Awonder Liang, Wesley So Lead 2026 U.S. Chess Championship

Awonder Liang and Wesley So led the open section after round two of the 2026 U.S. Chess Championship, while Paragua and Cervantes led the women's.

Awonder Liang and the Open Section

Wesley So and Awonder Liang led the open section of the 2026 U.S. Chess Championships after round two.² Both won again in round two, and no other player in the open section has a perfect score.¹⁰^,¹⁴

The U.S. Championship and the U.S. Women's Championship are taking place in Saint Louis. The standings matter for the national title and for qualification into the next world championship cycle.¹² Base prize funds are $250,000 for the Open and $152,000 for the Women's, and an anti-draw rule forbids draw offers before move 60 to encourage fighting chess.¹²

Early Rounds

Round one produced an 80-move win for So over Sam Shankland and a 34-move win for Liang over Hans Niemann.¹² Wesley So is a three-time national champion.¹⁵ Wesley So celebrated a 33rd birthday with that first-round win.¹⁵

In round two, So took down co-leader Xiong.² After two rounds, Fabiano Caruana stands alone in third place, half a point behind.¹⁰

The Women's Section

Megan Paragua and Thalia Cervantes lead the women's section with perfect scores.²^,¹³ They are also the two lowest-rated participants.¹⁰^,¹³ Paragua, who is 13, defeated defending champion Carissa Yip, who blundered, or made a serious mistake, in an equal position.¹⁰

How the Race Moved

In round eight, So defeated Andy Woodward to extend the lead to a full point over Caruana, who drew against Sam Sevian.³ So and Caruana were set to meet in Monday's ninth round.³

So drew that direct game against defending champion Caruana, a result in which neither player wins. That kept So's lead at a full point.

By round eight, Alice Lee and Rachael Li were tied for first on 6/8, or six points from eight games.³ Cervantes moved within half a point of the leaders by defeating four-time national champion Carissa Yip.³ Li then emerged as sole leader after an all-decisive round, one with no draws.

Elsewhere in Chess

The European Club Cup, a team event, runs 17-23 October in Budva, Montenegro. It brings together 108 teams in the open section and 22 teams in the women's competition. A record number of teams are competing.

What to Watch Next

After round nine, So maintained his full-point lead at the U.S. Championship. In the women's section, Li was the sole leader as of the latest ChessBase report.

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