Every generation, it seems, puts forward a chess star whose talent outpaces his ambition, whose grasp stops far short of his reach.
That role today appears to be filled by Wesley So, the 33-year-old Philippine-born grandmaster who has been among the very top American players since relocating to the U.S. in 2014. He is a three-time U.S. national champion and is sixth in the FIDE world rankings.
But So’s cautious, precise style is definitely an acquired taste. Known for his tactical ability and attacking flair as a youth, he now favors a far less risky and far more technical approach to the game, leaving him a distinct third in the current American triumvirate with GMs Fabiano Caruana and Hikaru Nakamura.
Still, the lack of risks can have its own rewards on the chessboard: So last week wrapped up his second straight win — and third overall — in the prestigious 10-grandmaster Sinquefield Cup, annually the strongest invitational tournament held on American soil.
And he did it this year in classic So fashion, winning two of his first three games (including a nice victory over Caruana with the black pieces in Round 3) and then proceeding to draw his next six games, draw two rapid playoff games against GM Rameshbabu Praggnanandhaa and claim the title by holding yet another draw against the Indian star in a blitz “Armageddon” playoff game.
It may not have pleased the gallery, but it got the job done.
Chinese GM Tan Zhongyi took a more adventurous path in winning the concurrent 6th Cairns Cup, held at the St. Louis Chess Club. Tan, who also won the elite women’s invitational event in 2024, scored five wins, a loss and just three draws in edging American IM Alice Lee by a half-point with a 6½-2½ score.
Lee, still just 16 years old, achieved her first grandmaster norm with her second-place finish, boosted by a nice Round 8 victory over Indian GM Vaishali Rameshbabu, who will be competing for the women’s world championship against titleholder GM Ju Wenjun of China later this year. Lee comes out on top after a back-and-forth struggle in a very trendy Giuoco Piano line, when her opponent misses a remarkable saving resource.
Vaishali — the older sister of Praggnanandhaa — aims for a kingside mating attack as White, but her slow build-up allows Black to turn the tables: 17. g5 Nd7 (Nxe4? 18. Qg4! wins material) 18. Qg4 Rad8 19. Re2?! — the rook is headed for the g-file, but already 19. h4 was the way to go — f6 20. Rg2 Qc5, and now White must stop to defend the weak, doubled e-pawns.
Lee takes over the play on 23. Rd1 Nc5 24. h4? (and now this move comes too late; White holds the line with 24. Rdg1 fxg5 25. Nxg5 h6 26. Nh7! Kxh7 27. Qxg6+ Kh8 28. Qxg7+ Qxg7 29. Rxg7 a5) fxg5 25. Nxg5 h6!, when bad now would be 26. Nf3? (Nh7 Qxh4+ 27. Qxh4 Nxh4 28. Nxf8 Nxg2 29. Kxg2 Rxf8, and Black kingside passed pawns give her a big edge) Rxf3! 27. Qxf3 Nxh4 28. Qg4 Nxg2 29. Qxg2 Ne6, and White’s broken pawn structure puts her at a severe disadvantage.
Black has to dodge the last bullet before claiming the victory: 28. Qg3 hxg5 29. Qxg5 Nxe4?! (winning the weak pawn but allowing a surprising defense; 29…Ne6! 30. Qxe5 Qh4+ gives Black great compensation for the pawn) 30. Nxe4 Rxe4, when both players missed the clever idea of 31. Rd8!!, exploiting the fact that Black’s rook must guard the queen and Black’s queen must guard against mate on g7. White could then have equalized after 31…Qxg5 32. Rxe8+ Kf7 33. Rxg5 Kxe8 34. Rxg7 Rh4+ 35. Rg1 Rxh5 36. Rxb7.
Instead, Lee emerges a pawn to the good in a double-rook ending after 31. Kg1? Qxg5 32. Rxg5 Re7, and the young American’s technique is enough to bring home the point. In the final position after 45. Ke1 Rxc2, Vaishali’s rooks look menacing, but Black and her four extra pawns will carry the day in lines such as 46. Rh8+ Kg6 47. Rhg8+ Kh5 48. Rf5+ Kh4 49. Rf4+ Kh3 50. Rf3+ Kh2 51. Rgg3 Rc1+ 52. Ke2 Rc2+ 53. Ke1 Rf2 54. Rh3+ Kg1 55. Rfg3+ Rg2 56. Rxg2+ Kxg2 57. Rxh6 Kf3 and wins.
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As we reported here earlier, Missouri GM Gigoriy Oparin is the 2026 U.S. Open champ, defeating a field of over 550 players in the 126th edition of the country’s top open competition, played this year in Grand Rapids, Michigan.
