The fourth Costa del Sol international brought a strong European field to the winter sun of Torremolinos. Spain's first grandmaster, Arturo Pomar Salamanca, took charge and finished a clear point ahead of the Hungarian pair of Lajos Portisch and Levente Lengyel — a proud result on home ground for the former child prodigy.
A winter international by the sea
From 1961 the Costa del Sol series drew international masters to the Málaga coast each winter, usually in February, as tourism transformed the region — Torremolinos had become the first resort of the Costa del Sol only a few years earlier. The 1964 edition, the fourth in the series, gathered a dozen players for a single round-robin held over the first two weeks of February.
The field mixed Spanish home players with visiting Europeans, among them the Hungarian grandmasters Lajos Portisch and Levente Lengyel, Germany's Heinz Lehmann, Austria's Karl Robatsch, and the Belgian Albéric O'Kelly de Galway, a regular of the series.
Pomar in command
Pomar Salamanca controlled the event, scoring 8½ from 11 games to take clear first. Portisch and Lengyel shared second on 7½, ahead of Lehmann on 7 and O'Kelly and Robatsch on 6½. With twelve players it was a compact, hard-fought field, and Pomar's margin over two established grandmasters underlined how far Spain's leading player had come.
Spain's pioneer
Arturo Pomar had been a national sensation since childhood; as a thirteen-year-old he famously held Alexander Alekhine to a draw in 1944. In 1962 he became Spain's first grandmaster, and results like Torremolinos 1964 confirmed his standing at the head of Spanish chess through the 1960s.
Final standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pomar Salamanca, Arturo | 8½/11 | +7 -1 =3 | games |
| =2 | Portisch, Lajos | 7½/11 | +6 -2 =3 | games |
| =2 | Lengyel, Levente | 7½/11 | +5 -1 =5 | games |
| 4 | Lehmann, Heinz | 7/11 | +4 -1 =6 | games |
| =5 | O'Kelly de Galway, Alberic | 6½/11 | +4 -2 =5 | games |
| =5 | Robatsch, Karl | 6½/11 | +4 -2 =5 | games |
| 7 | Ulvestad, Olaf | 6/11 | +3 -2 =6 | games |
| 8 | Toran Albero, Roman | 5/11 | +2 -3 =6 | games |
| 9 | Palacios de la Prida, Ernesto | 4/11 | +1 -4 =6 | games |
| =10 | Durao, Joaquim Manuel | 3/11 | +2 -7 =2 | games |
| =10 | Puig Pulido, Pedro | 3/11 | +2 -7 =2 | games |
| 12 | Garcia Tore, Francisco | 1½/11 | +1 -9 =1 | games |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Pomar Salamanca, Arturo | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Portisch, Lajos | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 3 | Lengyel, Levente | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Lehmann, Heinz | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 5 | O'Kelly de Galway, Alberic | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 6 | Robatsch, Karl | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 7 | Ulvestad, Olaf | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | |
| 8 | Toran Albero, Roman | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 9 | Palacios de la Prida, Ernesto | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 10 | Durao, Joaquim Manuel | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | |
| 11 | Puig Pulido, Pedro | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 12 | Garcia Tore, Francisco | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
Each cell shows the row player's recorded results against the column player. ● = same player.