The 17th edition of the Neckar Open had a dramatic finish with 13 players sharing the first place after obtaining 7/9 points each.
Hungarian GM Richard Rapport took the top prize thanks to his tiebreak score.
GM Arkadij Naiditsch, who eventually landed on fourth, arrived to the last round in the best position, as he had a good tiebreak score and had to face a lower rated opponent with the white pieces.
However, Polish GM Kacper Piorun (2529) proved to be up to the task and gained advantage in the game. Naiditsch offered the draw to avoid a painful loss.
This is the opposite to what happened in the B group of the Tata Steel tournament this year, where Naiditsch edged Rapport on tiebreaks and earned the ticket for next year’s A Group.
Chess Daily News from Susan Polgar
Nicely done.