Alerts Sign-up
MICHIGAN CITY, Indiana - Dr. Tansel Turgut is known to his patients and colleagues at Franciscan Health Michigan City as a cardiologist. However, in the global chess community, he is recognized as an international chess player and a FIDE Master. In 2023, Dr. Turgut won the Indiana state chess championship, adding to his previous titles from Louisiana in 1997 and Michigan in 1998.
Dr. Turgut can play chess blindfolded by visualizing the board and moves mentally. He sees a connection between medicine and chess, which his wife described aptly: "She said surgeons are engineers with empathy," he shared.
Originating from Turkey, Dr. Turgut taught himself chess as a preteen after encountering it in a newspaper. After high school, he became a champion in Ankara and played for the Turkish Olympic chess team in 2000.
During his courtship with his wife, they played one game of chess that ended in a draw. "I knew better than to beat her if we were going to keep dating," he recalled.
After taking time off when his children were young, Dr. Turgut taught his eldest son Aydin to play at age three. Aydin became the U.S. champion for all age groups at seven and the youngest Indiana state champion at fourteen.
Dr. Turgut recounted almost competing against his son for the Indiana title until advised otherwise by his wife: "My wife called and said I could not win that game, so I came in second," he laughed.
In 2007, Dr. Turgut earned the title of International Correspondence Chess Grandmaster—the only person from Turkey with this distinction then—and plays correspondence games online globally: "It can take two to three years for a game," he noted.
While technology has made computer games challenging, Dr. Turgut finds relaxation in chess: "It's like meditation," he said.
His colleague Dr. William Espar organized an event where fifty people played against Dr. Turgut simultaneously at a local coffee shop: "It's fun for every age," remarked Dr. Turgut.
He advocates for chess as a positive hobby across ages: "Life is not always smooth and it teaches coping skills for kids... For older adults... many live into their hundreds."
