This story is about Penang Open champion 2025. The key takeway from this is he is not a strong GM like past winners - GM Novendra Priasmoro (incidentally also recent 2025 Johor Champion) or GM Sivuk Vitaly, He is not a rising junior star like IM Poh Yu Tian (2024 champion) or a season foreign veteran like IM Oleg Badmatseyranov (2023 champion). He is untitled, 24 years old and is the first time playing in this event.

Peng Hongchi Triumphs at Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2025

Peng Hongchi clinched the 17th Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2025 in commanding fashion, scoring an unbeaten 7.5/9 despite being an untitled player seeded only ninth. His performance rating of 2462 and a rating gain of 17.4 Elo underscore how strongly he punched above his 2364 FIDE rating against titled opposition. View full results

Overall Tournament Performance

Peng entered the Open section as the 9th seed with a FIDE rating of 2364 and no international title, in a field averaging 1954. Over nine rounds he scored 7 wins and 3 draws, finishing clear first on 7.5 points with an unbeaten record. Details

His performance rating of 2462 was roughly 100 points above his starting rating, yielding a FIDE gain of 17.4 rating points for the event. This performance is comparable to that of a solid International Master and shows he competed at near-Grandmaster level throughout the tournament. Details

Peng Hongchi Triumphs at Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2025

Peng Hongchi clinched the 17th Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2025 in commanding fashion, scoring an unbeaten 7.5/9 despite being an untitled player seeded only ninth. His performance rating of 2462 and a rating gain of 17.4 Elo underscore how strongly he punched above his 2364 FIDE rating against titled opposition. View full results

Overall Tournament Performance

Peng entered the Open section as the 9th seed with a FIDE rating of 2364 and no international title, in a field averaging 1954. Over nine rounds he scored 7 wins and 3 draws, finishing clear first on 7.5 points with an unbeaten record. Details

His performance rating of 2462 was roughly 100 points above his starting rating, yielding a FIDE gain of 17.4 rating points for the event. This performance is comparable to that of a solid International Master and shows he competed at near-Grandmaster level throughout the tournament. Details

Path to the Title

Peng built early momentum with three consecutive wins against Ng Shu Heng (1878), CM Tan Jun Hao (1987) and Shen Houlin (1661), establishing himself among the leaders. These victories laid the foundation for a later run against the top boards. Details

From round 4 onward he faced only players rated above 2290, including three IMs and two GMs, yet still remained unbeaten. His final score against this murderers’ row was 4/6, a remarkable return for a nominally lower-rated, untitled player. Details

Results vs the Nine Opponents

Against his nine opponents, Peng scored 7.5/9 with +6 =3 −0, consistently outperforming his rating on every board. He conceded draws only to three of the highest‑scoring rivals in the final standings: IM Wagh Suyog, Mohammadamin Biriya and IM Almas Rakhmatullaev. Details

Key scalps included:

• Win vs IM Karthik Rajaa (2298), a critical mid‑tournament victory that kept him in contention. Details
• Win vs GM Nguyen Van Huy (2363) on top board in round 7, proving his ability to defeat Grandmasters in direct clashes. Details
• Win vs top seed GM Nguyen Duc Hoa (2432) in round 8, a decisive result that effectively propelled him into pole position for the championship. Details

Relative Rating and Lack of Title

Peng’s starting rank of 9 and rating of 2364 placed him clearly behind the top seeds, several of whom were Grandmasters and International Masters rated between approximately 2390 and 2430. As an untitled player among such experienced professionals, expectations on paper were more modest compared to his eventual winning result. Details

The contrast between his lack of title and his performance is striking: he outscored multiple GMs and IMs while remaining unbeaten, and his 2462 performance is comfortably within typical GM‑norm territory for many events. This run strongly suggests that his current strength is already at a titled level, even if the formal title norms are yet to be completed. Details

Meeting and Neutralising Top Contenders

Peng’s draws were all pragmatic results against top contenders who finished near the top of the table: IM Wagh Suyog (2395, 7/9), Mohammadamin Biriya (2301, 6.5/9) and IM Almas Rakhmatullaev (2390, 6.5/9). By splitting points with these in-form rivals, he avoided unnecessary risks while preserving his lead against the rest of the field. Details

Crucially, when paired with the two top Vietnamese Grandmasters on the first board in rounds 7 and 8, he did not settle for safety but pressed for full points – and succeeded both times. Those back‑to‑back wins against GMs, followed by a solid final‑round draw with IM Rakhmatullaev, underlined his practical match strategy and sealed a deserved championship.

