Ray Robson

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Title: 
Grandmaster
Rating: 
2714
Federation: 
Saint Louis
Age: 
19
Status: 
Accepted
Chess Highlights: 
2012 Dallas Invitational; 2009 World Team Championship: Silver; 2009 U.S. Junior Champion; 2008 Miami Open; National Champion, elementary division, 2005 Super Nationals; tied for first in 2005 and 2006 Pan-American Youth Championships
Bio: 

Ray Robson is a member of the Webster University chess team that recently captured the 2013 national collegiate chess championship. Ray learned chess at age 3 and has earned seven national scholastic titles since. Robson finished in the top 10 at the World Youth Championship from 2004 to 2007 and won Super Nationals in 2005. He defeated his first grandmaster in 2006, the same year he earned the USCF National Master title.

Ray has been studying under Susan Polgar for the past two years, and he is widely considered to be America's brightest hope to become an elite GM since Hikaru Nakamura. In fact, Ray broke Hikaru's record and currently holds the title as the youngest-ever American Grandmaster, fulfilling the requirements about two weeks prior to his 15th birthday.

Ray's first-ever major open tournament win came in 2008 at the Miami Open. He received his first norm in Tromso, Norway in August of 2009, and he earned his second in Skokie, Illinois that same month. He earned his last GM norm in Montevideo, Uruguay in October 2009. 

He has turned in a number of impressive performances as of late and appears poised to make a statement at this year's championship.