Grandmaster Joel Benjamin

Grandmaster Joel Benjamin was born March 11, 1964 in New York's Big Apple. At the tender age of 13 he broke Bobby Fischer's record for becoming the youngest U.S. Master up to that time. As a junior player, Joel accomplished the rare trifecta of winning the National Elementary title (1976), the National Junior High crown (1978), and the National High School titles (1980-81).

Other triumphs have included the U.S. Junior Championship in 1980 and 1982 and the U.S. Open Championship in 1985 a year in which Joel also found time to graduate from Yale University with a History degree. He earned the grandmaster title a year later in 1986. Joel was U.S. Champion in 1987 and 1997 and for many years ran the humorous magazine Chess Chow. Benjamin appeared in the movie "Searching for Bobby Fischer" and was hired by IBM as a consultant for supercomputer Deep Blue in its successful match against Garry Kasparov in 1997.

In 1998 the personable New Yorker was voted "Grandmaster of the Year" by the U.S. Chess Federation and delighted the luncheon audience by quoting Leonardo di Caprio's line from the classic scene at the Titanic film "I'm King of the World".

View his rating and tournament history.