In 1907 he played a match against World Champion Emanuel Lasker for the title and lost eight games, winning none and drawing seven.

They played their match in New York City, Philadelphia, Washington, D.C., Baltimore, Chicago, and Memphis from January 26 to April 8, 1907.

In 1909, he agreed to play a match with then young Cuban chess player José Capablanca and, to most people's surprise, lost eight games, drew fourteen, and won only one.

After this defeat, Marshall did not resent Capablanca; instead, he realized the young man had immense talent and deserved recognition.

The American champion worked hard to ensure Capablanca had the chance to play at the highest levels of competition.

Marshall insisted that Capablanca be permitted to enter the San Sebastián tournament in 1911, an exclusive championship promising to be one of the strongest yet in history.

Chess historian Edward Winter has questioned this, stating that the earliest known sources that support this story are Marshall's autobiography and an article by Robert Lewis Taylor in the June 15, 1940, issue of The New Yorker.

In 1922, Marshall played 155 games simultaneously at the National Club in Montreal, Canada, a world record.

Even though Capablanca won in a game widely regarded as a typical example of his defensive genius,[7] Marshall's opening idea became quite popular.

In his famous game against Stepan Levitsky, Marshall concluded with a sham sacrifice of his queen, allowing it to be captured three different ways, all of which would lead to imminent checkmate or an endgame with a losing disadvantage for white.