But here's the rub: Poker is not even Walter Browne's best game. It All Began With Chess. In the world of poker, Browne is accomplished. But in the world of chess, Browne is a legend.
- GM Walter Browne, 1949-2015 - Chess.com
- Walter Browne Poker Player
- Walter Browne Poker Game
- Samantha Browne Walters
- Reference
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Walter Browne (1949-2015)
by Bill Wall
- Searching photos for: Walter Shawne Browne. No photos found. MOST TRUSTED BRAND IN POKER. For more than forty years, the World Series of Poker has been the most trusted name in the game. WSOP.com continues this legacy, yet strikes the proper balance between professional-grade and accessible. It's all the action and prestige of the World.
- Walter Browne in New York in 1979, with three US chess titles already to his credit. 98 of 100 in backgammon and 99.9 of 100 in poker,' he told Sports Illustrated in 1976. 'At hi-lo, table.
- Browne is a true poker professional. Born in 1949 in Australia and raised in New York, Browne never finished high school, didn't go to college, and didn't even have a 'real job' until he began.
- This is the Bible of Poker, the book that every serious poker player has read and studied. Walter Browne, chess grandmaster and professional poker player, read and studied this book.
GM Walter Browne, center, plays GM Paul Keres
as Bill Wall, left, looks on
I was shocked when I heard that Walter Browne had died in his sleep in Las Vegas at age 66. My wife was in Las Vegas and was supposed to meet with him during one of the poker tournaments. I first met Walter Browne in 1969 at the American Open in Santa Monica. We were good friends and played tennis together. Many of the major tournaments that I played in the early days also included Walter Browne, such as the 1973 World Open in New York, 1975 Vancouver Open in Vancouver, British Columbia, a simul in Henderson, NC, 1977 US Open in Columbus Ohio, National Open in Las Vegas in the 1980s, and a few others. When I was the president of the Palo Alto Chess Club, he would occasionally stop by and visit. Here is a list of some of his accomplishments.
Walter Shawn Browne was born on January 10, 1949 in Sydney, Australia to an American father (Walter Francis Browne) and an Australian mother (Hilda).
In 1953, his family moved from Australia to London to Forest Hills, New York.
In 1957, at the age of 8, Walter Browne was taught chess by his father. (source: San Mateo Times, Oct 10, 1974, p. 5)
In 1959, Walter took up correspondence chess.
In 1961, Browne went to a summer camp where there was a chess course. It was here that he discovered that there were books on chess, and he became an avid chess reader.
In 1962, Walter joined the Manhattan Chess Club at the age of 13. He said he played or studied chess literally every day for a full year, which helped him become America's youngest master at the time.
In 1962, Walter Browne's postal rating was 792. By 1963, it was 1118.
In 1963, Walter Browne took 1st place in a Chess Review Prize tournament (63-P 11) with the score of 5.5-0.5. He also began to play in rated tournaments.
In early 1964, Browne's postal rating was 1338. He took 1st place in a Chess Review Prize tournament (63-P 39), winning 6-0. In late 1964, Browne's postal rating was 1506.
In 1964, at the age of 15, Browne was playing in the Manhattan Chess Club preliminary championships.
In April 1964, Walter Browne took 2nd in the Interboro Holiday Open in Flushing, Queens, which was won by Kenneth Fitzgerald.
In May 1964, Browne was an opponent in 6-game simul against Miguel Najdorf, played at the Manhattan Chess Club. Najdorf was to play members of the Manhattan Chess Club with the sharpest talent, and 15 year old Browne was one of the opponents selected to play Najdorf. Najdorf won 5 games, including his games with Browne, and lost one game, to Karl Burger.
In June 1964, Walter Browne won the New York State Junior Championship with a perfect 5-0. It was played at the Jamaica Chess Club in Queens, New York. Browne's game with Najdorf was included in a New York Times article written by I.A. Horowitz.
In July 1964, Browne took 2nd place in the New York City junior championship, win by Andrew Soltis.
In October 1964, Browne took 4th place at the Columbus Day Open at the IBM Country Club in Poughkeepsie, New York. The New York Times wrote that Browne was the sensation of the event who played each of the top three players, losing to the eventual winter Bill Goichberg, defeating Paul Brandts and drawing with Mitchell Saltzberg. Brandts and Saltzberg tied for 2nd-3rd. (source: The New York Times, Nov 1, 1964)
In 1964, at the age of 15, Walter became a master, rated over 2200.
In December 1964, Walter Browne participated in the preliminary championships of the Marshall Chess Club and tied for 1st place to qualify for the finals.
In 1965, Browne took 11th-13th, in the Marshall Chess Club 'Anniversary' Championship, won by Herbert.
In April 1965, 16-year-old Browne took 3rd place in the Liberty Bell Open in Philadelphia, won by Jack Pinneo.
In April 1965, Browne took 2nd place in the New Jersey Open, won by Ariel Mengarini.
In December 1965, Walter Browne of Erasmus High School, won the Senior High School Individual Championship of the Interscholastic League of New York, scoring 5.5-0.5. (source: The New York Times, Dec 19, 1965, p. 321)
In January 1966, Browne won the preliminary qualifying tournament for the Manhattan Chess Club finals. (source: The New York Times, Jan 31, 1966).
