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Polugaevsky, Lev

classical era

Lev Polugaevsky (1934-1995) was a Soviet grandmaster and world-class opening theoretician who remained among the elite from the early 1960s through the late 1980s. He is best known for developing the ultra-sharp Polugaevsky Variation of the Najdorf Sicilian, which he analyzed with tireless devotion for decades and detailed in his classic book "Grandmaster Preparation."

Total Games

1892

Wins

678

Draws

956

Losses

255

35.8% wins50.5% draws13.5% losses

Most Played Openings

E15 - Queen's Indian Defense: Buerger Variation63E12 - Queen's Indian Defense61E11 - Bogo-Indian Defense40B96 - Sicilian Defense: Najdorf Variation39B85 - Sicilian Defense: Scheveningen Variation, Classical Main Line36A30 - English Opening: Wing Gambit36A17 - English Opening: Anglo-Indian Defense36A07 - King's Indian Attack32E18 - Queen's Indian Defense: Classical Variation, Tiviakov Defense27A34 - English Opening: Symmetrical Variation27

Most Faced Opponents

Kortschnoj, Viktor65 gamesGeller, Efim P34 gamesTal, Mihail31 gamesKarpov, Anatoly29 gamesTimman, Jan H25 gamesLjubojevic, Ljubomir24 gamesPortisch, Lajos24 gamesTaimanov, Mark E22 gamesSmyslov, Vassily22 gamesSpassky, Boris V21 games

Featured Games

FCGFCG
1-0

Polugaevsky, Lev vs Beliavsky, Alexander G

Reggio Emilia9192

1992

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FCGFCG
0-1

Polugaevsky, Lev vs Ljubojevic, Ljubomir

Tilburg

1985

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FCGFCG
1-0

Karpov, Anatoly vs Polugaevsky, Lev

Biel

1990

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FCGFCG
1-0

Karpov, Anatoly vs Polugaevsky, Lev

Tilburg

1983

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FCGFCG
1-0

Polugaevsky, Lev vs Short, Nigel D

Amber-rapid 2nd

1993

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FCGFCG
0-1

Timman, Jan H vs Polugaevsky, Lev

Tilburg

1983

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FCGFCG
0-1

Feuerstein, Arthur William vs Polugaevsky, Lev

WchT U26

1957

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FCGFCG
0-1

Polugaevsky, Lev vs Ljubojevic, Ljubomir

Amber-blind 2nd

1993

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FCGFCG
1-0

Polugaevsky, Lev vs Andersen, Borge

WchT U26

1957

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FCGFCG
0-1

Franzoni, Giancarlo vs Polugaevsky, Lev

WchT

1985

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Games (1892)

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Polugaevsky, Lev vs Taimanov, Mark E
1/2-1/2
URS-ch28 1961 E83
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Niephaus, Walter
1-0
EU-chT 1961 E25
Averbakh, Yuri L vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-ch29 1961 E70
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Averbakh, Yuri L
1/2-1/2
URS-ch28 1961 C98
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Averbakh, Yuri L
0-1
URS-ch27 1960 B37
Sakharov, Yury N vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-ch27 1960 B96
Bialas, Wolfram vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-BRD 1960 E68
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Liberzon, Vladimir M
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 E27
Kortschnoj, Viktor vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1-0
Moscow CCCT 1960 E54
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Kholmov, Ratmir D
0-1
Moscow CCCT 1960 E55
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Hottes, Dieter
1-0
URS-BRD 1960 A54
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Uhlmann, Wolfgang
1/2-1/2
Moscow CCCT 1960 E87
Pfeiffer, Gerhard vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-BRD 1960 A60
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Teschner, Rudolf
1-0
URS-BRD 1960 E25
Minev, Nikolay N vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
Moscow CCCT 1960 B82
Krogius, Nikolai V vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 E07
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Simagin, Vladimir
1-0
URS-ch27 1960 D99
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Szilagyi, Gyorgy
1-0
Moscow CCCT 1960 D25
Simagin, Vladimir vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
Moscow CCCT 1960 E14
Lutikov, Anatoly S vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-ch27 1960 B87
Suetin, Alexey S vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 B96
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Unzicker, Wolfgang
1/2-1/2
URS-BRD 1960 E54
Antoshin, Vladimir S vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
Moscow CCCT 1960 E46
Bagirov, Vladimir vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1-0
Moscow CCCT 1960 B32
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Gufeld, Eduard
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 A37
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Gurgenidze, Bukhuti
1-0
URS-ch27 1960 E61
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Kortschnoj, Viktor
0-1
URS-ch27 1960 D97
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Troeger, Paul
1-0
URS-BRD 1960 E14
Nei, Iivo vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-ch27 1960 A25
Darga, Klaus vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-BRD 1960 B47
Taimanov, Mark E vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1-0
URS-ch27 1960 D23
Bagirov, Vladimir vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 B96
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Puc, Stojan
1-0
Moscow CCCT 1960 E24
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Shamkovich, Leonid
1/2-1/2
URS-ch27 1960 E52
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Hort, Vlastimil
1-0
Moscow CCCT 1960 E88
Suetin, Alexey S vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-chT 1959 B96
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Taimanov, Mark E
1-0
URS-ch26 1959 E42
Gipslis, Aivars vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1-0
URS-chT 1959 E85
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Lutikov, Anatoly S
1/2-1/2
URS-ch26 1959 A80
Kholmov, Ratmir D vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch26 1959 A45
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Gurgenidze, Bukhuti
1-0
URS-ch26 1959 E88
Gufeld, Eduard vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch26 1959 B87
Vasiukov, Evgeni vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch26 1959 A08
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Kortschnoj, Viktor
1-0
URS-ch26 1959 E55
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Taimanov, Mark E
1/2-1/2
URS-chT 1959 E81
Nikolaevsky, Yuri V vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1-0
URS-chT 1959 B42
Krogius, Nikolai V vs Polugaevsky, Lev
1/2-1/2
URS-ch26 1959 B87
Polugaevsky, Lev vs Vasiukov, Evgeni
1-0
URS-chT 1959 E91
Shishov, Mikhail Vasilievich vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-chT 1959 B47
Nikitin, Aleksander S vs Polugaevsky, Lev
0-1
URS-ch26 1959 B96
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