Paul Morphy: Part 1, Lecture by GM Ben Finegold

Check out Ben's Chessable courses here! www.chessable.com/author/BenF... Part 1 of 4 of the Paul Morphy Lecture Series by GM Ben Finegold. This lecture focuses on four of Morphy's games playing the King's Gambit.
Living before chess had a formal world championship, Morphy was widely acknowledged to be the greatest chess master of his era. He won the tournament of the First American Chess Congress of 1857, winning matches with each opponent by lopsided margins.
08:30 Paul Morphy - Eugène Rousseau, New Orleans 1849
17:27 Paul Morphy - Alonzo Morphy, New Orleans 1848
23:30 James McConnell - Paul Morphy, New Orleans 1849
29:34 John Schulten - Paul Morphy, New York 1857
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[@askthepizzaguy]

Big big thanks to Bill Wei for sponsoring this lecture for us plebs with no dollars to spare. Big thanks, the man deserves to get paid and I'm glad he's getting paid. This content is of such quality that it should absolutely continue to be produced if possible. Thank you for making it possible for the rest of us.

[@user-ro9md9wp3j]

Mainly etc.

[@andrewptob]

Yay Bill!

[@ibazulic]

Absolutely agree!

[@Anfield_the_place_to_be]

The answer is fries

[@Flight368]

Gain dollars, but don’t lose Wei

[@Puschit1]

Even Fischer admitted that Morphy could be the better player and that we just don't know because times were so different. If Morphy would be teleported to the times of Fischer, Karparow/Karpov respectively Carlsen and therefore would have access to the same knowledge of the time he was in, that might have supercharged him. And some words about Morphys aggressive play style: Back then it was all about showmanship, you didn't just wanted to win, you wanted to do so in the most spectacular manner. It was like every game that had spectators was like a streamer today playing "for content" rather than for safe wins. As a fellow streamer once said, Morphy was a surgeon, not a butcher. And yes, because of his superior calculation skills he was able to walk the fine line between going flashy and risking too much. Remember his match against Harrwitz where he lost the first two games? He then famously announced in response to Harrwitz bragging and teasing him that from now on Harrwitz will not win a single game. And that's what happened, even with Harrwitz dictating the schedule, denying Morphy a day off when he was sick but taking himself days off to prepare something new etc. It's like Morphy had a "play for the audience mode" and a "no-BS-mode" and could switch at any time.

[@shaktidevii]

thats very humble of Bobby 🤍 King Fischer Forever Morphy bows down

[@kevinmalone3210]

With today's knowledge in chess, Morphy would've been at 2700 or higher after getting him up to speed. When he was playing, I'd estimate his rating at around 2500 at least.

[@pawnpusher]

Didn't Bobby Fischer say in an interview that Morphy was the most talented player who ever lived? Clearly a genius

[@zachhaywood1564]

Yep, Hikaru too.

[@mitchelllevine5664]

He said Capablanca was the most talented, although Morphy was his favorite

[@LuxuryItIs]

Most talented 1. Morphy 2. Fischer 3. Capablanca 4. Kasparov 5. Lasher

[@mitchelllevine5664]

@@LuxuryItIs Not sure who Lasher is, but I’d say Capablanca, then Fischer

[@LuxuryItIs]

@@mitchelllevine5664 Emanuel lasker. You can definitely make the case that capablanca was more talented

[@Evilanious]

This is going to be good. Ben is a huge Morphy fan.

[@andrewptob]

No need to bring up Ben’s weight

[@kenw2225]

Ben looks like my dad as he lost 140 lbs after diagnosis of type 2 diabetes. He looks alot thinner in this video vs Oct or so , the last video I watched

[@andrewptob]

@@kenw2225 Ben does actually look better. Nice work by your dad! 💪

[@josephbarbarie692]

I love that Finegold is carrying the torch for the aesthetic principle in chess. Chess, like any pursuit, must tickle the artistic sensibility -- not just the competitive.

[@aidancooper9498]

I've long been an advocate for Morphy being the best player to have ever lived, I am so happy to hear such a well-reputed educator such as yourself say so as well!!

[@dodiad]

Certainly the most entertaining.

