John L. Watson

For the American singer, seeJohn L. Watson (singer).

John Leonard Watson(born 1951) is an American chess player and author who was awarded the title ofInternational Masterin 1979.

John L. Watson
Watson at the 2003 U.S. Chess Championships in Seattle, Washington
Full name	John Leonard Watson
Country	United States
Born	1951 (age 72–73) Milwaukee,Wisconsin, U.S.
Title	International Master(1979)
Peak rating	2430 (January 1981)

In 2022, he was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame along withGMJames Tarjanand the late Daniel Willard Fiske. He is also a recipient of the US Chess Federation's Frank J. Marshall Award, and a 2015 inductee into the Colorado Chess Hall of Fame.

Life

Watson was born inMilwaukeeand grew up inOmaha, Nebraska.He was educated atBrownell-Talbot,Harvard,and theUniversity of California, San Diego,where he took his degree in engineering. He has won many chess tournaments including the first US National High School Chess Championship and the American Open.

Watson is a renowned chess theorist and author, having published more than thirty books on many aspects of chess. His 1999 bookSecrets of Modern Chess Strategywon theBritish Chess Federation'sBook of the Year award as well as theUnited States Chess FederationBook of the Year. The successor volumeChess Strategy in Actionwas the Chesscafe Book of the Year. These two books explore and theorize how radically chess has changed since the early 20th century, and how old and supposedly 'time-tested' rules for the conduct of play have been replaced by broader and revolutionary practiceover the board.These books have been translated into several languages. In a lighter vein, Watson wrote theChessmancomic bookseries, illustrated by Chris Hendrickson and Svein Myreng.Chessmancomics are now out-of-print collectors' items. Watson has a regular book review columns atThe Week in Chess,the publication of the London Chess Centre (available online), and inChess Life.His weekly Internet radio show 'Chess Talk with John Watson' was hosted by on Chess.FM, the radio arm of theInternet Chess Club(ICC).

Watson is much in demand as a chesscoach;his students have includedTal Shaked,the 1997World Junior Champion,Senior Master Patrick Hummel,Abby Marshall,and other US scholastic champions.

Watson is married to drama scholarMaura Giles-Watson,who teaches at the University of San Diego;they live inSan Diego, California.

Selected books

• Play the French,third edition, (Cadogan ChessBooks)ISBN1-85744-337-3
• The Unconventional King's IndianISBN1-84382-150-8
• The Gambit Guide to the Modern BenoniISBN1-901983-23-4
• Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy: Advances since Nimzowitsch,Gambit Publications,1999,ISBN1-901983-07-2
• Chess Strategy in Action,Gambit, 2003,ISBN1-901983-69-2
• English 1...P-K4ISBN1-84382-144-3
• Dangerous Weapons: The French,Everyman Chess (2007):ISBN978-1-85744-435-3
• Mastering the Chess Openings,Gambit Publications (in four volumes)
  • Volume 1 (1. e4):ISBN1-904600-60-3(2006)
  • Volume 2 (1. d4):ISBN1-904600-69-7(2007)
  • Volume 3 (1. c4):ISBN1-904600-98-0(2009)
  • Volume 4:ISBN978-1-906454-19-7(2010)

External links

• John Watsonrating card atFIDE
• Book Reviews by IM John WatsonArchived2008-10-11 at theWayback Machine
• Photograph on Colorado Chess Informant