After 115 consecutive years, the US Open remains one of the longest-running annual tournaments. Originally designed as a late summer vacation for tired businessmen in Minnesota, it retains that flavor in large part today. While no longer the richest or strongest Swiss System tournament, it just keeps going and going and going...

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But before really getting into the topic, I'd like to say a few words about the scope and purpose of these collections, and issue a disclaimer or two.

First of all, I wish to emphasize that these collections are entirely unofficial, prepared by a private individual. They in no way represent or are sponsored by United States Chess Federation. Aside from being a Life Member of USCF I (David Moody) have no connection with that organization, and any opinions expressed are totally my own.

It is not my intention to write an exhaustive history of the US Open. I don't have the ability, resources, or time (both short- and long-term) to do that.

Rather, I think of this as a skeletal framework on which better and more conscientious historians can build. It is my intention to make their lives a little bit easier by providing an accurate, centralized source of results and games. More complete narrative and analysis will follow as time allows.

I am also keeping a list of players and their years of participation, and hope to be able to provide a complete listing eventually. Individual tournament pages will have <Milestones> for players who reach 10, 15, 20... tournaments that year.

If you find mistakes, or have additional information or games that should be added, please leave a note at my forum, http://www.chessgames.com/perl/kibi.... These collections may not be totally complete, but I am serious about making them reliable as far as they do go.

The most immediate needs are crosstables, particularly for <1964> and the span from <1975-1991>. Complete results are preferred, but simply a list of players and points scored will be sufficient. Games are also welcome, though I may have to exercise some discretion for the large Swiss System tournaments.

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THANKS

A section that will hopefully grow.

A big thank you to Larry Crawford, (User: crawfb5), for providing copius information for the years 1933-1975 that really helped to get things going.

User: sachistu has provided games from several of Spence's tournament books from 1954-1960, and other valuable information. His work is just coming into view as the games are being submitted.

Andy Ansel of New York, an avid collector of games, has provide files which I am only beginning to dip into.

Many inhabitants of Biographer Bistro have helped out here and there, but I must note the efforts of User: Tabanus in providing full names and other biographical information for players with games in the database.

This project is probably too big for one person to undertake, so any help will be appreciated. Some things on my wish list can be found at Game Collection: US Open - Help!.

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Now, on to the fun.

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At first, the tournament was the championship of the Western Chess Association (originally the Northwestern Chess Association), and was a round robin among whoever happened to show up. It remained a round robin through a semi-inviational phase, but gradually introduced preliminary and final sections to accomodate more players. The exact area controlled by the Western Chess Association varied from the Mississippi Valley region to all of the United States and Canada west of Pennsylvania and New York.

The Western Chess Association was superseded by the American Chess Federation in 1934, and that organization ran the tournament until in the United States Chess Federation took over in 1940. An important innovation came in 1946, as the Swiss System was used for the first time to determine placement from the preliminary to the various final sections. At Corpus Christi 1947, the Swiss System took over the whole shebang.

For much of the Swiss era, the Open was a 12-13 round event played at the pace of one game per evening. This helped continue the tradition of a vacation-style tournament, but beginning in the late 1970s the tournament began to decline both in attendance and importance due in no small part to the enormous expenses of a two-week event and competition from other major Swiss System events. Innovations such as a 9-round event and various shorter playing schedules were introduced to increase the attendance.

Here is a listing of US Open sites and winners, followed by links to the collections.

1 1900 Excelsior, Minnesota
Louis Uedemann
Game Collection: US Open 1900, Excelsior = Northwestern Champ

2 1901 Excelsior, Minnesota
Nicholas MacLeod
Game Collection: US Open 1901, Excelsior = 2nd Western Champ.

3 1902 Excelsior, Minnesota
Louis Uedemann
Game Collection: US Open 1902, Excelsior = 3rd Western Champ.

4 1903 Chicago, Illinois
Max Judd
Game Collection: US Open 1903, Chicago = 4th Western Champ.

5 1904 St. Louis, Missouri
Stasch Mlotkowski
Game Collection: US Open 1904, Saint Louis = 5th Western Champ.

6 1905 Excelsior, Minnesota
Edward Schrader
Game Collection: US Open 1905, Excelsior = 6th Western Champ.

7 1906 Chicago, Illinois
George H Wolbrecht
Game Collection: US Open 1906, Chicago = 7th Western Champ.

8 1907 Excelsior, Minnesota
Einar Michelsen
Game Collection: US Open 1907, Excelsior = 8th Western Champ.

9 1908 Excelsior, Minnesota
Edward P Elliott
Game Collection: US Open 1908, Excelsior = 9th Western Champ.

10 1909 Excelsior, Minnesota
Oscar Chajes
Game Collection: US Open 1909, Excelsior = 10th Western Champ.

