Wesley So | |
|---|---|
 So in 2023 | |
| Full name | Wesley Barbasa So |
| Country |
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| Born | (1993-10-09)October 9, 1993 (age 31) Bacoor, Cavite, Philippines |
| Title | Grandmaster (2008) |
| FIDE rating | 2748 (March 2025) |
| Peak rating | 2822 (February 2017) |
| Ranking | No. 12 (March 2025) |
| Peak ranking | No. 2 (March 2017) |
Wesley Barbasa So (born October 9, 1993) is a Filipino and Americanchess grandmaster, a three-timeU.S. Chess Champion, and the firstWorld Fischer Random Chess Champion. He is also a three-timePhilippine Chess Champion. On the March 2017FIDE rating list, he was ranked number two in the world and had anElo rating of 2822,[1] making him thefifth-highest-rated player in history.
In 2019, So said his favorite form of chess ischess960 (also known as Fischer random chess).[2] Later that year, So became the inaugural World Fischer Random Chess Champion after defeatingMagnus Carlsen to win theFIDE World Fischer Random Chess Championship.[3]
A formerchess prodigy, So became the youngest player to pass a 2600Elo rating in October 2008, breaking the record previously held by Carlsen.[4] This record has since been broken byWei Yi andJohn M. Burke.[5] In early 2013, So passed 2700 and in January 2017 he became the 11th player to pass 2800 Elo.
So represented thePhilippines untiltransferring to theUnited States in 2014. He won the 2015Bilbao Chess Masters, the 2016Grand Chess Tour title after claiming victory in theSinquefield Cup andLondon Chess Classic, the 2017Tata Steel Masters and the 2021Grand Chess Tour. He represented the US on board 3 at the42nd Chess Olympiad, winning team and individual gold.
So was born in the Philippines in 1993 toFilipino-Chinese William and Eleanor So.[6] He has one older sister, Wendelle Barbossa So, and one younger sister, Wilma Barbossa So.[7] So attended the Jesus Good Shepherd School and Saint Francis of Assisi College inBacoor.[8]
So was at the age of ten years old when he began competing in junior tournaments. So took first place at the 2003 Philippine National Chess Championships in the U-10s section.[9] As a junior player, he also competed in various sections of World Youth Chess Championships, finishing 19th in the U-10s in 2003,[10] 13th in the U-12s in 2004 and fourth place in the U-12s in 2005.[11][12] He also took part in the ASEAN Open U-10s in 2004, securing individual golds in the standard and rapid sections along with team silver medals in the standard and rapid along with winning individual golds in the standard, rapid and blitz sections in the U-12s in 2005.
So made his tournament debut at the Nice International Open in August 2005, finishing in sixteenth place (from 159) with 4/7.[13] He also completed three International Master norms in the space of four months, becoming the youngest Filipino to achieve that status after scoring 5/9 at the Dubai Open, 5½/9 at the San Marino Open and 6½/11 at the Dato Arthur Tan Malaysia Open. During this period, So made his first Olympiad appearance on second reserve board at the37th Chess Olympiad held inTurin in 2006.
So's form continued with 5½/9 at the Calvia Open, his first GM-norm with 7/9 at the Bad Wiessee Open, tying for sixth with 4/8 at the GMA Presidents Cup inParañaque and ended 2006 by scoring 6/9 at the Singapore Masters. In January 2007, So qualified for theChess World Cup 2007 via the Zonal tournament held inPhú Quốc,Vietnam, scoring 5½/9. Between January 2006 and April 2007, So had increased his FIDE rating by 303 points to 2519.
In May 2007, he went on to becomePhilippine National Junior Chess Champion.[14] So got his second GM norm by scoring 7½/13 at the 2007World Junior Chess Championship inYerevan. He achieved his third and final Grandmaster norm on December 8, 2007 at the Pichay Cup International Open (Manila, Philippines), thus becoming the youngest Filipino grandmaster at the age of 14 and the seventh youngest to reach the title.
