So continues march to be world No. 1

WESLEY So's climb to the top took a giant step once more with his recent win in the US Chess National Championship. In clinching America's top chess plum, So routed fellow Grandmaster Alex Onischuk 1.5-.5 at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center in St. Louis, Missouri.

Uh-oh. St. Louis struck a nerve in my heart. I was there in the 80's on my way to Chicago from St. Joseph, Missouri, where I covered the World Tot Baseball Championship in 1983. OK, nostalgia time. It was in St. Joseph where the house of Jesse James, the infamous American outlaw, is located. Restored and “revered,” it remains the town's top tourist spot. The town's flyers shout, “See The Hole.”

I went to see the hole.

That hole on the wall is where the bullet that pierced the back of Jesse James' head went through.

Jesse James, a notorious bank robber, was gunned down while nailing a frame on the wall of his house by no less than his right hand man. A huge bounty triggered the betrayal. Speaking of betrayal, did So turn his back on his country, the Philippines, when he took an American citizenship some years back? Of course, not. So, now 23, had merely wanted a better life— just like many of our compatriots dreaming of a good life in good, ole America.

His victory over Onischuk was fraught with drama.

Tied with Onischuk after the eliminations, So survived a second-game trap in the playoffs.

After winning Match 1 with a flawless mid-game assault, So, playing black, found himself down by two pawns in the second and deciding match.

But he outmaneuvered Onischuk, escaping with a perpetual check to force a draw en route to a decisive 1-point victory.

So, newly-born when Onischuk was already a world-class chess player at age 18, pocketed $50,000 and his 41-year-old victim settled for $35,000.

Even as So now carries the American flag when competing overseas, he wore the barong Tagalog symbolic of his Filipino roots during the awarding ceremonies.

With his ELO rating of 2822, the Cavite-born So is now a close second behind world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen (2838) of Norway.

When So finally stands on top of the heap, let's all be proud of him. Rank knows neither color nor creed.

Even as So now carries the American flag when competing overseas, he wore the barong Tagalog symbolic of his Filipino roots during the awarding ceremonies. With his ELO rating of 2822, the Cavite-born So is now a close second behind world No. 1 Magnus Carlsen (2838) of Norway. When So finally stands on top of the heap, let’s all be proud of him. Rank knows neither color nor creed.