In late winter 1973 the biennial Tallinn International drew one of its strongest fields ever to the Estonian capital — two former world champions, the local hero Paul Keres, and a phalanx of Soviet grandmasters. Mikhail Tal made the tournament his own, finishing a point and a half clear of Lev Polugaevsky in what admirers reckoned the best form of his career.
The strongest Tallinn yet
The Tallinn International was staged in the Estonian capital every other year, and the 1973 edition assembled its deepest field to date. Sixteen players contested a single round-robin over fifteen rounds. The line-up included two former world champions — Tal, and Boris Spassky, who had lost his crown to Bobby Fischer only months earlier — the former title challenger David Bronstein, and, above all, Estonia's own Paul Keres playing before a home crowd.
Behind them came a strong Soviet contingent in Polugaevsky, Yuri Balashov and Boris Rytov, alongside rising Western talents Ulf Andersson and Jan Timman and the West German grandmaster Helmut Pfleger. The event was considered the strongest in the series so far.
Tal at his peak
Tal dominated, taking clear first with 12 out of 15. Polugaevsky was the only player to keep him honest, finishing second on 10½; behind them a four-way logjam formed on 9 points, shared by Keres, Balashov, Bronstein and Spassky. Andersson and Nei rounded out the upper half on 8.
The win came in the middle of a long unbeaten run, which chess historians put at 86 tournament games without a loss between mid-1972 and the spring of 1973, and Tallinn was one of several tournament wins in a row that put Tal, by general agreement, in the best form of his career.
“With further successes at Tallinn and Hastings, he may be in the best form of his career.”
From Tallinn International to Keres Memorial
Keres had shared the 1971 Tallinn title with Tal and would win the 1975 edition outright, the last two of his many appearances in his home city. The biennial series continued through 1989, and after Keres's death in June 1975 it was renamed the Paul Keres Memorial Tournament from 1977 — so that the events Keres graced in life became a standing tribute to him.
Final standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tal, Mikhail | 12/15 | +9 -0 =6 | games |
| 2 | Polugaevsky, Lev | 10½/15 | +6 -0 =9 | games |
| =3 | Keres, Paul | 9/15 | +6 -3 =6 | games |
| =3 | Balashov, Yuri S | 9/15 | +5 -2 =8 | games |
| =3 | Bronstein, David Ionovich | 9/15 | +4 -1 =10 | games |
| =3 | Spassky, Boris Vasilievich | 9/15 | +4 -1 =10 | games |
| =7 | Nei, Iivo | 8/15 | +4 -3 =8 | games |
| =7 | Andersson, Ulf | 8/15 | +3 -2 =10 | games |
| 9 | Timman, Jan H | 7½/15 | +4 -4 =7 | games |
| =10 | Pfleger, Helmut | 6½/15 | +3 -5 =7 | games |
| =10 | Pribyl, Josef | 6½/15 | +3 -5 =7 | games |
| =10 | Rytov, Boris | 6½/15 | +3 -5 =7 | games |
| 13 | Popov, Luben | 6/15 | +2 -5 =8 | games |
| 14 | Karner, Hillar | 5½/15 | +3 -7 =5 | games |
| 15 | Saidy, Anthony Fred | 4/15 | +3 -10 =2 | games |
| 16 | Westerinen, Heikki MJ | 3/15 | +1 -10 =4 | games |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Tal, Mikhail | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Polugaevsky, Lev | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 3 | Keres, Paul | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Balashov, Yuri S | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | |
| 5 | Bronstein, David Ionovich | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | |
| 6 | Spassky, Boris Vasilievich | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 7 | Nei, Iivo | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 8 | Andersson, Ulf | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 9 | Timman, Jan H | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | |
| 10 | Pfleger, Helmut | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 11 | Pribyl, Josef | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 12 | Rytov, Boris | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | |
| 13 | Popov, Luben | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | |
| 14 | Karner, Hillar | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 15 | Saidy, Anthony Fred | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | |
| 16 | Westerinen, Heikki MJ | 0 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 |
Each cell shows the row player's recorded results against the column player. ● = same player.