So draws chief rival in 3 moves, loses title

MANILA, Philippines - Grandmaster Wesley So went for an early draw with GM Pavel Eljanov but settled for second overall after the tiebreak in the Reykjavik Open chess championships in Iceland yesterday.

So and Eljanov actually finished tied for first with Egyptian GM Bassem Amin, who won his final round match, at eight points but Eljanov finished on top with a superior tiebreak score.

So wound up second and Amin, who beat GM Grzegorz Gajewski of Poland, ended up third.

Eljanov readily accepted So’s draw offer after only three moves of the Gruenfeld defense, according to National Chess Federation of the Philippines chairman/president Butch Pichay Jr.

So, Eljanov and Amin finished with eight points.

According to the official website report, Eljanov was planning to “play a little,” but when his opponent (So) offered the draw, he saw no reason to decline.

So notched a rating performance of 2753, joining the elite Hydra Grandmaster group of players with 2700 and above rating.

The tournament served as part of So’s buildup for the 2013 World Chess Cup set Aug. 10-Sept. 5 in Norway. Joining So in the World Cup is fellow GM Oliver Barbosa.