ON JUNE 27, 1974, Filipino Chess Master Eugene Torre became Asia’s first grandmaster by drawing with American Grandmaster Robert Byrne at the 21st Chess Olympiad in Nice, France.
Born on November 4, 1951 in Iloilo City, Torre is considered the best chess player the Philippines ever produced.
The former Business Administration undergraduate from Mapua Institute of Technology also has the distinction of being the first Asian player to earn the much-coveted title of International Grandmaster.
Torre shot to prominence in 1976 as a possible future title challenger after winning a strong four-man tournament in Manila ahead of World Champion Anatoly Karpov – thus becoming the first player to finish ahead of Karpov in a tournament since the latter became world champion.
In the summer of 1976, three grandmasters traveled to Manila, Philippines to participate in the Marlboro-Loyola Kings Challenge chess tournament. They were (in order by Elo): World Champion Anatoly Karpov (2695) from the Soviet Union, Ljubomir Ljubojević (2620) from Yugoslavia, and Walter Browne (2585) from the United States. They were joined by grandmaster Eugenio Torre (2505) from the Philippines for a double-round robin event. The average rating of the players qualified the tournament as a category XV event.
The result was surprising and momentous due to the inspired play of Torre. Not only did he defeat the world champion in the second round, but he went on to finish clear first ahead of Karpov, a feat no one had yet accomplished since the latter had become world champion.