In 1966, Walter Browne won the Interscholastic Chess League for 10th-12 grades in New York, scoring 5.5-0.5 (source: Oakland Tribune, April 10, 1966, written by Samuel Reshevsky)
In April 1966, Browne tied for 1st place in the Marshall Chess Club Championship, but lost the play-off to Paul Robey. At age 17, Browne was the youngest player in the event. Robey was the oldest player in the event at age 55. Browne and Robey were supposwd to play a two-game playoff match. Browne lost the first game and failed to appear for the second game, losing on forfeit. (source: The New York Times, April 11, 1966 and The New York Times, May 2, 1966)
Walter Browne attended Erasmus High School in Brooklyn, where Bobby Fischer and Barbara Streisand had gone. He dropped out at the age of 16. Browne said, 'If you have a strong mind, you don't need school. School is for the masses, not for geniuses. I don't have time for chess, poker, and school.' To him, teachers were stupid.
In June 1966, Browne (rated 2292) won the first annual US Junior Invitational Tournament, scoring 5 wins and 2 losses. It was played at the Henry Hudson Hotel in New York City. One of his losses was an outright forfeiture in the second round for nonappearance. He won a trip to the US Open in Seattle.
In August 1966, Browne tied for the junior prize at the US Open in Seattle, but lost on tiebreak to Leroy Jackson of St. Louis.
In 1967, Browne took 2nd in the New York State Junior Open, won by Paul Magriel.
In May 1967, Browne took 2nd place in the North Jersey Open, won by Jack Beers.
In July 1967, Browne took 2nd in the 2nd annual US Invitational Junior Chess Championship, won by Salvatore Matera. Browne won an all-expenses-paid trip to compete in the US Open at Atlanta. Matera won the right to play in the World Junior Championship in Jerusalem. The event was held at the Henry Hudson Hotel in New York City.
In 1967, Browne moved from New York to Santa Monica, California and won the Ernest Shields Open in Bakersfield.
In 1967, Browne won the South California championship.
In 1967, Browne won the Southwest Open in Texas.
In December 1967, Browne won the California State Championship.
By the end of 1967, at age 18, Browne was the highest rated Junior (under 21) in the USA, with a rating of 2419. He was the 17th highest rated player in the USA. Bobby Fischer was 1st with a 2762 rating.
In 1968, Browne traveled to Europe to try to get some invitations to international chess tournaments. However, it was a Catch 22. He needed a title to play, but with no title, no play.
In August 1968, Browne took 4th at a tournament in Santa Monica. The event was won by Anthony Saidy. (source: Corpus Christi Times, Sep 1, 1968, p. 22)
In September 1968, Browne tied for 2nd with Pal Benko at the US Open in Aspen. Bent Larsen won the event.
In October 1968, Browne won the Long Beach Classic.
In November 1968, Browne tied for 2nd with Larry Remlinger at the American Open in Santa Monica. The event was won by James Lazos.
In December 1968, Browne drew a 6-game match with James Tarjan in Santa Monica. The two players were the USA's highest-rated juniors.
In December 1968, Browne won the California Closed Championship.
In 1969, Browne applied for Australian citizenship and headed for Sydney, Australia. If he won the Australian Championship, he would be able to play in the Asian Zonal. If he won the Asian Zonal, he would become an International Master and qualify for the Interzonal.
In March 1969, Walter won the Australian Chess Championship, scoring 13-2.
In August 1969, Walter tied for 1st place with Renato Naranja at the Zone 10 Asian zonal in Singapore and was awarded the International Master title.
In September 1969, 20-year-old Walter Browne was awarded the GM title after success at the San Juan Internationals in San Juan, Puerto Rico. He tied for 2nd with Arthur Bisguier and Bruno Parma, behind the winner, Boris Spassky. Browne was a last-minute entry. At age 20, he was the youngest GM in the world at the time and the 3rd youngest ever up to that time. Only Fischer and Spassky were younger GMs. Browne became Australia's first Grandmaster.
In 1969, Walter Browne went from master to International Master to Grandmaster in two months.
In November 1969, Browne played in the 5th American Open in Santa Monica and tied for 2nd with Kim Commons and Ron Gross. The event was won by Ray Martin. Browne was top seed.
In December 1969, Browne took 4th place in the Continental Open in Chicago. The event was won by Lubomir Kavalek.
In 1970, Browne won the National Chess Congress in Washington, DC.
In May 1970, Browne took 3rd place in a 16-man international round robin in Malaga, Spain. Pal Benko and B. Kurajica tied for 1st place.
In May 1970, Walter Browne played Bobby Fischer in Zagreb and drew after 98 moves. Both sides missed wins during the game. Fischer won the event.
In July 1970, Walter Browne moved back to New York.
In August 1970, Browne took 2nd place in the Canadian Open at St.John's, Newfoundland, winning $700. The winner was Bent Larsen.
In August 1970, Browne tied for 4th place at the US Open in Boston. The winner of the event was Bent Larsen.
In September 1970, Browne took 2nd in the Atlantic Open, held at the McAlpin Hotel in Manhattan. Robert Byrne won the event.
