English Chess Forum

I'm seeking the full game score for

Béla Sándor - Zoltan Herendi, Budapest, 1948

Can you help please?

From a quick google it seems possible a player resigned in a won/drawn position.

Also appears the game was not from the master tournament in 1948, but from a subsidiary event (main event: https://www.365chess.com/tournaments/bu ... 1948/28949 ), or just played in Budapest in that year.

*Editted, I had forgotten that "Budapest" could equally mean just that it was played in that city, not in the major tournament of that year. Doesn't help to find the game!

Yes, Black to play resigned here. (OOPS! though you can see it happening, it looks resignable.)


3r1r1k/qp2NQbp/p5p1/6N1/PPp5/8/6PP/2R4K w - - 0 1

My source only gives what you have, Bela Sandor - Zoltan Herendi, the position and Budapest 1948.

It looks like there is only one move that saves black,and it takes a while to spot. Any idea why a 70 year old game between obscure players was of such interest ?

I presume Qf2 is the move in question?

Joey Stewart wrote: ↑

Sat Apr 30, 2022 9:10 pm

It looks like there is only one move that saves black,and it takes a while to spot. Any idea why a 70 year old game between obscure players was of such interest ?

Yes, the game is discussed in a super little book BCN is reviewing.

Hi John,

I forgot to add it is position No.236 in 'Blunders and Brilliancies' by Ian Mullen and Moe Moss.
They say White sacced a rook to reach the position and nothing more.

They add the cute try 1...Qf2 2.Qxg6 hxg6 3.Nxg6+ is a perpetual but thwarted by by 2...Qf1+.

There must be something odd about the Philidor Legacy set up. Maybe we are so used to seeing it being sound.

Also in 'Blunders and Brilliancies' (No 213) G. Chandler - R. Austin, Edinburgh 1980.

k2rb2r/pp2n2p/2N1p3/1N1q2p1/2pP1Q1P/2P5/1P3PP1/R4RK1 b - - 0 24

My last move was 24. Na3-b5. With mates in one threats and a Philidor mate in there as well.
Black resigned. (OOPS! though I did not see the missed resource either.)

I will email Ian Rogers and ask him if he has the full score.

Geoff Chandler wrote: ↑

Sun May 01, 2022 1:39 pm

Hi John,

I forgot to add it is position No.236 in 'Blunders and Brilliancies' by Ian Mullen and Moe Moss.
They say White sacced a rook to reach the position and nothing more.

They add the cute try 1...Qf2 2.Qxg6 hxg6 3.Nxg6+ is a perpetual but thwarted by by 2...Qf1+.

There must be something odd about the Philidor Legacy set up. Maybe we are so used to seeing it being sound.

Also in 'Blunders and Brilliancies' (No 213) G. Chandler - R. Austin, Edinburgh 1980.

k2rb2r/pp2n2p/2N1p3/1N1q2p1/2pP1Q1P/2P5/1P3PP1/R4RK1 b - - 0 24

My last move was 24. Na3-b5. With mates in one threats and a Philidor mate in there as well.
Black resigned. (OOPS! though I did not see the missed resource either.)

Heh, its rare for that sort of "sacrifice" to result in a net material gain.

Hi Matt,

A 1980's computer on it's lowest level would have got it and you would think it's sulking and just delaying the mate.

Back to the matter in hand. 'Blunders and Brilliancies' which I helped with a very tiny bit with, a game here and there and maybe a pun or two.
They give an acknowledgement to Kurt Richter. (this sort of stuff was right up his street) I've looked at his 'Combinations a Fine Art.' No Joy.

I cannot recall the game at all, just Ian Mullen pouring over every book in the club
looking for examples and giving a wee whoop of joy when he found something.

I do not know if Ian or Moe had the game and mentioned the Rook sac or noticed White is a Rook down
(actually just an exchange) and assumed it was a sac. I'll go with the former and say they saw the game.

Tomorrow I'll check out the 1948-1951 BCM's and Chess's.

By far the most likely source would be Magyar Sakkelet for 1948.

Magyar chess world appears to be available, I assume for a fee: https://adt.arcanum.com/hu/view/MagyarS ... 1911_1948/

Ian Rogers told me today that he also is seeking the full score of this game.

HI John,

Nothing in BCM they have an index. But CHESS did not so short of time skimmed through it through 48-51.
B.H.Wood played in Budapest 1948 and that is the kind of position any chess editor would use as a filler.

I reckon the position will be CHESS. after July 1948, played in a minor event next to the main event.
I doubt if the full game will be there, but live in hope. Have more time tomorrow, will go through CHESS again.

Here is IRs reply to me in full:

I spent a fair bit of time trying to find the whole game two years ago when I began collecting examples. (I have now collected about 50 claimed examples where the full game or testimony from one of the players refuted the claimed silly resignation - Golombek - Keres is a famous British one.)
Your post on the ECF Forum encouraged me to have another go. I now have a Hungarian friend trying to track down a 1959 book
Így sakkoztok ti...: (tanulmány a sakkvakságról) by Emil Gelenczei, which I believe has the example and perhaps the whole game. I'll let you know if I find something