2012 US Chess Championships
The 2012 US Chess Championships take place from 8-20 May at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of St. Louis.
Defending champion Gata Kamsky will face a strong field, including Hikaru Nakamura who returns after missing last year.
The championship features a field of 12 players in a single round-robin competition. There is a guaranteed prize fund of at least $160,000, and a special $64,000 "Fischer Prize" should anyone repeat Bobby's perfect 11-0 clean sweep in the 1963/64 US Championship.
The full line-up:
| # | Name | Elo |
| 1 | Nakamura, Hikaru | 2775 |
| 2 | Kamsky, Gata | 2741 |
| 3 | Onischuk, Alexander | 2660 |
| 4 | Seirawan, Yasser | 2643 |
| 5 | Hess, Robert | 2635 |
| 6 | Akobian, Varuzhan | 2625 |
| 7 | Robson, Ray | 2614 |
| 8 | Kaidanov, Gregory | 2594 |
| 9 | Ramirez, Alejandro | 2593 |
| 10 | Lenderman, Aleksandr | 2587 |
| 11 | Shulman, Yuri | 2571 |
| 12 | Stripunsky, Alexander | 2562 |
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The US Women’s Championship takes place at the same time, with Anna Zatonskih defending her title. There is a guaranteed prize fund of $64,000 and 10 players in the women's event.
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| # | Name | Elo |
| 1 | Zatonskih, Anna | 2510 |
| 2 | Krush, Irina | 2457 |
| 3 | Foisor, Sabina-Francesca | 2364 |
| 4 | Baginskaite, Camilla | 2358 |
| 5 | Goletiani, Rusudan | 2333 |
| 6 | Abrahamyan, Tatev | 2329 |
| 7 | Melekhina, Alisa | 2242 |
| 8 | Ni, Viktorija | 2228 |
| 9 | Zenyuk, Iryna | 2224 |
| 10 | Kats, Alena | 2137 |
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All rounds start at 13:00 local time in St.Louis (18:00 UTC). If playoffs are required, they will take place on 20 May at 12:00 local time. The full schedule:
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| Date | Championship | Women's Championship |
| May-08 | Round 1 | Round 1 |
| May-09 | Round 2 | Round 2 |
| May-10 | Round 3 | Round 3 |
| May-11 | Round 4 | Rest Day |
| May-12 | Round 5 | Round 4 |
| May-13 | Round 6 | Round 5 |
| May-14 | Rest Day | Rest Day |
| May-15 | Round 7 | Round 6 |
| May-16 | Round 8 | Round 7 |
| May-17 | Round 9 | Round 8 |
| May-18 | Round 10 | Rest Day |
| May-19 | Round 11 | Round 9 |
| May-20 | Playoff | Playoff |
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Player biographies are available for the men and the women. The official website will have it's usual high-quality coverage and commentary from Ben Finegold and Jennifer Shahade.
Who is your pick to win the championships? And are there any dark horses to watch out for?
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