With the distractions of war and conflicting tournaments in the East, the 43rd US Open drew only 18 players. And fourteen might as well have stayed home. Herman Steiner beat Israel Albert Horowitz, Horowitz beat Daniel Yanofsky, Yanofsky beat Steiner and everybody else got slaughtered. Except for local Master John C. Thompson, who managed to squeak a draw off Horowitz to make it a two-way rather than three-way tie for first.

Of course, it was a bit more exciting than that.

Horowitz knocked off Yanofsky in round 7, but was forced to concede that draw to Thompson in round 10. Steiner faltered next. First he had to adjourn in round 11 against Erich Marchand in the book draw ending of ♖+♗ vs. ♗, and then Yanofsky beat him in round 12.

So Horowitz held the lead, 1/2-point ahead of Yankofsky, with Steiner a further point behind but with the adjournment in hand.

With the tight schedule of two games a day, Steiner still hadn't finished the adjournment when he defeated Horowitz in the 16th round. Now needing a win against Marchand, he went to work and ground out the victory two moves after Marchand committed a fatal blunder on move 118.

With no other surprises, Steiner and Yankofsky tied at 16-1 with Horowitz at 15.5-1.5.

43rd US Open

Site: Hotel Bake, Dallas, Texas

Dates: August 22-30, 1942

Organizers: United States Chess Federation,Texas Chess Association, Dallas Y. M. C. A. Chess and Checker Club

Playing schedule: Games were apparently played afternoon and evening, with adjournments int he mornings.

Saturday, August 22: Round 1
Sunday, August 23: Rounds 2-3
Monday, August 24: Rounds 4-5
Tuesday, August 25: Rounds 6-7
Wednesday, August 26: Round 8-9
Thursday, August 27: Rounds 10-11
Friday, August 28: ROunds 12-13
Saturday, August 29: Rounds 14-15
Sunday, August 30: Rounds 16-17

                            1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 0 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8
1  Daniel Abraham Yanofsky  X 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 16.0
2  Herman Steiner           0 X 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 16.0
3  Israel Albert Horowitz   1 0 X = 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 15.5
4  John Charles Thompson    0 0 = X 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 = 1 1 1 1 1	13.0
5  Erich Watkinson Marchand 0 0 0 1 X 1 0 1 = = 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 12.0
6  William H Janes          0 0 0 0 0 X = 1 1 1 1 1 = 1 1 1 1 1 11.0
7  Al Lipton                0 0 0 0 1 = X 1 = 1 0 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 11.0
8  George Sturgis           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X = 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1 1  9.5
9  Frank H McKee            0 0 0 0 = 0 = = X 1 0 1 = = 1 1 1 1	 8.5
10 Robert B M Potter        0 0 0 0 = 0 0 0 0 X 1 = 1 1 1 1 1 1  8.0
11 Ted Rozsa                0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 X = 1 0 0 1 1 1  6.5
12 Don Kilgore              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 = = X 0 1 1 1 1 1  6.0
13 Bela Rozsa               0 0 0 = 0 = 0 0 = 0 0 1 X 1 0 = 1 1  6.0
14 Jack Hudson              0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 = 0 1 0 0 X 1 1 1 1  5.5
15 Lee Roy Norton           0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 0 1 0 X 0 1 1  4.0
16 Keller Watson            0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 = 0 1 X 0 1  2.5
17 James A Creighton        0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 1 X 1  2.0
18 Clarence Rosenfield      0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 0 X  0.0

Rosenfield withdrew after 7 rounds. All his games were counted as forfeits, including a win vs. Potter.

Tanofsky was given permission to play his last-round game a day early, on the 29th. This may have been due to travel arrangements, since the "Winnipeg Tribune" notes he began the trip home on the evening of he 30th.

This round-by-round reconstruction is based on the daily reports in the <New York Times>, which were incomplete and did not indicate colors. I have constructed a model based on the Berger pairing table, but do not have complete confidence in it. The results are probably correct, but colors in some of Horowitz's games did not fit the model and there may be other irregularities as well. Still, I think there is enough valid information to present it, with those caveats.

