A tribute to GM Tigran Petrosian

July 1, 2016

1785

A tribute to GM Tigran Petrosian

I consider myself lucky to have the book “Tigran Petrosian – his life and games” by Vik L Vasilev and printed by Batsford.

Cover of the book Tigran Petrosian - his life and games. — Cover of the book Tigran Petrosian – his life and games.

This book is still available on Amazon or ebay for around USD 25 before postage.

The book has many fine games and a fair amount of biographical details and a number of fine photographs. The only problem with this book is the cumbersome descriptive notation.

Some fine photos. Look at Bobby Fischer's glare! — Some fine photos. Look at Bobby Fischer’s glare!

Sample page with a game and the analysis.

I bring you a sample of two interesting games from the book.

Tigran Petrosian v Boris Spassky

Petrosian v Spassky 10th game match 1966 after move 30 Qh8+!

See another game with a very similar position.

Petrosian v Simagin 1956 Moscow Championship after move 46. Qh8+

The similarities are amazing and here is the full game for you to review.

Tigran Petrosian v Vladimir Simagin

His pet name was ‘Iron Tigran‘ due to his almost impenetrable defensive playing style. I am not sure if that name was correct as after going through his book I found a number of games which he won with great attacking skills.