Laurie Qiu

National Master Laurie Qiu is the third player from Northern California competing in the event along with Ruiyang Yan and Rochelle Wu. She is also the youngest player in the field, a distinction she shares with Megan Paragua.

Laurie, is the wildcard entry for this event which will be a very special opportunity for her. Unlike most of the players in the field, who regularly travel around the country to play chess, she sticks close to home. Her base for tournaments is the Mechanics’ Institute of San Francisco, the oldest chess club in the country.

Laurie’s biggest triumph to date was finishing clear first in the top section of the141-player 2024 CM & Suraiya Azhar Memorial Day held in Santa Clara for which she took home $1200 and 50 USCF rating points.