
The 2015 U.S. Championship is an elite national championship event, featuring 12 of the strongest chess players in America. Over the course of eleven rounds, these competitors will battle for $175,000 in prize money, qualification into the World Championship cycle, and the coveted title of 2015 U.S. Champion.
U.S. Chess Championship - Round Four
Table |
White |
Rating |
Black |
Rating |
Result |
1 |
GM Troff, Kayden W |
2532 |
GM Shankland, Samuel L |
2661 |
½-½ |
2 |
GM Sevian, Samuel |
2531 |
GM Naroditsky, Daniel |
2633 |
½-½ |
3 |
GM Nakamura, Hikaru |
2798 |
GM So, Wesley |
2788 |
½-½ |
4 |
GM Gareev, Timur |
2604 |
GM Kamsky, Gata |
2683 |
½-½ |
5 |
GM Robson, Ray |
2656 |
GM Akobian, Varuzhan |
2622 |
½-½ |
6 |
GM Onischuk, Alexander |
2665 |
GM Holt, Conrad |
2530 |
½-½ |
Troff, Kayden ½-½ Shankland, Samuel
Not much happened in this game. White obtained very little from the opening, and after a subsequent mistake the game was completely equal.

Shankland thought after cxd5 White wasn't playing for anything, and neither was he
Sevian, Samuel ½-½ Naroditsky, Daniel
A very deep preparation by Naroditsky in the Marshall Gambit. Sevian had to be a little careful not to fall into a worse position, but he handled the position fine and Naroditsky saw himself forced to repeat.
Nakamura, Hikaru ½-½ So, Wesley
The epic game between the top players was not of the highest quality:
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1.c4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 b6 8.Bd3 Bb7 9.0-0 Nbd7 10.Bg3 c5 11.cxd5 Nxd5 12.Nxd5 Bxd5 13.Qe2 cxd4 14.Nxd4 Bf6 15.Rfd1 Bxd4 16.exd4 Nb8 17.Rac1 Nc6 18.Bb5 18.Qd2 18...Rc8 19.Rc3 19.Ba6? Nxd4! 19...Ne7 20.Ba6 Rxc3 21.bxc3 Nf5 22.Bf4 Qh4!? 23.Bc1 Rd8 24.f3 Rd7 24...Qe7 25.Bd3 Rc7 26.Bd2 26.Bxf5?! exf5 27.Qe8+ Kh7 28.Qe5?! Re7! 29.Qxf5+ g6 30.Qd3 Re1+ 31.Rxe1 Qxe1+ 32.Qf1 Qxc3 26...Qd8 27.Rc1 Qf6 27...Qd6 28.a4 g5?! 28...Rc8 29.f4 29.Rf1 29...gxf4 30.Qf2 Nh4 30...f3 31.c4 Bb7 32.d5 Ng7 31.Bxf4? 31.Qxf4 Qg7 32.Be4 Bxe4 33.Qxe4 Nf5 34.Rf1 31...Nf3+ 32.gxf3 Qxf4 33.Qg3+ Qxg3+ 34.hxg3 Bxf3 35.Kf2 Bc6 36.Ra1 f6 37.a5 b5 38.c4 38.a6 Bd7 39.Rb1 38...bxc4 39.Bxc4 Kf7 40.Ke3 Ke7 40...f5 41.Rb1 41.g4! Kd6 42.Rf1 Bg2 43.Rf2 Rxc4 44.Rxg2 41...Rc8 42.g4 Kd6 43.Ba6! Rg8 44.Rf1 Rxg4 45.Rxf6 Re4+ 46.Kd3 Rh4 47.Bc4 Bd5 48.Bxd5 Kxd5 49.Rf7 Rxd4+ 50.Ke3 Ra4 51.Rxa7 Ra3+ 52.Kf2 Ke4 53.Rh7 Ra2+ 54.Kf1 Kf3 55.Rf7+ Ke3 56.Re7 ½–½
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Nakamura,H | 2798 | So,W | 2788 | ½–½ | 2015 | D58 | U.S. Championship 2015 | 4 |
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There was no doubt which one was the anticipated game of the day
Gareev, Timur ½-½ Kamsky, Gata
An exciting game, but not exactly perfectly played
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1.e4 c5 2.b4 cxb4 3.Nf3 d6 3...d5 4.d4 Nf6 5.Bd3 g6 6.a3 bxa3 7.0-0 Bg7 8.h3 0-0 9.Bg5 9.Nxa3 9...Nc6 10.Nc3 10.c3 10...Nd7 10...Nb4 11.Nd5 h6 12.Bh4 Nb6 12...g5 13.Bxg5 hxg5 14.Nxg5 Nf6 15.e5! Ng4 13.c3 Bd7 13...Be6 14.Qb3 f5!? 14.Rxa3 Re8 14...Nxd5 15.exd5 Na5 16.c4 15.Re1 15.Ne3 15...Rc8 16.Re3 16.Qa1 16...Nxd5 17.exd5 Na5 18.Nd2 Bf6 18...b6 19.Bg3?! 19.Bxf6 exf6 20.Rxe8+ Bxe8 21.Qg4 19...b6 20.Qf3 Rc7 21.Bf4 Bg7 22.c4 e5!? 23.dxe6 Rxe6 24.d5 Rxe3 25.Qxe3 Qf8? 25...Bc8 26.Bxh6 Re7 27.Qf4 Re1+ 28.Nf1 Qe7 26.Rxa5? 26.Qg3 26...bxa5 27.Ne4 a4? 27...Rb7 28.Bxd6 Qe8 29.c5 a4! 30.c6 Bxc6 31.dxc6 Qxc6 28.Bxd6 Qd8 29.c5! a3 30.Bc4 Bf5? 30...Bb5! 31.Ba2 31.Bxb5?? a2 31...Re7! 31.Ng3? 31.Bxc7 Qxc7 32.d6 Qc6 33.Ng3 31...Rd7 32.Nxf5 gxf5 33.Qxa3 Rxd6! 34.cxd6 Be5 35.Qxa7 Qxd6 36.Qe3 Kg7 37.Qf3 f4 38.Bd3 Qf6 39.Qe4 Bd6 40.Kf1 Qa1+ 41.Bb1 Qf6 42.Qh7+ Kf8 43.Qd3 Kg7 44.Qe4 Kf8 ½–½
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Gareev,T | 2599 | Kamsky,G | 2680 | ½–½ | 2015 | B20 | U.S. Championship 2015 | 4 |
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Gata Kamsky couldn't help but giving his biggest smile upon seeing 2.b4

