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Youngest US Chess Master

Boston Globe, January 3, 2011

By Harold Dondis and Patrick Wolff

A 9-year-old has astounded the American chess world by becoming the youngest chess master ever. Samuel Sevian won a small tournament at the Mechanics Institute in San Francisco and achieved a rating of 2201, one point over a National Master’s rating. So, at the tender age of 9 years, 11 months, and 11 days (11 days younger than the previous record, established by Nicolas Nip, also of the Bay Area), Sevian became the youngest American chess master in history. Previous holders of the record include Hikaru Nakamura and, of course, Bobby Fischer. Nip had acquired the record in 2008 by a series of private matches that were questioned by some. Nip later gave a charitable simul display for the US Chess Trust that was highlighted on the “Live With Regis and Kelly’’ show, but according to USCF he has been inactive since the end of 2008. His disappearance is unexplained. Perhaps all the attention proved too much for a boy.

Sevian is apparently of Armenian parentage. He moved from Orlando, Fla., to San Francisco and holds the record for the youngest rated expert (rated at 2000 or over). He undoubtedly timed his shot at the record at the Mechanics Chess Club in San Francisco, where records seem to fall, but there is little doubt that he earned it. One wonders how much younger a player can be to break this record — it resembles the shrinking 100-yard dash record in track.

Sevian won a small tournament this month, the McClain Open, from which the game below is taken. As Black, Sevian defended an English opening, fielded an attack on the queenside, and slowly increased his advantage to a winning endgame.

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