So draws with 2nd seed Viet in 4th round of Zonals chess

Tagaytay City – Topseed Filipino Grandmaster Wesley So drew with second seed Vietnamese GM Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son (Elo 2631) in Thursday’s fourth round of the Asian Zone 3.3 Chess Championship at the Tagaytay International Convention Center here.
The Bacoor, Cavite native So and Son drew after after 44 moves to tally identical 3.5 points after four rounds.
“Mabuti naka draw pa tayo. Masyadong mahirap ang laro saka slight advantage si Nguyen Ngoc Truong Son,” said the 19-year-old So, the country’s highest-ranked player with an Elo rating of 2682. He took a break from his studies at Webster University in the United States to compete in the event hosted by Tagaytay City Mayor Abraham “Bambol” Tolentino Jr.
A total of 42 players are competing in the premier Open division.
The nine-round Swiss system tournament offers two slots to this year’s World Cup in Tromso, Norway. GM Oliver Barbosa is the only Filipino currently guaranteed a seat in the World Cup.
Meanwhile, So handled the white pieces in his fifth round match yesterday against Mongolian GM-elect Bayarsaikhan Gundavaa while the Vietnamese Son battled Filipino GM entry Darwin Laylo.
Gundavaa split the point with Laylo after 30 moves of Gruenfeld defense in their fourth round match.
“Go for the win po tayo sa Mongolian na si Gundavaa lalu na’t white pieces tayo,” added So, who will next play in the tough Reykjavik Open chess nexth month.
Joining Gundavaa and Laylo in a bunch of 3.0 pointers are defending champion Indon GM Susanto Megaranto and Viet IM Nguyen Doc Hoa, who faced each other yesterday.
The Jakarta based Megaranto edged IM Rolando Nolte after 85 moves of Ruy Lopez Opening while Doc Hoa outclassed US based GM Rogelio ‘Banjo’ Barcenilla Jr. after 42 moves of King’s Indian defense.