Photos by Paul Truong
Sponsored by the Webster University and the Susan Polgar Foundation, the competition promised a $15 thousand prize fund as well as free entries to masters and grandmasters as well as prizes for best female player. In fact, to ensure the maximum norm possibilities, foreign grandmasters were offered free hotel accommodation as well.
As is typical for such opens in the US, it was an intense schedule with nine rounds played over the course of six days at the rate of 90 minutes for the entire game and a 30-second increment as of move one.

The top seed was Le Quang Liem (above left), and while he started strong with 3.5/4, including a win over Timur Gareyev (right), he finished with five draws and in fifth place. Gareyev on the other hand had a hit-cold-hot event, and though he too finished on 6.0/9, it came after three wins, then three losses and finally three wins once again.

IM Akshat Chandra came within a half point of a GM norm, though the title will not elude him long

IM Awonder Liang

FM Justus Williams and Jim Voelker
Eckert - Ashwin

White committed an oversight here. Black to play and win.
Click for the solution1...Rxg2+! 2.Kxg2 Bh3+ and White loses his queen to the discovered check.
0-1

WGM Anna Sharevich

The winner's trophy

IM Li Ruifeng (left) played an excellent event and ended with a 2604 performance. Facing him above is GM Jeffery Xiong (2647 FIDE) who also gained some Elo points and will be in the Top 100 in the next ratings list. Both are trained by...

... GM Babakuli Annakov standing here with Susan Polgar

Ray Robson made it to the finish line tied for first
Robson - Rosen

Replay and check the LiveBook here |
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1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 d6 6.0-0 0-0 7.a4 a5 8.Bg5 h6 8...Bb6 9.Nbd2 Ne7 10.Nh4 Bg4 11.Ndf3 d5 12.exd5 Nexd5 13.h3 Bxf3 14.Qxf3 c6 15.Nf5 Qd7 16.Bxd5 Nxd5 17.Qg4 Qe6 18.Be7 g6 19.Nh6+ 9.Bh4 Qe7 10.Nbd2 Be6 11.Re1 Ba7 12.Bb5 g5 13.Nxg5?! hxg5 14.Bxg5 Kg7? 14...Bg4! 15.Nf3 Nd8 16.h3 Bh5 15.d4 Rg8 15...exd4? 16.e5! Nxe5 17.Ne4! 16.Qf3 Bd7 17.Nf1 Kg6 18.h4 Bg4 19.Qg3 Kh7 20.Ne3 20.Bxc6 bxc6 21.Qxg4 Nxg4 22.Bxe7 exd4! 20...Bh5 21.f4? 21.Qh2! Rg6 22.Nd5 Qd8 23.Qh3± 21.Nd5? Nxd5! 22.Bxe7 Rxg3! 23.exd5 Nxe7 24.fxg3 Nxd5-+ 21...exd4 22.Nd5 dxc3+ 23.Kh1 Qe6 24.Nxc7 24.Nxf6+ Qxf6! 25.Bxf6 Rxg3 24...Qg4 25.Qxc3 Bd4 26.Qd3 Rxg5 27.hxg5 Rh8 28.Bxc6 bxc6 29.gxf6 Qh4+? 29...Bf2! 30.Qh3 Kg8 30.Qh3 Qxf6? 31.g4! Kg6 31...Kg7 32.gxh5 32.Rg1! Bxg1 33.Rxg1 Qxf4 34.gxh5+ Kh6 35.Re1 Rg8 36.Qe3 Qxe3 37.Rxe3 Rc8 38.Na6 Ra8 39.e5 Rxa6 40.exd6 c5 41.Rd3 Ra8 42.Rd5 Rd8 43.d7 f5 44.Kg2 Kxh5 45.Rxf5+ Kg4 46.Rd5 Kf4 47.Kf2 Ke4 48.Rd1 Kf4 49.Ke2 Ke4 50.Rd3 c4 51.Rd2 Kf4 52.Rd4+ Kf5 53.Kf3 Ke5 54.Ke3 Ke6 55.Ke4 Ke7 56.Ke5 Rxd7 57.Rxd7+ Kxd7 58.Kd5 Kc7 59.Kxc4 Kc6 60.b3 Kb6 61.Kd5 1–0
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Robson,R | 2670 | Rosen,E | 2382 | 1–0 | 2016 | C54 | SPICE Cup Open 2016 | 5.6 |
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Shawn Swindell and Luisa Fernanda Mercado

