US Championship playoff: Wesley So is 2017 champion

by Albert Silver

I like it! | 24 Comments

4/11/2017 – What a fantastic US Championship it has been, and the last day presented a very exciting playoff match between Wesley So and Alexander Onischuk. After two very exciting games, with game one seeing pawns tossed left and right, and game two almost saw Onischuk come back in a powerful endgame display, it was Wesley So’s turn among the Big Three to hoist the winner trophy. Final report.

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All photos by Lennart Ootes

Wesley So’s win at the 2017 US Championship marks once more the incredible streak he has been enjoying since mid-2016. True, he has now extended his streak of undefeated games to 67, which is remarkable in and of itself, though not unheard of. The biggest issue when compiling such runs is the quality of opposition after all. Sam Shankland himself, one of the participants in this year’s final, had a similar streak extending through 69 games back in 2014-2015, including the Olympiad, the Millionaire Open, and Tata Steel Challengers. However, Wesley So, has not only been playing almost exclusively elite opposition, but he has also been winning every single event he has been in during this streak! This has included the Sinquefield Cup, the Olympic gold, the London Classic, Tata Steel (ahead of Magnus Carlsen), and now the US Championship, in its what was possibly its strongest field ever. Of course, all streaks must end some time, and he certainly faced moments when it seemed as if that day was the day, but ultimately he prevailed.

For those curious as to what his next event is, it will be the Gashimov Memorial starting April 20, But that tale will be reported here at ChessBase soone enough, back to the US Championship!

The colorful setup for the playoff is prepared and ready

Here are the trophies where the players hope to see their names inscribed. Alexander Onischuk has already won it in 2006.

Grandmasters love a good position to debate..... ok, not just grandmasters

Prior to the picking of colors, Yasser Seirawan explained that in a two-game situation, he felt that having black in the first game was clearly desirable. It mean that should things go bad in game one, you could look forward to having white in game two, and if things go well in game one with black, you can control the battle better with white to avoid nasty comebacks. Wesley So got white in game one.

The game is afoot!

In a very exciting game, pawns were chucked as if there were no tomorrow, yet the engines could not find anything to fault, and despite two-pawn deficits, declared the game equal. And no, this was not because of some inevitable repetition in their main lines.

Wesley So vs Alexander Onischuk

A disappointing result for Onischuk, though it must be said he usually favors the quiet technical positions over the middlegame madness that reigned on the board in game one. Still, it did show he was going to play with a positive attitude and not hesitate to take his chances. This is invariably the right approach. No one is suggesting recklessness and machismo, but a player will sleep far better if he takes his chances and fails, than wondering what might have happened had he given it a go, but chickened out.

My turn to have white!

Wesley So's stepmother, Lotis Key, watches the game while reading. The title of the book is "The American Miracle".

Game two saw Alexander Onischuk achieve a very nice middlegame/endgame with a powerful pair of bishops. Wesley So failed to respond best, and found himself in a losing position for a couple of moves. Alexander Onischuk failed to find the blows, and eventually the advantage dissipated. Had he won, the title would have been decided by an Armageddon blitz game.

Alexander Onischuk vs Wesley So

Wesley So wins the 2017 US Championship

Sabina Foisor won the 2017 US Women's championship

Rex Sinquefield, the great benefactor of US chess

Men's standings after eleven rounds

(Click for full size)

Women's standings after eleven rounds

(click for full size)

