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Karl Robatsch
Robatsch 
Photo courtesy of Wikimedia Commons  

Number of games in database: 990
Years covered: 1953 to 1996
Highest rating achieved in database: 2460
Overall record: +219 -244 =527 (48.7%)*
   * Overall winning percentage = (wins+draws/2) / total games in the database.

MOST PLAYED OPENINGS
With the White pieces:
 Sicilian (83) 
    B90 B47 B92 B91 B32
 Ruy Lopez (57) 
    C77 C85 C75 C64 C93
 King's Indian (48) 
    E90 E92 E91 E97 E94
 English (45) 
    A17 A15 A16 A10 A14
 Reti System (38) 
    A04 A05 A06
 English, 1 c4 c5 (32) 
    A30 A34 A33 A35 A31
With the Black pieces:
 Sicilian (106) 
    B61 B56 B60 B58 B22
 English (46) 
    A10 A14 A18 A15 A13
 Ruy Lopez (45) 
    C95 C94 C70 C64 C78
 Queen's Pawn Game (39) 
    A40 A46 A45 A41 D02
 Sicilian Richter-Rauser (35) 
    B61 B60 B62
 Ruy Lopez, Closed (31) 
    C95 C94 C84 C93 C85
Repertoire Explorer

NOTABLE GAMES: [what is this?]
   Robatsch vs Jansa, 1974 1-0
   Robatsch vs F J Perez, 1963 1-0
   Robatsch vs S Garcia Martinez, 1974 1-0
   Robatsch vs Weghofer, 1955 1-0
   Robatsch vs G Hertneck, 1995 1-0
   Robatsch vs Tal, 1960 1/2-1/2
   Robatsch vs T van Scheltinga, 1963 1-0
   Robatsch vs Letelier, 1964 1-0
   Robatsch vs Timman, 1972 1-0
   Ivkov vs Robatsch, 1965 0-1

NOTABLE TOURNAMENTS: [what is this?]
   Leipzig Olympiad qual-2 (1960)
   Moscow Olympiad Final-B (1956)
   Kapfenberg (1955)
   Amsterdam Olympiad Final-B (1954)
   Halle Zonal (1963)
   Venice (1969)
   Leipzig Olympiad Final-B (1960)
   Maribor (1967)
   Gotha (1957)
   Nice Olympiad Final-B (1974)
   Havana (1965)
   Capablanca Memorial (1963)
   Biel (1977)
   Capablanca Memorial (1964)
   European Team Championship (1992)

GAME COLLECTIONS: [what is this?]
   1962 Beverwijk Hoogovens by jww


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KARL ROBATSCH
(born Oct-14-1928, died Sep-19-2000, 71 years old) Austria

[what is this?]
Karl Robatsch was born in Klagenfurt. Awarded the IM title in 1957 and the GM title in 1961, he was Austrian champion in 1960. The Robatsch (B06) Defence is named after him. He was 2nd at Kapfenberg in 1955, 2nd= at Varna 1957, 1st= at Madrid 1961, 2nd= at Wijk aan Zee 1962, 3rd= at Halle 1963 and had his finest moment at the Leipzig Olympiad 1960 when he won the gold medal for the best performance on first board. He passed away in 2000 after a long battle with stomach and throat cancer.

Wikipedia article: Karl Robatsch


Try our new games table.

 page 1 of 40; games 1-25 of 992  PGN Download
Game  ResultMoves YearEvent/LocaleOpening
1. Geller vs Robatsch  1-0411953Austria - Soviet UnionB06 Robatsch
2. Robatsch vs Geller  0-1421953Austria - Soviet UnionA00 Uncommon Opening
3. E Flir vs Robatsch  0-1401953Mitropa CupD94 Grunfeld
4. Robatsch vs M Christoffel  1-0331953Mitropa CupC77 Ruy Lopez
5. Robatsch vs Unzicker  1-0291953Mitropa CupA00 Uncommon Opening
6. Robatsch vs P Trifunovic  ½-½311953Mitropa CupA07 King's Indian Attack
7. V I Borodin vs Robatsch  0-1271953Mitropa CupA40 Queen's Pawn Game
8. D Parliaros vs Robatsch  0-1531954Amsterdam Olympiad qual-1A07 King's Indian Attack
9. Smyslov vs Robatsch 1-0341954Amsterdam Olympiad qual-1A10 English
10. Robatsch vs J Vesterinen  1-0531954Amsterdam Olympiad qual-1A07 King's Indian Attack
11. J H Donner vs Robatsch  1-0411954Amsterdam Olympiad qual-1A40 Queen's Pawn Game
12. G Porreca vs Robatsch  0-1391954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BC64 Ruy Lopez, Classical
13. Robatsch vs B Larsen  ½-½401954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BB53 Sicilian
14. B P Reilly vs Robatsch  0-1231954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BE64 King's Indian, Fianchetto, Yugoslav System
15. T Salo vs Robatsch  0-1681954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BE60 King's Indian Defense
16. D Parliaros vs Robatsch  0-1261954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BA05 Reti Opening
17. Robatsch vs J Kupper  0-1531954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BA07 King's Indian Attack
18. O Morcken vs Robatsch  ½-½821954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BA40 Queen's Pawn Game
19. Robatsch vs Yanofsky  0-1591954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BE66 King's Indian, Fianchetto, Yugoslav Panno
20. C Doerner vs Robatsch  0-1421954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BD86 Grunfeld, Exchange
21. Robatsch vs M Cuellar Gacharna  ½-½621954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BC91 Ruy Lopez, Closed
22. O Bernstein vs Robatsch 0-1851954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BB06 Robatsch
23. Robatsch vs O Benkner  1-0321954Amsterdam Olympiad Final-BC77 Ruy Lopez
24. Filip vs Robatsch  ½-½411955CSR-AUTA10 English
25. Robatsch vs Filip ½-½511955CSR-AUTA05 Reti Opening
 page 1 of 40; games 1-25 of 992  PGN Download
  REFINE SEARCH:   White wins (1-0) | Black wins (0-1) | Draws (1/2-1/2) | Robatsch wins | Robatsch loses  

