GMLiam Putnam

Liam Putnam grew up in Rocky Point, New York, and began playing chess at seven. After eight months of play he tied for second at the 2016 National Elementary Championship. At eleven he won the under-14 section of the 2019 North American Youth Championship. He earned grandmaster norms at a Marshall Chess Club invitational in May 2025 and the SixDays tournament in Budapest that November. In January 2026 he won the Ciudad de Sevilla Open unbeaten with eight points from nine games. His final grandmaster norm followed at the Saint Louis Masters in February. In June he shared the highest score at the National Open in Las Vegas and won on tiebreak. FIDE awarded him the grandmaster title in 2026.