So hung tough

GM So hangs tough, salvages a draw with top seed GM Almasi
11/02/2010 08:29 PM

Grandmaster Wesley So of the Philippines held his own against top seed GM Zoltan Almasi of Hungary and escaped with a draw in a difficult and exhausting match in the fifth round of the 2010 SPICE (Susan Polgar Institute for Chess Excellence) Chess Championship at the Texas Tech University.

Despite handling the disadvantaged black pieces, So didn’t hesitate in making risky moves in the crucial battle against his highly-rated opponent. The 17-year-old Filipino averted a near defeat by salvaging a draw with Almasi in a marathon 105 moves of the English Opening.

So is hoping to improve his fourth-place finish last year. The young chesser wisely exchanged queens on the 46th move and steered the game into an ending where he had a bishop and three pawns against the Hungarian’s rook and a pawn.

Overall, So had eight points on two wins, two draws and one loss after the first half of the 10-player, double-round competition organized by four-time women’s world champion Susan Polgar in this sprawling, 1,850-acre Texas university noted for its Spanish Renaissance-style buildings and beautifully landscaped grounds.

The Filipino is now tied with GM Alexander Onsichuk of the United States in second to third places, three points behind solo leader GM George Meir of Germany.

Meier, who dealt So his lone setback in their fourth-round showdown, defeated GM Eugene Perelshteyn of the United States for his third win in five games.

Onischuk continued his good form and won over fellow American GM Ray Robson in another fifth-round encounter.

The prestigious category-16 tournament takes a break Nov. 2 before the players return to action the following day.

So plays black against Onischuk in the sixth round. The two halved the point in the first round.

After Onischuk, So continues his campaign against Perelshteyn, Robson, Meier and Almasi. – KY, RCJ, GMANews.TV

Source: http://www.gmanews.tv