Kibitzer's Corner
Nov-07-04  WMD: Austrian GM, born 1928. Helped popularise the defence that (sometimes) bears his name.

Lost a memorable game to Fischer: Fischer vs Robatsch, 1962. Played in the 1974 Chigorin Memorial in Sochi. Finished in 15th place from 16. Scored 6/15 (+2 =8 -5). Both wins took 14 moves each, one being:

Robatsch vs Jansa, 1974.

Apr-03-05  dac1990: Half of this guy's games are draws- either a statistical improbability, boring player, or both.
Oct-08-05  Helios727: In Fischer's MSMG book, he said that Robatsch claimed to have had good results with his offbeat version of the centre-counter (as black). Does anyone have any examples of games where Robatsch actually won as black with the centre-counter?
Jan-26-06  BIDMONFA: Karl Robatsch

ROBATSCH, Karl
http://www.bidmonfa.com/robatsch_ka...
_

May-02-06  DutchDunce: ??? This dude plays 1...g6 SIX times out of 101, and they name the opening after him??
Nov-11-07  pawnofdoom: Well I guess it's just whoever plays it first. Whichever famous person plays it first, that is.

A worse case is Alekhine, who has the Alikhine defense named after him. He employed his defense 30 times out of almost 2000 games! And I don't think he actually invented it. He only popularized it, but because he was famous, the defense wa named after him.

Nov-11-07  Calli: <Pawnofdoom> See Game Collection: Alekhine plays Klyatskin's Defense
Oct-14-08  brankat: GM Robatsch's best years were from about the mid-fifties to the mid-sixties, with a number of good results.

R.I.P. Mr.Robatsch.

Aug-04-09  Dredge Rivers: He played like a Robat! :)
Aug-04-09  blacksburg: oh god. that was uncalled for.
Aug-06-09  Dredge Rivers: <blacksburg> OK. He played like a Karl. Are you happy now?
Oct-14-09  Thrajin: <blacksburg> I agree. That was unKarled for.
Oct-14-09
Premium Chessgames Member
  Richard Taylor: Photograph?
Oct-14-09
Premium Chessgames Member
  Benzol: <Richard> See <BIDMONFA>'s post earlier for a picture of Robatsch.
Oct-14-09  vonKrolock: ... or this one http://www.olimpbase.org/1966q/img/...
Oct-14-09  WhiteRook48: and he doesn't play the Robatsch that often
Oct-14-09  parisattack: Ujtelky really the father of the ...g6 defence and especially the Hippo variation(s). Later Suttles played it almost exclusively.

When the center is closed with e5 the Bg7 very often comes back to Bf8. I've seen games where it never even goes to Bg7, making ...g6 'a high class waiting move.'

Oct-14-09
Premium Chessgames Member
  Richard Taylor: If you look in the year 2008 in the game list of Robatsch's or Moderns you will find my sacrificial masterpiece v FM M. Steadman! (Played near this time last year...

<Benzol> I'll check it out. Thanks.

Oct-14-09
Premium Chessgames Member
  Richard Taylor: Chess is infinite.
May-22-12  LoveThatJoker: God bless you, GM Karl Robatsch!

LTJ

Sep-07-12  waustad: He played in 11 olympics from 1954 through 1994.
http://www.olimpbase.org/players/w0...
Oct-14-13
Premium Chessgames Member
  Penguincw: R.I.P. Karl Robatsch.
Jun-01-14  waustad: It is a minor nuisance that when one enters his name correctly in the Search text field on the search page on cg.com, it doesn't get to his page. Using the Advanced Search text field one gets to his page, but for the name it defaults to the defense instead of the player, claiming that Karl Gilg never played Robatsch (B06)
May-10-15  TheFocus: <Today young people never play romantic openings like the King's Gambit ... They play without feeling. They only know what is written in books> - Karl Robatsch.
Oct-14-22
Premium Chessgames Member
  FSR: Repertoire Explorer: Karl Robatsch (black) shows that he only played the Robatsch about 10% of the time. Contrast Repertoire Explorer: Tiger Hillarp Persson (black), which shows that Tiger plays it almost half the time.

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