US Chess Championship 2012 - Nakamura Wins Third Title; Krush, Zatonskih to Play Tiebreak

Chess blog for latest chess news and chess trivia (c) Alexandra Kosteniuk, 2012

Hi everyone,

SAINT LOUIS, May 19, 2012 -- After a struggle of 11 exhausting days of play at the 2012 U.S. Championships, GM Hikaru Nakamura took 30 moves to beat GM Yasser Seirawan and become the 2012 U.S. Champion. It is his third title and his first since 2009. IMs Irina Krush and Anna Zatonskih both won also to remain tied for first in the U.S. Women's Championship. They will play a playoff at noon Central time on Sunday.

“It has been a long two weeks,” Nakamura said. “There's a lot of pressure to perform. I feel a lot of relief.” Nakamura was the top-seeded player and according to the live ratings list, he has now pushed his rating to 2782.6, a personal best. “If I hadn't won, I'd be pretty depressed.”

You can read an excellent report on the event at the official website. They will play two 25-minute rapid games, one with each color. If the score is tied 1-1, a final Armageddon with clock bidding will ensue.

The playoff between Krush and Zatonskih will begin tomorrow at Noon Central, 1 p.m. Eastern. Tune into www.uschesschamps.com to catch live commentary and analysis by GM Ben Finegold and WGM Jen Shahade.

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