22 Facts About Marion Tinsley

Marion Franklin Tinsley was an American mathematician and checkers player.

Marion Tinsley is widely considered to be the greatest checkers player ever.

Marion Tinsley lost only seven games from 1950 until his death in 1995.

Marion Tinsley was born in Ironton, Ohio, but spent his early life in Greenup County.

Marion Tinsley was the son of a school teacher and a farmer who became a sheriff.

Marion Tinsley had a sister and "felt unloved" by his parents.

Marion Tinsley graduated from a Columbus high school at fifteen.

Marion Tinsley had a doctorate from Ohio State University in the mathematical discipline of combinatorial analysis.

Marion Tinsley once claimed to have spent approximately 10,000 hours studying checkers while in graduate school.

Marion Tinsley served as a lay preacher in the Disciples of Christ church.

Marion Tinsley enlisted in the Navy in 1945 and was stationed at Gulfport, Mississippi, where he won the Southern Louisiana Open.

Marion Tinsley won four Ohio State Opens, six Cedar Point Tourneys, and two Canadian Opens.

Marion Tinsley was an eight-time three-move world champion and once in two-move checkers.

Unable to appeal their decision, Marion Tinsley resigned his title as World Champion and immediately indicated his desire to play against Chinook.

The lead programmer Jonathan Schaeffer looked back into the database and discovered that Marion Tinsley picked the only strategy that could have defeated Chinook from that point and Marion Tinsley was able to see the win 64 moves into the future.

Don Lafferty, rated the number two player in the world at the time, replaced Marion Tinsley and fought Chinook to a drawn match at game 20.

Marion Tinsley was diagnosed with pancreatic cancer a week after the match, and died seven months later.

Marion Tinsley died in Humble, Texas, on April 3,1995, at the age of 68.

Marion Tinsley lived in Conyers, Georgia, but was visiting his sister in Texas when he died of cancer.

Marion Tinsley was survived by a twin sister, Mary Clark, who lives in Humble, Texas, and by two brothers, Ed, of Sarasota, Fla.

Marion Tinsley is buried at Greenlawn Cemetery, Columbus, Ohio, next to his father, Edward H Tinsley and his mother, Viola Mae Tinsley.

In 1957, Marion Tinsley appeared as a guest challenger on the television game show To Tell the Truth.