Fabiano Caruana remains the U.S. Championship leader, but GM Ray Robson is close on his tail, narrowing the gap to a half point with a victory. In the U.S. Women’s Championship, Megan Lee pulled into the sole lead with a win over FM Ashritha Eswaran.
Check out the full replay of live coverage from the day here. The time control for the event is 90 minutes for 40 moves plus 30 minutes for the rest of the game; with a 30-second increment starting from move 1.
2022 U.S. Championship
GM Elshan Moradiabadi vs. GM Ray Robson 0-1
On the black side of the d3 Ruy Lopez, Robson started an attack with adventurous kingside play. Scoring the hat-trick, Ray Robson passed the 2700 rating on the live rating list and now holds the second position in the 2022 US Championship, trailing GM Fabiano Caruana by half a point. In the post-game interview, he spoke about his long-term chess goals and achievements.
GM Christopher Yoo vs. GM Jeffery Xiong 0-1
After entering an ending fairly early in the game, Xiong gradually gained one extra pawn after another, eventually reaching a knight endgame four pawns ahead.
After a highly decisive previous round, this one was more calm with five draws.
2022 U.S. Women’s Championship
WIM Megan Lee vs. FM Ashritha Eswaran 1-0
FM Ashritha Eswaran sacrificed a pawn and then a knight in the Sicilian Sveshnikov in an attempt to gain attacking chances against Lee’s uncastled king. Lee accepted the material and then stabilized her king’s safety by castling by hand.
WGM Jennifer Yu vs. FM Rochelle Wu 1-0
WGM Jennifer Yu vs. FM Rochelle Wu was a double-edged duel where Yu pressed on the queenside while Wu attacked on the kingside. Ultimately, Yu’s queenside play proved more effective, creating two connected passers.
IM Paikidze vs. FM Alice Lee 0-1
FM Alice Lee defeated IM Paikidze with a clever in-between move deflection tactic.
WGM Tatev Abrahamyan vs. WGM Thalia Cervantes 0-1
WGM Thalia Cervantes gained her first victory of the event against WGM Tatev Abrahamyan. In a close struggle, Cervantes activated her knight pair to support her passed e-pawn and create threats around her opponent’s king.
WGM Sabina Foisor vs. WGM Begim Tokhirjonova 1-0
WGM Sabina Foisor fought for over five hours to successfully convert a small edge in the endgame vs. WGM Begim Tokhirjonova.
This is the third round in a row where five of the games ended with decisive results with only two draws.
Round 9 of the 2022 U.S. & U.S. Women’s Chess Championships will take place on Friday, October 14. Watch the action live at 1:20pm CT with commentators GM Yasser Seirawan, WGM Anastasiya Karlovich, and GM Cristian Chirila.