US Championship pairings/results

Round 1 on 2017/03/29 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	½ - ½	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	1 - 0	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
3	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
4	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	½ - ½	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
5	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	½ - ½	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
6	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	0 - 1	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
Round 2 on 2017/03/30 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2817	GM	Caruana Fabiano	½ - ½	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
2	8	2674	GM	Xiong Jeffery	½ - ½	GM	Robson Ray	2668	6
3	9	2659	GM	Kamsky Gata	0 - 1	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2645	5
4	10	2646	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	½ - ½	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	2605	4
5	11	2556	GM	Shabalov Alexander	0 - 1	GM	Onischuk Alexander	2667	3
6	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	½ - ½	GM	So Wesley	2822	2
Round 3 on 2017/03/31 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	½ - ½	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Shankland Samuel L	2666	1
3	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	1 - 0	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
4	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	0 - 1	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
5	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	1 - 0	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
6	7	2793	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	½ - ½	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
Round 4 on 2017/04/01 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2817	GM	Caruana Fabiano	½ - ½	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
2	9	2659	GM	Kamsky Gata	½ - ½	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
3	10	2646	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	½ - ½	GM	Robson Ray	2668	6
4	11	2556	GM	Shabalov Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2645	5
5	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	½ - ½	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	2605	4
6	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	1 - 0	GM	Onischuk Alexander	2667	3
Round 5 on 2017/04/02 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	½ - ½	GM	So Wesley	2822	2
3	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	1 - 0	GM	Shankland Samuel L	2666	1
4	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	1 - 0	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
5	7	2793	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	½ - ½	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
6	8	2674	GM	Xiong Jeffery	0 - 1	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
Round 6 on 2017/04/04 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2817	GM	Caruana Fabiano	1 - 0	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
2	10	2646	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	½ - ½	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
3	11	2556	GM	Shabalov Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
4	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	1 - 0	GM	Robson Ray	2668	6
5	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	½ - ½	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2645	5
6	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	2605	4
Round 7 on 2017/04/05 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	1 - 0	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	½ - ½	GM	Onischuk Alexander	2667	3
3	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	½ - ½	GM	So Wesley	2822	2
4	7	2793	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	½ - ½	GM	Shankland Samuel L	2666	1
5	8	2674	GM	Xiong Jeffery	0 - 1	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
6	9	2659	GM	Kamsky Gata	1 - 0	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
Round 8 on 2017/04/06 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2817	GM	Caruana Fabiano	1 - 0	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
2	11	2556	GM	Shabalov Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
3	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	0 - 1	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
4	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	½ - ½	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
5	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	1 - 0	GM	Robson Ray	2668	6
6	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	0 - 1	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2645	5
Round 9 on 2017/04/07 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	1 - 0	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	½ - ½	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	2605	4
3	7	2793	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	0 - 1	GM	Onischuk Alexander	2667	3
4	8	2674	GM	Xiong Jeffery	0 - 1	GM	So Wesley	2822	2
5	9	2659	GM	Kamsky Gata	½ - ½	GM	Shankland Samuel L	2666	1
6	10	2646	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	½ - ½	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
Round 10 on 2017/04/08 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2817	GM	Caruana Fabiano	1 - 0	GM	Shabalov Alexander	2556	11
2	1	2666	GM	Shankland Samuel L	½ - ½	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	2646	10
3	2	2822	GM	So Wesley	½ - ½	GM	Kamsky Gata	2659	9
4	3	2667	GM	Onischuk Alexander	1 - 0	GM	Xiong Jeffery	2674	8
5	4	2605	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	0 - 1	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	2793	7
6	5	2645	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	½ - ½	GM	Robson Ray	2668	6
Round 11 on 2017/04/09 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	6	2668	GM	Robson Ray	0 - 1	GM	Caruana Fabiano	2817	12
2	7	2793	GM	Nakamura Hikaru	1 - 0	GM	Akobian Varuzhan	2645	5
3	8	2674	GM	Xiong Jeffery	½ - ½	GM	Zherebukh Yaroslav	2605	4
4	9	2659	GM	Kamsky Gata	½ - ½	GM	Onischuk Alexander	2667	3
5	10	2646	GM	Naroditsky Daniel	½ - ½	GM	So Wesley	2822	2
6	11	2556	GM	Shabalov Alexander	½ - ½	GM	Shankland Samuel L	2666	1

