Robert Byrne (chess player)

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Robert Eugene Byrne (April 20, 1928 – April 12, 2013) was an American chess grandmaster and author. He was born in Brooklyn, New York, and grew up in New York City as part of the "Collins Kids," a group of promising young players coached by John W. Collins. He studied at Yale University and later taught philosophy at Indiana University before focusing on chess in the early 1970s.

Byrne became an International Master in 1952 and a Grandmaster in 1964. His peak rating was 2605 in July 1973, and his highest world ranking was No. 12 in July 1973. He won the U.S. Championship in 1972 and reached the World Chess Championship Candidates in 1974 after a strong showing in the 1973 Interzonal.

He played for the United States in nine Chess Olympiads from 1952 to 1976, winning seven medals. From 1972 to 2006, he was The New York Times chess columnist, with his final column appearing in 2006. He continued to compete and write about chess, winning tournaments later in life and contributing to Chess Life magazine. He helped develop several opening ideas, including the Be3 move against the Najdorf Sicilian and the Byrne Variation of the King's Indian Defense.

Byrne was inducted into the U.S. Chess Hall of Fame in 1994. He died in Ossining, New York, in 2013 after suffering from Parkinson's disease.