Robson, Ray ½-½ Akobian, Varuzhan
Not too much happened in this Petroff.
Onischuk, Alexander ½-½ Holt, Conrad
After an opening mistake Holt found himself in a very difficult situation. Onischuk usually is a very technical and precise player, but he showed almost no technique today and let Holt equalize very easily.
Pairings for Round Five
Table |
White |
Rating |
Black |
Rating |
Result |
1 |
GM Holt, Conrad |
2530 |
GM Troff, Kayden W |
2532 |
|
2 |
GM Akobian, Varuzhan |
2622 |
GM Onischuk, Alexander |
2665 |
|
3 |
GM Kamsky, Gata |
2683 |
GM Robson, Ray |
2656 |
|
4 |
GM So, Wesley |
2788 |
GM Gareev, Timur |
2604 |
|
5 |
GM Naroditsky, Daniel |
2633 |
GM Nakamura, Hikaru |
2798 |
|
6 |
GM Shankland, Samuel L |
2661 |
GM Sevian, Samuel |
2531 |
|
Standings

Replay Round Four Games

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1.c4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Be7 4.Nf3 Nf6 5.Bg5 h6 6.Bh4 0-0 7.e3 b6 8.Bd3 Bb7 9.0-0 Nbd7 10.Bg3 c5 11.cxd5 Nxd5 12.Nxd5 Bxd5 13.Qe2 cxd4 14.Nxd4 Bf6 15.Rfd1 Bxd4 16.exd4 Nb8 17.Rac1 Nc6 18.Bb5 Rc8 19.Rc3 Ne7 20.Ba6 Rxc3 21.bxc3 Nf5 22.Bf4 Qh4 23.Bc1 Rd8 24.f3 Rd7 25.Bd3 Rc7 26.Bd2 Qd8 27.Rc1 Qf6 28.a4 g5 29.f4 gxf4 30.Qf2 Nh4 31.Bxf4 Nf3+ 32.gxf3 Qxf4 33.Qg3+ Qxg3+ 34.hxg3 Bxf3 35.Kf2 Bc6 36.Ra1 f6 37.a5 b5 38.c4 bxc4 39.Bxc4 Kf7 40.Ke3 Ke7 41.Rb1 Rc8 42.g4 Kd6 43.Ba6 Rg8 44.Rf1 Rxg4 45.Rxf6 Re4+ 46.Kd3 Rh4 47.Bc4 Bd5 48.Bxd5 Kxd5 49.Rf7 Rxd4+ 50.Ke3 Ra4 51.Rxa7 Ra3+ 52.Kf2 Ke4 53.Rh7 Ra2+ 54.Kf1 Kf3 55.Rf7+ Ke3 56.Re7 ½–½
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Nakamura,H | 2798 | So,W | 2788 | ½–½ | 2015 | D58 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
Robson,R | 2656 | Akobian,V | 2622 | ½–½ | 2015 | C42 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
Gareev,T | 2604 | Kamsky,G | 2683 | ½–½ | 2015 | B20 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
Onischuk,A | 2665 | Holt,C | 2530 | ½–½ | 2015 | D19 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
Troff,K | 2532 | Shankland,S | 2661 | ½–½ | 2015 | E12 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
Sevian,S | 2531 | Naroditsky,D | 2633 | ½–½ | 2015 | C89 | ch-USA 2015 | 4 |
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U.S. Women's Championship - Round Four
Table |
White |
Rating |
Black |
Rating |
Result |
1 |
WCM Virkud, Apurva |
2132 |
GM Krush, Irina |
2477 |
0-1 |
2 |
IM Goletiani, Rusudan |
2311 |
IM Paikidze, Nazi |
2333 |
½-½ |
3 |
WGM Sharevich, Anna |
2267 |
WIM Ni, Viktorija |
2188 |
½-½ |
4 |
WIM Wang, Annie |
1901 |
WGM Foisor, Sabina |
2235 |
0-1 |
5 |
FM Melekhina, Alisa |
2235 |
WGM Nemcova, Katerina |
2279 |
0-1 |
6 |
WGM Abrahamyan, Tatev |
2322 |
WFM Yu, Jennifer R |