Round 1 (Saturday, August 22): Hudson 0 Horowitz; Steiner 1 Rosenfield; Lipton 1 Potter; Creighton 0 Janes; Thompson 1/2 B. Rozsa*; Yanofsky 1 McKee*; Marchand 1 Norton; T. Rozsa 1 Watson; Sturgis 1 Kilgore

Round 2 (Sunday, August 23): Horowitz 1 Sturgis; Kilgore 1/2 T. Rozsa; Watson 0 Marchand; Norton 0 Yanofsky*; McKee 0 Thompson*; B. Rozsa 1 Creighton*; Janes 1/2 Lipton; Potter 0 Steiner; Rosenfield 0 Hudson

Round 3 (Sunday, August 23): Rosenfield 0 Horowitz; Hudson 0 Potter; Steiner 1 Janes*; Lipton 1 B. Rozsa*; Creighton 0 McKee; Thompson 1 Norton; Yanofsky 1 Watson*; Marchand 1 Kilgore; T. Rozsa 0 Sturgis

Round 4 (Monday, August 24): Horowitz 1 T. Rozsa; Sturgis 0 Marchand; Kilgore 0 Yanofsky*; Watson 0 Thompson; Norton 1 Creighton; McKee 1/2 Lipton; B. Rozsa 0 Steiner*; Janes 1 Hudson; Potter 0 Rosenfield (later changed to a forfeit win for Potter)

Round 5 (Monday, August 24): Potter 0 Horowitz; Rosenfield 0 Janes; Hudson 0 B. Rozsa*; Steiner 1 McKee*; Lipton 1 Norton; Creighton 1 Watson; Thompson 1 Kilgore; Yanofsky 1 Sturgis*; Marchand 1 T. Rozsa

Round 6 (Tuesday, August 25): Marchand 0 Horowitz*; T. Rozsa 0 Yanofsky*; Sturgis 0 Thompson; Kilgore 1 Creighton; Watson 0 Lipton; Norton 0 Steiner; McKee 1/2 Hudson; B. Rozsa 1 Rosenfield*; Janes 1 Potter

Round 7 (Tuesday, August 25): Janes 0 Horowitz; Potter 1 B. Rozsa*; Rosenfield 0 McKee; Hudson 1 Norton; Steiner 1 Watson; Lipton 1 Kilgore; Creighton 0 Sturgis; Thompson 1 T. Rozsa; Yanofsky 1 Marchand*

Round 8 (Wednesday, August 26): Horowitz 1 Yanofsky*; Marchand 1 Thompson*; T. Rozsa 1 Creighton; Sturgis 0 Lipton; Kilgore 0 Steiner; Watson 0 Hudson; Norton 1 Rosenfield (forfeit); McKee 1 Potter; B. Rozsa 1/2 Janes*

Round 9 (Wednesday, August 26): Horowitz 1 B. Rozsa*; Janes 1 McKee; Potter 1 Norton; Rosenfield 0 Watson (forfeit); Hudson 0 Kilgore; Steiner 1 Sturgis*; Lipton 0 T. Rozsa; Creighton 0 Marchand; Thompson 0 Yanofsky*

Round 10 (Thursday, August 27): Thompson 1/2 Horowitz*; Yanofsky 1 Creighton*; Marchand 0 Lipton; T. Rozsa 0 Steiner; Sturgis 1 Hudson; Kilgore 1 Rosenfield (forfeit); Watson 0 Potter; Norton 0 Janes; McKee 1/2 B. Rozsa*

Round 11 (Thursday, August 27): McKee 0 Horowitz; B. Rozsa 0 Norton*; Janes 1 Watson; Potter 1/2 Kilgore; Rosenfield 0 Sturgis (forfeit); Hudson 1 T. Rozsa; Steiner 1 Marchand*; Lipton 0 Yanofsky*; Creighton 0 Thompson

