Praggnanandhaa Wins 2026 Grand Chess Tour, So Clinches 3rdGM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu came back from behind to win the final match against GM Fabiano Caruana and claim his maiden title in the 2026 Grand Chess Tour Finals, which comes with $200,000.
Grand Chess Tour Finals Day 5 StandingsImage: Courtesy of the Grand Chess Tour.
Overall Grand Chess Tour EarningsImage: Courtesy of the Grand Chess Tour.
The 2026 Grand Chess Tour Finals take place from August 22-27 in St. Louis, Missouri.
The winner claims the Grand Chess Tour title and the $200,000 top prize.
Praggnanandhaa Wins 2026 Grand Chess Tour, So Clinches 3rd
GM Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu came back from behind to win the final match against GM Fabiano Caruana and claim his maiden title in the 2026 Grand Chess Tour Finals, which comes with $200,000. The Indian grandmaster started the day six points behind, but took the lead when he won both rapid games. From there, an even score in blitz left him two points ahead, with a final score of 15-13.
GM Wesley So also came back, in the match for third place, against GM Vincent Keymer. The pair traded wins in the rapid portion, but So won all four blitz games, clinching the title with a game to spare. The final score was 18-12.
This is a flash report. Come back soon to read the full report here!
The top three players qualify directly to the 2027 Grand Chess Tour. That's Praggnanandhaa, Caruana, and So.
Grand Chess Tour Finals Day 5 Standings
Image: Courtesy of the Grand Chess Tour.
Below, you can also see the total earnings across all events of the GCT. Praggnanandhaa takes home a whopping $404,354 from this series alone.
Overall Grand Chess Tour Earnings
Image: Courtesy of the Grand Chess Tour.
Praggnanandhaa 15 -13 Caruana
GM Dejan Bojkov annotates the Game of the Day below. (It will be added later!)
So 18-12 Keymer
How to watch? You can watch the day's broadcast on the Saint Louis Chess Club's YouTube or Twitch channels. The games can also be reviewed from our dedicated events page. The broadcast was hosted by GMs Yasser Seirawan, Peter Svidler, and Maurice Ashley, and IM Nazi Paikidze.
The 2026 Grand Chess Tour Finals take place from August 22-27 in St. Louis, Missouri. The $450,000 final event of the 2026 Tour sees GMs Fabiano Caruana, Wesley So, Vincent Keymer, and Praggnanandhaa Rameshbabu compete in a single-elimination knockout. Each match consists of eight games: two classical (6 points for a win, 3 for a draw, and 0 for a loss), two rapid (4/2/0), and four blitz (2/1/0). The winner claims the Grand Chess Tour title and the $200,000 top prize.
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