren't very nice. 'Capeych' was my username.

[@nicholasdupont9097]

I got banned years ago for inviting him to join my Krazy Knights Klub.

[@brianerpelding]

That's the move you would have played,right? Ya 😅

[@electorofsaxony7646]

Instant click

[@pirds102010]

"He looked like he died a few years ago" Haha :D

[@lukemarks3281]

Ben crappin on tal way too much there to start it off lol

[@timothymiller806]

1.25x Ben is pretty chipper

[@camreese]

Repost

[@_nemo174]

Confusing the audience.

[@riverajavieri]

❤🤭👏👏👍👍

[@nimzomitch]

Mmmm consolidation content! Etcetera.

[@_nemo174]

Mainly etcetera.

[@fireballxl-5748]

50k in 1988 was equal to 130k in 2023.

[@scottrackley4457]

Gonna admit, the first videos I didn't particularly take to your delivery. Then you aged well and I got the joke. Well, not exactly well, you need to go up a shirt size.

[@Derkalerk]

Tal was white. Thank you capn obvi

[@kerryfry1857]

I like smoking ❤

[@conradnoel]

Sorry but this is like watching paint dry….

[@gavinjones8543]

Great lecture wasted on an audience of children... Maybe thats where the acerbic, sense of humour developed!?..