Wesley snares US Open crown

MANILA, Philippines - World No. 2 Wesley So kept his amazing run of victories in super tournaments going, beating Alexander Onischuk in their two-game playoff, 1-5.0-5, to capture the coveted US Championship crown in St. Louis, Missouri Monday.

Proving he could be as brilliant in rapid games as in standard chess, So took the first game with a 31-move win of an English Opening then eked out a marathon 62-move draw of a King’s Indian Attack to finish off the 2006 champion in the playoff using a 25-minute time control for his very first US major crown.

Although his romp in the Sinquefield Cup last year and in the Tata Steel Masters last January ranked high in the list, the US crown was one title the Cavite-born player now based in Minnesota had been chasing in years.

“I really wanted to win this one this year, because its the strongest national competition in the world, So told the US’ Star Tribune. “All the great (US) players have won this one.”

So, who came to the US on a Webster U scholarship years ago before deciding to change affiliations few years later, finished tied with the American GM at seven points after the 11-round tournament which featured the US’ top 12 players,.

In their first game, So took a two-pawn sacrifice that allowed Onischuk to gain a slight positional edge for a probable queenside attack.

But Onishchuk, 41, struggled to hurdle the time control and lost his edge in the process, giving So a chance to neutralize and seize the initiative with a rook-for-a-bishop sacrifice for an unstoppable passed pawn at center.

Onischuk again gained the early advantage in the second match with a pair of active bishops against So’s knights. But the former again failed to sustain his attack and So, who also won the team and individual gold in last year’s Olympiad and topped the London Chess Classic, forced a draw after 62 moves to clinch the victory.