Grandmaster Vincent Keymer claimed victory in Chess.com's Freestyle Friday tournament on March 27, scoring 8.5 out of 11 points and prevailing on tiebreaks. Five players matched his score, but connection problems cost Nodirbek Yakubboev the title in the final round. Hans Niemann finished third, while Iniyan Paneerselvam took fourth after defeating Keymer.
In a surprising turn, just 8.5 points out of 11 secured the win in Freestyle Friday, Chess.com's weekly event for titled players that started at 11:00 a.m. Eastern Time. Normally, winners need at least 9 or 9.5 points, but no one reached nine this time, according to tournament results from Chess.com. GM Vincent Keymer edged out the field on tiebreaks after facing a strong slate of opponents, earning $400. GM Nodirbek Yakubboev finished second with $250 despite leading after round seven. He converted an early edge against Cristobal Henriquez and defended against Keymer, but missed a piece-winning chance on move 14, allowing Keymer to take the lead. Entering the break, Keymer had 7/8, tied with Yakubboev and others at 6.5/8. Keymer drew a tough endgame with Benjamin Bok, last week's winner, while Yakubboev beat Hans Niemann. Both leaders won in round 10 against Dmitry Andreikin and Bok, respectively. In the finale, Yakubboev lost on time to Quoc Hy Nguyen after connection issues just two moves in. Keymer lost to Iniyan Paneerselvam, who reached a winning position after Keymer missed a chance on move 21, but Keymer's tiebreaks held. Niemann beat Oleksandr Bortnyk for third and $150, with Iniyan earning $100 for fourth. IM Nataliya Buksa won the women's prize of $100 from 25th place. Keymer rose to seventh in the Championship Standings, led by Bortnyk, while Buksa moved to fourth among women, behind Anna Muzychuk.