Championship Drama, Months Early

The World Chess Federation has decided that the World Championship match in November will be held in Chennai, India, the hometown of the titleholder, Viswanathan Anand, and that the prizes will total $2.55 million.

Magnus Carlsen, the Norwegian who will challenge Anand in the match, immediately protested, and not because of the location alone. Organizers in Paris had also offered to play host to the match and put up $3.5 million in prize money. But the federation said there would be no open bidding this time.

Chennai had been the favorite for the last world championship, in 2012, but a better offer from Moscow trumped it. After Chennai lost, the federation promised organizers there that they would have no competition in landing the next championship.

“The lack of transparency, predictability and fairness is unfortunate for chess as a sport and for chess players,” Carlsen said in a statement.

There is no proven home advantage in the chess championship. In 2010, Anand beat Veselin Topalov in the title match in Bulgaria, Topalov’s home country.

Carlsen and Anand are also competing in a Norwegian tournament this week in what is likely to be their last encounter before the World Championship, providing an extra sense of theater. Four of the top five are there: Carlsen, who is No. 1; Levon Aronian of Armenia, No. 2; Topalov, No. 4; and Anand, No. 5.

U.S. Championship

The United States Championship was scheduled to wrap up on Sunday in St. Louis, unless it goes to a playoff on Monday. One of the event’s most memorable matches was in Round 2, when Ray Robson suffered an unusual reversal of fortune in his game against John Daniel Bryant.

In the top diagram, Robson needed only to play 37 Kg1 to seal his victory. But he blundered with 37 Rb8, walking into a stunning mating net.

The game concluded 37 ... Re2 38 Kh1 Rh2 39 Kg1 Ng5 40 Rf8 Bf8 41 Kf1 Nf3 42 c8/Q g2 43 Ke2 g1/Q 44 Kf3 Qg2 45 Ke3 Qg3 46 Ke4 Rh4 47 Kf5 Qf3 48 Kg6 Rg4 49 Qg4 Qf7 50 Kg5 Be7 51 Kh6 hg4. Robson resigned because he could not stop mate by Qh7.

Women’s Grand Prix

Viktorija Cmilyte of Lithuania suffered a heartbreaking loss against Hou Yifan of China, the former women’s world champion, in Round 4.

In the bottom diagram, Cmilyte, who had played brilliantly to work up an attack, should have continued 21 ... Qe3. But she played 21 ... Qg4.

The game continued 22 e4 Qf4 23 Bf2 Rdg5 24 Qd3 f5 25 Qh3 cd4 26 cd4 Rg1 27 Ke2 Qe4 28 Qe3 Qg4 29 Nf3 Rg2 30 Rg1 f4 31 Qe4 Qh3 32 Rg2 Rg2 33 d5 Nb8 34 Rc1 Kd8 35 Qe5, and Cmilyte resigned.

A version of this article appeared in print on May 12, 2013, on page A17 of the New York edition with the headline: Championship Drama, Months Early.