MANILA, Philippines — Unheralded Filipino Wayne Ruiz completed a Cinderella finish in ruling the Pattaya Chess Open 2019 Under-12 division in Pattaya, Thailand last Tuesday.
Unrated and seeded 33rd out of 34 participants, Ruiz, 12, defied overwhelming odds and finished unbeaten, scoring eight points out of the possible nine on seven victories and two draws to secure his biggest win to date.
The seventh-grader from Marie Margarette School in Sta. Rosa, Laguna got his biggest wins against top seed Sai Han Thiha of Myanmar, who finished second with 7.5 points, and fellow Philippine bet Antonella Berthe Racasa, the fourth-placer with 6.5 points.
Ruiz had an earlier triumph in the Merdeka Open rapid U12 event.