I stand corrected. I thought there were three qualifiers from the candidates, not two.
Update: Hikaru fought hard against some tough young Texas cowboys, finishing the tournament with 3 wins and 2 draws. One of the top games was still going when I left. Its result would determine if Hikaru got a share of 2nd or a share of 3rd place. He will lose some FIDE rating points…
Clearly, Naka has grown soft playing in those plush elite European events, where they give free coffee and snacks (!!!) for the players.
Wow, for curiosity’s sake what were the ratings of the highest rated people in the tournament and the ratings that Hikaru drew with?
He drew the two highest rated players (other than him) in the event: GM Julio Sadorra, member of UT Dallas Chess Team, USCF rated 2640, and GM Bartok Macieja, coach of UT Brownsville Chess Team, USCF rated 2548. For comparison, Nakamura’s USCF rating is currently at his peak of 2880. Sadorra won his other 4 games, while Macieja was pushing to win his last one, so he can tie for 1st with Sadorra. Only 5 rounds for about 45 players in the Open section meant that top match-ups only started in round 4, so Macieja and Sadorra didn’t have a chance to play each other (they would have been paired in Round 6).
I wonder how many US players had an opportunity to play regular TC rated chess against someone rated 2880 or higher before this weekend?