In 1970 and 1972, Walter Browne played first board for Australia in the Chess Olympiads.
In January 1971, Browne took 1st place in the Greater New York Adult Chess Championship, scoring 5-0.
In February 1971, Walter Browne and Jude Acers played a 4-game match. It ended in a tie, with each player scoring 1 wins and 2 draws.
In March 1971, Browne tied for 1st at the National Open in Sparks, Nevada, won by Larry Evans on tiebreak points.
In 1971, Browne tied for 2nd at Lone Pine, won by Larry Evans.
In August 1971, Walter Browne and Robert Byrne tied for 1st in the Eastern Speed chess championship (15 minutes per game) in New York.
In August 1971, Browne tied for 1st with Larry Evans at the 72nd annual US Open in Ventura, California. They each won $1,200. There were 402 players in the event.
In September 1971, Browne tied for 2nd place at an international tournament at Amsterdam, sponsored by IBM. The event was won by Vassily Smyslov.
In November 1971, he tied for 1st with 4 other players at the 7th American Open in Santa Monica. There were 306 players in the event.
In 1971, Browne won an international tournament in Venice, Italy, ahead of 6 other grandmasters.
In a Canadian tournament in 1971, one of Walter Browne's opponents tried to fluster him in a time-pressure scramble by banging an extra Queen down on the side of the board. The opponent's pawn was about to make it to the 8th rank and get promoted to a Queen. Browne picked up the extra Queen and hurled it across the tournament room.
In 1972, Walter Browne's USCF rating was 2592.
In 1972, Walter Browne took 4th in the international tournament at Wijk aan Zee, won by Lajos Portisch.
In March 1972, Browne won the 5th annual National Open in Sparks, Nevada on tiebreak points over Louis Levy.
In July 1972, Walter Browne won the National Chess Congress Premier championship, held in Chicago. He won $1,000.
In August 1972, 23-year-old Walter Browne won the 73rd US Open in Atlantic City, scoring 10.5 out of 12 (9 wins and 3 draws). There were 350 players in the event.
In September 1972, Walter Browne won the New England chess championship.
In September 1972, Walter Browne played on the Australian team in the Chess Olympiad in Skopje, Yugoslavia.
In December 1972, Browne gave up his Australian citizenship and played for the USA.
Browne's wife is Dr. Raquel Browne, a clinical psychologist. They were married on March 9, 1973 (Fischer's birthday).
In March 1973, Browne took 1st place on tiebreaks over with Laszlo Szabo and James Tarjan at the National Open in Las Vegas. Browne took home $700 for his efforts.
In March 1973, Browne tied for 2nd place with Laszlo Szabo in the Louis D. Statham masters and experts tournament in Lone Pine, California. The event was won by Arthur Bisguier and took place from March18 to March 24, 1973. Browne won $1,000.
In July 1973, Browne won the first World Open, held at the McAlpin Hotel in New York City, scoring 9-1. There were 369 players in the event. First place was $2,000.
In July 1973, Browne won the Days of '47 Chess Tournament in Salt Lake City, Utah. The tournament was part of the annual celebration commemorating the arrival of the first Mormon settlers in the Salt Lake Valley on July 24, 1847.
In August 1973, Browne took 2nd place in the US Open in Chicago. He only needed a draw in the final round to take first place, but lost to Duncan Duttles of Canada after losing a rook in time scramble. There were 778 players in the event. The event was won by Norman Weinstein, age 22, who was an MIT graduate student with a master's in mathematics from Brandeis University.
In the summer of 1973, Browne played in 8 Swiss tournaments and won every one of them, earning over $8,000 in two and a half months.
In November 1973, Browne tied for 1st place in the 7th annual Atlantic Open Chess Tournament, held at the McAlpin Hotel in New York.
In March 1974, Browne won at the international tournament at Wijk aan Zee. He was now the 4th strongest player in the USA with an Elo rating of 2612, behind Fischer, Kavalek, and Robert Byrne.
In 1974, Browne won the Carroll M. Capps Memorial in San Francisco.
In April 1974, Walter Browne won at Lone Pine.
In May 1974, Browne tied for 2nd place in the Paul Masson American Class Chess Championships in Saratoga, California. Peter Biyiasis won the event.
In May 1974, Browne tied for 11th place at the Las Palmas international tournament in the Grand Canaries islands.
In June 1974, Walter played for the USA in the Chess Olympiad at Nice, France.
In July 1974, Browne took 2nd in the 2nd World Open, held in New York. Bent Larsen won the event. There were 373 players.
Browne won his first US chess championship in August, 1974, held in Chicago. He had 6 wins and 7 draws. First place was $2,250. Browne won the US championship 6 times (1974, 1975, 1977, 1980, 1981, and 1983). Browne was quoted as saying, 'In chess, Fischer is God, but I am the devil.' (source: Long Beach Independent Press-Telegram, August 4, 1974, p. 2)
In 1974, Browne's USCF rating was 2562, behind Robert Byrne (2618) and Lubosh Kavalek (2570). Bobby Fischer was not active.
In 1974, Browne was making over $30,000 from chess tournaments and simultaneous exhibitions.
