Hy Nguyen, Maghsoodloo, Grischuk Take 3 0 Thursday Titles

GM Parham Maghsoodloo scored in the top four in three different 3 0 Thursday Tournaments on October 1. His nine points in the first tournament weren't quite enough to win, as he took second on tiebreaks behind IM Quoc Hy Nguyen. Maghsoodloo dominated the second event, winning with the day's best score, 10 points. In the third tournament, he had to settle for playing spoiler, defeating IM Reza Mahdavi in the final game, handing first place to GM Alexander Grischuk. 

First Tournament: Hy Nguyen Takes First 3 0 Thursday Title

Heading into the final round of the first tournament, Maghsoodloo, GM Tuan Minh Le, and GM Alexey Sarana led the tournament with 8.5 points. Sarana fell to a strong attack by GM Denis Lazavik, while Maghsoodloo faced Minh Le.

That draw allowed four players to catch Minh Le and Maghsoodloo on nine points. Hy Nguyen had the best tiebreaks after this win over GM Matthias Bluebaum.

Behind Hy Nguyen, Maghsoodloo had the next-best tiebreaks, followed by Lazavik, GM Jan-Krzysztof Duda, GM Dmitry Andreikin, and Minh Le, all on nine points. GM Tan Zhongyi took the women's prize with seven points, her third straight Thursday with that honor.

Second Tournament: Maghsoodloo Dominates

After his near miss in the first tournament, Maghsoodloo didn't leave the second tournament in any doubt. He scored an undefeated 10 points with nine wins and two draws. In the eighth round, he won a clean game against Duda.

In the 10th round, Maghsoodloo defeated FM Artin Ashraf to reach 9.5 points, giving him a full-point lead on the field.

Maghsoodloo drew his final-round game with Grischuk to reach 10 points. Mahdavi took second place with nine points, and GM Sina Movahed took third with 8.5 points. IM Karina Ambartsumova took the top women's prize with six points. 

Third Tournament: Grischuk Wins First 3 0 Thursday

He's been a top player for decades, but Grischuk hadn't won a 3 0 Thursday tournament until this week. He played a strong event and went undefeated. His eighth-round win against Maghsoodloo brought him to seven points. 

Grischuk reached 9.5 points with a last-round win against GM Valery Kazakouski. However, Mahdavi could still possibly catch him with a win. Maghsoodloo ensured that there wouldn't be a tie for first by defeating his countryman.

Behind Grischuk, GM Jeffery Xiong took second place with 8.5 points, ahead of Mahdavi and Maghsoodloo on tiebreaks. WFM Hoang Minh Tho Do took home the women's prize with 6.5 points.

3 0 Thursday is a set of three weekly Swiss tournaments for verified titled players featuring their favorite time control. Each of the three tournaments is an 11-round Swiss with a 3+0 time control. The combined prize fund is $3,000 every week.