US Women's Championship pairings/results

Round 1 on 2017/03/29 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	½ - ½	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	½ - ½	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
3	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
4	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	1 - 0	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
5	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	1 - 0	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
6	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	½ - ½	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
Round 2 on 2017/03/30 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2359	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	0 - 1	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
2	8	2451	IM	Zatonskih Anna	1 - 0	WIM	Nguyen Emily	2173	6
3	9	2262	WFM	Virkud Apurva	1 - 0	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	2196	5
4	10	2234	WFM	Yip Carissa	½ - ½	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	2364	4
5	11	2444	GM	Krush Irina	1 - 0	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	2272	3
6	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	½ - ½	WCM	Feng Maggie	2162	2
Round 3 on 2017/03/31 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	½ - ½	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2257	1
3	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	0 - 1	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
4	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	½ - ½	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
5	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	0 - 1	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
6	7	2369	IM	Paikidze Nazi	0 - 1	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
Round 4 on 2017/04/01 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2359	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	½ - ½	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
2	9	2262	WFM	Virkud Apurva	0 - 1	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
3	10	2234	WFM	Yip Carissa	1 - 0	WIM	Nguyen Emily	2173	6
4	11	2444	GM	Krush Irina	0 - 1	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	2196	5
5	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	½ - ½	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	2364	4
6	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	1 - 0	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	2272	3
Round 5 on 2017/04/02 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	1 - 0	WCM	Feng Maggie	2162	2
3	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	0 - 1	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2257	1
4	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	0 - 1	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
5	7	2369	IM	Paikidze Nazi	1 - 0	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
6	8	2451	IM	Zatonskih Anna	1 - 0	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
Round 6 on 2017/04/04 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2359	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	1 - 0	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
2	10	2234	WFM	Yip Carissa	1 - 0	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
3	11	2444	GM	Krush Irina	0 - 1	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
4	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	1 - 0	WIM	Nguyen Emily	2173	6
5	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	1 - 0	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	2196	5
6	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	2364	4
Round 7 on 2017/04/05 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	½ - ½	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	½ - ½	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	2272	3
3	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	0 - 1	WCM	Feng Maggie	2162	2
4	7	2369	IM	Paikidze Nazi	½ - ½	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2257	1
5	8	2451	IM	Zatonskih Anna	½ - ½	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
6	9	2262	WFM	Virkud Apurva	1 - 0	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
Round 8 on 2017/04/06 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2359	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	1 - 0	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
2	11	2444	GM	Krush Irina	1 - 0	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
3	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	½ - ½	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
4	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	½ - ½	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
5	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	WIM	Nguyen Emily	2173	6
6	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	½ - ½	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	2196	5
Round 9 on 2017/04/07 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	½ - ½	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	0 - 1	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	2364	4
3	7	2369	IM	Paikidze Nazi	½ - ½	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	2272	3
4	8	2451	IM	Zatonskih Anna	1 - 0	WCM	Feng Maggie	2162	2
5	9	2262	WFM	Virkud Apurva	1 - 0	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2257	1
6	10	2234	WFM	Yip Carissa	½ - ½	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
Round 10 on 2017/04/08 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	12	2359	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	½ - ½	GM	Krush Irina	2444	11
2	1	2257	WGM	Sharevich Anna	1 - 0	WFM	Yip Carissa	2234	10
3	2	2162	WCM	Feng Maggie	½ - ½	WFM	Virkud Apurva	2262	9
4	3	2272	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	1 - 0	IM	Zatonskih Anna	2451	8
5	4	2364	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	0 - 1	IM	Paikidze Nazi	2369	7
6	5	2196	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	1 - 0	WIM	Nguyen Emily	2173	6
Round 11 on 2017/04/09 at 2 PM (EST)
Bo.	No.	Rtg		Name	Result		Name	Rtg	No.
1	6	2173	WIM	Nguyen Emily	½ - ½	WGM	Nemcova Katerina	2359	12
2	7	2369	IM	Paikidze Nazi	0 - 1	WIM	Yu Jennifer R	2196	5
3	8	2451	IM	Zatonskih Anna	½ - ½	WGM	Abrahamyan Tatev	2364	4
4	9	2262	WFM	Virkud Apurva	0 - 1	WGM	Foisor Sabina-Francesca	2272	3
5	10	2234	WFM	Yip Carissa	½ - ½	WCM	Feng Maggie	2162	2
6	11	2444	GM	Krush Irina	½ - ½	WGM	Sharevich Anna	2257	1

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Topics: US Championship 2017

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Albert Silver Born in the US, he grew up in Paris, France, where he completed his Baccalaureat, and after college moved to Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. He had a peak rating of 2240 FIDE, and was a key designer of Chess Assistant 6. In 2010 he joined the ChessBase family as an editor and writer at ChessBase News. He is also a passionate photographer with work appearing in numerous publications.

