roberts partner: The answer is gven in Edward Winter's Chess Notes No 6606:Bisguier finished equal first with Tartakower, ahead of Golombek, Penrose and Schmid, with Bogoljubow in sixth place. From page 153 of the May 1950 CHESS:
‘... Sixteen-year old Jonathan Penrose beat in turn Prins, Bogoljubow and Tartakower, and 72-year-old problem expert, F.F.L. Alexander, created almost as great a stir by defeating Bogoljubow and Golombek. The publicity might have blazed far higher had not young Jonathan, approached by eager Press men, flatly refused to be “interviewed” or quoted in any way.’
Jeremy Gaige’s Chess Personalia records that Frederick Forrest Lawrie Alexander was born on 13 November 1879, which means that he was 70 at the time of the Southsea tournament. On page 144 of the May 1950 BCM Golombek wrote:
‘At the beginning of the Congress strangers were wont to ask if he was any relation of C.H.O’D. Alexander; towards the end people were inquiring if C.H.O’D. Alexander was any relation of his.’
FFL had played in the 1932 British championship without success and by Southsea 1950 was regarded just an elderly county player. He was resident in Essex then and was a regular winner of the Southend club championship in the early 1950s. At Southsea he really looked much older than 70, grey, grizzled, stooped and hunched over the board peering short-sightedly at the pieces. So it was indeed a stunning performance.
Kibitzing