January 2008 saw So finish fourth with 7/11 at the ASEAN Chess Circuit event held inTarakan,Indonesia. In April 2008, So shared first place at the Dubai Open, scoring 7/9.[15][16] He also finished in third place with 7/9 at a blitz tournament held during the rest day. So then defeatedSusanto Megaranto 4–2 in a six-game match as part of the JAPFA Chess Festival held inJakarta, won the "Battle of Grandmasters tournament" with 8½/11 (+6−0=5) in Manila, came tenth with 7½/11 in the Philippines Open followed immediately with second place at the Subic Open with 6½/9.
In July 2008, So came second with 12½/17 in a tournament to decide the team for the 200838th Chess Olympiad, followed by sharing eighth place at the World Juniors Championship held inGaziantep,Turkey. He shared second withZurab Azmaiparashvili scoring 6½/9 at the Vietnam Open but finished well back at the Arroyo Cup in sixteenth place. During the previous 3-month rating period So completed 69 rated games.
After competing in the Asian Club Cup, So made his first appearance at a major chess tournament by winning theCorus Group C in January 2009, a point ahead ofAnish Giri andTiger Hillarp Persson with a score of 9½/13,[17] earning a spot in Group B the next year. He scored 5/9 and shared 17th place at the strong Aeroflot Open held inMoscow.[18] He showed his strength against home opposition scoring 9/11 at the Dapitan City Battle of GMs, but found it difficult at the Asian Continental Championships inSubic, scoring 6½/11 and sharing 18th place. So won a seat in the2009 Chess World Cup by finishing second at the Zonal Championship held in July 2009 inHo Chi Minh City,Vietnam.[19] After competing in the Chinese Chess League, So shared fourth place at the SPICE Cup Group A with a solid 4½/10.
At the age of 16, So became one of the stories of the2009 Chess World Cup held inKhanty-Mansiysk after progressing to the fourth round before being knocked out byVladimir Malakhov after rapid tiebreaks. He defeatedGadir Guseinov after rapid tiebreaks then defeatedVassily Ivanchuk andGata Kamsky.[20] This was followed by sharing fourth place at the Corus Chess Group B in early 2010 withErwin l'Ami scoring 7½/13 and sharing seventh place with 5½/9 at the Aeroflot Open.[21][22] Sharing second place with 6½/9 at the Asian Continental Championships in April earned him a spot in theChess World Cup 2011 and he secured a second Philippine Chess Championship.[23][24]
As So's playing strength and rating increased, so did the number of invites to high-level events. So initially led the strong Biel tournament before drifting back to share fifth place with 4½/9.[25] Three weeks later, So held his own in the last NH "Experience vs Rising Stars" Match (played underScheveningen match rules) scoring 4½/10 for the "Rising Stars" team.[26] So took part in the39th Chess Olympiad and placed fourth, scoring 5½/10 at the 2010 SPICE Cup, before the Asian Games.
So tied for fourth place at Tata Steel (formerly Corus) Group B but withdrew from the Aeroflot Open, held soon after, citing exhaustion from the previous event.[27] In July 2011 he won thePhilippine Chess Championship for a third time.[28] So's rating hovered over the coming year with a solid performance at the strong AAI International Tournament inNew Delhi among performances typical for his rating.
In 2012, So got a scholarship offer fromWebster University, which was his affiliation for two-and-a-half years before becoming a full-time professional.[2] In August 2012, So emigrated to the United States. In September 2012, So found success in first place at the Quebec International, scoring 7½/9, half a point ahead ofLazaro Bruzon and at the40th Chess Olympiad drew against numerous top-level players includingLevon Aronian, who described So as a "talented player from a country with a great chess culture".[29]
So came second in the Zonal 3.3 Championship inTagaytay, Philippines earning a place in theChess World Cup 2013 and shared first place withPavel Eljanov andBassem Amin at theReykjavik Open.[30] In doing so he breached the 2700 Elo mark, considered to be the level of an elite player and placed him 50th in the World. So also won gold at the2013 Summer Universiade inKazan,Russia, the first such medal for the Philippines, after a play off match withZaven Andriasian.[31] After defeatingAlexander Ipatov in the first round of the Chess World Cup, he was knocked out by eventual semi-finalistEvgeny Tomashevsky.[32] In October 2013, So won the Unive Crown Group scoring 4½/6.[33]
So tied for fourth withFabiano Caruana andLeinier Domínguez Pérez at the 2014Tata Steel Chess Tournament Group A, scoring 6/11.[34][35] He also won the 49thCapablanca Memorial tournament, held inHavana, a point clear ofLazaro Bruzon,[36] soon after winning the ACP Golden Classic tournament inBergamo, Italy with a score of 4½/6, a point ahead ofBaadur Jobava.[37] This string of tournaments propelled So to 12th in the FIDE World Rankings.
