John Curdo
John Curdo | |
|---|---|
| Full name | John Curdo |
| Country | United States |
| Born | November 14, 1931 Lynn, MA |
| Died | September 30, 2022 (aged 90) |
| Title | FIDE Master |
| Peak rating | 2345 (July 1993)[1] |
John Anthony Curdo (November 14, 1931 – September 30, 2022[2]) was an American chess player from Auburn, Massachusetts, best known for winning the Massachusetts state championship 17 times between 1948 and 1985,[3] as well as the US Senior Championship.[4] Though Curdo never attained the rank of Grandmaster or International Master, he was known for over 50 years as one of the strongest players in New England, with victories over Grandmasters Pal Benko, Robert Byrne, and Arthur Bisguier, among many others. At his peak, his United States Chess Federation rating exceeded 2500.[5]
As of August 2009, Curdo had won 830 tournaments over the course of his career, a number believed to be a world record by a wide margin.[6] By December 2011, he had attained 865 tournament wins,[7] while in 2018 he had extended the number to 1000 tournament victories.[8] His opening repertoire remained relatively consistent throughout his career, and he was well known as an expert on the Dutch Defense and the Belgrade Gambit of the Four Knights Game. Curdo published four game collections, including the annotated game collection Forty Years at the Top and the Chess Caviar series (Chess Caviar, More Chess Caviar and Still More Chess Caviar).
Selected Game
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https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1361815 Curdo vs. GM Robert Byrne, US Open, August 10, 1994. In a wild Sicilian, Curdo uncorks a blistering mating combination.
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Nd7 4.d4 Nf6 5.e5 Qa5+ 6.Nc3 Ne4 7.Bd2 Nxc3 8.Bxd7+ Bxd7 9.Bxc3 Qa6 10.d5 e6 11.Ng5 dxe5 12.Qf3 f6 13.dxe6 Bc6 14.Qf5 Be7 15.O-O-O g6 16.Qh3 fxg5 17.Bxe5 O-O 18.Qh6 Rf6 19.h4 Qxa2 20.Qxh7+ Kxh7 21.hxg5+ Kg8 22.gxf6 1-0
References
[edit]- ^ "FIDE rating history :: Curdo, John".
- ^ "ChessMaine: In Memory: John Curdo (1931-2022)".
- ^ "MACA: Massachusetts State Champions".
- ^ "US Chess Hall of Fame - Larry Evans' Inductee Biography". Archived from the original on February 8, 2007.
- ^ "John Curdo, Rating Supplement entries". uschess.org. US Chess Federation. October 1992. Retrieved September 18, 2018.
- ^ Arsenault, Mark (August 19, 2009). "At 77, John Curdo still keeping opponents in check". The Boston Globe.
- ^ "Chess Chat with John Curdo". Archived from the original on May 2, 2012. Retrieved December 29, 2011.
- ^ Chase, Chris (September 23, 2018). "Chess Notes". The Boston Globe.
External links
[edit]- Selected games of John Curdo at Chessgames.com
- Excerpt from Forty Years At the Top, at Chesscafe.com
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