When the dust had settled, both Ray Robson and Samuel Sevian were tied for first with 6.5/9. They decided the title on an Armageddon tiebreaker that Sevian won with black.
Ray Robson - Samuel Sevian (Armageddon blitz playoff)
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d3 0-0 6.0-0 d6 7.a4 a6 8.Bg5 Ba7 9.Nbd2 Qe7 10.Re1 Nd8 11.Nf1 Ne6 12.Be3 Bxe3 13.Nxe3 c6 14.g3 Qc7 15.a5 Rd8 16.Qb3 Nc5 17.Qa2 Be6 18.Bxe6 Nxe6 19.Nc4 Re8 20.Rad1 Rad8 21.b4 Nf8 22.Kg2 h6 23.Qc2 Ng6 24.Ne3 d5 25.Nf5 Rd7 26.c4 dxe4 27.dxe4 Rxd1 28.Rxd1 c5 29.Nd6 Rb8 30.Qb2 cxb4 31.Qxb4 b6 32.Rb1 Nd7 33.Qd2 bxa5 34.Ra1 Nc5 35.Nf5 Nxe4 36.Qd5 Nf6 37.Qxa5 Qxc4 38.Qxa6 Qg4 39.Qxf6 Nf4+ 40.Kg1 Ne2+ 41.Kg2 Nf4+ 42.Kg1 Nh3+ 43.Kg2 Qc4 0–1
- Start an analysis engine:
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Robson,R | 2670 | Sevian,S | 2591 | 0–1 | 2016 | C53 | SPICE Cup Open TB 2016 | 1 |
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Winners Samuel Sevian and Ray Robson
Final standings
Rk |
SNo |
Ti. |
Name |
FED |
Rtg |
Pts |
TB |
1 |
8 |
GM |
Sevian Samuel |
USA |
2591 |
6,5 |
48,0 |
2 |
2 |
GM |
Robson Ray |
USA |
2670 |
6,5 |
47,0 |
3 |
7 |
GM |
Nyzhnyk Illya |
UKR |
2607 |
6,0 |
49,0 |
4 |
3 |
GM |
Xiong Jeffery |
USA |
2647 |
6,0 |
49,0 |
5 |
1 |
GM |
Le Quang Liem |
VIE |
2723 |
6,0 |
48,5 |
6 |
5 |
GM |
Gareyev Timur |
USA |
2615 |
6,0 |
48,0 |
7 |
6 |
GM |
Durabayli Vasif |
AZE |
2608 |
6,0 |
46,5 |
8 |
9 |
IM |
Li Ruifeng |
USA |
2538 |
5,5 |
48,5 |
9 |
4 |
GM |
Shimanov Aleksandr |
RUS |
2639 |
5,5 |
46,0 |
10 |
11 |
IM |
Chandra Akshat |
USA |
2490 |
5,5 |
45,5 |
11 |
14 |
GM |
Ashwin Jayaram |
IND |
2468 |
5,5 |
44,5 |
12 |
44 |
GM |
Troff Kayden W |
USA |
2501 |
5,5 |
42,5 |
13 |
18 |
FM |
Kaliksteyn Alexander |
USA |
2412 |
5,5 |
41,5 |
14 |
17 |
IM |
Brown Michael William |
USA |
2431 |
5,0 |
44,0 |
15 |
26 |
|
Grabinsky Aaron |
USA |
2330 |
5,0 |
44,0 |
16 |
10 |
GM |
Kannappan Priyadharshan |
IND |
2525 |
5,0 |
43,0 |
17 |
15 |
IM |
Kiewra Keaton F |
USA |
2454 |
5,0 |
38,0 |
18 |
16 |
IM |
Sukandar Irine Kharisma |
INA |
2432 |
5,0 |
35,0 |
19 |
45 |
GM |
Leon Hoyos Manuel |
MEX |
2488 |
4,5 |
46,5 |
20 |
30 |
|
Rahul Srivatshav P |
IND |
2277 |
4,5 |
42,0 |
Click for complete standings