Chess · Worth knowing

In round 4 of the 2026 U.S. Chess Championship held in St. Louis, endgames dominated the proceedings with several notable results. GM Fabiano Caruana defeated GM Ray Robson in a masterclass rook endgame that extended to move 77, joining GM Wesley So atop the leaderboard on three points. GMs Jeffery Xiong and Grigoriy Oparin also secured endgame victories, with Xiong demonstrating creative piece sacrifice tactics and Oparin capitalizing on knight versus bishop dynamics. In the Women's Championship, IM Alice Lee claimed sole lead with 3.5 points after winning a complex rook and pawn versus bishop endgame against FM Megan Paragua, showcasing precision in fundamental grandmaster-level technique. Four Open games and five Women's games exceeded 50 moves, making it the longest and most enthralling round of the tournament so far.

In round four of the 2026 US Chess Championship in Saint Louis, Fabiano Caruana defeated Ray Robson to join Wesley So at 3/4, half a point ahead of Awonder Liang after Liang suffered his first loss to Jeffery Xiong in a complex Berlin Defence endgame. Caruana demonstrated technical prowess by converting a queenside passer advantage, while Xiong navigated demanding practical complications to secure his victory. Hans Niemann returned to even score with a win over Abhimanyu Mishra, obtaining favorable positions and executing a tactical combination. Wesley So remained unbeaten after drawing with Levon Aronian, who has drawn all four games. In the women's championship, Alice Lee took sole lead at 3½/4 after defeating 13-year-old Megan Paragua in a tense encounter where both players missed critical opportunities. Lee has won three consecutive games despite surviving several difficult positions earlier in the tournament. Irina Krush collected her second victory by defeating Nazi Paikidze with a decisive tactical blow, moving into third place at 2½/4. Thalia Cervantes maintained her unbeaten record with a draw to stand alone in second place at 3/4.