So Wins Third Sinquefield Cup in Armageddon Playoff

Wesley So won his third Sinquefield Cup title in Saint Louis, beating Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu in a playoff after all classical games ended in draws. The American claimed the $87,500 prize and a place in the Grand Chess Tour Finals.

All square after nine classical draws

So and Praggnanandhaa tied for first in the classical portion. They then played two rapid games at the 10-plus-5 time control. Both ended in draws, so the title went to an armageddon decider.

Praggnanandhaa won the lot and chose White, getting five minutes to So's four. A draw would be enough for So with the black pieces.

A winning position, then a time scramble

Praggnanandhaa built a winning advantage on the board. But with no increment before move 61, the clock became his real opponent. He missed several winning moves in the scramble.

So held his nerve and the game ended in a draw. His steady defence across all 12 tournament games earned him the crown with a performance rating over 2800.

Three titles, two years in a row

So is now the only player to win the Sinquefield Cup in back-to-back years, having taken it in 2025 and 2026. His first win came exactly ten years earlier, in 2016.

"I'm not proud of the early draws, but it's part of a bigger strategy, and it worked," he told reporters afterwards. The Grand Chess Tour Finals begin Saturday, with So joining Praggnanandhaa, Fabiano Caruana and Vincent Keymer.

A decade after his first Saint Louis trophy, So still wins with unbreakable defence and a cool hand when the clock runs low.