[@elg7365]

There is no way to compare

[@gmatsue84]

@@elg7365 Distance between one and his peers is one of the best, among many, ways to compare, and one that makes the most sense.

[@elg7365]

@@gmatsue84 actually this would be the way only or you have a good amount of data. There is no comparison between that era and this. This is a different game .

[@gmatsue84]

@@elg7365 The point of using gap is exactly so that you can compare different games

[@KancerKowboy]

You can't go wrong with Morphy, one of the most interesting chess players of all time!

[@SkepticalCaveman]

I want to see a movie made of Morphy's life. He deserves to be known by more people.

[@mandotherapper2586]

Finding Paul Morphy

[@mandotherapper2586]

Morphys Defense Declined

[@insouciantFox]

Pride and Sorrow

[@jackwisniewski3859]

What timing! I was actually binging your previous paul morphy lectures earlier today! And ive been looking into the kings gambit as well, this is great. Btw Ben, my family has noticed me watching your lectures and have nicknamed you "panda".

[@RahdoBound]

Wow what a perfect nickname

[@TylerHumphrey05]

Is that similar to googling?

[@zachmorgan6982]

Murphy always chose the coolest mate. It was always with great substance and style

[@black44443]

Oh my god, thank you so much for this lesson! I just had my FIRST EVER SMOTHERED MATE, because I remembered the pattern of this video! That's the coolest thing I've ever done in chess, thank you so much, GM Finegold!

[@KingChronoss]

I miss your live lectures with the students. Please go back to teaching at clubs. the way your style of comedy bounced off the kids was pure gold

[@jashyotes]

GOoooooooooo Billlllll Wayyyy

[@wixom01]

@28:40 you show a smothered mate. I have been very fortunate in my 50 years of playing chess to have actually delivered a smothered mate twice, both in tournament play. So satisfying for this 1800 rated player.

[@Erael]

My Top 5 of "The Greatest Chess Players of All Time": 1. Paul Morphy (because he had a PhD at a time the best players were just in elementary school of chess) 2. Magnus Carslen (because he is the best at a time where all super grandmasters useing AI and super computers solving chess) 3. Garri Kasparov (because he has remained a chess champion for over a decade, at a time when chess was already very advanced) 4. Bobby Fischer (because he beat the nation of chass at that time, UDSSR and of course he was a genius) 5. Emanuel Lasker (because he was the first 18th century chess player that played modern strategic type of chess with a deep understanding of the principles of chess. Also he was the longest period of time chess champion of the world)

[@kevinstrand4596]

Gonna be awesome. I'll never get tired of Morphy games.

[@josefserf1926]

GM Ben Finegold is absolutely right about Morphy. Truth matters. So does humour.

[@robdaniels5966]

NEW PAUL MORPHY LECTURE BY BEN?!? What a day to be alive I’m hype

[@TheNameOfJesus]

Modern chess players have computers, books, coaches, and the Internet to develop their skills. Morphy had none of these things. In fact, I read that Morphy's parents didn't let him play chess on any day but Sunday, because chess was a gambler's game. This is why I admire Morphy so much - he was self-taught under difficult circumstances. Can Ben name any other chess masters who were completely self-taught?

[@zmo1ndone502]

I bet money he could. Dude remembersfamous and non famous games move for move. Gm'shave crazy memory skils

[@shemchazai]

"morphy was so good that it doesnt even make any sense" idk why but i cant stop laughin, luv your vids!

[@davido4263]

Thank you to sponsor Bill 🥇💰. Thank you GM Finegold another awesome video

[@CleverSmart123]

Great content as usual. Thanks to Bill Wei for sponsoring it. Looking forward to the next episodes.

[@barelymaster1113]

Not reupload? Go Ben!!

[@ibazulic]

Another fantastic lecture by Ben. Go Ben!

[@ABadGamble]

I gotta say I am loving these lectures on the old masters! I am trying to use the King's Gambit as my main opening currently.

[@dudemanaric]

Thank you Ben and Bill so much

[@monkeygrip2412]

Great video. You have earned my subscription from this video. Paul Morphy and the Kings Gambit always wins my heart! Thanks for the amazing games!

[@bine35]

can't wait for the rest of the series

[@SenatorBluto]

I love Ben lecturing on Morphy!!