In 1974, Browne moved to Berkeley, California, living in a penthouse apartment. He had two huge photographs on the walls of his apartment, one of Sigmund Freud and one of himself. He played tennis in the mornings and spent his afternoons and evenings studying chess books. (source: San Mateo Times, Oct 10, 1974, p. 5)
In November 1974, Browne won the Pan-American tournament in Winnipeg, Canada.
In 1975, Browne was the reigning US champion, Pan-American champion, and German Open champion.
In April 1975, Browne tied for 3rd place at the 5th Louis B. Statham Tournament in Lone Pine. The event was won by Vladimir Liberzon.
In May 1975, Browne played in the World Class Championship in Vancouver, BC. His final round game was with Paul Keres in round 10, which Browne lost. It was Keres's last chess game. He died in route back to Estonia.
In June 1975, Browne won the US chess championship for the second time, held in Oberlin, Ohio. By winning the tournament, he qualified for the Interzonal Tournament. First place was $2,300.
In 1975, Browne won the Paul Masson tournament in California.
In 1975, Browne's USCF rating was 2594, the highest in the United States after Fischer's retirement.
From October to December 1975, Browne drove over 16,000 miles through 40 states and gave 50 simultaneous exhibitions. He played 1,417 games, winning 1,328, drawing 49, and losing 40 games. I played him in one of his chess simuls at a church in Henderson, NC (losing in 40 moves), but beat him the next day 6-0, 6-1 in tennis. He made over $10,000 after expenses in two months.
In 1976, Browne was quoted as saying, 'I can beat 4 out of 5 people in Ping-Pong and 9 out of 10 in tennis. I can beat 97 out of 100 experts in Scrabble, 98 of 100 in backgammon, and 99.9 of 100 in poker.'
In March 1976, Browne tied for 2nd place at the 6th Louis D. Statham masters-plus tournament in Lone Pine, California. Tigran Petrosian won the event.
In 1976, Browne won the Paul Masson tournament in California.
In August 1976, Browne tied with 7 others in the US Open, held in Fairfax, Virginia.
In 1976, Walter Browne, current US chess champion, decided not to play in the 22nd Chess Olympiad in Haifa, Israel, because he was not allowed to play first board. Robert Byrne was selected to play 1st board since he was rated higher than Browne.
In November 1976, he tied for 1st at the 12th American Open in Santa Monica.
In 1976, Walter Browne had his highest Elo rating of 2585. He was ranked 27th in the world.
In June 1977, Browne tied for 7th place in the Louis D. Statham International Tournament in Lone Pine. Nona Gaprindashvili and Yuri Balashov tied for 1st place.
In August 1977, Browne tied for 4th place at the U.S. Open in Columbus, Ohio. Shamkovich, Soltis, and Tim Taylor tied for 1st place. There were 442 players in the event.
In October 1977, Browne won his third straight US chess championship at Mentor, Ohio. He scored 9 out of 13 points. Brown won in 1974 and 1975. There was no US chess championship in 1976.
In May 1978, Browne won an international tournament in Reykjavik, Iceland, scoring 9-4.
In June 1978, current US champion Browne dropped out of the US chess championship, held in Pasadena in protest over the lighting in the tournament hall at Ambassador College.
In 1978, Browne played board 2 for the USA at the chess Olympiad in Buenos Aires. The USA team took the bronze medal.
In May 1979, Walter Browne and world champion Anatoly Karpov signed a contract to play a chess match in the late summer. Karpov was guaranteed $50,000 and Browne was to have the white pieces in every game. (source: The New York Times, May 21, 1979, p. 48) The match was never played.
In August 1979, Browne tied for 3rd at Konex Canon International Tournament in Buenos Aires. Viktor Korchnoi and Ljobomir Ljubojevic tied for 1st.
In October 1979, Browne took 2nd place in the British Broadcasting Corporation tournament in England. Lothar Schmid won the event.
In January 1980, Browne tied for 1st with Yasser Seirawan at the 42nd Hoogoven Tournament in Wijk aan Zee.
In March 1980, Browne took 2nd place at the 9th Reykjavik International in Iceland. The event was won by Viktor Korchnoi.
In 1980, Browne tied for 1st at the Paul Masson tournament in California.
In June 1980, Browne, age 31, tied for 1st place, along with Larry Evans and Larry Christiansen, in the US championship, held at Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania. Each received $3,000. There were 9 grandmasters among the 13 players, the strongest ever US championship up to that time.
In November 1980, Browne tied for 1st at the American Open in Santa Monica.
In May 1981, Browne took 2nd place in the Colmeia international chess tournament in Brasilia, Brazil. Ljubomir Ljubojevic won the event.
In June 1981, Browne tied for 1st place, along with Larry Christiansen, Jack Peters, and Nick DeFirmian in the Memorial Day Open in Burbank, California.
In July 1981, Browne tied for 1st place, with Yasser Seirawan, in the US championship at South Bend, Indiana. Each was awarded $4,500 and qualified for the Interzonal tournament.
In September 1981, Browne won the Codelco-Cuprum International Tournament in Santiago, Chile.
In November 1981, Browne tied for 3rd place in the 17th annual American Open in Los Angeles. Nick DeFirmian and John Watson tied for 1st.
