On April 5th, the Boylston Chess Club will hold a memorial tournament in honor of Tony Miles, who passed away of heart failure in 2001. His friend, three-time U.S. Champion GM Larry Christiansen, remembers the remarkable player.
Tony Miles was a true original. He was a fighting player with a wicked sense of humor who amassed a vast number of chess brawls against some of the world's finest.
I first met Tony Miles in 1973 at the Lone Pine event. He would drink quart after quart of milk during his games and go through an elaborate and distracting routine of writing his move down before he played it, hiding the move with a large watch, often crossing out his original move. After making his move, he would then loudly honk and blow his nose and j'doube the pieces on his opponent's time.
Needless to say, these traits did not endear him to many of his opponents, but most players made allowances because of his good humor and very creative brand of play.
Miles was a very hard worker at the board. He could grind out long endgames and rarely shrank from wild complications. He was notorious for his various feuds with the likes of Raymond Keene and Nigel Short, but he was on pretty good terms with most US players, although many were not happy with his very temporary switch to the US in the late 1980s. Here is a fine game from 1980 that showcased Miles winning in his trademark positionally aggressive style:
GM Anthony Miles
GM Oscar Panno
Puerto Madryn
??.??.1980
Queen’s Indian [E12]
1. d4 Nf6 2. c4 e6 3. Nf3 b6 4. a3
The Petrosian Queen's Indian was a mainstay of Miles' repertoire in the late 1970s and 1980s.
4...Bb7 5. Nc3 d5 6. cxd5 exd5
6...Nxd5 is more active.
7. Bf4
7. g3 is more effective here, with a slight edge for White after 7... Be7 (7... Bd6 8 Bg5! 0-0 9. Bh3 creates problems) 8. Bg2 0-0 9. 0-0 Re8 10. Bg5
7... Bd6 8. Bg3
I once successfully tried 8. Ne5!? in a German Cup match against Robert Huebner, but Black should be okay after 8... 0-0 9. e3 c5 10. Be2 Nc6 11. 0-0 Nc6
8... a6 9.e3
(9.Qa4+ c6 10.e3 0-0 11.Bd3 c5=)
9... 0-0
9...Ne4 10.Nxe4 (10.Rc1 Nxg3 11.hxg3 Nd7 12.Bd3 Nf6) 10...dxe4 11.Ne5 Bd5 12.Be2 0-0 13.Qc2 Re8 leads to a reasonable position for Black.
10. Rc1 Re8 11. Bd3 Qe7 12. b4 Nbd7 13. Qb3
Miles plays to bottle up the freeing thrust …c7-c5
13... c6 14. 0-0 a5 15. Bf5! axb4
15... g6 16. Bxd6 Qxd6 17. Bh3 axb4 18. axb4
16. Bxd6 Qxd6 17. axb4 Ra7
(17... Ba6 18. b5 cxb5 19. Nxb5 Bxb5 20. Qxb5²)
18. Ra1 Rea8
If Black swaps off all the rooks, then White enjoys pressure after 18... Rxa1 19. Rxa1 Ra8 20. Rxa8+ Bxa8 21. b5! c5 22. Qa2 Bb7 23. Qa7
19.Rxa7 Rxa7 20.e4! dxe4
20... Nxe4 21. Nxe4 dxe4 22. Ng5 Qe7 23. Nxf7 also favors White.
21. Ng5 Qe7 22. Nxf7!
22. Ngxe4 Nxe4 23. Nxe4 is simply equal.
22...Nd5? 23.Nxd5
(23.Ne5 Nxe5 24.dxe5 Qxe5 25.Bxe4 g6)
23... cxd5 24. Bxd7 Qxd7?
24... Qxf7 25. Qh3 Kh8 26. Qg3 Qxd7 27. Qb8+ Bc8 28. Rc1 g6 29. Rxc8+ Kg7 30. h3 with an edge for White offered more hope.
25. Ne5
This dominating knight decides the game. Black has a bad bishop and more exposed king. But Miles must find a way to activate his rook…
25... Qd6 26. f3! Bc8 27. fxe4 Be6
28. Rc1!
There it is!
28... h6
28... Rc7 (Not 28...dxe4? 29.Rc8+ and wins) 29. Rxc7 Qxc7 30. exd5 Qc1+ 31. Kf2 Qf4+ 32. Nf3 (knights excel at defending kings) 32... Bf7 33. Qc4 h6 34. Qc6 Bh5 35. Qe6+ Kh7 36.Qe5 wins comfortably, while 28...dxe4 is met with 29. Rc8+.
29. Rc6 Ra1+ 30. Kf2 Qe7 31. Nf3 Bf7 32. e5 Qa7?
Black desperately searches for counterplay, but the queen's departure from the center opens up the chance for a mating attack.
33.Rc8+ Kh7 34.Ng5+! Kg6?
[34... hxg5 35. Qd3+ (35.Qh3+ Kg6 36.Rc6+) 35...g6 36.Qh3+ Kg7 37.Qh8#]
35.Rc6+! Kxg5 36.Qg3+ Kf5 37.Qf3+ Kg5 38.Kg3!
Black is bound to be mated, e.g. 38.h4+ Kxh4 39.Qf4+ Kh5 40.Qf5+ Kh4 41.g3#
1-0
BONUS: Tony Miles Tactics!
Miles encountered this position playing with the white pieces in Wolverhampton in 1968. Can you spot the win?
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