Kamsky in Clear First; Zatonskih, Krush Still Even at U.S. Champs
By Mike Klein GMs Hikaru Nakamura and Gata Kamsky entered round nine of the 2012 U.S. Championship tied with six points apiece. They could not have had more different days. Kamsky won largely without any over-the-board effort, defeating GM Yasser Seirawan in a little more than two hours by using a spectacular combination. He had […]
Nakamura, Kamsky Win, Zatonskih and Krush Draw
By FM Mike Klein The 2012 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship did not change leadership today, though the two tournaments produced much different levels of excitement. With the two top seeds in each division pulling away from the pack, GM Gata Kamsky exuded his usual perfection in positional chess to give GM Alex Lenderman […]
Zatonskih, Kamsky Draw Even with Leaders in U.S. Champs
By FM Mike Klein Dramatic finishes punctuated an unpredictable day at the 2012 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship. When the final pawn was captured, a 101-move game ended in king versus king. In both events a pair of trailing players caught up to the leaders. IM Anna Zatonskih got the better of WIM Iryna […]
Nakamura Still Leads, Krush Inches Ahead at U.S. Champs
By FM Mike Klein SAINT LOUIS, May 13, 2012 — Round six of the U.S. Championships maintained the stasis – the top three rated players still sit one, two, three with a couple of other solid players lurking. In the U.S. Women’s Championship, a familiar face grabbed sole possession of the lead. GM Hikaru Nakamura […]
Nakamura Leads U.S. Champs, Three-Way Tie Atop U.S. Women’s
By FM Mike Klein For the first time in the 2012 U.S. Championship, one player rests atop the leaderboard. With his win today in round five over co-leader GM Gregory Kaidanov, local GM Hikaru Nakamura took control of the tournament. With three wins and two draws, his four points are one-half point ahead of defending […]
Kaidanov, Nakamura Share First at U.S. Championship
By GM Ben Finegold and Mike Wilmering SAINT LOUIS, May 12, 2012 — After four rounds of the 2012 U.S. Championship, an upset victory by GM Gregory Kaidanov has catapulted him into a first-place tie with GM Hikaru Nakamura. Yesterday was a rest day for the players of the 2012 U.S. Women’s Championship. Kaidanov scored […]
Pre-Tourney Favorites Pull Ahead at U.S. Championships
By FM Mike Klein The bell curve of scores began to take shape after today’s round three of the 2012 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship. With six of the 11 games pitting first-time opponents against each other, a lot of unknowns preluded the afternoon. The top two rated players pulled ahead in both competitions, […]
Zatonskih Stays Perfect at 2012 U.S. Championships
By FM Mike Klein After two rounds of play at the U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship, only one player out of 22 remains with an unblemished record. Defending champion IM Anna Zatonskih continued her unparallelled recent success at the event by beating WGM Camilla Baginskaite. No other player in either tournament could string together […]
Kasparov, Polgar to Judge Best Game Prizes
Former World Champion GM Garry Kasparov and world number-one female player GM Judit Polgar have agreed to judge the best game prizes for the 2012 U.S. Championship & U.S. Women’s Championship. Thanks to our sponsors, the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis has added $5,000 to the total prize fund, which will be […]
Decisive results abound in round 1 of U.S. Championships
By FM Mike Klein SAINT LOUIS, May 8, 2012 — There were running starts and standing starts and very little in between to open the 2012 U.S. Championship and U.S. Women’s Championship. All but three games in the events produced a decisive result. The tournaments are being hosted by the Chess Club and Scholastic Center […]