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Hans Berliner

HANS BERLINER (born Jan-27-1929, died Jan-13-2017, 87 years old) Germany (federation/nationality United States of America) [what is this?] IM and GMC (1968) Hans Jack Berliner was born in Berlin. Berliner entered public school just as Hitler was rising to power. In 1937, his family immigrated to the Washington, D.C. area to escape Nazi persecution. A nephew of his uncle Emile Berliner, Joseph Sanders, arranged for several members of the extended Berliner family to immigrate to America. (1) He learned chess at age thirteen and went on to play in several U.S. Championships and earn a spot on his country's Olympiad team in 1952. However, he is famous primarily for his feats in correspondence play, most notably his victory in the 5th World Correspondence Championship (1965-68), scoring 14/16 (+12 =4). No one before or since has approached this record. As of 2002, his rating of 2765 was the highest ever. In his later years, he worked to help develop chess computers such as Hitech (Computer). His controversial book The System describes his approach to chess analysis. He claimed in that book that 1.d4 gave White a large, and possibly decisive, advantage. His book was widely criticized. IM Jeremy Silman wrote that "the sheer insanity of his claims made me laugh out loud on several occasions." He died in Riviera Beach, Florida on January 13, 2017. (1) Biography by Bill Wall http://billwall.phpwebhosting.com/a... (2) Wikipedia article: Hans Berliner (3) ICCF Gold: 50th Jubilee Celebration (1951-2001), p. 352 (4) Wikipedia article: Hans Berliner (5) Wikipedia article: First-move advantage in chess Last updated: 2025-03-23 23:07:14

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page 1 of 6; games 1-25 of 150  Game   Result Moves Year Event/Locale Opening 1. Fine vs H Berliner   ½-½ 40 1944 Washington DC Divan CC sim A32 English, Symmetrical Variation 2. Koltanowski vs H Berliner   1-0 39 1945 Simul D04 Queen's Pawn Game 3. Fine vs H Berliner   ½-½ 35 1945 Washington DC Divan CC blind rapid sim A45 Queen's Pawn Game 4. H Berliner vs L Friedman 0-1 29 1946 US Junior Ch C57 Two Knights 5. H Berliner vs Evans   0-1 24 1946 United States of America C26 Vienna 6. H Berliner vs S E Almgren 1-0 35 1946 47th US Open C11 French 7. M Aleman Dovo vs H Berliner   1-0 21 1946 47th US Open C11 French 8. G Kramer vs H Berliner   ½-½ 44 1946 47th US Open D23 Queen's Gambit Accepted 9. R Byrne vs H Berliner 1-0 53 1946 47th US Open C34 King's Gambit Accepted 10. L E Marquez vs H Berliner   1-0 30 1946 Yankton International Tournament D39 Queen's Gambit Declined, Ragozin, Vienna Variation 11. W M Byland vs H Berliner   ½-½ 27 1946 Yankton International Tournament B01 Scandinavian 12. H Berliner vs R Cintron   1-0 48 1946 Yankton International Tournament C10 French 13. A Powers vs H Berliner   0-1 43 1946 Yankton International Tournament D31 Queen's Gambit Declined 14. H Berliner vs A Margolis   0-1 46 1946 Yankton International Tournament C14 French, Classical 15. H Berliner vs F Planas Garcia   ½-½ 32 1946 Yankton International Tournament C11 French 16. H Berliner vs M Colon Romero   1-0 23 1946 Yankton International Tournament B70 Sicilian, Dragon Variation 17. H Berliner vs A Mengarini 1-0 26 1949 Rochester C36 King's Gambit Accepted, Abbazia Defense 18. H Berliner vs M Pavey   0-1 25 1949 Rochester ch C34 King's Gambit Accepted 19. O Shapiro vs H Berliner   1-0 32 1949 cr ch C41 Philidor Defense 20. Hernandez vs H Berliner   0-1 26 1949 Southern ch E60 King's Indian Defense 21. H Berliner vs G Kramer   1-0 58 1950 51st US Open B04 Alekhine's Defense, Modern 22. Santasiere vs H Berliner   1-0 41 1950 51st US Open E67 King's Indian, Fianchetto 23. F Zita vs H Berliner   ½-½ 29 1952 Helsinki Olympiad Final-A A04 Reti Opening 24. H Fajans vs H Berliner   0-1 44 1953 54th US Open B33 Sicilian 25. M Pavey vs H Berliner   ½-½ 41 1953 54th US Open D27 Queen's Gambit Accepted, Classical  page 1 of 6; games 1-25 of 150