11 1910 Chicago, Illinois
George H Wolbrecht
Game Collection: US Open 1910, Chicago = 11th Western Champ.

12 1911 Excelsior, Minnesota
Charles W Blake
Game Collection: US Open 1911, Excelsior = 12th Western Champ.

13 1912 Excelsior, Minnesota
Edward P. Elliott
Game Collection: US Open 1912, Excelsior = 13th Western Champ.

14 1913 Chicago, Illinois
Bradford B. Jefferson
Game Collection: US Open 1913, Chicago = 14th Western Champ.

15 1914 Memphis, Tennessee
Bradford B. Jefferson
Game Collection: US Open 1914, Memphis = 15th Western Champ.

16 1915 Excelsior, Minnesota
Jackson Whipps Showalter
Game Collection: US Open 1915, Excelsior = 16th Western Champ.

17 1916 Chicago, Illinois
Edward Lasker
Game Collection: US Open 1916, Chicago = 17th Western Champ.

18 1917 Lexington, Kentucky
Edward Lasker
Game Collection: US Open 1917, Lexington = 18th Western Champ.

19 1918 Chicago, Illinois
Borislav Kostic
Game Collection: US Open 1918, Chicago = 19th Western Champ.

20 1919 Cincinnati, Ohio
Edward Lasker
Game Collection: US Open 1919, Cincinnati = 20th Western Champ.

21 1920 Memphis, Tennessee
Edward Lasker
Game Collection: US Open 1920, Memphis = 21st Western Champ.

22 1921 Cleveland, Ohio
Edward Lasker
Game Collection: US Open 1921, Cleveland = 22nd Western Champ.

23 1922 Louisville, Kentucky
Samuel D Factor
Game Collection: US Open 1922, Louisville = 23rd Western Champ.

24 1923 San Francisco, California
Stasch Mlotkowski, Norman Tweed Whitaker
Game Collection: US Open 1923, San Francisco = 24th Western Champ

25 1924 Detroit, Michigan
Carlos Torre-Repetto
Game Collection: US Open 1924, Detroit = 25th Western Champ.

26 1925 Cedar Point, Ohio
Abraham Kupchik
Game Collection: US Open 1925, Cedar Point = 26th Western Champ.

27 1926 Chicago, Illinois
Leon Stolzenberg
Game Collection: US Open 1926, Chicago = 27th Western Champ.

28 1927 Kalamazoo, Michigan
Albert Margolis
Game Collection: US Open 1927 Kalamazoo = 28th Western Champ.

29 1928 South Bend, Indiana
Leon Stolzenberg
Game Collection: US Open 1928, South Bend = 29th Western Champ.

30 1929 St. Louis, Missouri
Herman H. Hahlbohm
Game Collection: US Open 1929, St. Louis = 30th Western Champ.

31 1930 Chicago, Illinois
Samuel Factor, Norman Tweed Whitaker
Game Collection: US Open 1930, Chicago = 31st Western Champ.

32 1931 Tulsa, Oklahoma
Samuel Reshevsky
Game Collection: US Open 1931, Tulsa = 32nd Western Champ.

33 1932 Minneapolis, Minnesota
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1932, Minneapolis = 33rd Western Champ.

34 1933 Detroit, Michigan
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1933, Detroit = 34th Western Champ.

35 1934 Chicago, Illinois
Reuben Fine, Samuel Reshevsky
Game Collection: US Open 1934, Chicago = 35th ACF Tournament

36 1935 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1935, Milwaukee = 36th ACF Congress

37 1936 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Israel Albert Horowitz
Game Collection: US Open 1936, Philadelphia = 37th ACF Congress

38 1937 Chicago, Illinois
David S Polland
Game Collection: US Open 1937, Chicago = 38th ACF Congress

39 1938 Boston, Massachusetts
Israel Albert Horowitz, Isaac Kashdan
Game Collection: US Open 1938, Boston = 39th ACF Congress

40 1939 New York, New York
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1939, New York = 40th ACF Congress

41 1940 Dallas, Texas
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1940, Dallas

42 1941 St. Louis, Missouri
Reuben Fine
Game Collection: US Open 1941, St. Louis

43 1942 Dallas, Texas
Herman Steiner, Daniel Abraham Yanofsky
Game Collection: US Open 1942, Dallas

44 1943 Syracuse, New York
Israel Albert Horowitz
Game Collection: US Open 1943, Syracuse

45 1944 Boston, Massachusetts
Samuel Reshevsky
Game Collection: US Open 1944, Boston

46 1945 Peoria, Illinois
Anthony Santasiere
Game Collection: US Open 1945, Peoria

47 1946 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania
Herman Steiner
Game Collection: US Open 1946, Pittsburgh

48 1947 Corpus Christi, Texas
Isaac Kashdan
Game Collection: US Open 1947, Corpus Christi

49 1948 Baltimore, Maryland
Weaver W. Adams
Game Collection: US Open 1948, Baltimore

