Week 5 Game of the Week

This year Game of the Week will be decided upon by IM Greg Shahade and NM Arun Sharma together. First place each week will receive a $200 bonus prize ($150 going to the winner of the game, $50 to the loser), second place $75, and third place $50 (both second and third going entirely to the winner).


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1st Place: GM Cristian Chirila (DAL) vs GM Melikset Khachiyan (LA) 0-1






















After an interesting opening, GM Khachiyan broke the game open with 20... Rxg2!



A nice performance from GM Khachiyan all around, from his very interesting opening choice to the nice middlegame tactics, and the somewhat unexpected finish. A very exciting game for the fans, with many interesting moments, a game which helped lead Los Angeles to a resounding win over Dallas and put them in the thick of the playoff race, a very worthy winner in our eyes.


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2nd Place: IM Mackenzie Molner (ARZ) vs GM Julio Becerra (MIA) 1-0






















With the strong 20. Nf5!, IM Molner found a nice tactical line to score a crushing victory over the three time USCL MVP.



Powerful performance by IM Molner, establishing a crushing initiative right out of the opening and using it to good effect with some nice tactics to score a big win over the most successful player in League history. Like the winning this game, this victory was also huge in helping his team, Arizona, get back into the thick of the playoff race and for both reasons, another very worthy choice in our view.


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3rd Place: GM Sam Shankland (NE) vs SM Jorge Sammour-Hasbun (BOS) 1-0






















Despite the hanging Rook, GM Shankland struck with 46. Nxd6!, winning the game with a nice tactical finish after the capture of the d1 Rook.



Exciting game as usual with SM Sammour-Hasbun which definitely contained many interesting moments, in particular the sequence which ended the game. Just an impressive performance by GM Shankland, winning in such a dominating fashion against a player who had knocked off three tough opponents in a row in the previous weeks.