So expressed intent to represent the United States, filing the documents required for him to be able to change his FIDE nationality in 2013. He justified the move due to his family permanently settling inCanada, himself planning to study and permanently reside in the United States, and as part of a bid to boost his own career.[38] He also said thatNational Chess Federation of the Philippines (NCFP) disapproved of his participation in the2013 Summer Universiade inKazan,Russia over the2013 Asian Indoor Games and he felt obliged to participate in tournaments deemed important by the NCFP such as the Southeast Asian Games over concern that he might lose financial support even if it conflicted with his studies in the United States.[39] Retrospectively in 2019[2] and in 2021, he said that he lacked the necessary "connections" for him to be able to thrive in the Philippines.[40]
According toEugene Torre, aside from his family the move was likely caused by So not receiving recognition for his gold medal feat at the 2013 Universiade since his participation under theFederation of School Sports Association of the Philippines (FESSAP) led by Graham Lim was not sanctioned by thePhilippine Olympic Committee.[41]
So's transfer to theUnited States Chess Federation was confirmed in the November 2014 rating list.[42][43] Soon after, he moved toMinnetonka, Minnesota to live with his adoptive parents,Lotis Key and her husband, Renato Kabigting.[44]
He won theMillionaire Chess Tournament held inLas Vegas in October 2014, scoring 8½/13 and shared second place at theTata Steel Masters in January 2015.[45] In June 2015, in theDortmund Sparkassen Chess Tournament, he came in second, behind the winnerFabiano Caruana.[46] In November 2015, So won the 2015Bilbao Chess Masters Final tournament.[47] He defeated GrandmasterDing Liren in Round 1, drew the remaining 5 games, and won in the tiebreaks against GrandmasterAnish Giri.
So was awarded the Samford Fellowship in March 2016, enabling him to secureVladimir Tukmakov as his coach.[48] In August 2016, So finished clear first at the 2016Sinquefield Cup, ahead of former World ChampionsViswanathan Anand andVeselin Topalov, 2014 winnerFabiano Caruana, and 2015 winnerLevon Aronian. He won 2 games and drew 7 games.[49] In December 2016, So also finished clear first at the 2016London Chess Classic, ahead of former World ChampionsViswanathan Anand,Vladimir Kramnik andVeselin Topalov. He won 3 games and drew 6 games (+3−0=6).[50] In winning theSinquefield Cup, theLondon Chess Classic, and finishing second at the Your Next Move Leuven rapid and blitz tournament, he won the 2016Grand Chess Tour. So's first appearance for the United States yielded individual gold medal for board 3 as well as team gold at theChess Olympiad held inBaku.
In January 2017, So won theTata Steel Masters, finishing ahead of World Champion Magnus Carlsen by a full point, with a score of 9/13,[51] to rise to World No. 3 in the next FIDE list.
Wesley So played for the Saint Louis Arch Bishops in theProfessional Rapid Online Chess League competition, winning all four of his games two weeks in a row. In week six, he and his team beat the division leader San Diego Surfers, which at the time had the only perfect record in the league.[52]
So won the 2017U.S. Chess Championship by defeatingAlexander Onischuk in a rapid playoff tiebreak. He won 3 games and drew 8 (+3−0=8) in the classical portion of the tournament.[53] He had an undefeated streak of 67 games starting in July 2016, which ended in April 2017 after losing to the Azerbaijani GMShakhriyar Mamedyarov who won theShamkir Chess tournament.[54] In June 2017, So scored 4½/9 at Norway Chess.[55] He rebounded from seventh place at the Your Next Move Paris event with victory in the rapid portion of Your Next Move GCT (Leuven) with +5−0=4.[56][57] He finished the tournament in second place with a score of 22½/36, 3 points behind winnerMagnus Carlsen.[58]
In August 2017, So scored 3/9 at the Sinquefield Cup for tied last place.[59] In September, So progressed to the semi-finals of theWorld Cup and was knocked out by Ding Liren on tiebreaks.[60] Wesley So qualified for the2018 Candidates Tournament as ratings qualifier in November 2017.[61] He had a poor showing at the Candidates, placing seventh with 6/14.