Peng built early momentum with three consecutive wins against Ng Shu Heng (1878), CM Tan Jun Hao (1987) and Shen Houlin (1661), establishing himself among the leaders. These victories laid the foundation for a later run against the top boards. Details

From round 4 onward he faced only players rated above 2290, including three IMs and two GMs, yet still remained unbeaten. His final score against this murderers’ row was 4/6, a remarkable return for a nominally lower-rated, untitled player. Details

Results vs the Nine Opponents

Against his nine opponents, Peng scored 7.5/9 with +6 =3 −0, consistently outperforming his rating on every board. He conceded draws only to three of the highest‑scoring rivals in the final standings: IM Wagh Suyog, Mohammadamin Biriya and IM Almas Rakhmatullaev. Details

Key scalps included:

• Win vs IM Karthik Rajaa (2298), a critical mid‑tournament victory that kept him in contention. Details
• 
  
• Win vs GM Nguyen Van Huy (2363) on top board in round 7, proving his ability to defeat Grandmasters in direct clashes. Details
• 
  
• Win vs top seed GM Nguyen Duc Hoa (2432) in round 8, a decisive result that effectively propelled him into pole position for the championship. Details

Relative Rating and Lack of Title

Peng’s starting rank of 9 and rating of 2364 placed him clearly behind the top seeds, several of whom were Grandmasters and International Masters rated between approximately 2390 and 2430. As an untitled player among such experienced professionals, expectations on paper were more modest compared to his eventual winning result. Details

The contrast between his lack of title and his performance is striking: he outscored multiple GMs and IMs while remaining unbeaten, and his 2462 performance is comfortably within typical GM‑norm territory for many events. This run strongly suggests that his current strength is already at a titled level, even if the formal title norms are yet to be completed. Details

Meeting and Neutralising Top Contenders

Peng’s draws were all pragmatic results against top contenders who finished near the top of the table: IM Wagh Suyog (2395, 7/9), Mohammadamin Biriya (2301, 6.5/9) and IM Almas Rakhmatullaev (2390, 6.5/9). By splitting points with these in-form rivals, he avoided unnecessary risks while preserving his lead against the rest of the field. Details

Crucially, when paired with the two top Vietnamese Grandmasters on the first board in rounds 7 and 8, he did not settle for safety but pressed for full points – and succeeded both times. Those back‑to‑back wins against GMs, followed by a solid final‑round draw with IM Rakhmatullaev.

Nearly two decades ago, I played a classical team game at Wilayah Kompleks against Nor Ilhamuddin.

I was unrated, and Nor was slightly over 2000 Elo. I had Black, and right before the game I had watched an Andrew Martin lesson on the Modern Defence.

As the game unfolded  many of the moves and plans I played were straight from the video. Of course, it was ZERO originality, and I was not even calculating - just not believing why this game is following the exact moves from the video. I was mostly following Andrew Martin's simple theme about attacking weaknesses on a particular color complex, and the moves seemed to choose themselves after the pawn structure was locked.

I reached a position where I was better as Black and offered a draw. Nor declined. After that, instead of my advantage disappearing, Black’s position somehow kept getting better and better, until I eventually won - a result I didn't deserve at all !

Even though it was one of my biggest results, I also remember like I had “cheated” in a way, because more than half the game was rote memorisation rather than my own understanding. A much stronger player had lost to a much weaker player like me, and part of me felt that was unfair.

That win, plus a draw against Jax in the same team tournament, helped me get an initial rating of 1700+. After FIDE’s last “adjustment,” it became 1800+. I did not play much after that, and my rating has been inactive since.

Here's a video song I created based exactly on this story:

There are 38 players in total who participated in both the 10th Johor International Chess Open 2025 and the 17th Penang Heritage City International Chess Open 2025.