Round 12 (Friday, August 28): Horowitz 1 Creighton; Thompson 1 Lipton; Yanofsky 1 Steiner*; Marchand 1 Hudson; T. Rozsa 1 Rosenfield (forfeit); Sturgis 1 Potter; Kilgore 0 Janes; Watson 1/2 B. Rozsa; Norton 0 McKee

Round 13 (Friday, August 28): Norton 0 Horowitz; McKee 1 Watson; B. Rozsa 1 Kilgore*; Janes 1 Sturgis; Potter 1 T. Rozsa; Rosenfield 0 Marchand (forfeit); Hudson 0 Yanofsky*; Steiner 1 Thompson*; Lipton 1 Creighton

Round 14 (Saturday, August 29): Horowitz 1 Lipton; Creighton 0 Steiner; Thompson 1 Hudson; Yanofsky 1 Rosenfield (forfeit); Marchand 1/2 Potter; T. Rozsa 0 Janes; Sturgis 1 B. Rozsa*; Kilgore 0 McKee; Watson 1 Norton

Round 15 (Saturday, August 29): Watson 0 Horowitz; Norton 0 Kilgore; McKee 1/2 Sturgis; B. Rozsa 0 T. Rozsa*; Janes 0 Marchand; Potter 0 Yanofsky*; Rosenfield 0 Thompson (frofeit); Hudson 1 Creighton; Steiner 1 Lipton*

Round 16 (Sunday, August 30): Horowitz 0 Steiner*; Lipton 1 Hudson; Creighton 1 Rosenfield (forfeit); Thompson 1 Potter; Yanofsky 1 Janes*; Marchand 1 B. Rozsa; T. Rozsa 1 McKee; Sturgis 1 Norton; Kilgore 1 Watson

Round 17 (Sunday, August 30): Kilgore 0 Horowitz; Watson 0 Sturgis; Norton 1 T. Rozsa; McKee 1/2 Marchand; B. Rozsa 0 Yanofsky* (played 8/29); Janes 0 Thompson; Potter 1 Creighton; Rosenfield 0 Lipton (forfeit); Hudson 0 Steiner

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Games

All of the games between Steiner, Yanofsky, Horowitz, Thompson, Marchand, and Bela Rozsa are available, plus al the other games of Yanofsky and Rozsa. Outside of that, only five other games has surfaced, four by Steiner and one by Thompson.

There is a mystery from Steiner - Sturgis, round 9, pointed out by Andy Ansel:

1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 d5 4.Bg5 Nbd7 5.Nf3 Be7 6.e3 c6 7.Qc2 h6 8.Bh4 0-0 9.a3 dxc4 10.Bxc4 b5 11.Ba2 Bb7 12.Rd1 Nd5 13.Bb1 f5 14.Bg3 Qa5 15.0-0 N7f6 16.Ne2 Rac8 17.Ne5 Kh7 18.Qd3 Ne4 19.b4 Qd8 20.f3 Nd6 21.e4 Nf6 22.Nf4 Qe8 23.Nxe6 Rg8 24.Nc5 Ba8

click for larger view

In the source ("LA Times< September 27, 1942, p.19), the continuation is given as <25.N-B3> and Black resigns. Evidently, at some point there was a pawn trade on e4, when Nf3 with the threat of e5 would indeed encourage resignation. However, without knowledge of when the suspected exchange was made, I hesitate to add the game to <cg>.

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Sources:

American Chess Bulletin, September/October 1942, p.79-82; January/February 1943, p.12. ACB

Brooklyn Daily Eagle, August 27, September 3, September 24, 1942. BDE

Chess Results 1941-1946 / Gino di Felice, p.60.

Chess Review, October 1942, p.181-183. CR

Los Angeles Times, August 30, September 6, 13, 27, October 11, 1942

Mew York Times, daily reports August 22-31, 1942.

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Thanks

To <Andy Ansel> for unearthing may of the games, particularly Rozsa's and Steiner's.

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SEE ALSO: Game Collection: US Open Tournament Index