50 1949 Omaha, Nebraska
Albert Sandrin
Game Collection: US Open 1949, Omaha

51 1950 Detroit, Michigan
Arthur Bisguier
Game Collection: US Open 1950, Detroit

52 1951 Fort Worth, Texas
Larry Melvyn Evans
Game Collection: US Open 1951, Fort Worth

53 1952 Tampa, Florida
Larry Melvyn Evans
Game Collection: US Open 1952, Tampa

54 1953 Milwaukee, Wisconsin
Donald Byrne
Game Collection: US Open 1953, Milwaukee

55 1954 New Orleans, Louisiana
Larry Melvyn Evans
Game Collection: US Open 1954, New Orleans

56 1955 Long Beach, California
Nicolas Rossolimo
Game Collection: US Open 1955, Long Beach

57 1956 Oklahoma City, Oklahoma
Arthur Bisguier
Game Collection: US Open 1956, Oklahoma City

58 1957 Cleveland, Ohio
Robert James Fischer
Game Collection: US Open 1957, Cleveland

59 1958 Rochester, Minnesota
Eldis Cobo Arteaga
Game Collection: US Open 1958, Rochester

60 1959 Omaha, Nebraska
Arthur Bisguier
Game Collection: US Open 1959, Omaha

61 1960 St. Louis, Missouri
Robert Byrne
Game Collection: US Open 1960, St. Louis

62 1961 San Francisco, California
Pal Benko
Game Collection: US Open 1961, San Francisco

63 1962 San Antonio, Texas
Antonio Angel Medina Garcia
Game Collection: US Open 1962, San Antonio

64 1963 Chicago, Illinois
William Lombardy
Game Collection: US Open 1963, Chicago

65 1964 Boston, Massachusetts
Pal Benko
Game Collection: US Open 1964, Boston

66 1965 San Juan, Puerto Rico
Pal Benko, William Lombardy
Game Collection: US Open 1965, San Juan

67 1966 Seattle, Washington
Pal Benko, Robert Byrne
Game Collection: US Open 1966, Seattle

68 1967 Atlanta, Georgia
Pal Benko
Game Collection: US Open 1967, Atlanta

69 1968 Aspen, Colorado
Bent Larsen
Game Collection: US Open 1968, Aspen

70 1969 Lincoln, Nebraska
Pal Benko, Arthur Bisguier, Milan Vukcevich
Game Collection: US Open 1969, Lincoln

71 1970 Boston, Massachusetts
Bent Larsen
Game Collection: US Open 1970, Boston

72 1971 Ventura, California
Walter Shawn Browne, Larry Melvyn Evans
Game Collection: US Open 1971, Ventura

73 1972 Atlantic City, New Jersey
Walter Shawn Browne
Game Collection: US Open 1972, Atlantic City

74 1973 Chicago, Illinois
Norman Weinstein
Game Collection: US Open 1973, Chicago

75 1974 New York, New York
Pal Benko, Vlastimil Hort
Game Collection: US Open 1974, New York

76 1975 Lincoln, Nebraska
Pal Benko, William Lombardy
Game Collection: US Open 1975, Lincoln

77 1976 Fairfax, Virginia
Anatoly Lein, Leonid Shamkovich
Game Collection: US Open 1976, Fairfax

78 1977 Columbus, Ohio
Leonid Shamkovich, Andy Soltis, Timothy Taylor
Game Collection: US Open 1977, Columbus

79 1978 Phoenix, Arizona
Joseph Bradford
Game Collection: US Open 1978, Phoenix

80 1979 Chicago, Illinois
Florin Gheorghiu
Game Collection: US Open 1979, Chicago

81 1980 Atlanta, Georgia
John Fedorowicz, Florin Gheorghiu
Game Collection: US Open 1980, Atlanta

82 1981 Palo Alto, California
Florin Gheorghiu, Larry Christiansen, Jeremy Silman, Nick de Firmian, John Meyer
Game Collection: US Open 1981, Palo Alto

83 1982 St. Paul, Minnesota
Andrew Soltis, William Martz
Game Collection: US Open 1982, St. Paul

84 1983 Pasadena, California
Larry Christiansen, Viktor Korchnoi
Game Collection: US Open 1983, Pasadena

85 1984 Ft. Worth, Texas
Roman Dzindzichashvili, Sergey Kudrin
Game Collection: US Open 1984, Fort Worth

86 1985 Hollywood, Florida
Yasser Seirawan, Boris Spassky, Joel Benjamin
Game Collection: US Open 1985, Hollywood

87 1986 Somerset, New Jersey
Larry Christiansen
Game Collection: US Open 1986, Somerset

88 1987 Portland, Oregon
Lev Alburt
Game Collection: US Open 1987, Portland

89 1988 Boston, Massachusetts
Dmitry Gurevich
Game Collection: US Open 1988, Boston