[@f.d.3289]

33:05 "And this is called the Falkbeer Countergambit, named after a famous chess player, Mr. Countergambit." God I love this guy.

[@N_B_123]

Great lecture series, thanks!

[@jackslater8688]

Thanks Bill!

[@pelicans456]

Four-part Morphy lecture, good idea Bill Wei

[@imlangheinrich8213]

Great Video Ben! :) Thank you for your Input on the Kings Gambit. I am playing the kings gambit from time to time as well.

[@Halibut86]

The last game shown here is nice, I love those forcing moves sacing an exchange to set up a brutal pin

[@MrSupernova111]

Beautiful games! Thanks Ben!

[@keithwald5349]

Putting aside any question of what Morphy's effective FIDE rating would have been, and putting aside his games against amateurs, consider just his games against the world's best, right around or near 1858. The question I have is, how did he become so dominant immediately, without years of practice against strong players? Even Fischer and Carlsen spent quite a few years climbing the ranks against strong opposition before they reached the very top.

[@MrDoggyz0r]

time machine

[@karmaic8282]

Morphy was insanely gifted when it comes to memory, giving him a huge advantage thanks to the available writings of the time. He memorised virtually every single piece of Chess Literature partially due to his ability to speak four languages. He could also recite the entire Louisiana legal code from memory. He used his amazing memory to memorize the entirety of existing chess knowledge (far easier at that time), then built on top of that with his natural abilities. He probably also did what young Fischer did and played against himself using openings from these books. "Fluent in French, English, Spanish and German, he read Philidor's L'analyse, the Parisian magazine La Regence, Staunton's Chess Player's Chronicle, and possibly also Anderssen's Schachzeitung (at least, he knew all of Anderssen's published games) . He studied Bilguer's 400-page Handbuch - which consisted partly of opening analyses in tabular form, and also Staunton's Chess Player's Handbook. 'These books,' considers Fischer, 'are better than modern ones; there has been no significant improvement since then in King Pawn openings, and Morphy's natural talents would be more than sufficient for him to vanquish the best twentieth century players.'" -Kasparov

[@MrSupernova111]

@@karmaic8282 . Thank you for the extracts!

[@karmaic8282]

@@MrSupernova111 No problem, if you're interested in this check out Kasparov's full series. A gold mine for Chess history facts and games. I'm only half way through the first volume and it's given me a whole new respect for players like Morphy and Steinitz.

[@MrSupernova111]

@@karmaic8282 Cool! I actually have them in my Amazon wish list and plan to get them soon. Thanks!

[@SayDizzle2001]

Definitely want more parts to this. Love it.

[@kokki2008]

Thank you Bill and Ben.

[@chriswaudby1084]

Excellent Morphy to me is immensely fascinating so I'm hyped for this series thx Mr finegold 😊❤

[@shaktidevii]

Awesome! Looking forward to this lecture series :)

[@andrewmacintosh1388]

I love this stuff. Thank you for doing this for us.

[@hideomituns2184]

I never understood and appreciated this until Cecil Purdy mentioned this in Action Chess: Development is all about the rooks. Anybody can develop the minor pieces. But to make the right pawn exchanges and bring out the rooks and queen to destroy the opponent's structure, expose the king, then checkmate with remaining pieces... Nobody really did that until Morphy came along. 1. Develop quickly 2. Pawn exchanges that favor open lines for your rooks and not the opponent's. 3. Sacrifice to open lines to the king. 4. Calculate to checkmate. Morphy didn't care about the typical pawn structures that modern GMs study and use daily. He just wanted the pawns out of the way so his pieces were more active. Of course this requires accurate calculation which is why beginners like closed games that slow the pace down and reduce calculation load.

[@NelsonBoy2734]

Love the lecture and the topic. GO BEN!!! GM Ben Finegold is an excellent teacher of chess. 99999

[@PsychedelicRealities]

Thank you sponsor, thank you Ben, go Ben, great stuff like always!

[@henrynavarra3260]

I agree with you completely sir. bravo, bravo!!!

[@seansartor]

Very good presentation. That Kings Gambit is a wild ride 🥳🤪🤣🔥👊🏾

[@Blaisem]

A new video, and it's on Paul Morphy? Oh boy...!!! THANK YOU BILL WEI!