2180 |
1-0 |
Virkud, Apurva 0-1 Krush, Irina
Virkud, after being worse from the opening, seemed to be holding her own against the reigning champion. However she completely missed a relatively easy tactical sequence:
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32.Kc1 Ka7 33.Bf1? 33.b4= 33...g4 34.f4 Nd7 35.Be2 Nc5! 36.Bxg4 Bxe4!? 36...Qxd4 37.Qxd4 Nb3+ 38.Kc2 Nxd4+ 39.Kd3 Nb5 40.Bxh3 36...Nxe4! 37.Qe3 Nxg3! 37.Bf3?? Qxd4 38.Qxd4 Nb3+ 39.Kd1 Bxf3+ 0–1
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Virkud,A | 2132 | Krush,I | 2477 | 0–1 | 2015 | E32 | ch-USA w 2015 | 4 |
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Abrahamyan, Tatev 1-0 Yu, Jennifer
A very clean game from Abrahamyan, who basically outplayed her opponent from the start of the game to the very end. The purple haired player was considered one of the favorites before the start of the event, and she easily outclassed one of the younger participants.

A nice two wins in a row for Tatev
Sharevich, Anna ½-½ Ni, Viktorja
White did not understand the opening, and was probably close to strategically lost. Black misplayed it badly, and was then completely lost. Somehow the game was turned around, and Black was winning. Eventually, of course, the game was drawn.
Melekhina, Alisa 0-1 Nemcova, Katerina
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1.e4 c5 2.c3 Nf6 3.e5 Nd5 4.Nf3 d6 5.d4 cxd4 6.Qxd4 e6 7.Nbd2 a6 8.Nc4 Nc6 9.Qe4 Nxc3!? 9...dxe5 10.Ncxe5 Nxe5 11.Nxe5 Bd6 10.bxc3 d5 11.Qe3 dxc4 12.Bxc4 Qa5 12...Qc7 13.0-0 Be7 14.Bd2 Bd7 15.Bd3 Rc8 16.a4 16.Rab1 Qc7 17.Qe4 16...Qc7 17.Qe4 Na5 18.Qg4 Kf8 19.Rad1 19.Be3 Nc4 20.Bd4 19...Nc4 20.Bg5 Bxg5 21.Qxg5 Nb2 22.Rd2 Nxd3 23.Rxd3 Bxa4 24.Rd4 h6 25.Qg3 25.Qf4 25...Be8 25...Bc6 26.Rg4?! 26.Rc1 26...Rg8?! 26...Qxc3 27.Rxg7 Rc4! 27.c4 f5 28.Rd4 g5! 29.h4 Qe7 29...gxh4 30.Qxh4 Rg6 30.Qh2? 30.hxg5 hxg5 31.Rd6 30...g4 31.Ne1 g3! 32.Qh3 32.fxg3 Qc5 32...Rd8 33.Nf3 Rxd4 34.Nxd4 Rg4 35.Nf3 Bc6 35...Qc5! 36.fxg3 Qc5+ 37.Kh1 Bxf3? 37...a5 38.gxf3 Rxc4 39.Qg2 Rc2 40.Qg1 Qxg1+ 40...a5 41.Kxg1 Ke7 41...b5 42.Ra1 Rc5 43.Rb1 b5 44.Ra1 Rc6 45.g4 fxg4 46.fxg4 b4 47.Kf2 b3 48.Ke3 Rc4! 49.g5 49.Rxa6 Rxg4 50.Rb6 Rxh4 49...hxg5 50.hxg5 b2 51.Rb1 Rb4 52.Kd3 Kf7 53.Kc3 a5 54.Kc2 Kg6 55.Rf1 b1Q+ 56.Rxb1 Rxb1 57.Kxb1 Kxg5 0–1
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Melekhina,A | 2235 | Nemcova,K | 2279 | 0–1 | 2015 | B22 | U.S. Womens Championship 2015 | 4 |
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Wang, Annie 0-1 Foisor, Sabina
Much like in the game of Abrahamyan-Yu, Foisor simply dominated the game from beginning to end. It was actually a miracle that Wang was able to make as many moves as she made before having to resign.