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Sabina Foisor is 2017 US Women's Champion!

4/10/2017 – While the men's event will need to wait for the playoff on Monday to decide between Wesley So and Alexander Onischuk, the US Women's championship ended in a fairy tale win for Sabina Foisor. Both she and Nazi Paikidze were tied for the lead, but while Paikidze succumbed to Jennifer Yu, Sabina Foisor ended her incredible campaign with a spectacular queen sacrifice to mate her opponent and win the championship! Report and analysis by Alex Yermolinsky | All photos by Lennart Ootes

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US Championship Rd10: Setting up the final showdown

4/9/2017 – Round ten of US championship saw a strange turn of event in both groups: in the open section Alexander Onischuk got the better of out-of-shape world junior champion Jeffery Xiong to join Akobian and Wesley So to tie for first. With a three-way tie the players will feel a lot of heat going into the last round. In the meantime, both Nazi Paikidze and Sabina Foisor lead the women’s event. Illustrated report by Elshan Moradiabadi.

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Play the Exchange Variation against the Caro-Kann

The Exchange Variation (1.e4 c6 2.d4 d5 3.exd5 cxd5 4.Bd3) is a simple and easy to learn answer to the Caro-Kann. By clarifying the central tension White gives himself a clear plan of attack using the half open e-file and the e5 square. This is far from easy for Black to meet as Bobby Fischer, Jan Timman, Walter Browne and other leading Grandmasters have demonstrated in their games. Black too has his resources but he needs to know what he's doing. On this DVD you will find a clear explanation of the strategy for both sides as well as answers to popular treatments such as 4...Nc6 5.c3 Qc7. Whilst the main focus is on the White side of this opening you will also find ways for Black to defend.

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Rules for reader comments

Resistance 4/26/2017 02:04

Great Tournament! And great games! Congratulations to Wesley for this important victory, the sky's the limit for him now at this moment; Magnus has yet another formidable rival to look out for...

My favorite games of this year's edition: Caruana-Shabalov (1-0; Caruana playing like Kasparov, crushes through), Xiong-So (0-1; a work of art), Kamsky-Naroditsky (1-0; Kamsky at its best, ripping the Ruy Lopez apart). Fantastic games.

A match between Wesley and Magnus? Magnus would have to be very careful, for Wesley is playing a very rational, cautious chess these days. I'm not sure who would end up being the winner of such a match. Both players would have to probably risk much more than they usually do. (12-game match = drawn match; 16-game match = drawn match; 18-game match = most probably a drawn match, too; 24-game match = now that would be interesting to see; 30-game match = you will surely have a just winner after 30 match games, provided they have enough rest throughout the match).

Also, I'd like to see some sort of exhibition match between the 3 young American stars, Hikaru, Fabiano and Wesley, where they competed in a friendly atmosphere in, say, rapid, blitz and some other version like fischerandom, basque or -I don't know if there's something like this- 2 on 1 (e.g. Nakamura and Wesley against Fabiano, 10, 15 minutes; Wesley and Fabiano against Hikaru, etc, etc...).

And, one final thing: who cares about clothing, man? Yes, it is a closing ceremony, but unless your showing up naked, or with ragged clothes, just let people be themselves. It is the land of the free, after all...

King Phoenix 4/12/2017 02:01

The Barong the pride of the Filipinos. It is only fitting that Wesley wore the Barong because he is proud to be a Filipino!

benedictralph 4/12/2017 09:58

@Bright Knight:

Exactly. Just because someone isn't from the US or UK or some other nation where most of the people have white skin doesn't mean he or she is a fraud or doesn't know what they are talking about.

Bright Knight 4/12/2017 08:41

An invitation to play in the US Championships only requires that you're a USCF member and a US resident, not an American citizen. Winning it simply means you're the best USCF player, with no cultural connotation whatsoever. Wesley So is a Filipino and takes every formal opportunity to show his pride in being so. His decision not to play under the Philippine federation is mainly for the chance to play stronger competition, not cultural nor nationalistic preference. I think the USCF itself would have reprimanded Wesley if it saw something "not fit" in what he wore.