In April 1982, Walter Browne and Ron Henley tied for 1st at the First Lady International in Surakarta and Denspasar, Indonesia.
In 1982, Browne won the US Open in Atlantic City.
In January 1983, Browne took 3rd at the 45th Hoogoven International Tournament in Wijk aan Zee, the Netherlands. Ulf Andersson won the event.
In May 1983, Browne tied for 1st at the New York Open, along with Tony Miles, Sergey Kudrin, Kamran Shirazi, and Lev Alburt.
In August 1983, Walter Browne, age 34, tied for 1st in the US Championship, along with Larry Christiansen and Roman Dzindzichashvili, held at Thiel College in Greenville, Pennsylvania. Each won $3,500. Browne won his 6th US championship.
In September 1983, Browne tied for 1st in an international tournament in Gjovik, Norway. He tied with John Nunn and Andras Adorjan.
In April 1984, Browne took 1st place on tiebreaks an the National Open, held in Las Vegas. There were 501 players in the event.
In August 1984, Browne tied for 3rd place in the US Open, held in Fort Worth, Texas. Roman Dzindzichashvili and Sergey Kudrin tied for 1st place.
In 1984, Walter Browne was the only American on the list of 20 highest-rated players in the world. His rating was 2585.
In November 1984, Walter Browne tied for 2nd, place, along with Dmitry Gurevich, in the first US Masters Open Tournament, held in Estes Park, Colorado. The event was won by Larry Christiansen.
In October 1985, Browne tied for 1st place, along with Bent Larsen and Rafael Vaganian, in the Nimzovich Memorial Tournament in Naestved, Denmark. Browne only needed a draw to take solo first place in the final round, but overpressed and lost to Lubomir Ftacnik.
In 1985, Browne played in the Taxco Interzonal in Mexico, but scored only 6.5 out of 15 for a tied 9th-13th place.
In April 1986, Browne tied for 1st in the National Open in Las Vegas. He tied with Joe Bradford, Dmitry Gurevich, and Sergey Kudrin. There were 238 players in the event.
In November 1986, Browne tied for 1st place, along with Lev Alburt and Boris Gulko, at the 22nd American Open in Santa Monica. There were 387 players in the event.
In April 1987, Browne tied for 1st place in the National Open in Las Vegas. He tied with Joel Benjamin, Maxim Dlugy, Sergey Kudrin, and Cyrus Lakdawala. There were 274 players in the event.
In December 1987, Browne tied for 3rd place, along with Larry Christiansen, in the Pan-Pacific International Tournament, held in San Francisco. Utut Adianto and Michael Rohde tied for 1st place. I operated Walter Browne's demonstration board for the spectators during the Pan-Pacific events.
In May 1988, Browne formed the World Blitz Chess Association and published Blitz Chess magazine. This ended in 2003.
In 1990, Browne took 1st at the American Open in Los Angeles.
In 1991, Browne tied for 1st in the Carroll M. Capps Memorial tournament in San Francisco.
In 1991, Browne won the National Open in Chicago.
In 1991, he won the Canadian Open.
In 1991, Browne won the North American Open in Las Vegas.
In 1992, Browne tied for 1st in the Carroll M. Capps Memorial tournament in San Francisco.
In July 1993, Browne tied for 2nd place at the World Open in Philadelphia. Alex Yermolinsky won the event.
In 1994, Browne won the National Open in Las Vegas.
In December 1994, Browne tied for 2nd place, along with Gennady Sagalchik, at the Copa Gobernador Tournament in Nueva Leon, Mexico. The winner of the event was Miguel Illescas Cordoba.
In 1995, Browne tied for 1st in the National Open in Las Vegas.
In March 1996, Browne tied for 2nd place in the US Masters Championship in at Brook, Illinois. The winner of the event was Dmitry Gurevich.
In April 1996, Browne tied for 5th place in the Mid-America Tournament in Chicago. Four GMs tied for 1st place.
In March 2002, Walter Browne, age 53, and Alex Yermolinsky, tied for 1st place at the National Open in Las Vegas. There were 197 players in the event.
In 2003, Browne was inducted in the US Chess Hall of Fame.
In 2005, Browne won the US Senior Open.
In 2005, Browne was the first inductee into the Cal (California) Chess Hall of Fame.
In 2012, he published his memoir, The Stress of Chess…and its Infinite Finesse, which includes 101 of his best games of chess.
In September 2014, Browne won the U.S. senior championship.
In 2015, Walter Browne played in the 50th Anniversary National Open in Las Vegas and tied for 9th-15th. He then played a 25 board simultaneous exhibition at the Las Vegas International Open Chess Festival.
On June 24, 2015, Walter Browne died in his sleep at the age of 66. He was staying at the house of his friend, Ron Gross, when he died.
Walter Browne won the National Open 11 times, the American Open 7 times, the US Championship 6 times, the World Open 3 times, the US Open 2 times, and the US Senior Open 1 time.
Walter Browne won more Swiss system events than any other chess player.
Walter Browne was distantly related to Bertrand Russell on his mother's side.
Browne's motto was 'When you win you earn, when you lose you learn.'
GM Walter Browne, 1949-2015 - Chess.com
Walter Browne was also a professional poker player and had won over $300,000 in poker.