From 28 May to 7 June 2018, he competed in thesixth edition of Norway Chess, placing fifth with 4/8 (+1–1=6).[62] He recorded his first victory over Carlsen in a classical game in this event.[63]
On November 2, 2019, So was crowned the very first Fischer Random World Champion, defeating the four-time reigning classicalworld chess championMagnus Carlsen with a score of 13.5 - 2.5 points, posting 4 wins, 2 draws and no losses.[64][65] So had also won the semifinal match againstIan Nepomniachtchi by reaching a score of 13–5 in the third fast rapid game, posting 3 wins, 4 draws and again no losses.Leonard Barden observed that the score unadjusted for time controls would be 5-1 and compared this "crushing" defeat to Bobby Fischer's double 6-0 victories in the 1971 Candidates. Barden also reported that Carlsen was "deeply ashamed".[66]
On September 19, 2020, So tied for 1st place in the 2020 St. Louis Rapid and Blitz, scoring 24/36 points. He won his last 3 games to eventually catch up and tie with Carlsen for winnings of US$45,000.00.[67][68] On September 30, 2020, So ended up runner-up to Carlsen in the 2020 Chess24 Banter Series Finals, losing 3.5–5.5, and settling for a prize fund of US$6.000.00.[69][70] On October 1, 2020, the Saint Louis Arch Bishops were declared the winners of the 2020Professional Rapid Online Chess League after the Armenia Eagles were disqualified due to fair play violations. This was the Arch Bishops 3rd title overall and 2nd consecutive championship.[71] Wesley So was named MVP of the season with an impressive score of 24.5/32 for a performance rating of 2826.[72]
On October 1, 2020, So accusedTigran L. Petrosian of cheating in his semi-final and final games during theChess.com 2020PRO Chess League (So was rated eighth-highest player in the world at the time). Petrosian responded to So with a lengthy message including the comments, "You are a biggest looser i ever seen in my life ! You was doing PIPI in your pampers when i was beating players much more stronger then you! [sic]".[73][74] Chess.com determined that Petrosian had violated fair play regulations; consequently, his team, the Armenia Eagles, were disqualified and the Saint Louis Arch Bishops were crowned champions. Chess.com and the PRO Chess League both issued lifetime bans to Petrosian.[75]
On October 29, 2020, So became US Champion again. He amassed a score of 9/11 against a top class field in the online competition.[76] So's unbeaten performance was compared by some chess commentators to the dominant performances ofBobby Fischer in the 1960s, particularly Fischer's 11/11 performance in 1963/1964[77] and his 9.5/11 performance in 1966. So's 9/11 score is the third-best score in the US National Championships history.[78]
On November 30, 2020, So defeated Carlsen to win the Skilling Open championship, the first leg of the Champions Chess Tour. Day 1 of the match ended with a score of 2-2, with both players having won 2 games each. On Day 2, Magnus won the first game with the black pieces and Wesley drew level the following game with black pieces. Game 3 was a close encounter which ended in a draw and Game 4 was a quick played draw in theBerlin Defence. The decider match consisted of 2 blitz games (5+3). Wesley So won the first game and was able to draw the second, earning the first prize along with US$30,000.
On February 14, 2021, So defeated Magnus Carlsen to win the Opera Euro Rapid. The first day of the finals ended in 2-2. The second day, So secured victory in the first match after 28 moves which propelled him to win the day, and the tournament, with a score of 2.5-1.5.[79] This was his second victory in the Meltwater Champions Chess Tour during the 2020-2021 season with the COVID-19 era online format.
On August 27, 2021 So won the 2021Grand Chess Tour, as a runner up of the Superbet Chess Classic, and then as the winner of the Paris Rapid & Blitz and finally as a runner-up of theSinquefield Cup.