Mark S 4/12/2017 06:00

@TMMM you have a valid point. But maybe that is GM Wesley So's preference. Probably choosing comfort over fashion. Suit (brits calls it coat and tie) is preferable in very cold weather, haven't checked but I think it originated in a very cold country.

Aighearach 4/12/2017 05:59

Each American is expected to be a patriot nationalist, but also have a personal cultural interest in their individual ethnic background. It is all divided up, and wearing the shirt is exactly the right thing to do. And if I wear a kilt, I don't have to be a true Scotsman, because this is America. They might giggle, they might even make a joke, but nobody is going to tell me not to wear it. He lives in Minnesota, surely that is American enough to be Chess Champion. The other favorites were from New York and Florida, those are both even weirder than Minnesota!

koko48 4/12/2017 04:51

Very interesting playoff games

TMMM 4/12/2017 02:20

@mwilfred It is a bit weird if you've been wearing a suit all tournament, and it is a bit strange given you're playing in the US championships, not the Filipino championships. If you're so proud you're the *US* champion, why make the awards photo shoots about showing you are proud you are *not* American? (For any other tournament it would be ok, but it just doesn't fit here.)

turok 4/11/2017 10:32

what they should then do is have both champions have a 2 of three for the overall championship for fun

mwilfred 4/11/2017 08:58

@TMMM Nothing weird about wearing the traditional outfit of your country of origin for the Awards Ceremony (in this case, the Filipino Barong). Well done, Wesley and congratulations once again!

ChiliBean 4/11/2017 07:45

Coverage via YouTube was amazing. Grand Chess Tour starts June 19th. Hopefully, Wesley will be able to surpass Magnus' rating. Then his next big test is Candidates to finally challenge Magnus becoming the World Chess Champion! Since it's been a looong time waiting for the U.S. Keep that non-losing streak going Wesley!

mikejfitch1 4/11/2017 07:23

Congratulations Wesley and Sabrina!!!

TMMM 4/11/2017 05:43

@spieler8 My thoughts too! Looking all classy during the games with his suit, and then trading it in for that weird outfit for the award ceremony. Strange!

Kilovs 2016 4/11/2017 05:02

Go Wesley! Congratulations! Mabuhay ka!

spieler8 4/11/2017 04:28

I congratulate Wesley for his courage to wear such a shirt.

Raymond Labelle 4/11/2017 03:54

For those who could be curious about the book being read by Lotis Key (Wesley's stepmother) on the photograph:

https://www.amazon.ca/American-Miracle-Divine-Providence-Republic-ebook/dp/B01BAU6ES0

King Phoenix 4/11/2017 03:32

Albert Silver is right in using the adjective " fantastic " for the 2017 US Chess championship. Lower rates players crushing the top players, with the exception of the Champ. Kudos to Alexander for putting a spectacular fight. As the saying goes, win some,lose some.

thirteen 4/11/2017 03:06

Don't think any WCC between Magnus and Wesley would be over-full of draws! Nice observation 'The American Miracle' for some not too distant future tip.

King Phoenix 4/11/2017 03:05

Wow! A Filipino is 2017 US Chess King!! Congratulations Wesley! We are very proud of you.

blindfldjeddah 4/11/2017 02:27

Pagbati sa inyong pagkapanalo ng Kampeyonato ng Estados Unidos sa ahedres, Wesley. Mabuhay ka!!!!

Denix 4/11/2017 12:33

Congratulations Wesley! It could be the most coveted championship you have won so far.

Mark S 4/11/2017 11:17

Congratulations to GM Wesley So, the new US Chess Champ 2017.
Kudos to ChessBase GmbH for the great US championships 2017 coverage.

blueflare 4/11/2017 11:08

Congratulations Wesley So! Happy to see you still wear the barong :) On to the World Chess Championship!

benedictralph 4/11/2017 10:13

Wow. Wesley looks like a real force to be reckoned with. Magnus shouldn't get too comfortable.

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US Championship playoff: Wesley So is 2017 champion

Wesley So vs Alexander Onischuk

Alexander Onischuk vs Wesley So

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