Julian Hodgson

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Julian Hodgson

Chess Bundesliga 2001 at Solingen

Julian Michael Hodgson
Full name
England
Country
25 July 1963 (age 49)
Born
St Asaph, Wales
International Grandmaster
Title
2609 (July 2013)
FIDE rating
2640 (July 2000)
Peak rating
Julian Michael Hodgson (born 25 July 1963[1]) is a British International Grandmaster and
former British Champion of chess.
Hodgson was born in St Asaph, Wales. He first came to the notice of the chess world for his
phenomenal prowess as a junior; he was London under-18 champion at 12 years of age and won
the British Boys under-21 title aged just 14.[2]

Contents

1 Biography
2 Playing style
3 Bibliography
4 Notes
5 References
6 External links

Biography
International Master and Grandmaster titles followed in 1983 and 1988 respectively. Tournament
successes, either shared or outright, included second place Lloyds Bank Open 1986: first place
Benidorm 1986: first place Geneva Open 1988: second place Tel Aviv 1988: first place
Kecskemt 1988 and first place Dos Hermanas 1989. At San Bernardino 1989, he finished first

on tie-break, ahead of strong grandmasters Kiril Georgiev and Ivan Sokolov. A frequent visitor
to Spain's Seville Open, he shared first place in 1986 and 1988. At the Philadelphia World Open
of 1990, he was runner-up behind Igor Glek.
In domestic competition, Hodgson competed regularly at the British Chess Championship,
bagging the Champion's title on four occasions (1991, 1992, 1999, and 2000). By 2000, he was
so at home with the event that he even brought his own executive chair with him, wheeling it
from board to board for maximum comfort. On those occasions that he did not play, his live
commentary sessions and evening lectures were well received by amateurs and competing
masters alike.
In international team chess, he played for the English Olympiad team, winning the bronze team
medal at Novi Sad 1990, and an individual silver medal at Manila 1992. The Manila success
followed a notable win earlier in the year, at the colossal Open tournament held annually in
Cappelle-la-Grande.
In 1997 he won the Canadian Open Chess Championship, and was joint winner of the National
Open in Las Vegas. At Oxford in 1998, he shared victory with Jonny Hector, ahead of John
Nunn and Emil Sutovsky. He was the winner of the North American Open in 1999 and in the
millennium year, recorded his peak Elo rating of 2640. A return visit to the World Open saw him
finish a half point behind the leaders. In 2001, he was a joint winner of the Chicago Open with
Alexander Goldin.
Over a number of years, Hodgson played league chess in both the German Bundesliga and
British 4NCL. Since 2003, he has not played competitive chess, due to teaching commitments.

Playing style
This section uses algebraic notation to describe
chess moves.
Aside from more formal achievements, he developed a sharp, relentless, attacking style of play
and against lesser opponents this frequently resulted in devastating quick wins, earning him the
epithet "Grandmaster of Disaster".
Julian ("Jules") Hodgson's greatest legacy as a chess player may however lie in his resurrection
of an almost forgotten opening system. The Trompowsky Attack (1. d4 Nf6 2. Bg5) had
floundered in the doldrums for many years, prior to his adoption and development of the
opening. In interviews, he reveals that this was born out of laziness and a reluctance to learn
established chess opening theory. It soon became his weapon of choice with the white pieces,
leading to a surprising popularisation of the system, the spawning of a whole generation of
devotees and ironically, a number of theoretical guides, containing a high quota of Hodgson's
own games and analysis. Indeed, his expert treatment of the system once prompted fellow
grandmaster Joe Gallagher to write that it should be renamed the Hodgson-Trompowsky Attack,
a view shared by many other masters. A chess journalist once wrote that Hodgson put the 'romp'
into Trompowsky.
A related, but more obscure version of the system (1.d4 d5 2. Bg5), has been dubbed by some
the Hodgson Attack and by others the Pseudo-Trompowsky or Queen's Bishop Attack.

Bibliography

As an author of chess books and magazine articles, his writing style conveys the same
enthusiasm as his lectures. He is perhaps most renowned for his Attack with Julian Hodgson
series of books, but was also a busy contributor to the Trends series of chess opening booklets
and also the Foxy Openings (VHS, later converted to DVD) series, including Trompowski-Main
Line and Trompowski Success. His more major written works comprise:

Grand Prix Attack: f4 Against the Sicilian, Collier Books, 1985, ISBN 0-02-011430-3
Chess Traveller's Quiz Book. Cadogan Chess, London 1993, ISBN 1-85744-030-7
Quick Chess Knockouts. Everyman Chess, 1996, ISBN 1-85744-045-5
Attack with GM Julian Hodgson, Vol. 1. Hodgson Enterprises, London 1996, ISBN 09529373-0-1
Attack with GM Julian Hodgson, Vol. 2. Hodgson Enterprises, London 1997, ISBN 09529373-1-X
Secrets of the Trompovsky. Hodgson Enterprises, London 1997, ISBN 0-9529373-2-8

Notes
1. ^ Chess History & Chronology - Bill Wall
2. ^ BCM Historical Record of British Champions

References

Olimpbase - Olympiads and other Team event information

British Chess Magazine February 1999, No.2, Vol. 119 - Oxford International Chess
Festival pp 7483.

External links

Julian Hodgson player profile and games at Chessgames.com