In Dr. Lovegrove's heyday, California, while it had an active chess community, was not exactly a hotbed of chess activity. In December of 1854 the first meeting of the famous Mechanics' Institute Chess Club was held. In 1857, Selim Franklin of San Francisco was on the planning and rules committee for the first American Congress in New York that won by Paul Morphy. In 1858, a California Chess Congress was held in San Francisco. The winner was Franklin, who won a gold watch.
In the mid to late 1800s several prominent players did visit the state. In July 1884, Johann Zukertort spent a month in San Francisco playing chess. That year Joseph Redding won three games from Zukertort at the Mechanics' Institute and proclaimed himself champion of the Pacific Coast. In 1885, the Golden Gate Chess Club was formed in San Francisco.
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| Joseph Redding |
Walter R. Lovegrove (1869-1956) was born on October 24, 1869. He learned the game at the age of 16 by studying the article on chess in the Encyclopedia Britannica. During the period 1886-1890 he strengthened his game by playing at the Mechanics' Institute Chess Club in San Francisco, finally becoming so strong that, in one tournament he gave odds to all the other contestants, yet still won the tournament.
After Pillsbury's success at Hastings in 1895 a meeting was held in January, 1896 in Chicago and the Pillsbury National Correspondence Chess Association (PCAA) was organized.
The PCCA only had 50 members and in 1897 they began their first correspondence tournament, the Grand National. Dr. Otto Meyer of Richmond, Virginia was the winner. The club struggled until late 1905 or early 1906 when all of a sudden the tournaments stopped for unknown reasons. Dr. Lovegrove was the winner of the final Pillsbury National Correspondence Tournament.
When Max Judd visited San Francisco, Lovegrove won six games out of seven from him in casual play. Jackson W. Showalter also visited San Francisco and they played about 30 casual games of which Lovegrove won about a dozen.
In 1893 Lovegrove visited Los Angeles, where he met and pummeled Samuel Lipschutz (1863-1905) by a score of 32-2. It should be mentioned that by that time Lipschutz was in very frail health and afflicted by tuberculosis. He had left New York several times for health reasons, principally staying briefly in Santa Fe, New Mexico in 1893 before relocating to Los Angeles where he lived from 1893 to 1995. In 1904 he relocated again, this time to Florida and the same year he traveled to Hamburg, Germany for treatment, where he had a series of operations but did not survive the treatment.
It's interesting that in the 1940’s one of Isaac Kashdan's children had serious health problems which resulted in a move to California because of its better climate. The move put Kashdan far away from the center of chess activity which was mostly in New York City.
During the early 1900s local players at the Mechanics' Institute
used to raise money for exhibition games for stakes between visiting masters and Lovegrove.
In December of 1902, the world champion, Emanuel Lasker, visited San Francisco, and played an exhibition game against Lovegrove. Lasker tried to win a drawn game and lost in a problem-like ending.
In April, 1904, Lovegrove won an exhibition game from Pillsbury. It was a wild game in which Pillsbury started a fatal Pawn-grabbing spree that allowed Lovegrove to obtain a crushing K-side attack.. Pillsbury was very upset over losing, especially after the game was published.
In 1912, Dr. Lovegrove played the Dutch Master Louis Van Vliet in London for allegedly for a shilling a game. Lovegrove won the only game they played and so was richer by a shilling (about $7-8, almost $200 today!). Also, in Paris in 1912, Lovegrove beat the Parisian Master Jean Taubenhaus, 10-1.
Then one day in San Francisco in 1913, Lovegrove held his own against the touring Boris Kostic. Vienna, 1922, was the site of two games between Lovegrove and Tartakower and they each won a game.
In the following game, after a slow beginning, Lovegrove takes out the nefarious Norman T. Whitaker in the 24th Western Championship held at the Mechanics' Institute in San Francisco in 1923 in grand style.
