2014 Millionaire Chess Open (Las Vegas, NV)

The time is here! The widely-anticipated inaugural Millionaire Open is only a few days away. GM Maurice Ashley and Amy Lee have invested in the future of chess by organizing what will be a historic event! A $1,000,000 chess event has never been attempted and there will only be one FIRST event of such… this is it!

In past weeks, there has been a healthy debate on what the future of chess should look like. The MCO idea has started this discussion and while there was immense skepticism there are a number of key supporters both inside and outside the chess world. Will Smith, a long-time Ashley supporter and chess enthusiast, has given his support. The Chess Drum will be in Las Vegas providing coverage of the historic event.

While there are no top ten players competing, GM Wesley So of the Philippines will headline the event as the #14 player in the world. He will be joined by approximately 35 GMs seeking the $100,000 first prize. World #3 GM Veselin Topalov gave his endorsement during the Sinquefield Cup and many top GMs will be following the event with great interest. There are already exploratory plans for a second event.

Following are the top 21 players and their affiliation.

2014 Millionaire Chess Open October 9th-13th, 2014 (Las Vegas, Nevada)
OPEN Section (FIDE Rated)
#	Name	Title	Federation	Flag	FIDE+100
1	Wesley So	GM	Philippines		2855
2	Bu Xiangzhi	GM	China		2822
3	Le Quang Liem	GM	Vietnam		2806
4	Yu Yangyi	GM	China		2800
5	Alexey Dreev	GM	Russia		2777
6	Varuzhan Akobian	GM	USA		2758
7	Evgeniy Najer	GM	Russia		2746
8	Timur Gareyev	GM	USA		2740
9	Ray Robson	GM	USA		2728
10	Sam Shankland	GM	USA		2725
11	Sergei Azarov	GM	Belarus		2717
12	Daniel Naroditsky	GM	USA		2701
13	Giorgi Kacheishvili	GM	Georgia		2697
14	Ehsan Ghaem Maghami	GM	Iran		2694
15	Aleksandr Lenderman	GM	USA		2690
16	Zhou Jianchao	GM	China		2688
17	Julio Catalino Sadorra	GM	Philippines		2685
18	Ruben Felgaer	GM	Argentina		2677
19	Alejandro Ramirez	GM	USA		2673
20	Sabino Brunello	GM	Italy		2668
21	Rauf Mamedov	GM	Azerbaijan		2667
Standings, Games (TWIC)

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