This interview was conducted about two weeks after Wisconsin’s William Martz had won the U.S. Open Co-Championship with GM Andrew Soltis. It took place in the chess room of the townhouse apartment that he and his wife, Norma, dwell in Wauwatosa. The walls are lined with bookshelves, each one packed with chess volumes on every subject one might wish to examine, and atop the bookshelves are the many trophies he has accumulated in his 20-odd year career as Wisconsin’s leading player. Also present for the interview (although he declined to comment for publication) was his good friend Dr. Robert Huebner, a name well known to chess fans. The interview ended abruptly, when the tape recorder used to record his answers ran out of tape—much to the embarrassment of this confused editor.
When and where did you begin playing chess?
I began playing chess when I was a senior in high school at about age 15, and I was brought up on the tournaments in Milwaukee. It was the custom in those days to hold the Thanksgiving and Fourth of July tournaments at good hotels; either the Plankington or the Schroeder, or similarly good sites. They were quite well organized and playing conditions were very good when compared with modern swiss-system events. So, I became interested in chess because it seemed a pleasant thing to do. Being competitive by nature, and being a little artistic, one finds chess a good means to express oneself … a good outlet for a competitive spirit.
Where did you attend college?
I attended the University of Wisconsin for three or four years and took a degree in mathematics which I haven’t seen fit to use.
Read more: 1982 Badger Chess Interview with William Martz