Ben Finegold

Ben Finegold (born September 6, 1969 in Detroit, Michigan) is an American chess Grandmaster.
Finegold was born into a chess family and became a USCF Master at the age of 14. He became a Life Master at 15, Senior Master at 16, International Master at 20 and a Grandmaster at 40.
Finegold tied for first place in the 1994 (Chicago, IL) and 2007 (Cherry Hill, NJ) U.S. Open Chess Championships. He tied for first (and achieved a Grandmaster norm) in the 2002 World Open (Philadelphia, PA), and also tied for first in the 2005 and 2008 National Open Chess Championships (Las Vegas, NV). He was ranked as one of the top 40 players in the United States on the August 2013 USCF rating list. Finegold has played in nine U.S. Chess Championships: 1994 (Key West, FL), 1999 (Salt Lake City, UT), 2002 (Seattle, WA), 2005 (La Jolla, CA), 2006 (San Diego, CA), 2008 (Tulsa, OK), 2010 (Saint Louis, MO), 2011 (Saint Louis, MO), 2013 (Saint Louis, MO).
In September 2009 he earned the Grandmaster title. He was the Grandmaster-in-residence of the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis until August 14, 2012.
He is a live commentator at US Chess Championship, US Junior Chess Championship and Sinquefield Cup; and teaches weekly lectures at the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis. Finegold's lectures are available on the YouTube channel of the Chess Club and Scholastic Center of Saint Louis.