U.S. Chess Championship
The national championship of the United States: an invitation-only round robin in Saint Louis that now draws a field of world-class grandmasters, with the U.S. Women's Championship played alongside.
- Founded
- 1845
- Held
- Every year
- Where
- Saint Louis, United States
- Format
- 12-player single round robin, 11 rounds at classical time control; a tie for first is settled by a playoff
- Champion
- Fabiano Caruana (2025)
- Most titles
- Fabiano Caruana (5), Hikaru Nakamura (5), Gata Kamsky (4)
History
The U.S. Championship is the oldest national chess championship. It began as a series of challenge matches in 1845, and since 1936 the title has been decided by tournament play under the national federation. The Saint Louis Chess Club has hosted it every year since 2009.
The modern event is one of the strongest closed tournaments of the year: a twelve-player field of the country’s top grandmasters, with the U.S. Women’s Championship played in parallel. Before 2026, Fabiano Caruana had won five titles, the last four in a row from 2022 to 2025. Fischer also won four in succession, twice, and only Samuel Reshevsky has five straight titles.
How it works
Who plays. Twelve players qualify by rating, by holding the title, or as winners of the U.S. Junior Championship and the U.S. Open, and the organisers add a wildcard.
The format. A single round robin of 11 rounds at classical time control. Since 2014 the event has been a round robin; between 1999 and 2013 it was mostly a larger Swiss.
What is at stake. The national title and prize money, plus places in the next FIDE World Cup for the top finishers. A tie for first place is settled by a playoff of rapid games and, if needed, Armageddon, not by tiebreak scores.
Last checked 22 October 2026 against the 2026 edition.
U.S. Chess Championship in The Chess Herald
- Li, 16, Takes Women's Title as So Stumbles, Caruana Forces Playoff
- So Draws Niemann in Under an Hour, One Round From a Fourth Title
- So Holds Caruana to a Draw and Keeps His Full-Point Lead
- So Beats Woodward in a Pawn Ending, Leads Caruana by a Point
- So Takes Sole Lead on 5/7 as Liang Falls in 27 Moves
Show all 17 articles
- Weekly Recap: The U.S. Championship Tightens in Saint Louis While Youth Records and Upsets Pile Up
- Caruana and Liang Join a Four-Way Lead After Round 6
- Woodward Beats Caruana as Eight of 12 Games Are Decisive
- Caruana Joins So in the Lead as Liang Falls to Xiong
- Caruana Wins Titled Tuesday on a U.S. Championship Rest Day
- Woodward and Shankland Win as So and Liang Stay Level at 2.5
- So and Liang Lead Open at 2/2, Bottom Seeds Top the Women
- Weekly Recap: Samarkand Afterglow, Fagernes Heats Up and Caruana Eyes a Record
- Caruana Chases a Fifth Straight US Title, and Reshevsky's Record
- Weekly Recap: Turlov Takes Over FIDE as Uzbekistan Wins Gold in Samarkand
- Caruana Heads a 12-Player U.S. Championship Field in Saint Louis
- Toronto's Junior Championship Tops a Crowded October Slate
Champions since 1999
| Year | Winner |
|---|---|
| 2025 | Fabiano Caruana |
| 2024 | Fabiano Caruana |
| 2023 | Fabiano Caruana |
| 2022 | Fabiano Caruana |
| 2021 | Wesley So · won a rapid playoff with Caruana and Sevian |
| 2020 | Wesley So · played online |
| 2019 | Hikaru Nakamura |
| 2018 | Sam Shankland |
| 2017 | Wesley So · won a rapid playoff with Onischuk |
| 2016 | Fabiano Caruana |
Show all champions since 1999
| 2015 | Hikaru Nakamura |
| 2014 | Gata Kamsky · won a rapid playoff with Akobian |
| 2013 | Gata Kamsky · won an Armageddon playoff with Ramírez |
| 2012 | Hikaru Nakamura |
| 2011 | Gata Kamsky |
| 2010 | Gata Kamsky · won an Armageddon playoff with Shulman |
| 2009 | Hikaru Nakamura |
| 2008 | Yury Shulman |
| 2007 | Alexander Shabalov |
| 2006 | Alexander Onischuk |
| 2005 | Hikaru Nakamura · played in late 2004 |
| 2003 | Alexander Shabalov |
| 2002 | Larry Christiansen |
| 2000 | Joel Benjamin, Alexander Shabalov, Yasser Seirawan (shared) · shared |
| 1999 | Boris Gulko |
Source: Wikipedia.
Page last reviewed October 22, 2026.