2018 Ultimate Moves Recap

Ultimate Moves has become an integral part of Grand Chess Tour stops in Saint Louis. This year’s event took place during the day off after the conclusion of the Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz, preceding the Sinquefield Cup. It included all the players of the Saint Louis Rapid and Blitz, as well as World Champion Magnus Carlsen, who is the wildcard in the Sinquefield Cup. Peter Svidler, one of the Russian commentators, also joined the fun. Ultimate Moves is unlike any other event as the atmosphere is very casual and friendly banter and “trash-talking” is encouraged. The event was open to the public and live streamed online, which gave fans a glimpse of the players’ personalities outside of tense tournament situations.

Founder of the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis, Rex Sinquefield, and his son Randy Sinquefield were team captains for today's Ultimate Moves.

The two teams were “Team Rex,” led by the founder of the Saint Louis Chess Club and “Team Randy,” led by Rex’s son, and the president of Spectrum Studios. Each match starts with Rex and Randy facing off and making the first five moves of the game and then continues to alternate each five moves.

Ultimate Moves Teams

After losing the match last year, team Randy made a strong comeback winning the first three games. Magnus Carlsen joked that he had the easiest job because his turn proceeded Randy’s, who already got the job done. Team Rex made a comeback by winning the next match but the draw in the following ensured the win for team Randy. In the final game, Randy was too slow to press the clock after making his move and ran out of time. The final score of the match was 3.5-2.5 in favor of team Randy. The lifetime score is now 3-2 in favor of  team Rex.

The moment Rex Sinquefield blundered, allowing Magnus Carlsen to deliver checkmate in one.