Lincoln Journal Star from Lincoln, Nebraska • 27

Chess Showdown With Russia's Spassky' Approaches Lincoln, Sunday Journal Star, June 25, 1972 3 ischer Near ing Lifelong Dream his middle-game positions (or, perhaps to extract them from their subterranean hiding places) that a positional player like Spassky, with his tendency to draw games, might find himself exhausted from forever waiting for the other shoe to drop. It is Fischer's willingness to take chances, and his ability to extract deeD combinations irom seemingly snauow posi- tions. that make him a popular favorite in the Soviet Union. In a country where chess is the national sport, the national passion and, some say, the national soul, there is an impatience with the conservative playing styles of many of the current Russian grandmasters. While Fischer was mowing down Larson 6-0 with an unending flow of innovative chess, the Russians Petrosian and.

Korchnoi were bogged down in their quarter-final match with eight drawn games in a row. There is also a record of sorts, but a sterile one. And so the Russians like Fisher, who is the most popular American in the Soviet Union since Van Cliburn. Of the five games they have played previously, Spassky won three and there were two draws. But that doesn't necessarily mean much in terms of their championship match.

Top of His Form Fischer is in the top of his form, and for the. past year has played grandmaster-level chess with more success than any other player In the history of the game. Spassky, however, came in third a year ago in a "Swiss System" tournament in Toronto (where players ranked as equal are played against each other). First and second places were won by Pal Benko and Robert Bryne, two American grandmasters acknowledged to be Fischer's inferiors. And in this year's Alekhine Memorial Tournament i Moscow, Spassky finished in a discouraging tie for sixth and seventh place.

Now he finds himself going to Iceland as the sole remaining defender of Russian chess supremacy; recently the Soviet government gave him a larger apartment and a car, and if he wins he will win $78,125 but if he loses, in Kotanowsky's words, "He has a great deal more to lose than Fischer." ff' -n i mmmmMmmmmmmmmmmimamMmMffti Mfw-xiiMm T.11. America's Bobby Fischer (right) and Russia's Boris Spassky at one of their previous meetings in Siegen, wwmaiv wi a iv- upaawkjr, we ueieiuung worm cnampion, nas met riscner Gable Continues To Record Wins Gal Umpire Quits After First Game caving in to extreme exhaustion. Tigran Petrosian, the former world champion who- was Bobby's opponent in the Buenos Aires semifinal match had to check Into a hospital at one point. And Bent Larson, whose personal dislike for Fischer is no secret, an-parently found It psychologically tortnrine to sit. m-iuss me ooara irom tws ar- rogant young man who "likes to see 'em squirm." Spassky may feel extra pressure because of his deliberate and classically cor-rect playing style.

Although Fischer's games have the apparent clearness of a stream of fresh running water, they often have concealed within them Byzantine twists that only Bobby Forsees. Chess is a game of legerdemain: your opponent can see all of your pieces, and you can see all of his, so you don't conceal pieces but ideas. Demonstration of Ideas A winning chess combination is, at its most basic level, a ruthless demonstration of the logical superiority of your ideas. And Fischer is able to bury his ideas so deeply into Johnson Leading FRESNO, Calif. (AP) Don Johnson, second leading money winner on the Professional Bowlers Association tour, rolled six games of 235 or better Saturday and took the first-round lead in the $37,500 Fresno Open.

Johnson, from Akron, Ohio, totaled 1,460, a 2 4 3-pi us average, on games of 237, 247, 235. 238, 260 and 243. Two bowlers seeking their first PBA tournament victories, Matt Surima and Sam Flanagan, were second and third after the first of Saturday's two six-game blocks. Lincoln's Max Jensen ranked 13th after the first 6 games. Bill Straub, another Lincolnite who has reached the finals of all three PBA summer tour stops, was not among the early leaders.

1. Don Johnson, Akron, Ohio, 1,40. 2, Matt Surina, Kelso, 1,433. 3. Sam Fianaaan.

Parkersburq, W. 1.420 4, Wayne Zahn, Tempe, 1,410, 5, John Boleiack, Houston, 1,397. 4. Jim Godman, Lorain. Ohio.

1.394. 7, Allie Clarke. Akron, Ohio. 1.38 8, Larry Zotzmann, Kansas City, 1,371. 9.

Nelson Burton St. Louis, 1.370. 10. Rich Bennett, Oweao, N.Y., 11. Frank Jackson, Watsonville, 1.3M.

12, Dennis Swayda, Phoenix 1.341. 13. Wax Jensen, Lincoln, 1,340. 14. Tom Minneoan.

Syracuse, N.Y.. 1,358. 15. Les Zikes. Palatine, III.

1,345. 14, Les Barrett, San Francisco, 1,343. 17. Bob Cardnza. Atwster, 1 341 18.

Don McCune, AAunster, 1,332. Marty Anderson, Anaheim. 20. Skee Foremskv, Houston. 1J29.

21. ton Marshall. Pomona. Calif 1,328 22. tie between Rod Hull, Vancouver.

