The first edition of Reykjavík's international round-robin brought Mikhail Tal to Iceland, and the former World Champion answered with one of the most crushing results of his career. Tal scored 12½ out of 13, dropping only a single half-point across the whole event and finishing a full point clear of Svetozar Gligorić.
◈Tal in Reykjavík
This was the inaugural staging of the Reykjavík international tournament, the round-robin series that ran in that format from 1964 to 1980 before growing into the open event known today as the Reykjavík Open. Fourteen players contested thirteen rounds in the Icelandic capital.
Mikhail Tal, who had held the world title in 1960–61, was again near the height of his powers and simply overwhelmed the field. He conceded only one draw and no losses across the whole schedule, finishing on 12½ out of 13 — a score that left no doubt about the outcome.
◈Behind the champion
Yugoslav grandmaster Svetozar Gligorić took clear second place on 11½, the only player to stay within a point of Tal. Iceland's own Friðrik Ólafsson and Norway's Svein Johannessen shared third on 9.
The field also included the reigning Women's World Champion, Nona Gaprindashvili, who competed in the open event — a reminder that these early Reykjavík invitationals drew a genuinely international cast to a country that would host the game's most famous match eight years later.
◈Final Standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tal, Mikhail | 12½/13 | +12 -0 =1 | games |
| 2 | Gligoric, Svetozar | 11½/13 | +11 -1 =1 | games |
| 3 | Olafsson, Fridrik | 9/13 | +8 -3 =2 | games |
| 4 | Johannessen, Svein | 9/13 | +7 -2 =4 | games |
| 5 | Wade, Robert Graham | 7½/13 | +5 -3 =5 | games |
| 6 | Palmason, Gudmundur | 7/13 | +3 -2 =8 | games |
| 7 | Johannsson, Ingi Randver | 6/13 | +4 -5 =4 | games |
| 8 | Gaprindashvili, Nona | 5/13 | +3 -6 =4 | games |
| 9 | Solmundarson, Magnus | 5/13 | +2 -5 =6 | games |
| 10 | Thorbergsson, Freysteinn | 4/13 | +3 -8 =2 | games |
| =11 | Bjornsson, Trausti | 4/13 | +2 -7 =4 | games |
| =11 | Gudmundsson, Arinbjorn | 4/13 | +2 -7 =4 | games |
| 13 | Kristinsson, Jon | 3½/13 | +2 -8 =3 | games |
| 14 | Asmundsson, Ingvar | 3/13 | +1 -8 =4 | games |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tal, Mikhail | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Gligoric, Svetozar | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Olafsson, Fridrik | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Johannessen, Svein | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 5 | Wade, Robert Graham | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | |
| 6 | Palmason, Gudmundur | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | |
| 7 | Johannsson, Ingi Randver | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | |
| 8 | Gaprindashvili, Nona | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | |
| 9 | Solmundarson, Magnus | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 10 | Thorbergsson, Freysteinn | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | |
| 11 | Bjornsson, Trausti | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 12 | Gudmundsson, Arinbjorn | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 13 | Kristinsson, Jon | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 14 | Asmundsson, Ingvar | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 |
Each cell shows the row player's per-game results against the column player (in round order). ● = same player.