In August 2025, Vincent Keymer, Chess Grandmaster (GM) from Germany, won the Quantbox Chennai Grand Masters 2025 held from August 6–15, 2025 at the Hyatt Regency in Chennai, Tamil Nadu(TN). He became the first sole champion in the tournament’s history, securing the title with a round to spare.
Exam Hints:
- Tournament: Chennai Grand Masters 2025
- Winner: GM Vincent Keymer (Germany)
- Runner: Anish Giri (Netherlands)
- Indian Performance: Arjun Erigaisi, 3rd Place & Karthikeyan Murali, 4th Place
- Challengers Winner: GM M. Pranesh (India); Qualified for the 2026 Masters
- Total Prize: Rs. 1 crore, (Masters – 75 lakhs, Challengers – 25 lakhs)
About Chennai Grand Masters 2025:
Tournament Structure:The tournament featured two separate 10-player round-robin sections, a masters and a challengers section.
- The Masters showcased elite international Grandmasters, while the Challengers section served as a breeding ground for emerging Indian talents.
Prize Money: The total prize pool for the tournament is Rs. 1 crore, with Rs. 75 lakhs for the master section and Rs. 25 lakhs for the challengers section.
Key Performances:
Vincent Keymer: He scored 1.5 points ahead in Round 8 with a draw against GM Jorden van Foreest (Netherlands).
- Then, he ended the event with a two-point lead, defeating GM Ray Robson (United States) in the final round, finishing with 7/9 points.
- His performance rating stood at an impressive 2917, earning 20.9 Elo points and propelling him above 2750 live rating, now ranked World No. 10.
Anish Giri (Netherlands): He staged a dramatic final-round win over Jorden van Foreest, which elevated him to solo second place, edging out Indian GMs Arjun Erigaisi and Karthikeyan Murali on tiebreakers.
Other Indian GMs: Arjun Erigaisi finished third after a calm draw with Murali, who ended fourth, having lost only to Keymer.
- Indian GMs Nihal Sarin and V Pranav ended up fifth and ninth in the tournament.
Winners of Chennai Grand Masters 2025-Masters:
| Rank | Player | Country | Prize |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Vincent Keymer | Germany | 25 lakhs |
| 2 | Anish Giri | The Netherlands | 15 lakhs |
| 3 | Arjun Erigaisi | India | 10 lakhs |
About Chennai Grand Masters 2025 – Challengers Section:
Top Performances: GM M. Pranesh(India) triumphed with 6.5/9 points, earning a spot in the 2026 Masters after beating GM Harika Dronavalli(India). Despite losing his final game, he held his lead as rivals faltered.
- GM Adhiban Baskaran(India) and GM Abhimanyu Puranik(India) secured the second and hird place respectively in the Challengers Section of Chennai Grand Masters 2025.
Prize Money: The prize pool for the top 3 positions in the challengers section is Rs. 7 lakhs, 4 lakhs and 3.25 lakhs, respectively.
Recent Related News:
In July 2025, Magnus Carlsen of Norway, the World No.1 chess player, won the SuperUnited Rapid & Blitz Croatia 2025 tournament held in Zagreb, Croatia, with a total score of 22.5 out of 36 points. This marked his 10th victory in 12 Grand Chess Tour (GCT) rapid and blitz events and his sixth consecutive tournament win in 2025.