Walter R. Lovegrove - Norman T. Whitaker
Result: 1-0
Site: Western Championship, San Francisco
Date: 1923.07.30
Ruy Lopez
[...] 1.e4 e5 2.♘f3 ♘c6 3.♗b5 d6 The Old Steinitz Defense is solid but passive and cramped. Although the favorite of Steinitz and often played by defensive players Lasker, Capablanca, and occasionally Smyslov, it fell into disuse after World War I because of its passivity. 4.d3 White's most direct approach is 4.d4 while 4.c3 and 4.0-0 remain viable alternatives. 4...f5 5.c3 ♘f6
5...fxe4 6.dxe4 ♘f6 7.♕e2 ♗e6 8.♘g5 ♗g8 9.♗c4 ♕d7 10.♗xg8 ♖xg8 black is only slightly better. Mudrak,J (2323)-Biolek,R (2449)/Czech Republic 2012
6.♘bd2 ♗e7 7.♕e2
7.b4 did not work out well after 7...O-O 8.♕b3+ ♔h8 9.♘g5 ♕e8 10.♗c4 ♕g6 Black has a promising attack. Bibiloni,J (2233)-Frank,M (2032) /Villa Ballester 2003
7...a6 8.♗xc6+ bxc6 9.O-O a5 10.♖e1 fxe4 11.dxe4 Better was 11.Nxe4 11...♘d7 12.♘f1 ♘c5 13.♕c2 ♗g4 14.♘3d2 O-O 15.b4 Seeking play on the Q-side. 15...♘e6 16.♘c4 axb4 17.♘ce3 ♗h5 18.cxb4 ♘d4 Black has manages to emerge from the opening with the more active position. 19.♕c4+ ♗f7 20.♕d3 ♖xa2 21.♖xa2 ♗xa2 22.♗b2 ♗h4 23.♘g3 (23.♗xd4 loses outright. 23...♗xf2+ 24.♔h1 ♗xe1 25.♗c3) 23...♕f6
23...♗f6 consolidating his position was another option. After 24.♗xd4 exd4 25.♘ef5 ♗f7 (25...c5 26.bxc5 dxc5 27.♕c2 ♗e6 28.♕xc5 equals) 26.♘xd4 c5 27.♘c6 (27.bxc5 dxc5 wins) 27...♕a8 28.b5 black stands slightly better.
24.♖f1 c5 25.bxc5 dxc5 26.♘gf5 ♗e6 27.♘g4
27.g3 is an interesting alternative 27...♗g5 28.f4 exf4 29.gxf4 ♗h4 30.♘xd4 cxd4 31.♗xd4 With an unclear position. In Shootouts all five games were drawn.
27...♕g5 28.♘xe5 ♘xf5
Weaker is 28...♗xf5 29.♗xd4 Better than 29.exf5 29...♗e6 (29...cxd4 loses... 30.♕c4+ ♔h8 31.♘f7+ ♖xf7 32.♕xf7 h6 33.exf5) 30.♗c3 and white has equalized.
29.♘f3 ♕g4 Whitaker's aggressive play is unwarranted. Consolidation was called for.
29...♕d8 30.♕xd8 ♗xd8 31.exf5 ♗xf5 And black is better. In Shootouts white scored +0 -2 =3
30.h3 ♕f4 31.♗e5 ♕h6 32.exf5 ♖xf5 33.♗xc7 ♗e7 34.♖e1 ♖f6 35.♘e5 Lovegrove has put up a manly defense and reached a position in which his pieces have become active and black's c-Pawn is a target, not a danger to white. 35...♖f8 This is a gross oversight that loses the game!
35...c4 allows black to put up stiff resistance. 36.♘xc4 ♕h4 37.♗g3 ♕xc4 38.♕xc4 ♗xc4 39.♖xe7 with a likely draw.
36.♘g4 An excellent move! 36...♗xg4 37.♕c4+ Another excellent move!
37.hxg4 is a bad alternative 37...♕f6 38.♕e2 ♖f7 with equal chances. Five Shootouts were drawn,
37...♔h8 38.♖xe7 A third excellent move! (38.♕xg4 is impossible 38...♗d6 39.♗xd6 ♕xd6 equals.)
38.hxg4 is also a bad choice. 38...♕d2 39.♕e2 ♕xe2 40.♖xe2 ♗f6 equals.
38...♗h5 (38...♗xh3 39.♕f7 ♕f6 40.♕xf6 gxf6 41.gxh3 with a won ending.) 39.♗e5 ♖g8 40.♕h4 Equally good was capturing the c-Pawn. 40...♕c1+ 41.♔h2 ♖e8
41...h6 doesn't improve anything because white has a mate in 9. 42.f4 ♕e3 43.♕xh5 ♕xe5 44.♕xe5 c4 45.f5 ♔h7 46.f6 c3 47.♕f5+ ♔h8 48.fxg7+ ♖xg7 49.♕f8+ ♔h7 50.♕xg7#
42.♖xe8+ ♗xe8 43.♕e7 It's mate in 4 so Whitaker resigned. (43.♕e7 ♕f4+ 44.♗xf4 h5 45.♗e5 ♗f7 46.♕xf7 mates next move.) Powered by Aquarium
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