International Master is the second highest Internationally recognized title in chess, just under Grandmaster. There are approximately 3,800 IMs in the world. Liam Putnam, 15, of Rocky Point, NY will be awarded the title of International Master due to his performance at the Marshall
Chess Club’s 1924 Centennial tournament in New York City. Putnam had previously earned his three FIDE required “Norms” at the 2023 Spice Cup sponsored by Webster University in St. Louis, MO, and two separate IM Norm invitational events organized by Charlotte Chess Center in 2022 -2024 in North Carolina. Putnam who was paired with six Grandmasters, and three National Masters over nine rounds, losing no games, drew four Grandmasters and won against two Grandmasters increasing his FIDE elo rating to 2420 which is just 80 points from Grandmaster title. Putnam who was born in Suffolk County New York is Suffolk County’s highest rated chess player, and is now on the road to Grandmaster.
Putnam shared “The experience of becoming an International Master in chess has been a very long and challenging journey but one I am very grateful for. It’s taken years of work, highs and lows to get here. When I first started playing I improved rather quickly and became a National Chess Master at the age of 10 but progressing from there has been much harder. It requires multiple times the amount of work and serious dedication not to give up during rough patches. At each new level progressing to the next becomes harder than the previous one, kind of like leveling up in a video game. If you continue expanding your arsenal of knowledge and don’t get
discouraged and give up you will inevitably graduate to the next level at some point. I would like to thank my parents, coaches, and everyone who has supported me on this continuous journey to become a Grandmaster. “
Liam Putnam previously became a US National Master at the age of 10, and a FIDE Master at 11. Putnam has previously won titles at US Scholastic National Championships and was the North American Youth U14 Champion at Queens College, Kingston, Ontario, Canada in 2019 at the age of 11. Putnam, a bit of an underdog in chess resides in a 800 sqft cottage with his parents and Putnam is open to corporate and private sponsorship. He has a Support IM Liam Putnam’s dream of becoming Grandmaster GoFundMe for those who would like to assist him with coaching and travel expenses. Putnam is a streamer on the Twitch platform at LiamPutnamChess for those who enjoy watching chess live.