Born in 1951, John Leonard Watson is a distinguished American chess player and writer who achieved the International Master title in 1979.
Watson was honored with an induction into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 2022, alongside GM James Tarjan and the late Daniel Willard Fiske. He is also a laureate of the Frank J. Marshall Award from the US Chess Federation and was welcomed into the Colorado Chess Hall of Fame in 2015.
Watson was brought into this world in Milwaukee and spent his childhood in Omaha, Nebraska. He pursued his education at Brownell-Talbot, Harvard, and the University of California, San Diego, earning a degree in engineering. He has claimed victory in numerous chess competitions, including the inaugural US National High School Chess Championship and the American Open. As a member of Hughes Aircraft’s engineering team, Watson, alongside his colleagues M.I. Parr and T. G. Vishwanath, co-invented and secured a patent for the algorithm enabling mobile phones to operate in valleys.
Watson is a prominent figure in the world of chess, both as a theorist and a writer. He has more than thirty books to his credit, covering various facets of chess. His 1999 publication, Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy, received the British Chess Federation’s Book of the Year award and the United States Chess Federation Book of the Year accolade. The follow-up volume, Chess Strategy in Action, was awarded the Chesscafe Book of the Year.
These pair of books delve into and theorize the radical transformation of chess since the dawn of the 20th century. They also examine how the traditional and supposed ‘tried-and-true’ guidelines for gameplay have been supplanted by more expansive and transformative strategies on the chessboard. These literary works have been rendered in multiple languages. On a more casual note, Watson penned the Chessman comic book series, adorned with illustrations by Chris Hendrickson and Svein Myreng.
John Watson stands as one of the most influential authors in the annals of American chess literature. His significant contributions over the past forty years include revolutionary works such as Secrets of Modern Chess Strategy (2002) and Chess Strategy in Action (2003). He has also written influential treatises on the English Opening and French Defense. Watson, a regular contributor to Chess Life since the 1970s, is celebrated for his perceptive book critiques. As an early adopter of internet journalism, he hosted weekly shows like “Chess Talk with John Watson” on the Internet Chess Club. Holding the title of International Master, Watson was the inaugural U.S. National High School champion and competed in the U.S. Chess Championship. His experiences span a lifetime of teaching and coaching chess.
