Kasparov utterly dominated the sport from 1985 to 2000. Since his withdrawal from a tournament in Linares, Spain in March 2005, the Russian's absence has left many chess fanatics feeling orphaned.
So there was considerable surprise when he agreed to play in the new Rapid and Blitz tournament in St. Louis, Missouri, which follows closely after the annual Sinquefield Cup competition, a major stop on the world tour, in the same city on the Mississippi River.
Kasparov, who became the youngest world champion ever at age 22 in 1985, is now 54, more than a decade past the age when professional chess players typically retire.
Indeed, in a Facebook posting early Sunday, he made clear that the Rapid and Blitz tournament represents "not an end to my retirement from chess, only a five-day hiatus."
He added, "I have no plans to play after this event."
From Monday to Saturday, the Russian will put aside the business that has kept him busy in retirement -- his vocal and determined opposition to President Vladimir Putin -- to play against some of chess's big guns, like fellow Russian Sergey Karjakin.
The world's current No. 1 player, Magnus Carlsen of Norway, will not be there, however.
Still, the return to competition of the Azerbaijan-born Kasparov -- a man once dubbed the "Beast of Baku," whose epic clashes with Anatoli Karpov are part of chess legend -- has had an explosive impact in the chess world, particularly in St. Louis.
