By KRISTEL SATUMBAGA
Grandmaster Wesley So survived a dramatic three-way playoff to capture the 2025 Sinquefield Cup in Saint Louis, Missouri on Thursday, Aug. 28.
The Cavite-born So bested Indian GM R Praggnanandhaa in the second game of the playoff before drawing with fellow American Fabiano Caruana to emerge victorious.
It was So’s second tournament title after winning it in 2016.
Praggnanandhaa actually opened the playoff with a win over Caruana before falling to So.
The Indian GM finished second, while Caruana settled for third.
So managed to forge a playoff after beating Uzbek GM Nodirbek Abdusattorov in the ninth and final round while overnight leaders Praggnanandhaa and Caruana settled for draws with Levon Aronian and D Gukesh, respectively.
The trio ended up with identical 5.5 points in the 10-round tournament, with So highlighting his performance with two wins and seven draws.