1320 Anthony, Tacoma, 24. Joe Digram, Seattle, 1,321. GATEWAY OPEN TODAY 1 to Texas Duo Tie In NCAA Cape Coral, Fla. LT) Ben Crenshaw slammed in a 25-foot par putt on the final hole Saturday to tie Texas teammate Tom Kite for the NCAA Golf Championship as the Longhorns romped to their second straight team title. "What have you -done to me?" Kite asked his neighborhood pal from Austin after the pressure putt.

"You've got to be the world's greatest putter in the clutch." Kite shot -a brilliant four-under par 68 at Cape Cora Country Club to catch defending individual champion Crenshaw, who wobbled to an even-par 72 and an identical nine-under-par 279 total. "Sure, we'd like to have a playoff," said Kite, a 22-year-old senior. "Tying is like kissing your sister." Crenshaw, a sophomore, quickly added, "No, it's like kissing your brother." It was the first championship tie in the NCAA event's 75-year history. Texas posted a four-man score of 1,146 for 72 holes and whipped 124ime NCAA king Houston by 13 strokes. Florida took third place at 1,167, Oklahoma State was fourth at 1.174 and Arizona State fifth with 1,176.

Anoka, Minn, tf) Crowd favorites Dan Gable and Chris Taylor continued to pile up impressive victories Saturday in the U.S. Olympic freestyle wrestling trials, while other competitors were rapidly being eliminated. Gable, former Iowa State wrestler who won Pan American and World Games gold medals in 1971, remained undefeated through six rounds of the 149-pound weight division. Freestyle finals were scheduled for Saturday night. Gable pinned Pat Marcy of Golden Valley, in 2:48 Saturday afternoon at Anoka High School.

Gable had defeated the man who was expected to be his stiffest competitor, Larry Owings of the University Washington, Friday night. Taylor, the 400-pound heavyweight from Iowa State, breezed through the afternoon's fifth round in his weight division. Judges disqualified is opponent, Mike McCready of Dubuque, Iowa, for not being aggressive enough despite three warnings. Nebraska wrestler Bobby Orta finished fourth and forfeited to John Morley of New York City in his final match of the 1 1 4 class. Orta will go to the final Olympic tryouts a neapolis.

Julv Min- 25-26. Although he wrestled at 114, Orta, a former AAU national Greco-Roman champion, hopes to compete at 105 at Minneapolis. Legion Wins To NBC, Judds A five-run ninth-inning rally boosted NBC to a junior legion baseball triumph over Aamco at Sherman Field Saturday night. Four walks and a bases-loaded double by Gene Smith sparked the rally. In the midget contest, the three-hit pitching of John Ingram sparked Judds Bros, to a 9-2 verdict over Gateway Bank.

Steve Morton paced Judds, now 5-2, with three hits in four appearances. NBC 030 000 105 3 Aamco 002 100 0304 11 4 Steve Beyer and Jim Neal; Terry Dooo, Pat Mehuron (9) and Marty Shields (9); and Tim Liddlck and Jeff Obrecht (9). Gateway Bank 100 000 12 3 3 Judds Bros 312 030 7 1 Mike Breeden (3) and Dave Roseland; John Ingram and Doug Votova. Feature Races At Hollywood Tvoecast 13.40 40 Vlolonor .60 3 00 Cougar It 2.20 At Arlington Continental Far 43.00 13.60 i In Tribal Line 35.00 1600 Wingout 3.6o Geneva, N.Y. Bernice Gera broke professional baseball's umpiring sex barrier Saturday night, then abruptly quit after officiating at her first game.

The 40-year-old Jackson Heights housewife's debut in the New York-Penn League was a somewhat stormy one as she made three disputed calls as base umpire, one of which led to her ejecting Auburn Phillies Manager Nolan Campbell. The rhubarb came in the top cf the fourth inning of the first game of a doubleheader, when Mrs. Gera at first called an Auburn player safe at second base, then quickly reversed herself. Campbell stormed out of his team's bull pen and followed Mrs. Gera across the field, Hatten Pacing Hastings Meet Hastings (UPI) Hastings amateur iiaro Hat en led a field of more than 150 golfers 5 iw auui ucuuuin.

Hatten led the 36-hole cut with a two under par 70 for a 142 stroke total. The meet ends Sunday. sprinkling his shouts with curses. After Mrs. Gera gave him the thumb and explained to him she had made a mistake in originally calling the player safe, he shouted: "Why throw me out because you made a mistake?" Immediately after the seven-inning game, Mrs.

Gera walked into the Phillies' club house and told team general manager Joseph McDonough: "I've just resigned from baseball. I'm sorry, Joe." With that, Mrs. Gera, still clad in her blue umpire's uniform, strode to a car and was driven off by friends. She offered no comment beyond what she had told McDonough. Pierce Named To NAIA Post Kansas City W) Dr.

