GM Game Featuring the Classic Bishop Sacrifice

Everybody is familiar with the Classic B Sac so it’s not often seen and there are few examples in modern GM chess. That’s what makes this game all the more interesting especially since the victim in this game was none other than one of the best attacking players in the modern era, Mikhail Tahl. The game starts off with superb opening preparation by Polugaevsky where he sacrificed a Pawn and Tahl replied with natural, yet in his style, ambitious moves. Tahl sought to trade Polugayevsky’s attacking pieces but when they reached move 18, Tahl invited the classic B sac, either thinking it was unsound or that he could weather the storm. It may have been were it not for Polugayevsky’s brilliant follow-up up moves 21 and 25. After that Tahl was left with no choice but to go into and inferior ending that Polugayevsky won easily.