A Chess Hot Spot?

Hopatcong: A Chess Hot Spot?

Did you know a lakeside hotel once hosted a big-time chess tournament?

Fun fact: Lake Hopatcong once held a big-time chess match.

And it wasn't just any big-time chess match. The Ninth American Chess Congress met at Hotel Alamac, which clearly no longer exists, from Aug. 6 to 21 in 1923.

Nowadays people still talk about Bobby Fischer and Boris Spassky. But back then, names like Frank James Marshall and Abraham Kupchik ruled the chess world. And they were all here.

Here are Five Things You Need to Know About Lake Hopatcong's Biggest Chess Tournament:

1. You Need to Know The Background: Fourteen of the world's best descended on Lake Hopatcong. Well, maybe it was more like a collection of North America's best, and one French guy. Of the 14 competitors, 12 were American, one was Canadian and one was Dawid Janowski of France, who took third.
2. You Need to Know What Happened After This Congresss: Nothing. It was the last one. And it started in 1857.
3. You Need to Know Who Won: Marshall. Simply put, the man was a chess beast, holding the American crown from 1909 to 1936. A New York City native, Marshall was a known tactician, who would bait a player into thinking he won before hammering him from nowhere.
4. You Need to Know A Famous Quote: It was Marshall who once said, "The hardest thing in chess is to win a won game." Nowadays we might call that a Yogism.
5. You Need to Know About the Hotel's Owner: Harry Latz, who owned the hotel alongside his mother, was a chess enthusiast. He helped organize the New York 1924, an elite tournament held in the city. Marshall took fourth at that event behind.

Source: http://hopatcong.patch.com