Three players tied for first place in the Skei Masters International Tournament in Gausdale, Norway.
Bjarke Kristensen of Denmark; Jonathan Tisdall, an American who lives in Norway, and Ferdinand Hellers of Sweden tied.For Kristensen, it meant a second norm toward the grandmaster title; for Tisdall, it meant his third norm, but he must bring his International Federation rating up from 2,425 to 2,500 before he can be accorded the honor. Hellers is already a grandmaster.
Each of the three turned in a 6-3 score - the requirement for the norm - in the 10-player invitational competition.
- CONFIRMED - Hungarian chess prodigy Judit Polgar has confirmed that she and former world champion Bobby Fischer are planning a match. In Boston her father, Lazlo Polgar, said in Hungarian that the match has been set.
Judit's mother, Klara Polgar, said of Fischer, "He is a very nice man, and he is not crazy. We don't like the fact that politics are mixed with chess."
Fischer, 50, a high-school dropout with a mixed reputation for anti-social behavior, has added to his mysterious notoriety.
However, according to the late Dr. Reuben Fine, a well-known psychiatrist as well as a world-class chess player, "Psychosis does not materially affect chess ability." In other words, it doesn't matter how crazy you are, the Reuter News chess editor commented, "you can still play chess."
The New York Times and ABC News reported that Fischer had been seen in Budapest visiting the Polgars.
At the age of 15 Judit Polgar was the youngest person in chess history to achieve the rank of grandmaster, ending Fischer's 33-year teenage record, beating Fischer by one month.
Some chess experts have predicted that she may become the first woman chess champion.
At 16, she defeated 56-year-old Boris Spassky, former world champion, in a $200,000 10-game exhibition match held in Budapest last February.
- GRAND PRIX - The second annual August Grand Prix will be Saturday, Aug. 21, at the University of Utah.
There are five sections: open, under 1,800, under 1,400, scholastic 7-12th grade, and scholastic K-6th grade. The format will be a five-round Swiss system for the open, under 1,800 and under 1,400 sections. Game time is 60 minutes. The scholastic sections will have five rounds, Swiss system, with a 90-minute game time.
Entry fees are $25 for the open section; $20 for the under 1,800 and under 1,400 sections; and $5 for the scholastic sections. Fees will be increased by $5 each if not paid in advance.
The meet will be the Saltair Room in the Union Building. Registration will be from 8:30 to 9:30 a.m., with the starting game time at 10 a.m.
The Grand Prix tournament is co-sponsored by Rowland Hall. Coaches will meet in the Den following the last scholastic round at 5 p.m. Scholastic players K-6 will play in the Den and Room 319. Accelerated pairings may be used.
The prize fund is based on 70 players in the open, under 1,800 and under 1,400.
For information call Philip Rodriguez at 582-8385.
- THE WINNAH - Six-time U.S. champion Walter Browne of Berkeley won the Nevada Open Tournament with a score of 5-1 and took home $3,000.
Gregory Kaidanov, Georgi Orlov and Mark Leski each scored 41/2-11/2 to tie for second place. Grandmaster Nick deFirmian had to settle for a tie for third, with 11 other players with scores of 4-2.