Sabina won a very one-sided game
Goletiani, Rusudan ½-½ Paikidze, Nazi
An important result for the top of the standings. Goletiani got an excellent position from the opening, using a typical double Fianchetto Reti. Paikidze wasn't as aware strategically of the nuances of the position, and allowed Goletiani a big advantage. Unfortunately for Goletiani, she cashed in her chips too quickly, and took a pawn when she didn't need to, giving Black a lot of counterplay. It proved sufficient to obtain a draw.
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1.Nf3 d5 2.c4 e6 3.g3 Nf6 4.Bg2 Be7 5.0-0 0-0 6.b3 b6 7.Bb2 Bb7 8.e3 c5 9.Nc3 Nc6 9...dxc4 10.bxc4 Nc6 10.cxd5 exd5 10...Nxd5 11.Nxd5 Qxd5 12.d4 11.d4 Rc8 12.Rc1 a6? 12...Re8 13.Ne2?! 13.dxc5 bxc5 13...Nb8?! 13...a5 14.Ne5 Nbd7 15.Nf4 Rc7 16.Nxd7 Rxd7 17.Nd3 Rc7 18.dxc5 Bxc5 19.Nxc5 bxc5 20.Be5 Rc8 21.Bh3?! 21.Qe2 21...Rc6 22.Bxf6 Qxf6 23.Qxd5 Rc7 24.Qf5 Qc6 25.f3 Bc8 26.Qh5 g6 27.Qh4 Bxh3 28.Qxh3 Rd8 29.Rc2 Rd3 30.e4 30.Qh6 30...c4!? 30...a5 31.bxc4 Qb6+ 32.Kg2 Qd4 33.Rff2 Rxc4 34.Rxc4 Qxc4 35.Qh4 Qc3 36.Qf4 Kg7 37.e5 Qc6 38.Rd2 Qd5 39.Rb2 Qe6 40.Qf6+ Qxf6 41.exf6+ Kxf6 42.Rb6+ Kg7 43.Rxa6 Rd2+ 44.Kh3 h5 45.g4 hxg4+ 46.fxg4 Rd3+ 47.Kg2 Rd2+ 48.Kg3 Rd3+ 49.Kg2 Rd2+ 50.Kg3 Rd3+ 51.Kf4 Rh3 52.a4 Rxh2 53.g5 Rh4+ 54.Kg3 Rc4 55.Ra7 Rc5 56.Kf4 Rc4+ 57.Kf3 ½–½
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Goletiani,R | 2311 | Paikidze,N | 2333 | ½–½ | 2015 | A14 | U.S. Womens Championship 2015 | 4 |
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Pairings for Round Five
Table |
White |
Rating |
Black |
Rating |
1 |
WFM Yu, Jennifer R |
2180 |
WCM Virkud, Apurva |
2132 |
2 |
WGM Nemcova, Katerina |
2279 |
WGM Abrahamyan, Tatev |
2322 |
3 |
WGM Foisor, Sabina |
2235 |
FM Melekhina, Alisa |
2235 |
4 |
WIM Ni, Viktorija |
2188 |
WIM Wang, Annie |
1901 |
5 |
IM Paikidze, Nazi |
2333 |
WGM Sharevich, Anna |
2267 |
6 |
GM Krush, Irina |
2477 |
IM Goletiani, Rusudan |
2311 |
Standings

Replay Round Four Games

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- Start an analysis engine:
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Commentary provided for the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis by Josh Friedel:
Joshua Friedel
Josh was born in 1986 in New Hampshire, USA and is currently living in Wisconsin. He obtained his international master title in 2005 and his grandmaster in 2008. He has participated in six US Championships, including a tie for fourth in 2008. Major Open tournament victories include: the 2003 Eastern Open, 2005 Berkeley Masters, 2008 National Open, 2009 Edmonton International, 2009 North American Open, 2010 Saint Louis Open, 2010 American Open, 2013 Chicago Open.
Josh will be annotating the games for the Saint Louis Chess Club. |
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Photos by Lennart Ootes