On October 19, 2021, So won the US Championship again after defeating Fabiano Caruana andSamuel Sevian in the rapid tiebreaks.
Through February and March 2022, So played in theFIDE Grand Prix 2022. In the first leg, he tied for first withLeinier Domínguez in Pool D with a 4/6 result but lost with a 0.5/2 result in rapid tiebreakers. In the third leg, he tied for first withSam Shankland in Pool C with a result of 3.5/6 and defeated him with a 1.5/2 result in rapid tiebreakers to faceAmin Tabatabaei in the semifinals. So then drew his classical match against Tabatabaei with one win and one loss but defeated him in rapid tiebreakers to faceHikaru Nakamura in the finals. Their classical encounter ended with two draws, after which So beat Nakamura in the rapid tiebreakers with a 1.5/2 result, winning the third leg of the Fide Grand Prix and finishing third in the overall Fide Grand Prix 2022 series.
In April 2022 he participated in theAmerican Cup.
In May 2022 he tied for first in the Superbet Chess Classic, losing toMaxime Vachier-Lagrave in the tiebreaks.
In November 2022 he won the first-everChess.com Global Championship for $200,000, defeating Hikaru Nakamura in the semi-finals andNihal Sarin in the finals with a match score of 4.5-1.5.[80][81]
So has competed in five Chess Olympiads, making his debut at 12 years old representing the Philippines at the Turin Olympiad in 2006. Since the 2016 Olympiad, So has represented the United States.[82]
| Event | Board | Individual result | Team result |
|---|---|---|---|
| Olympiad, Turin 2006 | Second Reserve | 3/5 | 44th |
| World Youth U16 Olympiad, Singapore 2007 | First | 9½/10 (Gold) | Bronze |
| World Youth U16 Olympiad, Mersin 2008 | First | 9/10 (Gold) | Bronze |
| Olympiad, Dresden 2008 | Second | 7/10 (11th) | 46th |
| Olympiad, Khanty-Mansiysk 2010 | First | 6½/10 (27th) | 50th |
| Asian Games, Guangzhou 2010 | First | 5/8 | Silver |
| Olympiad, Istanbul 2012 | First | 6½/11 (16th) | 21st |
| Olympiad, Baku 2016 | Third | 8½/10 (Gold) | Gold |
As a young player, So's aggressive and tactical style of play caught the attention of a former Philippine chess champion,International MasterRodolfo Tan Cardoso. Cardoso said of So:
The young lad...would sacrifice a queen or any other pieces in his arsenal to get a winning attack....He cannot afford decent training given by well known GM-coaches and has to rely on his pure talent...before competing.[83]
So commented during an interview withAlina l'Ami in 2009:
So far I play aggressively. I would like to play a solid game with a solid opening. This is what I want. I think my style is close toVishy Anand. Of course we have different level.[84]
His playing style has evolved in recent years to become more precise and risk-free, relying on taking advantage of opponent's mistakes.
So has said that his favourite game was his win againstNi Hua in the 2008 Chess Olympiad, which was his first win against a 2700-rated opponent.[85]
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| 7 | 7 | ||||||||
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| 2 | 2 | ||||||||
| 1 | 1 | ||||||||
| a | b | c | d | e | f | g | h | ||
During So's tournament victory atBad Wiessee in 2006, he earned a creativity award in the Russian magazinee3e5 for the following game:[86]
So has been estranged from his biological family after they left for Canada and left him alone inMetro Manila.[2] In the United States, So lives inExcelsior, Minnesota,[87] withLotis Key, her husband Bambi Kabigting, and their daughter, whom he considers his adoptive family.[88] So became a citizen of the United States in February 2021.[89]
He is anEvangelical Christian.[41] In an article forChristianity Today in August 2017, he stated that he reads theBible every night and attends church every weekend.[90]
In 2025, Chess.com created a documentary about his life, from birth to present day which included interviews with Lotis Key.[91]
| Awards and achievements | ||
|---|---|---|
| Preceded by | US Chess Champion 2017 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by | US Chess Champion 2020 | Succeeded by Incumbent |
| Preceded by Incumbent | US Chess Champion 2021 | Succeeded by |
| Preceded by None | Chess 960 Champion 2019 | Succeeded by |