CHESS : POLUGAEVSKY DIES

Lev Polugaevsky, one of the best grandmasters from the Soviet Union, died Aug. 30 in Paris, where he had lived for several years. He was 60 years old.

Polugaevsky was a diligent, persistent man, popular with his peers. As a player, he stood out for his prowess in counterattack and his thorough preparation of chess openings. Almost single-handedly, he popularized a complicated line of the Najdorf Sicilian, 6 Bg5 e6 7 f4 b5!?, now known as the Polugaevsky variation.

Despite his willingness to engage in fierce, unpredictable struggles, Polugaevsky compiled a remarkably consistent record of excellent results. He competed in the Soviet Championship 20 times between 1956 and 1983, tieing for first prize in 1967, 1968 and 1969, and always finishing with a plus score. He represented the Soviet Union as a member of seven Olympiad teams and both U.S.S.R. vs. the World matches. He qualified for three cycles of Candidates matches, in 1974 (losing to Anatoly Karpov, 2 1/2-5 1/2), in 1977 (defeating Henrique Mecking, 6 1/2-5 1/2, and losing to Victor Korchnoi, 4 1/2-8 1/2) and in 1980 (defeating Mikhail Tal, 5 1/2-2 1/2, and losing to Korchnoi, 6 1/2-7 1/2). His only appearances in the U.S. were second place (behind Bent Larsen) in Lone Pine, Calif., in 1978, and a tie for second place (behind John Fedorowicz) in the 1989 New York Open.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS

The 1995 Professional Chess Assn. world championship between champion Garry Kasparov of Russia and challenger Viswanathan Anand of India begins Monday at the World Trade Center in New York City. Games are scheduled at noon PDT on Mondays, Tuesdays, Thursdays and Fridays for five weeks. The first player to reach 10 1/2 points in the best-of-20-game match wins $1 million and the title of PCA world champion.

The Times will print the moves of each game on the day after play. Computer users may follow the match live on the Internet by calling Intel Inc., the computer-chip manufacturer that sponsors the PCA, at www.Intel.com.

Anand warmed up for the match by competing in the third Intel Grand Prix in London. The tournament featured 16 grandmasters playing pairs of 25-minute games, with a single blitz game as a tiebreaker if the score reached 1-1. Anand defeated Joel Lautier of France, 2-1, and Ivan Sokolov of Bosnia, 2-0, but lost to Alexey Dreyev of Russia in the semifinal round, 1-2. Dreyev also knocked out another favorite, Vassily Ivanchuk of Ukraine, by a 2-1 score in the quarterfinals. In the final, though, Dreyev lost to Michael Adams, 0-2. Earlier, Adams beat fellow Englishmen Jonathan Speelman and Tony Miles by scores of 1 1/2- 1/2, and he edged Jeroen Piket of the Netherlands by drawing the tiebreaking third game with the Black pieces.

LOCAL NEWS

Cyrus Lakdawala and Jack Peters shared first place with 5 1/2- 1/2 scores last weekend in the 157-player Southern California Open in Buena Park. The tournament was the second of the two annual state championships run by the Southern California Chess Federation. The winners will reign as state co-champions.

The Open section, with 91 players, was closely contested. After four rounds, 10 players shared the lead at 3 1/2- 1/2. Lakdawala then defeated Jeff Arnold (who had drawn Peters) and Gregg Small, while Peters outlasted Istvan Somogyi and Mark Leski in wild games. Valdis Saulespurens and top expert Joe Hanley tied for third at 5-1. Zoltan Somogyi and Frank Ziolkowski split the “A” prize.

Eduard Gufeld, the colorful grandmaster from the republic of Georgia, arrived in Los Angeles Thursday. During his short stay, he will give several lectures at Chess Palace in Long Beach. Call Charles Rostedt at (310) 634-8477 for full details.

The Awesome Autumn tournament, a six-rounder on Friday evenings, begins Sept. 15 at the La Habra Chess Club. For information, call Jerry Schain at (310) 691-2393 or Bob Goulet at (310) 947-6739.