GM Andrew Hong Leads US Masters: Day 3 Recap!
The annual US Masters tournament is well underway in Charlotte, and one player still has a perfect score through five rounds! With wins over two GMs and two IMs in his last four games, GM Andrew Hong stands alone atop the standings, with three others on 4.5/5.
The US Masters is an annual nine-round tournament hosted by the Charlotte Chess Center over Thanksgiving weekend. As the strongest open tournament in the United States, USM welcomes a huge field of titled-level players, with the specific requirements viewable here. The US Masters is a strong enough event that it can even help players win points towards the 2025 FIDE Circuit, as it did when GM Fabiano Caruana won the event last year.
The sole leader in the tournament right now is 21-year-old GM Andrew Hong, who took down the previously unbeaten IM Almas Rakhmatullaev in a Petroff to ascend into clear first (view that game here).
Prior to his game against Rakhmatullaev, Hong had taken down two GMs in a row, including Magesh Panchanathan. That game began with a fun Fried Liver/Ulvestadt line, where white was gradually able to convert his pawn advantage from the opening into a win:
Since his draw in round two, GM Awonder Liang has won three games in a row to stay within shouting distance of first place with 4.5/5. Tied with him for second in the current standings are GMs Jeffery Xiong and Koustav Chatterjee, who are each perfect apart from a draw against each other in the fifth round. Twenty (!) players are just behind the leaders with 4/5, with full updated standings viewable on our website.
In his previous game, GM Chatterjee sacrificed a bishop to create a deadly mass of pawns in front of GM David Brodsky's king!
Live games from the US Masters can be found right here on chess.com. Alongside the USM, the concurrent NC Open is also being held at the same location, including a blitz side event, a scholastic tournament, and GM commentary.
A big thanks as always to Kelly Centrelli for the photos in this report, as well as to all our tournament directors! Remember to check this blog again tomorrow for more updates on the 2025 US Masters.
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NM Dennis Norman
Chess Coach - Club Journalist
