Qatar Open

[ketchuplover]

Carlsen getting tested by a WGM. Has slight edge. Wei down by 1 currently.

[ketchuplover]

Carlsen drawn! Yi beaten!

[Abba]

Looks like Carlsen has bounced back nicely. Meanwhile this 3. f3 against the Gruenfeld seems to be very trendy lately.

[ILfish]

Has Sam Shankland pulled out of the event?? He is listed as not paired for round 6.

Larry S. Cohen

[Jim_T]

Shankland didn’t appear for his Round 5 game – one person Twittered “fever”. So it’s very possible that he’s withdrawn.

For Round 6, Wesley So (4/5) plays White on Board 1 vs. Magnus Carlsen (4-1/2). Naroditsky and Lenderman are both at 3/5.

[mlanger]

@Sam Shankland's official Facebook page

I’d like to clear something up here- I have never forfeited a game in my life until now, and I feel I owe the chess world an explanation. I had to withdraw from the Qatar Masters Open for health reasons and bought a same-day ticket home at great personal expense to recuperate in more familiar surroundings. I informed one of the organizers, but had neglected to inform the TD staff. As a result, I was paired for a round that I was unable to participate in. This is highly embarassing, both for me and the tournament, and entirely my fault. The Qatar Masters Open is the strongest open tournament of all time and a spectacularly run event, and they did not deserve to have their reputation tarnished by a forfeit game. For this I can only offer my deepest and most sincere apologies, and my gratitude to the tournament organizers and staff for being so understanding and accommodating. I very much hope to play in any and all subsequent editions. 2015 has been by far the toughest year of my career and has just felt like one sucker punch to the face after another, but what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger, and I hope to be back with a vengeance in the near future.

[ketchuplover]

Carlsen conquers Qatar convincingly