Walter Browne was known to have a Bobby Fischer complex because he often complained about tournament conditions and was known to quite tournaments halfway through.
Walter Browne - Polstein, Atlantic City 1972
1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 dxe4 4.Nxe4 Bf5 5.Ng3 Bg6 6.N1e2 e5 7.dxe5 Qa5+ 8.Bd2 Qxe5 9.Bc3 Qc7 10.Qd2 f6 11.O-O-O Ne7 12.Nf4 Bf7 13.Qe3 Nd7 (13...Qb6) 14.Nf5 Ne5? 15.Bxe5 (15...fxe5 or 15...Qxd5 16.Nd6+; 15...Nxf5 16.Bxc7+ Nxe3 17.fxe3 Bxa2 18.b3) 1-0
Vinay Bhat – Walter Browne, San Francisco 2000
1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bb5+ Bd7 4.Bxd7+ Nxd7 5.O-O Ngf6 6.Qe2 e6 7.b3 Be7 8.Bb2 O-O 9.c4 a6 10.d4 cxd4 11.Nxd4 Re8 12.Nc3 Qa5 13.Rad1 Rac8 14.Kh1 Bf8 15.f4 Qh5 16.Qe3 Qxh2+ 0-1
Browne-Wall, Henderson, NC 19751.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 Nc6 6.Bg5 e6 {The Richter-Rauzer. 6...e5; 6...Bd7; 6...Qa5; 6...Qb6} 7.Qd2 {7.Be2; 7.Nxc6; 7. Nb3; 7.Bb5} 7...a6 {7...Be7; 7...h6} 8.O-O-O {8.Rd1; 8.Be2; 8.f4} 8...h6 {8...Bd7; 8...Be7} 9.Be3 {9.Bf4; 9.Nxc6; 9.Bf4} 9...Bd7 {9...Nxd4 10.Bxd4 b5; 9...Ng4; 9...Qc7} 10.f4 {10.f3; 10.Be2} 10...b5 {10...Be7; 10...Nxd4; 10...Rc8; 10...Qc7} 11.Bd3 {11.e5; 11.a3} 11...Rc8 {11...Be7; 11...b4; 11...Nxd4; 11...Qa5; 11...Qc7; 11...Qb8} 12.Kb1 {12.Nb3; 12.h3} 12...Be7 {12...Na5 13.e5 b4; 12...Ng4} 13.Nf3 {A new move. 13.h3 O-O (13...Nxd4) 14.g4 Torre-Panno, Amsterdam 1977; 13.f5} 13...Nb8 {13...O-O; 13...Na5; 13...}
Walter Browne Poker Player
14.e5 Ng4 15.exd6 Bxd6 16.Ne4 {16.Rfe1} 16...Be7 17.Ne5 {17.Nd4} 17...Nxe5 {17...Nxe3 18.Qxe3 Qc7} 18.fxe5 Nc6 {18...Qc7} 19.Nd6+ Bxd6 20.exd6 Qa5 {20...Ne5; 20...Na5} 21.c3 {21.Qxa5} 21...b4 {21...Ne5} 22.cxb4 Qxb4 {22...Qa4} 23.Bxa6 Ra8 {23...Qxd2} 24.Qxb4 Nxb4 25.Bb7 {25.Bc4} 25...Rxa2 {25...Ra5} 26.Rd4 Ra4 {26...Ra1+} 27.b3 e5 {27...Ra1+} 28.bxa4 {28.Re4} 28...exd4 29.Bxd4 O-O {29...Kf8; 29...Bxa4} 30.Ba7 {30.Rf1} 30...Bxa4 31.Rc1 Bd7 {31...Bb5} 32.Rc7 ( 32.Rc4 Nd3 33.Kc2 )Walter Browne Poker Game
32...Bf5+ ( 32...Rd8 ) 33.Kb2 ( 33.Ka1 ) 33...Rd8 34.Kb3 ( 34.Bc5 ) 34...Nd3 35.Rc6 ( 35.Bd5 Rxd6 ) 35...Be4? ( 35...Ne5 36.Rb6 ( 36.Rc5 f6 ) ( 36.Ra6 Bd3 ) 36...Be6+ ) 36.Rc8 Rxc8 37.Bxc8 Kf8?? ( 37...Ne5 38.d7 Nxd7 39.Bxd7 Bxg2 40.Kb4 ) 38.d7 Ke7 39.Bb6 1-0Samantha Browne Walters
| Walter Browne | |
|---|---|
Walter Browne at the 2002 U.S. Chess championships in Seattle, Washington | |
| Full name | Walter Shawn Browne |
| Country | Australia United States |
| Born | 10 January 1949 Sydney, Australia |
| Died | 24 June 2015 (aged 66) Las Vegas, Nevada, United States |
| Title | Grandmaster (1970) |
| Peak rating | 2590 (July 1982) |
Walter Shawn Browne (10 January 1949 – 24 June 2015) was an Australian-born American chess and poker player. Awarded the title Grandmaster by FIDE in 1970,[1] he won the U.S. Chess Championship six times.Browne was known to sell interesting chess related items at tournaments where he played, such as the National Open, to earn extra money. Many of these items were sourced from different parts of the world during his chess travels and were unique.