[@nunyabusiness8538]

Thanks Ben I learned a lot

[@danielroberger2374]

Amazing mr Ben Finegold.

[@juan-ramonmunuera4080]

Thank you...❤❤❤

[@Kap3z1]

Morphy lectures are the best.

[@jfryer485]

At 20 mins 0 secs is a position I get often playing the Kings Gambit. Good to see its a good position to have.

[@heckheckle7040]

I love seeing Morphy games

[@msizimanqele2811]

If i were to take a test after this lecture I'd ace it no doubt the way it was explained is out of this world ❤🤞💯

[@JimJWalker]

27:51 I have only been able to do that pattern a few times, but it is one of my favorite checkmates.

[@pschneider1968]

It's so great and I'm grateful to you and your sponsor that you publish these fantastic lecture videos! 🙏 That's a big service to the chess world: lecturing about these great players of the past. I love Morphy's games, and am happy to own Maroczy's Morphy biography 🍀♟

[@kapa1611]

great lecture 👍! and thanks to the sponsor! the more he pays, the more we learn! :)

[@FWCC1]

Love this Ben, great job. Paul Morphy an Enigma. Morphy was so good he lost his mind,yes? Morphy: The Pride and Sorrow of Chess

[@Vashter007]

“And, they didn’t have a lot of good internet service in the 1850s…” 😂 Love your videos! Love me some Paul Morphy.

[@justinwagoner1517]

Thank you! 👍

[@kmarasin]

I love it when I get to play Philidor's legacy in a game, especially against players who've never seen it before, you look like a wizard.

[@negus8810]

Once you eliminate the impossible, whatever remains, no matter how improbable, must be the truth. Morphy was a time traveler.

[@lobsterfork]

Uncle Ben reminding us all to respect the morph.

[@lol101lol101lol10199]

Comparing later chess geniuses to Morphy is a bit like comparing later scientific geniuses to Aristotle. Was he eventually surpassed? Yes. Was he ever equalled? No.

[@loganmyall660]

For my money, if you put Fischer, Kasparov, karpov, Morphy etc and give them whatever tools of whatever era, they'd be competitive with each other. Greatness is greatness y'know?

[@lol101lol101lol10199]

@@loganmyall660 I could easily see Fischer being Morphy if born 100 years earlier, just as I could see Da Vinci being Aristotle if born 2000 years earlier. But that's a hypothetical. The people who *actually* had the tools of those earlier eras to compete on equal footing with them were at times also brilliant, and might have passed for greatness if not so obviously overshadowed by those two.

[@lol101lol101lol10199]

​@@canonjean-mignon4985 I said "later scientific geniuses", not later philosophers. When it comes to what he called "natural philosophy", and which others later re-branded as "science" with the addition of more rules, he was early enough to be world-leading in every field and remain a top authority for some of them a thousand years after his death. Philosophy proper would indeed have been an inferior analogy, as it featured two near-equal contemporary-ish rivals. More like Karpov and Kasparov only not so late as them.

[@_vzhux5164]

​​@@canonjean-mignon4985 they didn't believe that the earth was flat, people in ancient Greece thought that the earth was round and Aristotle created one of the first proof that the earth was round, so it's a myth. however, you're right that Aristotle believed some odd stuff.

[@_vzhux5164]

@@canonjean-mignon4985 you said that they believed that the earth was flat, which is false. so, yes, it is important, since it is what you initially talked about.

[@jsj297]

Love the Ben Morphy lectures won’t lie. Wish I could afford another 4 part series after this one. Ben’s Man crush is fascinating to watch. Haha j/k it is great content tho.

[@kevinmalone3210]

Morphy was in the same category as Capablanca. He was just naturally gifted, a child prodigy in chess.

[@griffinbur1118]

Thanks!

[@glenncooper3524]

Thumbs up immediately!!! Exclam❗

[@eversonllanzana5963]

Nice. It's been a while since you made a lecture on Morphy.

[@louyep101]

I made a little Alonzo Mourning joke in my mind just before Bensaid his. Finally, I am on the same page as a GM 😆

[@moondigit007]

Thank god for those annotaded Morphy games, who compiled them for posterity. Do the original notations are still archived somewhere ? They could be worth something.