While the top boards were fighting it out, it’s always fun to check on the drama farther down the wallchart, where one can always find an intriguing battle going on. The agony and ecstasy of chess were on full display in the penultimate-round Open clash between master Aidan Baker and FM Donald Johnson.
It’s a Rossolimo Sicilian in which Baker, as White, gives up a bishop early to further his central ambitions. Black reveals his aggressive intentions with 16. h5 0-0-0 17. Nd2 Rdg8, looking to blast open the kingside, while White seeks counterplay targeting the queenside and the inviting d6-square.
The strategic battle escalates quickly on 19. Qe3 Ka8 20. Nd6!? (consistent, but some more prep work with 20. Rad1 was indicated; going in a very different direction would be 20. Nxc5!? Bxg2 21. Nxa6 Qc6 22. Nb4 Qf3, with an unbalanced game) Bg5 21. b4 g6!? (again consistent with the kingside attacking plan, but White has the lead) 22. Bxg5 hxg5 23. Qxc5!? — 23. a4! is more logical and sidesteps the heartbreak to come. Baker’s move doesn’t lose but puts his queen in a highly vulnerable spot.
White walks right into a haymaker on 23…Rxh5 (see diagram; White’s next move seeks to pressure Black’s pinned bishop on c6, but overlooks the fact that it leaves White’s queen fatally exposed) 24. b5?? (f3 Rhg8 25. Kf2 Rh2 26. Rg1 Qe7 is still anybody’s game) Rh1+!.
This White king is drawn to a fatal square, leaving the White queen in the lurch. The resignation here might be a bit premature, but Black is definitely on the road to victory after 25. Kxh1 Bxg2+ 26. Kxg2 Qxc5 27. Rad1 axb5 28. Re3 Qc6+ 29. Ne4 Rh8, with a queen and two extra pawns for a rook and knight.
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And this just in: Ukrainian GM Viktor Matviishen took solo first in the 58th Atlantic Open, the District’s annual late-summer blowout that wrapped up Sunday at the Omni Shoreham Hotel.
Matviishen’s 4½-½ score was capped by a final-round tournament-clinching win over veteran U.S. GM John Fedorowicz. Three players tied for second in the Open section at 4-1 — GM Jianchou Zhou, IM Gus Huston, and Virginia master Will Moorhouse. More details and a game or two when they become available.
(Click on the image above for a larger view of the chessboard.)
Vaishali-Lee, 6th Cairns Cup, St. Louis, August 2026
1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. d3 Nf6 5. Be3 Bxe3 6. fxe3 O-O 7. Qd2 d6 8. Bb3 Ne7 9. O-O Ng6 10. h3 c6 11. Nc3 Be6 12. g4 Bxb3 13. axb3 d5 14. Qg2 dxe4 15. dxe4 Qb6 16. Rae1 Qb4 17. g5 Nd7 18. Qg4 Rad8 19. Re2 f6 20. Rg2 Qc5 21. Re1 Qe7 22. Kh1 Rde8 23. Rd1 Nc5 24. h4 fxg5 25. Nxg5 h6 26. h5 Nf4 27. exf4 Rxf4 28. Qg3 hxg5 29. Qxg5 Nxe4 30. Nxe4 Rxe4 31. Kg1 Qxg5 32. Rxg5 Re7 33. Rd2 Kh7 34. Rdg2 Re1+ 35. Kf2 Rb1 36. Ke3 Rxb2 37. Rg6 Rb1 38. h6 gxh6 39. Rf6 Re1+ 40. Kd2 Rh1 41. Ke3 e4 42. Rf8 Rh3+ 43. Ke2 e3 44. Rgg8 Rh2+ 45. Ke1 Rxc2 White resigns.
Baker-Johnson, 126th U.S. Open, Grand Rapids, Michigan, August 2026
1. e4 c5 2. Nf3 d6 3. Bb5+ Nd7 4. O-O a6 5. Bxd7+ Bxd7 6. c3 Nf6 7. Re1 e6 8. d4 h6 9. dxc5 dxc5 10. e5 Nh7 11. Nbd2 Bc6 12. Qe2 Ng5 13. h4 Nxf3+ 14. Nxf3 Qc7 15. Bf4 Be7 16. h5 O-O-O 17. Nd2 Rdg8 18. Ne4 Kb8 19. Qe3 Ka8 20. Nd6 Bg5 21. b4 g6 22. Bxg5 hxg5 23. Qxc5 Rxh5 24. b5 Rh1+ White resigns.
• Got a hot tip or a cool game to share? David R. Sands can be reached at davidrsands18@gmail.com.
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