Early years[edit]
Browne was born to an American father and an Australian mother in Sydney. His family moved to the New York area when he was age 3. Browne moved to California in 1973.
Browne won the U.S. Junior Championship in 1966.
Browne had dual Australian and American citizenship until he was 21,[2] and represented Australia for a short time. He won the 1969 Australian Chess Championship. He tied first with Renato Naranja while representing Australia at the 1969 Asian Zonal tournament in Singapore, earning the International Master title, though Naranja qualified for the 1970 Interzonal on tie breaks.
His zonal result earned him an invitation to an international grandmaster tournament in San Juan, Puerto Rico. There, he gained the Grandmaster title by tying for 2nd–4th places, with Bruno Parma and Arthur Bisguier, behind reigning world championBoris Spassky.
Browne played first board for Australia at the 1970 and 1972 Chess Olympiads, before switching to representing the United States in 1974.
U.S. championships[edit]
He won the U.S. Chess Championship six times. His victories were at Chicago 1974 with 9½/13, Oberlin 1975 with 8½/13, Mentor 1977 with 9/13, Greenville 1980 with 7½/12, South Bend 1981 with 9/14, and 1983 with 9/13. Of these six titles, three were shared, with three-way ties in 1980 and 1983, and a two-way split in 1981. His six titles have been exceeded only by the eight titles of Bobby Fischer, all won outright by at least a point, and Samuel Reshevsky.
Interzonals[edit]
Browne qualified for three Interzonal tournaments, but never came close to qualification for the Candidates Tournament. At the Manila Interzonal 1976, Browne scored 8½/19 for 15th place. At the Las Palmas Interzonal 1982, he placed last of 14 contestants with 3/13. Finally, at the Taxco Interzonal 1985, he scored 6½/15 for a tied 9–13th place.[3]
Olympiads[edit]
Browne generally performed well at the Chess Olympiad in his six appearances. He represented Australia twice and the United States four times, winning a total of five medals, all bronze. He scored 55½/86 points (+40−15=31), for 64.5 percent. His detailed results, from olimpbase.org, follow.
Reference
- Siegen 1970, Australia board 1, 14/19 (+10–1=8);
- Skopje 1972, Australia board 1, 17½/22 (+15–2=5), board bronze;
- Nice 1974, United States board 3, 10½/17 (+7–3=7), team bronze;
- Buenos Aires 1978, United States board 2, 4½/9 (+3–3=3), team bronze;
- Lucerne 1982, United States board 1, 5½/10 (+4–3=3), team bronze;
- Thessaloniki 1984, United States board 4, 3½/9 (+1–3=5), team bronze.
Other results[edit]
Browne was a dominant presence in American chess in the 1970s and 1980s. Aside from his U.S. Championship wins, he also won the National Open eleven times, the American Open seven times, the World Open three times, and the U.S. Open Chess Championship twice (1971 and 1972).
Browne also enjoyed many international successes from the early 1970s into the mid-1980s. His international firsts include Venice 1971, Wijk aan Zee 1974, Winnipeg 1974 (Pan American Championship), Lone Pine 1974, Mannheim 1975, Reykjavík 1978, Wijk aan Zee 1980, Chile 1981, Indonesia 1982 (shared with Ron Henley in a 26-player round-robin tournament), the 1983 New York Open, Gjovik 1983, and Naestved 1985.[3]
However, after dominating the U.S. Championship for a decade, Browne was unable to approach the same level in that event after 1983. In U.S. Championships, he scored just 7½/17 in 1984, 6½/13 in 1985, 6/15 in 1986, 6/13 in 1987, and 6/15 in 1989.[3] He won the 1991 Canadian Open Chess Championship.
Later life[edit]
Browne was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 2003. He won the U.S. Senior Open in June 2005. In 2012 he published an autobiography and collection of his best games, The Stress of Chess ... and its Infinite Finesse.