[@annaclarafenyo8185]

The King's Gambit has been analyzed to the end, meaning the full tree from the gambit-accepted position is known with exact evaluation, win/lose draw. This was a very long computer search. The results are surprising, and I don't think a lecture on the gambit can be complete without a discussion of the known perfect play for the line.

[@snookslayer4559]

That was fantastic. Well done GM Finegold. Never knew there was a recorded game of Morphy vs Morphy (dad). That was memorizing to watch, though most Morphy games are. Thoroughly enjoyed the vid. Edit - I just realized 1848 ??? Morphy was only 11 yo at the time? Incredible.

[@pnutbutrncrackers]

2:32 -- That's a great point -- the disparity between Morphy and the best contemporaries. Good criteria, Ben, I think.

[@andrew_owens7680]

Movin' on up to the King side! I spit my coffee. To a deluxe position on the h-file! I'm movin' on up!

[@dannygjk]

Hopefully you will cover a few of his positional games. A lot of his fans don't know that his positional play was quite skilled when required.

[@MrSupernova111]

Good to see you still kicking! Cheers!

[@MrSupernova111]

Ben covered one of Morphy's positional games in a previous lecture.

[@fess04]

awesome!!!

[@readmycomment3707]

Fischer though Morphy was the greatest, thats enough for me. No one knew the game better than Fischer.

[@Elbownian]

Found mate in 2! Moving on up!! Road to 800!!!

[@HT-xt4cn]

"The Falkbeer countergambit named after famous chess player Mr. Countergambit" 🤣🤣🤣

[@theophilegaudin2329]

Barnes wasn't that bad at defending... Probably why he was the best opponent of Morphy (even though Morphy has a plus score against him as well) The Barnes defense game is nice to see, how Barnes slowly strangled Morphy, move by move, avoiding direct lines.

[@Puschit1]

Nonetheless Barnes was an overly aggressive player which is why the games of Morphy vs Barnes were such a delight to watch. It was like the both wanted to remind each other every move who the attacker was.

[@jayteegamble]

14:55 wow at that combo!

[@alanworcester5258]

Let's go!!!!

[@user-qw2fu6xd2c]

just got morphy 25 games to memorize on chessable and this is the third one.... and i so happend to be on the third one. Guess I will play along with the video.

[@donovan665]

Great lecture love Morphy, Go Ben!

[@luigisaintil413]

Morphy was the first chess boogeyman. Morphy often play strong players with a piece down. A true monster.😂

[@charmainattwood977]

I love your chair Ben. Makes you look like a green winged demon chess bat 👍 plus Paul Morphy is the greatest 😮❤

[@L33TTechReviewer]

First time viewer, awesome video and great recap of morphy games excited to see more. Only one criticism but.. why is the chair moving so much?

[@ayalatxaluma3789]

aint easy to measure genius !! genius does not contradict the measuring, a genius makes up a new ruler by definition

[@stevefitz7934]

Great!😃

[@ghost79ish]

I saw your top 10 greatest players video. Morphy is #1. Fact.

[@gm2407]

Paul 'Alpha 2 Zero' Morphy. They say you will never amount to anything if you spend all your time playing with yourself. Clearly these two are the exception.

[@griffinbur1118]

Morphy + king’s gambit->hell yeah

[@lorddoom9855]

Nice work, go Ben, etc…… Mostly etc.

[@MuhammadIqbal-dp2es]

Best chess player ever

[@yosefcohen483]

Thx Ben, you're the best. How many people told you that they like your chair? Many? I'll be another - I like your chair. Please keep it. (I Love that chair, I tried to hide it for so long because it sounds stupid, and not sounding stupid matters. Can we do a lecture on / by the chair?)

[@spectralanalysis]

Go Ben! But stay there

[@nuka.quantum]

Mr. Counter-Gambit!!

[@davidmartin7163]

Yes! Thank you for also saying Paul Morphy was the greatest chess player ever. I have a t-shirt with Morphy on it and when people ask who that is I say he is Paul Morphy an American that was the greatest chess player ever. For me it’s 1. Paul Morphy, 2. Magnus Carlsen, 3. Bobby Fischer and Garry Kasparov (tied)