Better to play one great chess event than 10 bad ones: Wesley So

bombay: Before fast into bombay, charles wesley So’s to the highest degree recent act in India was a dramatic resignation from an objectively drawn position in his first match at the Goa World Cup. Competing for the “local team” Mumba Masters at the Global Chess League (GCL) here has been far more fun for the Filipino-American GM.

At 32, So, who achieved a peak classical Elo rating of 2822 and became world No.2 in 2017, is still eager to improve in today’s changed chess world. In this interview, the world No.11 talks about the need for players to pick and choose events and the health of chess in the US.

Excerpts:

You won the Sinquefield Cup, but had a poor World Cup. How do you sum up 2025?

It’s been a fairly decent year, fairly quiet. Compared to other players, I didn’t play as many events. It’s been much better than last year, which was really bad. But if I didn’t play Goa, I would’ve been world No.6 now. Things just went wrong there. It’s okay, I can bounce back. The problem is, the chess world has changed so much, I don’t even know when my next classical tournament is going to be.

Now there are leagues like GCL, different formats, new tours like the Total World Championship Tour. Is it good, or is it all a bit too jumbled?

It’s great because you don’t need to play every single tournament. It’s much better to play one great tournament than 10 bad ones. You just pick one tour, do well, and you’re set for the year. Like the Grand Chess Tour is my favourite – I’ve been playing there for 10 straight years. You get all this flexibility to choose. You can play online or in person, play blitz or rapid or classical or freestyle.

Is it then about prioritising, although there’s money and limelight at stake?

Well, you have to work smart, not work hard. As a professional, you pick and choose what good events you want to go in. You also have to factor things like age and stamina. As a chess professional now, you need to be really fit so that you don’t get too tired playing all these events. Even if you play one good event in a month or so, you are set. For instance, me playing in Goa (World Cup) was not a very smart move. Also, Gukesh, he didn’t play in the freestyle event (Grand Slam Final in December).

So, being selective for you at 32 will be different to Gukesh at 19?

That’s true. When I was 14, I could play chess non-stop for two months, 4-5 events in a row. I can’t do that anymore.

How is the health of chess in the US, is it still seen as sort of a niche sport?

The thing is the St. Louis Chess Club (it hosts the Sinquefield Cup), Rex Sinquefield (American businessman) and Jeanne (his wife) were the ones that really made the chess boom possible in the US. They came in 2008 and poured a lot of money and resources into chess. They built a wonderful chess club. They were the ones that really pushed chess, and without them I wouldn’t be a chess professional. Now, we have Hikaru (Nakamura), Fabiano (Caruana), Levon (Aronian), myself, Leinier (Dominguez)... Without the club, probably only Hikaru and Fabiano would be professionals. Now, you have options. You also have chess.com in Utah. I think chess has a good future in the US…St. Louis is also now increasing support for female players.

How can chess get more mainstream in the US?

Online chess and streaming really help. Also, The Queen’s Gambit (OTT) show in the pandemic (helped). The thing is, in the US, compared to India, we don’t have any government support. So, it really depends a lot on private donors and individuals.

Globally, what can chess do to attract more eyeballs…

That’s always the eternal question. But you have to introduce more people to the game. Like now, chess is taught in high schools. You bring interest, new kids into the game. It’s hard to say because chess is not very easily marketable. Like in the US, soccer, basketball and baseball will always be at the top. With chess, it’s a bit tough.

What are your priorities now as a player?

It is the motivation to improve, to play better chess, to eliminate my weaknesses. It’s important to set long-term life goals that you can aim for. Without that, you are just moving pieces. That’s a good thing in chess – there’s always a better player than you. The main motivation is to be the best that I can be. Obviously, I made a few mistakes in my career. Maybe I could’ve been a bit better. But I take it a day at a time, and try to play better chess each day.

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