Gata Kamsky

Dortmund 1993 — a 26-move Sicilian brilliancy from the young Kamsky. He tore open Joël Lautier's kingside with the bishop sacrifice 16.Bxh6, then crashed through with 23.Rxh7+ Kxh7 24.Qh5+ into a forced mating attack, one of his cleanest early miniatures.

PCA World Championship Candidates quarterfinal, New York 1994 — from the match in which the 20-year-old Kamsky eliminated a young Vladimir Kramnik 4½–1½, six years before Kramnik dethroned Kasparov. A razor-sharp Botvinnik Semi-Slav: Kamsky sacrificed a knight with 9.Nxg5 and hunted down the king, mating in 41 moves.

PCA World Championship Candidates quarterfinal, New York 1994 — the game from the Kramnik match that Wikipedia singles out. Playing Black, Kamsky exploited Kramnik's shattered queenside pawns, pushed a passed d-pawn, and finished with the queen sacrifice 32...Qxf4+ and a back-rank mating net.

PCA World Championship Candidates semifinal, Linares 1994 — from Kamsky's 5½–1½ rout of Nigel Short. A model Nimzo-Indian squeeze: Kamsky built up on the kingside with 14.Bh6 and 20.Nh5, then broke through with 23.d5 to win a crisp 26-move miniature.

FIDE World Championship Candidates semifinal, 1994 — a win over Viswanathan Anand in the FIDE cycle Kamsky took 6–4 to advance. Against Anand's Accelerated Dragon he answered the ...d5 break with 17.f5, cracked open the position with 24.Rxd6, and converted the extra material into a won ending.

FIDE World Championship Candidates final, 1995 — from Kamsky's 5½–1½ demolition of Valery Salov that earned him the 1996 world-title match with Karpov. A patient Queen's Gambit Declined in which his central play and piece activity left Salov's position collapsing.

FIDE World Championship match (game 2), Elista 1996 — Kamsky's most celebrated game, a win over reigning FIDE World Champion Anatoly Karpov. In the Caro-Kann Panov he opened the center with 18.d5 and unleashed the Greek-gift sacrifice 20.Bxh7+ Kxh7; emerging with queen against rook and knight, he ground Karpov down over 65 moves. Karpov retained the title 10½–7½, but this remains Kamsky's signature attacking masterpiece.

M-Tel Masters, Sofia 2006 — a 103-move Ruy Lopez marathon showcasing Kamsky's legendary endgame stamina on his return to the elite. He squeezed Étienne Bacrot in a long rook ending and, even after Bacrot underpromoted to a knight with 74...e1=N+, patiently won the rook-versus-knight endgame.

M-Tel Masters, Sofia 2006 — a classical win over Viswanathan Anand, a year before Anand won the undisputed world title. Defending a Ruy Lopez with Black, Kamsky neutralized Anand's initiative, won a pawn, and converted the rook-and-pawn endgame in 57 moves.

FIDE World Cup semifinal, Khanty-Mansiysk 2007 — Kamsky's win over the 17-year-old Magnus Carlsen, six years before Carlsen became World Champion. In a quiet Petrov Defense he outmaneuvered the young prodigy, took over the h-file, and won in 43 moves to take the semifinal 1½–½ and reach the final.

FIDE World Cup final, Khanty-Mansiysk 2007 — the win over Alexei Shirov from the final Kamsky took 2½–1½ to capture the 2007 World Cup and qualify for the world-title Candidates. In a sharp Sicilian his offbeat 7.Qh5 unbalanced the game, and he finished with the fork 37.Ngf7+.

FIDE Candidates, Kazan 2011 — the only decisive game of Kamsky's quarterfinal against former World Champion Veselin Topalov, whom he eliminated 2½–1½. Playing Black, Kamsky punished a bad day from Topalov and won in 31 moves once White's position collapsed, avenging his 2009 match loss to Topalov.

U.S. Championship 2012 — a sharp attacking win over Yasser Seirawan from Kamsky's reign as a five-time U.S. champion. In a Caro-Kann he sacrificed with 22.Bxh6 and struck with 23.Rd7, winning Black's queen (23...Qxd7 24.Nxd7) and converting in 35 moves.

FIDE World Cup, Tromsø 2013 — a 30-move demolition that knocked Shakhriyar Mamedyarov out in the round of 16. Against the Sicilian Taimanov, Kamsky ripped open the center with 17.e5 and 18.f5, sacrificed his way through, and finished with 30.Rxh5+.