Sigeman Tournament

Wes leads the above tornament after round 3

Wes checkmated,Loses lead to Giri

Wes wins,shares the lead once again.

So, Giri and Tikkanen finished in a three-way tie in the Sigeman tournament held in Malmo, Sweden. Wesley ended up becoming the champion due to his result of having the most wins in the tournament. The lack of announcement in declaring the champion has created some controversy in Wesley's page at Chessgames.com. I thought that the final standings that was released in the official website is clear enough. Apparently, the organizers thought so, too.

Two things stood out to me in this tournament. I saw Wesley in great form. This was the best form that I've seen him since I followed his career in chessgames. He was playing with tremendous energy in every game. Even in the game that he lost, he fought tooth and nail every step of the way, even though quite disadvantaged after walking into a prepared line.

Which brings me to the other matter---Wesley's opening. This is the part of his game that really needs to be polished. The opening is the most important part of the game. And it is keeping him from getting great results. In the first round and with Wesley as white, Giri had an easy time in the opening and equalized early. In the second round win against Shirov, the gem of the tournament, he played the opening well. He was white again against Alexei. Nothing spectacular in the opening but Wesley showed what he can do if he comes out of the opening with a small advantage. The third round against Tikkanen was a struggle the whole way. Another dubious opening that led to an inferior position. It was a good thing that his opponent looked more interested in not losing the game than actually winning it. Then, there's the fourth round disaster against Grandelius. He just walked into a home-cooked line. Because of his good form, Wesley managed to make a game of it but it is difficult to find a safe path when you are walking in the middle of a minefield. The last round win against Hector was touch and go. Hector got the better of him in the opening but faltered in his continuation. Here again, Wesley showed his great form and punished his opponent with precise play.

It's too bad because Wesley could have won this tournament with a big margin. I hope that something is done with this problem. Maybe a simple purchase of books that teach the strategies of opening preparations could do the trick. Still, it was a very good result.

I always say that I am not scared of anyone, except my opening.

Congratulations, GM Wesley So!