Chess is one of the oldest games out there and it is still popular today. One of the main reasons for that is because the game is almost perfectly balanced, the only difference is that one player goes first. There are no external forces in play, no luck, just a pure battle of wits between two opponents. The game also teaches us a valuable life lesson – think carefully before you act because your future options or moves are locked and based on your previous choices.

Many players have devoted their lives to mastering chess, thinking about the strategies, and learning how to think ahead of their opponent. And when you think about that is what chess is all about, knowing the best setup strategies, learning to recognize those patterns, and thinking steps ahead of your opponent. Let’s see who are some of the best tacticians in the world of chess and compare their achievements.   

Magnus Carlsen

Chess grandmaster and currently the world champion Magnus was also a two-times winner of rapid chess and four times winner of blitz chess. Carlsen became the world champion back in 2013, by triumphing against Viswanathan Anand and then defending his title against Anand in 2014. He also defended his title against in 2016 against Sergey Karjakin and in 2018 against Fabiano Caruana. All of the chess players mentioned here are currently on the list of top 20 players in the world.

Garry Kasparov

Considered by many the greatest chess player of all time, Kasparov held the number one spot from 1986 until 2005 when he retired. Although Carlsen has surpassed Kasparov points-wise,  Kasparov still holds the record for consecutive victories on professional tournaments, and he even has 11 Chess Oscars. 

After his retirement, Kasparov turned to politics and writing and even joined the movement The Other Russia to oppose Vladimir Putin. In 2008, Kasparov intended to run for president but withdrew from the race due to the political climate, which thwarted the efforts of the opposition to organize effectively, according to Kasparov.  

Bobby Fischer

Bobby is also regarded as one of the greatest players. He became US Chess Champion at the age of 14, and one year later he became a chess master and a candidate for a World Champion, which made him the first 15-year-old to do so, at that time.   

Bobby won World Chess Championship in 1972, and because he was competing against Russian Boris Spassky, the match received a lot more attention than any other match in history. Fischer won and held a title until 1975 when he refused to defend it against Anatoly Karpov, so Karpov became a new champion by default.