In December 2014, he won the Pan-American Senior Championship in the 65+ age category, held in São Paulo, Brazil.[4][5] On 22 June 2015, Browne played in the 50th Anniversary National Open Chess Championship at the Westgate Resort and Casino in Las Vegas. He tied for 9th-15th. At the 2015 Las Vegas International Chess Festival, Browne also gave a 25-board simultaneous exhibition, a lecture series, and taught a chess camp. That same weekend, Browne took byes in the National Open so he could play in the 2015 Senior Event at the World Series of Poker. He played well, but did not win money.[citation needed]
After a week of chess and poker, Browne stayed at the home of a lifelong friend in Las Vegas, and died in his sleep on 24 June 2015. He was 66.[6] He was survived by his wife of 42 years, Dr Raquel Browne, a clinical psychologist, their three sons, and eight grandchildren.[citation needed]
Playing style[edit]
— Walter Browne[2]
See Full List On Deaths-unitedstates.fandom.com
Browne tended to spend a lot of his allotted time during the opening moves and early middlegame; consequently he often wound up in time trouble. This sometimes led to mistakes, even though Browne played reasonably well in time trouble; and good play during this phase could unsettle his opponents.[7] A world-class speed chess player, Browne in 1988 formed the World Blitz Chess Association, but it ended in 2004 after encountering financial troubles.[8]
Notable games[edit]
- One of Browne's best games, a coruscating brilliancy against International MasterBernard Zuckerman:
- Browne vs. Zuckerman, New York 1973
1.d4 d5 2.c4 e6 3.Nc3 Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 0-0 6.e3 Nbd7 7.Bd3 dxc4 8.Bxc4 c5 9.0-0 a6 10.a4 cxd4 11.exd4 Nb6 12.Bb3 Bd7 13.Ne5 Bc6 14.Bc2 Nbd5 15.Bb1 Nb4 16.Re1 g6 17.Bh6 Re8 18.Ra3 Qd6 19.Ne2 Rad8 20.Rh3 Qd5 21.Nf3 Qa5 22.Nc3 Nbd5 23.Ne5 Nxc3 24.bxc3 Bxa4 25.Qe2 Bd7 26.Bg5 Nd5 27.Nxf7 Bxg5 28.Rxh7 Nf6 29.Bxg6 Nxh7 30.Qh5 Qxc3 31.Qxh7+ Kf8 32.Rf1 Qxd4 33.Ne5 Qf4 34.Nxd7+ Rxd7 35.Qh8+ Ke7 36.Qxe8+ Kf6 37.Qxd7 Kxg6 38.Qxe6+ Bf6 39.Qe8+ Kh6 40.g3 Qb4 41.Re1 a5 42.Re6 Qb2 43.Qf7 Kg5 44.h4+ Kg4 45.Qg6+ Kh3 46.Qf5#1–0
- Another brilliant win, this one against grandmaster Larry Christiansen:
- Browne vs. Christiansen, U.S. Championship 1977
1.d4 e6 2.c4 b6 3.d5 Ba6 4.e4 exd5 5.exd5 Nf6 6.Nc3 Bb4 7.Qe2+ Be7 8.Qc2 c6 9.Bd3 b5 10.cxb5 cxb5 11.Nge2 b4 12.Ne4 Nxd5 13.0-0 0-0 14.Rd1 Qa5 15.N2g3 g6 16.Bh6 Re8 17.Qd2 Nf6 18.Qf4 Qb6 19.Bxa6 Nxa6 20.Rd6 Bxd6 21.Nxf6+ Kh8 22.Bg7+ Kxg7 23.Ngh5+ gxh5 24.Qg5+ Kh8 25.Qh6 Bxh2+ 26.Kh1 Qxf6 27.Qxf6+ Kg8 28.Qg5+ Kh8 29.Qf6+ Kg8 30.Qg5+ Kh8 31.Kxh2 Re6 32.Rd1 Rg8 33.Qf4 Reg6 34.g3 f6 35.Rxd7 Nc5 36.Rd6 h4 37.Qxh4 a5 38.Qd4 1–0
Poker[edit]
Browne was a professional poker player since the early 1970s.[7] In 2007, he was runner up in the $2500 HORSE event of the World Series of Poker.[9] Browne cashed in live events for $269,203.[10]
Books[edit]
- Browne, Walter (2012). The Stress of Chess ... and its Infinite Finesse: My Life, Career and 101 Best Games. Alkmaar: New In Chess. ISBN978-90-5691-382-3.
References[edit]
- ^Gaige, Jeremy (1987). Chess Personalia: A Biobibliography. McFarland. ISBN0-7864-2353-6.
- ^ abKennedy, Ray (12 January 1976). 'Making All the Right Moves'. Sports Illustrated. 44 (2): 80–9. Retrieved 6 January 2011.
- ^ abcChessmetrics Player Profile: Walter Browne. Chessmetrics.com. Retrieved on 9 November 2012.
- ^São Paulo 2014 - 1° Campeonato Panamericano Seniors 65+. BrasilBase.
- ^GM Browne Wins Pan-Am Senior. United States Chess Federation. 15 January 2015
- ^Losoff, Janelle (24 June 2015). 'GM Walter S. Browne 1949 – 2015'. Las Vegas International Chess Festival. Retrieved 1 January 2018.
- ^ ab'GM Walter Browne'. United States Chess Federation.
- ^'National Chess News'. Archived from the original on 5 September 2008. Retrieved 18 August 2010.CS1 maint: BOT: original-url status unknown (link). extremechess.net
- ^Results for Walter Browne at CardPlayer.com
- ^Walter Browne: Hendon Mob Poker Database. Pokerdb.thehendonmob.com. Retrieved on 28 June 2015.
External links[edit]
| Wikimedia Commons has media related to Walter Browne. |
- Walter S Browne chess games at 365Chess.com
- Walter Browne player profile and games at Chessgames.com
- Walter Shawn Browne team chess record at Olimpbase.org
- 'Making All the Right Moves', Sports Illustrated, 12 January 1976
| Preceded by John Grefe and Lubomir Kavalek | United States Chess Champion 1974–1978 | Succeeded by Lubomir Kavalek |
| Preceded by Lubomir Kavalek | United States Chess Champion 1980 (with Larry Evans and Larry Christiansen), 1981–1982 (with Yasser Seirawan), 1983 (with Larry Christiansen and Roman Dzindzichashvili) | Succeeded by Lev Alburt |
