[mark_l_watson]

Congratulations to both players for providing us with so many decisive and interesting games! Particular congratulations to Ding!

I played in the US Chess Open in 1978, but I am not much of a player. I did write the shitty little Chess program that Apple distributed on the Apple II demo cassette tape.

Off topic, but I 100% support Magnus’s decision to do what he enjoys: playing in tournaments and not time spent preparing for world championship matches. Good for him understanding what is most important to him, and acting on it.

[hacym]

That decision is made a lot easier once you've been on top five times and no matter what happens in the championship you're not participating in, everyone knows you're still the GOAT.

[viraj_shah]

"I played in the US Chess Open in 1978, but I am not much of a player. I did write the shitty little Chess program that Apple distributed on the Apple II demo cassette tape."

Sometimes...you meet the most interesting people on here!

[QuantumGood]

I finished in-the-money in the Open in 1982, which hooked me a bit, and I also later played in the World Open and finished in-the-money in the New York open.

For NY, had to live in Manhattan for two weeks, play 6 days, one day off, then 6 more days, several hours each day. I wouldn't have been able to remotely afford it, but my cousin was out of town for two weeks, and let me stay at her place. Taking two weeks off for an open Chess tournament seems insane to today's player's brought up on blitz, rapid, bullet and hyper-bullet (which I confess I enjoy a lot myself).