The Palma de Mallorca series began modestly: a compact ten-player round robin that crowned no single champion at all. Klaus Darga, Albéric O'Kelly de Galway, and Arturo Pomar Salamanca — playing on his home island — all finished on 6½ from 9, sharing first place in the very first edition of what would grow into one of the era's most reliable annual fixtures.
A modest first edition
Long before the tournament grew into the star-studded gathering that would draw Larsen, Petrosian, Spassky, and a run of former World Champions, Palma de Mallorca hosted a far smaller field: ten players in a single round robin of 45 games. Arturo Pomar, born on the island in 1931, played as the local favourite; Belgium's Albéric O'Kelly de Galway and West Germany's newly-minted grandmaster Klaus Darga rounded out the leading contenders.
It was O'Kelly's first appearance in a series he would keep returning to for years — he came back as a player in 1967, and later served as an arbiter for the Interzonal the island hosted in 1970.
A three-way finish
No one ran away with it. Darga, O'Kelly, and Pomar all finished on 6½ points from 9 games, sharing the title in the tournament's debut year — a result Darga's own biographers still list among the highlights of his peak competitive seasons. Austria's Andreas Dückstein was clear fourth on 6, just half a point back, with Mehmed Bukić fifth on 5.
The rest of the field trailed: Antonio Medina García scored 4½, Juan Borrell Vidal and Ángel García Orús shared 3, Sergio Giustolisi took 2½, and José Ribera Pérez finished last on 1½. It was a tightly bunched, unglamorous start to a series that would very quickly attract far bigger names.
Final standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| =1 | Darga, Klaus | 6½/9 | +5 -1 =3 | games |
| =1 | O'Kelly de Galway, Alberic | 6½/9 | +4 -0 =5 | games |
| =1 | Pomar Salamanca, Arturo | 6½/9 | +4 -0 =5 | games |
| 4 | Dueckstein, Andreas | 6/9 | +4 -1 =4 | games |
| 5 | Bukic, Enver | 5/9 | +1 -0 =8 | games |
| 6 | Medina Garcia, Antonio Angel | 4½/9 | +2 -2 =5 | games |
| =7 | Borrell Vidal, Maximo | 3/9 | +1 -4 =4 | games |
| =7 | Garcia Orus, Francisco | 3/9 | +1 -4 =4 | games |
| 9 | Giustolisi, Alberto Mario | 2½/9 | +1 -5 =3 | games |
| 10 | Ribera Perez, Miguel | 1½/9 | +1 -7 =1 | games |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Darga, Klaus | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | O'Kelly de Galway, Alberic | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Pomar Salamanca, Arturo | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Dueckstein, Andreas | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | |
| 5 | Bukic, Enver | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 6 | Medina Garcia, Antonio Angel | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 7 | Borrell Vidal, Maximo | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | |
| 8 | Garcia Orus, Francisco | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 9 | Giustolisi, Alberto Mario | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | |
| 10 | Ribera Perez, Miguel | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | 0 |
Each cell shows the row player's recorded results against the column player. ● = same player.