The 49th Soviet Championship ended in a dead heat: the eighteen-year-old Garry Kasparov, playing his first Soviet final, and the reigning champion Lev Psakhis both finished on 12½/17, two and a half points clear of the field, to share the title in a round robin thick with grandmasters. For Kasparov it was the first major crown of a career about to remake chess; for Psakhis it was a Soviet title in a second straight year.
A two-way tie at the top
Preceded by semifinals at Bălți, Chelyabinsk, Nikolayev, and Saratov and a first-league qualifier at Volgodonsk, the Frunze final produced two winners rather than one. Kasparov scored ten wins against two losses with five draws, Psakhis nine wins and a single loss with seven draws — each 12½ from seventeen games, and each a clear two and a half points ahead of third-placed Oleg Romanishin on 10.
Vladimir Tukmakov and Viktor Gavrikov shared fourth on 9½, with Georgy Agzamov and Alexander Beliavsky a further half point back on 9. No third player came within reach of the two leaders, and the title was shared between them with no play-off.
A debut and a defense
For Kasparov, then eighteen and appearing in his first Soviet Championship, the shared title was an early confirmation of the talent that would carry him to the world crown four years later. Lev Psakhis, the reigning champion after taking the 48th title at Vilnius the previous winter, thus held or shared the Soviet championship in two consecutive years.
Final standings
| # | Player | Score | Record | Games |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| =1 | Kasparov, Garry | 12½/17 | +10 -2 =5 | games |
| =1 | Psakhis, Lev | 12½/17 | +9 -1 =7 | games |
| 3 | Romanishin, Oleg M | 10/17 | +6 -3 =8 | games |
| =4 | Tukmakov, Vladimir B | 9½/17 | +5 -3 =9 | games |
| =4 | Gavrikov, Viktor | 9½/17 | +4 -2 =11 | games |
| =6 | Agzamov, Georgy | 9/17 | +5 -4 =8 | games |
| =6 | Beliavsky, Alexander G | 9/17 | +5 -4 =8 | games |
| =8 | Yusupov, Artur | 8½/17 | +6 -6 =5 | games |
| =8 | Dorfman, Josif D | 8½/17 | +3 -3 =11 | games |
| =10 | Kupreichik, Viktor D | 8/17 | +5 -6 =6 | games |
| =10 | Tseshkovsky, Vitaly | 8/17 | +4 -5 =8 | games |
| =10 | Sveshnikov, Evgeny | 8/17 | +3 -4 =10 | games |
| =10 | Dolmatov, Sergey | 8/17 | +2 -3 =12 | games |
| 14 | Yudasin, Leonid | 7½/17 | +5 -7 =5 | games |
| =15 | Gulko, Boris F | 6½/17 | +4 -8 =5 | games |
| =15 | Kuzmin, Gennadi P | 6½/17 | +2 -6 =9 | games |
| 17 | Timoscenko, Gennadij A | 6/17 | +2 -7 =8 | games |
| 18 | Mikhalchishin, Adrian | 5½/17 | +1 -7 =9 | games |
Cross Table
| Rank | Player | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 | 13 | 14 | 15 | 16 | 17 | 18 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Kasparov, Garry | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 2 | Psakhis, Lev | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 1 | |
| 3 | Romanishin, Oleg M | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | |
| 4 | Tukmakov, Vladimir B | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | |
| 5 | Gavrikov, Viktor | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 6 | Agzamov, Georgy | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 0 | |
| 7 | Beliavsky, Alexander G | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | |
| 8 | Yusupov, Artur | 0 | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | |
| 9 | Dorfman, Josif D | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 10 | Kupreichik, Viktor D | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 11 | Tseshkovsky, Vitaly | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | 1 | ½ | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | |
| 12 | Sveshnikov, Evgeny | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | |
| 13 | Dolmatov, Sergey | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | ½ | |
| 14 | Yudasin, Leonid | 0 | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | 1 | ½ | |
| 15 | Gulko, Boris F | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | 1 | 1 | ½ | |
| 16 | Kuzmin, Gennadi P | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | |
| 17 | Timoscenko, Gennadij A | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | 1 | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | 0 | 1 | ½ | |
| 18 | Mikhalchishin, Adrian | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0 | ½ | 1 | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ | ½ | ½ | ½ | 0 | ½ |
Each cell shows the row player's recorded results against the column player. ● = same player.