Wesley So Continues Impressive Run

Grandmaster Wesley So continued to amaze the chess world by dominating Indonesia’s top player right on his turf.

So posted three straight wins in his six-game duel opposite GM Susanto Megaranto of Indonesia, leaving him a draw short of winning the FIDE rated event at the Indonesian Sports Council Hall in Jakarta, Indonesia.

The 14-year-old from Bacoor, Cavite recently ruled the tough Dubai Open Chess Championship, beating a super GM and the reigning world junior champion on his way to a record-setting performance.

He beat Megaranto with the white pieces in the third match after 57 moves of Scandinavian Defense Friday night.

The top Filipino player with an ELO of 2540 took the first match with the white pieces after 38 moves of a Caro-Kann Bf5 variation and the second with the black pieces after 36 moves of Sicilian Skirmish.

Megaranto, the highest rated player of Indonesia with an ELO of 2561, needs to sweep the last three games to salvage a draw. His rating will go down regardless of the results in the remaining games.

The 20-year-old is the youngest Indonesian GM, completing the required three norms three years ago.

So, the youngest GM in the world these days, will pick up some more rating points to inch closer to the 2600-barrier. He earned 15 ELO points from Dubai, giving him an unofficial rating of 2555.

Only one Filipino player reached the super GM status—Mark Paragua, whose best rating is 2621. The former child prodigy is now playing in the United States and is the second highest rated player in the country with an ELO of 2538.