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< Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 4 OF 6 ·  Later Kibitzing> Apr-21-09    Jim Bartle: Sorry, but which game are you referring to, SirChrislov? Apr-21-09    Sicilian Dragon: <JB, my buddy> This is the brilliant masterpiece!!! Estrin vs Berliner, 1965 Sep-30-09    GrahamClayton: What do chessgames members think of Berliner's value of the pieces in "My System", eg Pawn = 1 Knight = 3.2 Bishop = 3.3 Rook = 5.1 Queen = 8.8 The values are also affected by positional factors as well. Sep-30-09    AnalyzeThis: I think these numbers are affected somewhat by your choice of opening. For Berliner's openings, they were probably right on the money. Sep-30-09    DrCurmudgeon: Bah, humbug! All that stuff means is that if you win the queen but have to give up a rook, 2/3 of a bishop and 1/2 of a knight, you'd better have some other compensation up your sleeve or else file for Chapter 11. Sep-30-09    sisyphus: It's much like the numbers Larry Kaufman determined and published in Chess Life some years ago. From memory: P=1, N=3.25, B=3.25, R=5, Q=9.5. In addition, he gave an extra half-pawn for having a bishop pair. It's useful for evaluating certain exchanges, such as (1) two pieces are better than a rook and a pawn, and (2) sacrificing a rook for a piece and a pawn gives up less in material than some people think, and can be more easily justified by other compensation. Jul-15-10    GrahamClayton: Here is a great interview with Berliner undertaken by the Computer History Museum: http://archive.computerhistory.org/... Sep-12-10    GamerMan: I beleive kaufman's is 9.75 for the queen, also -1/8 to the rook for each pawn over 5 (and +1/8 for each pawn under 5) and +1/16 to the knight for each pawn over 5. I think more interesting is his valuing the pawns based on their locations, does anyone have that list to post up here? Sep-12-10    whiteshark: <GamerMan> http://home.comcast.net/~danheisman... or here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Chess_... Sep-13-10    GamerMan: i actually meant hans berliner's complete pawn worth valuation Sep-13-10    whiteshark: <GamerMan> Wiki's <Chess piece relative value> gives you the quintessence of Berliner's pawn evaluations as published in <The System>*, p16-20. You'll find the same content, but probably better arranged here: http://www.worldlingo.com/ma/enwiki... *(Berliner, Hans (1999), The System: A World Champion's Approach to Chess, Gambit Publications, ISBN 1-901983-10-2) - Worth reading, anyway Sep-13-10    whiteshark: <Oral History of Hans Berliner> http://archive.computerhistory.org/... Feb-06-11    theagenbiteofinwit: I was rereading the Silman review of Berliner's System and had a chuckle at this gem: <My angst towards postal chess began when I read that many postal aficionados honestly felt that a postal World Champion would beat an over-the-board World Champion in a postal game. The postal caste never seemed to realize that their understanding of chess as a whole was so far below any over-the-board World Champion's as to make the argument virtually laughable. > If Berliner could draw against a future World Champion OTB, what is so ridiculous about saying that he could beat a OTB champ in a CC match? May-14-11    parisattack: <Sneaky: The System is one of the most brilliant chess books of the modern era. I'll match "The System" up against "My System" any day. That's a strong statement, I know.> 'Ich bin ein Berliner.' The System has taken a very bad rap, undeservedly because of its tone, perhaps. But it is an excellent chess tome. Sep-18-11    Cemoblanca: I am currently reading "The System: A World Champion's Approach to Chess" by Hans Berliner. I really liked the part "I am not Alone" at the beginning and I wanted to share it with you. Enjoy! :0) <Over 60 years ago Alekhine appreciated something that is still not common knowledge today. After the moves: 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nc3 "In my opinion this move gives White more chances of obtaining an opening advantage..." 3...dxc4 4 e4! "It is almost incredible that this quite natural move has not been considered by the so-called theoreticians. White obtains now an appreciable advantage in development, no matter what Black replies." Alexander Alekhine, 1937> P.S. HB looks a bit like Christopher "Dracula" Lee ;0) >>> http://www.imdb.com/media/rm2235602... Jan-27-12    Penguincw: Happy Birthday (yesterday)! Jan-27-12    Marmot PFL: <After the moves: 1 d4 d5 2 c4 c6 3 Nc3 "In my opinion this move gives White more chances of obtaining an opening advantage..."> Many play 3 Nf3 to avoid the complications of 3 Nc3 e5 4 de d4, even if it isn't quite sound. Jan-27-12    King Death: <Marmot PFL> Most players were using 3.Nf3 before that gambit became popular as the result of this game: Karpov vs Bareev, 1992. Jan-27-12    waustad: I confess that for today's B'day I'd be hard pressed not to pick Captain Evans. Happy B'day to Hans Berliner too, but buckle my swashes matey! Jan-30-12    Hesam7: <Poisonpawns: Berliner crushes 12..Qa3 in Grunfeld in response to critics http://www.fortunecity.de/olympia/m>... Berliner's analysis did not stand the test of time. In fact Black' main line (10. Rc1 cxd4 11. cxd4 Qa5+ 12. Kf1 Qa3 13. Rc3 Qd6 14. h4 h5 15. f3 Rd8 16. Bd5 <e5!>) is missing from his analysis. Aug-26-13    whiteshark: Quote of the Day <" Castle if you must, or if you want to, but not because you can! "> -- Hans Berliner Aug-26-13    JoergWalter: <whiteshark> to my knowledge this quote is attributed to Pillsbury. don't have the source right now. Aug-26-13    Karpova: W.E. Napier's 'Paul Morphy and The Golden Age of Chess' (New York, 1957 and 1971), page 18: <Once I asked Pillsbury whether he used any formula for castling. He said his rule was absolute and vital: castle because you will or because you must; but not because you can.> Source: http://www.chesshistory.com/winter/... Jul-24-15    zanzibar: Researching Yankton (1957) finds this bio snippet: <Hans J. Berliner, 28-year old Naval Research Laboratory engineering psychologist, won the Labor Day Champion of Champions Chess Tournament at Yankton, S.D. The District's chess master took the trophy after winning a tie-breaking game with Curt Brasket of Minneapolis. Both men had scored 5 1/2 points in earlier games.> Washington Post and Times Herald, 1957-09-04, pg B8 Jan-27-16    TheFocus: Happy birthday, CC World Champion Hans Berliner. Jump to page #   (enter # from 1 to 6) search thread:    < Earlier Kibitzing  · PAGE 4 OF 6 ·  Later Kibitzing>

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