Carissa Yip has now claimed her third US Women's Chess Championship title out of the last four editions. Despite losing her round-10 game against Anna Zatonskih, marking her second consecutive defeat, Yip secured the championship with a round to spare, thanks to her impressive run of eight consecutive wins earlier in the tournament. This early dominance gave her enough points to clinch the title comfortably.
Already the top-rated woman player in the United States, Yip's performance in Saint Louis has earned her an additional 14.3 rating points, elevating her to number 34 in the women's live rankings. Fresh off a remarkable 10/11 score at the Chess Olympiad in Budapest, where she helped the US team win bronze, Yip will take home a $40,000 prize for her victory in the national event.
Zatonskih's win over Yip was not the only decisive game in round 10, with Alice Lee, Irina Krush, Rose Atwell and Thalia Cervantes also securing full points. Lee's victory was particularly significant, as her win against Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova, who had been in sole second place, allowed Yip to secure the title. Lee and Tokhirjonova are now tied for second place with 6½ points each.
In Wednesday's final round, Yip will face Alice Lee with the white pieces, while Tokhirjonova will play white against Tatev Abrahamyan. If both Lee and Tokhirjonova lose their games, Megan Lee, currently in fourth place with 5½ points, could catch up by defeating Atwell with the black pieces.
Alice Lee | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Analysis by André Schulz
Gulrukhbegim Tokhirjonova during her game against Alice Lee | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Two games ended decisively in the penultimate round of the US Chess Championship. Ray Robson defeated Abhimanyu Mishra with the white pieces, while Sam Sevian bounced back from his round-9 loss by beating Sam Shankland with black. Meanwhile, sole leader Fabiano Caruana held a 57-move draw with the black pieces against Leinier Dominguez. Awonder Liang, who entered the round in sole second place, also held a draw with black in a tough game against second seed Wesley So.
Heading into the final round, two players, Robson and Liang, stand just half a point behind Caruana. However, Robson has no chance of catching the leader as he will receive a bye on Wednesday due to his pairing against expelled Christopher Yoo. Besides Liang, both Sevian and Hans Niemann still have theoretical chances of winning the event, as they stand a full point behind Caruana.
The final round will see Caruana playing white against Shankland, Liang facing Dominguez with white, and Sevian battling Niemann in the three crucial encounters that will determine the overall champion. Out of the four contenders, only Caruana has previously won the US Championship, claiming the title in the last two editions.
Awonder Liang | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Hans Niemann | Photo: Lennart Ootes
Sevian's victory over Shankland came from an odd-looking endgame position with four pawns against a minor piece.
Black combined threats with his passers on the c, d and h-files until securing the full point.
Sam Sevian | Photo: Lennart Ootes
