Betting Odds Shift For Chess GM Who Wants To Lose, Be With His Cats

When deciding whether to make a sports bet on an individual sport, paying attention to player interviews to see what they might divulge regarding their current form can be helpful. The chess world provided a solid example of that this week.

This month in Baku, Azerbaijan, the FIDE Chess World Cup pits more than 200 of the game’s best players against one another in an exciting knockout tournament format. The first two games of a matchup are classical chess (longer time controls), followed by shorter time controls in possible tiebreaks. Someone must advance to the next round.

The stakes are high, as the top three finishers receive entry into the prestigious Candidates Tournament that determines the next challenger for the classical World Chess Championship. Also up for grabs is $1,834,000 in prize money, distributed across multiple rounds.

Cat State of Mind

Filipino-American Grandmaster Wesley So, who has achieved the seventh-highest rating in the game’s history according to 2700chess.com, has endured a rocky start to his tournament despite his first two opponents being much lower rated. Still, So advanced to the fourth round scheduled for Wednesday thanks to some luck escaping objectively lost positions. 

So was remarkably candid in an interview

“Why can’t you find your form in these moments of the tournament?” the interviewer asked.

“You don’t actually know what form you’re in until you go into a tournament, and it’s very hard to repair once you’re in the middle of it, but it is what it is,” So replied. “I’m here in Baku with my mother, and we’re doing the best we can and just playing hard, just [trying] to do well. But at the same time, I have new kittens at home. I was actually hoping that Jules [my opponent] would win today, but I want to play, and I don’t want to just resign.”

Like a true cat lover, So added that his travel as a professional chess player has him missing out on time with his pets during a formative time in their lives.

“They’re Birman kittens,” So added. “My old cats passed away at 21 years old last year … they’re very nice, only four-and-a-half-months old. It’s unfortunate I’m not there when they’re growing up.”

It appears some sports bettors picked up on his (heart-warming) comments.

Odds Change Significantly

So will sit at the chessboard on Wednesday in round 4 against 23-year-old Russian GM Alexey Sarana. So’s opponent enters the match as the No. 49 ranked chess player in the world, per 2700chess. The 29-year-old So is currently No. 7.

At Bwin Sportsbook, affiliated with BetMGM Sportsbook, So opened at -350 betting odds with Sarana at +230. However, it was only a matter of hours before the odds changed to -250 for So and +180 for Sarana.

That’s a dramatic odds shift in a sport that doesn’t have injuries. Later on Tuesday, the match was taken off the odds board. It’s unclear if it will be reposted. The other round 4 games were still available for wagering. The oddsmaker didn’t immediately respond for comment when contacted by Forbes Betting.

Will So win or lose in round 4 against Sarana? It’s impossible to predict, and even if he has his beloved cats on his mind, So could win. He’s one of the strongest chess players in history.

Still, bettors who got the more motivated Sarana at +230 have to like their wager. The match, one of many round 4 pairings, could be about 50-50, all things considered.

On Tuesday, So had +2000 odds at Bwin to win the entire tournament. Magnus Carlsen, the world’s undisputed best chess player, was the favorite to win first place with +110 odds. Carlsen was also favored to win his round 4 game on Wednesday.