90 1989 Chicago, Illinois
Lev Alburt
Game Collection: US Open 1989, Chicago

91 1990 Jacksonville, Florida
Yasser Seirawan
Game Collection: US Open 1990, Jacksonville

92 1991 Los Angeles, California
Michael Rohde, Vladimir Akopian
Game Collection: US Open 1991, Los Angeles

93 1992 Dearborn, Michigan
Gregory Kaidanov
Game Collection: US Open 1992, Dearborn

94 1993 Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
Alexander Shabalov
Game Collection: US Open 1993, Philadelphia

95 1994 Chicago, Illinois
Georgi Orlov, Dmitry Gurevich, Ben Finegold.
Smbat Lputian, Leo Kaushansky, Albert Chow
Game Collection: US Open 1994, Chicago

96 1995 Concord, California
Alex Yermolinsky
Game Collection: US Open 1995, Concord

97 1996 Alexandria, Virginia
Gabriel Schwartzman
Game Collection: US Open 1996, Alexandria

98 1997 Orlando, Florida
Alex Yermolinsky
Game Collection: US Open 1997, Orlando

99 1998 Kailua-Kona, Hawaii
Judit Polgár, Boris Gulko
Game Collection: US Open 1998, Kailua-Kona

100 1999 Reno, Nevada
Alex Yermolinsky, Alexander Goldin,
Eduardas Rozentalis, Alexander Shabalov,
Gabriel Schwartzman, Michael Mulyar
Game Collection: US Open 1999, Reno

101 2000 St. Paul, Minnesota
Alex Yermolinsky
Game Collection: US Open 2000, St. Paul

102 2001 Framingham, Massachusetts
Aleksander Wojtkiewicz, Joel Benjamin,
Alexander Stripunsky, Fabian Doettling
Game Collection: US Open 2001, Framingham (Rounds 1-6) Game Collection: US Open 2001, Framingham (Rounds 7-9)

103 2002 Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Gennadi Zaichik, Evgeniy Najer
Game Collection: US Open 2002, Cherry Hill

104 2003 Los Angeles, California
Alexander Shabalov
Game Collection: US Open 2003, Los Angeles

105 2004 Ft. Lauderdale, Florida
Alexander Onischuk, Rodrigo Vasquez,
Aleksander Wojtkiewicz, Ildar Ibragimov,
Andranik Matikozian, Renier Gonzalez,
Marcel Martinez
Game Collection: US Open 2004, Ft. Lauderdale

106 2005 Phoenix, Arizona
Vadim Milov, Joel Benjamin
Game Collection: US Open 2005, Phoenix

107 2006 Oak Brook, Illinois
Yury Shulman
Game Collection: US Open 2006, Oak Brook

108 2007 Cherry Hill, New Jersey
Boris Gulko, Sergey Kudrin,
Benjamin Finegold, Alexander Shabalov,
Michael A. Rohde, Michael A. Mulyar,
Anton Paolo Del Mundo
Game Collection: US Open 2007, Cherry Hill

109 2008 Dallas, Texas
Alexander Shabalov, Rade Milovanovic,
Enrico Sevillano
Game Collection: US Open 2008, Dallas

110 2009 Indianapolis, Indiana
Dimitry Gurevich, Sergey Kudrin,
Alex Lenderman, Alex Yermolinsky,
Jacek Stopa, Jesse Kraai
Game Collection: US Open 2009, Indianapolis

111 2010 Irvine, California
Alejandro Ramirez
Game Collection: US Open 2010, Irvine

112 2011 Orlando, Florida
Hikaru Nakamura, Tamaz Gelashvili, Timur Gareyev, Alejandro Ramirez, Giorgi Kacheishvili, Aleksandr Lenderman Alfonso Zapata
Game Collection: US Open 2011, Orlando

113 2012 Vancouver, Washington
Manuel Leon Hoyos, Dmitry Gurevich,
John Daniel Bryant
Game Collection: US Open 2012, Vancouver

114 2013 Middleton, Wisconsin
Josh Friedel, Mackenzie Molner, Julio Sandorra
Game Collection: US Open 2013, Middleton

115 2014 Orlando, Florida
Conrad Holt
Game Collection: US Open 2014, Orlando

116 2015 Phoenix, Arizona
Alexander Shabalov
Game Collection: US Open 2015, Phoenix

117 2016 Indiapolis, Indiana
Alexander Shabalov
Game Collection: US Open 2016, Indianapolis

118 2017 Norfolk, Virginia
Aleksandr Lendermanr
Game Collection: US Open 2017, Norfolf

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Sources:

Souvenir t-Shirt, 100th US Open, Reno, 1999 (contains list of tournaments and winners from 1900-1998).

Wikipedia article: US Open Chess Championship (List of US Open tournament sites and champions)