Paul Pierce of Sul Ross State University, Alpine, was named chairman of the Conduct flf A hint no fVmmittAA day by the National Association of intercollegiate Athletics. The committee is responsible mem-Dcr institution nas a team, coach or spectators involved in incidents of a violent nature at athletic contests in which the institutions' teams are competing. By ROGER EBERT (c) Chicago Sun-Times Nobody knows very much about him, and the few facts have been repeated time and again: He was born in Chicago, raised in several places but mostly in Brooklyn, learned chess from his sister when he was 6. He lives alone in hotel rooms, relentlessly stndying the literature of chess. He has no close friends.

He is 29 years old and for a long time now he has been considered the best chess player of all time. One week from today (Sunday), in Reykjavik, Iceland, Bobby Fischer will find himself seated across a chess board a stocky, fierce-looking Armenian named Boris Spassky. This Armenian (he is almost always described as a "Wily Armenian" in the newspapers, because sports-page adjectives are in short supply for chess) is the chess champion of the world, and it will be Bobby Fischer's mission to reduce the number of Armenian chess champions to zero while raising the number in the United States to one. Could've Had Crack Bobby could have had a crack at the title several times during the past decade, biit at the, last moment he always drew back. He charged that there was a Russian conspiracy to keep the world championship in Soviet hands.

Conspiracy or not, no non-Russian has played in a championship match since 1951. There were other things Fischer complained about: the lighting was wrong, the flashbulbs were a nuisance, the crowds in the hall would not keep still. But mostly he held back from the series of tournaments leading to the world championship because he said the system was loaded in favor of the Russians. At first his objections were dismissed as petulant and unreasonable, because in the world of chess Bobby Fischer is not well-liked. An American grandmaster once said of him: "We get the greatest chess player in history, and he turns out to be a spoiled boy." But a fair analysis of the tournament system seemed to indicate that Fischer had a point, and the current world championship is the first played nnder the reformed rules.

There are other possibilities. One is that Fischer will find the conditions in Iceland rot to his liking, and stage another walkout. This could happen because of Bobby's recent falling-out with Lt. Col. Edmund Edmundson A who is business manager of the U.S.

Chess Federation and has devoted much of the last two years to keeping Bobby happy. Edmundson Big Help During Fischer's spectacular demolishment of his opposition in the preliminary matches (including his 6-0 wipeouts of Denmark's Bent Larson and Russia's Mark Taimonov), it was Col. Edmundson who checked out the playing sites, found the quiet hotel rooms, made sure the fans would not be permitted to bring flash cameras into the hall, and hassled room service for the chicken sandwiches and prize sirloins. Now Fischer, who finds it difficult to sustain long personal relationships, is back on his own again. A better possibility, I think, Is that Fischer will stay the distance, and that Spassky will collapse from a combination of psychological and chess reasons.

Fischer is a dogged fighter who will defend a lost position to the bitter end, and there is this curious thing about his opponents: they keep Liiicolnites Still Alive Omaha Lincoln's Colonel Sanders Softball team is one Of eight remaining squads in the 36-team softball tournament after winning two of three Saturday contests. The Lincolnites defeated Kansas City Stosh's, 8-2, and the Iowa Riggers, 10-8, but lost to the Omaha Timeclock Lounge, 5-4. ATTENTION RACING FANS Now is the time for oil racing fans to improve on your handicapping. If you have any interest in racing at all, write to '-'Turf Digest" 1606 23rd Street, Des Moines, Iowa 503 10 for aid to handicapping races UPI TELEPHOTO live limes ana never losu Junior Tourney To Start A new champion is assured in the Lincoln City Junior Boys Golf Tournament, which opens Monday at the Lirfcoln Country Club. Rennie Sasse, last year's champion, is now too old to compete in the 72-hoIe tournament, open to Lincoln boys ages 15 and under.

Doug Smith, the 1971 nin-nerup, also won't be back to compete because of age ineligibility. That makes last year's third and fourth place finishers, John Hergert and Steve Stat-ton, the favorites for this year's four-day event, which moves to Hillcrest Country Club on Tuesday, Holmes Park on Wednesday and concludes at Pioneers Golf Course on Thursday. First round tee times: a.m. Steve Station, John Hergert, Jerry Flcke; 9:07 Scott Lawson, Pat Lester, Stevs Gohde; 9:15 Mike Hughett, Gary Billesbach, John Emersonf 9.22 Dean Walker, Bob Anderson, Scott Walters; 9:30 Lane Haberlan, Mike Schmidt, Mike Chaoman; 9:37 Kerry Seuera, Gary Klum, Tom 9:45 Kim Brown, Knox Jones, Bryan Schmidt; 9:52 Tim McCullock, Scott Kasl, Wad. Strange.

It a.m. Doufl Rotthaus, Tom Max-' Jeff Gorrinj 10:07 Ron Racier, Rich Spongier, Ron Anderson; John Phillips. Tom Reynolds, Greq-Gillespie; 10 22 Drew Strange, Dale Martiman, Pat Fuller; 10:30 Paul Meyer, Phil Griffin, Steve Solomon; 10:37 Tom Kimball, Bud Kuca, Mark Maness; 10:45 Mike Kessner, Sieve Elley, Greg Wiese. Reg. $11 to JL Famous man Reg.

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