It is the first day of an Economics class at Brandeis University, and you find yourself sitting next to a boy of average height and light brown hair. Perhaps he's just another student, ready to hear a lecture from Prof. Michael Coiner (ECON) and his elaborate descriptions of supply and demand. Or, perhaps, he's a chess Grandmaster, one of the top players in the world and quickly improving.
If the latter is true, chances are that boy is Sam Shankland '14, an Economics major. At the age of 21, Shankland has just been named the 29th Frank P. Samford, Jr. Chess Fellow, which entitles him to a $42,000 stipend awarded at the beginning of July with the sole intention of allowing him to make chess his first concern. Another $42,000 will be awarded in his second year of the fellowship when it is renewed.
Shankland says the money will go toward hiring more coaches, each specified toward different aspects of his technique. Now that he's becoming more of an elite player, he says, "I understand my own game well enough that I can see its weaknesses, and I can hire specific people to target specific areas."
As a Grandmaster, a prestigious title given to the top tournament players of the world, and the winner of the under-18 World Championship, Shankland's chess career is already impressive.
A a native of Berkeley, Calif., he first was introduced to the chess at the age of nine when his father taught him the basic rules of the game. He joined a chess club at his school soon after. "When I started playing chess it was just a hobby," he says. This hobby turned into a lifestyle when he began attending World Youth Chess Championships his junior and senior years of high school.
"At that point I had made chess my top priority, and at that point it was really clear it was a main part of my life and my main goal," he says. Competitive in his youth, chess "fueled my need to win," Shankland adds, especially as he realized that he had the potential to go far.
And he has certainly gone far. Along with the title of Grandmaster and U18 World Champion, Shankland also became the youngest state champion in California history at the age of 16, and defeated the former second ranked player at the World Cup in 2011.
With the Samford Fellowship, Shankland says he will be able to further improve his playing by attending elite tournaments where he is learning from professionals. "I've mostly been playing in tournaments that I'm winning money in and I'm getting paid to play in ... because I'm an elite player for them. I want to start going to tournaments where I'm the guy learning from the elite players," he says.
And in the world of chess, that means traveling. His first time playing outside of the U.S. came in 2007 and 2008, when he attended two World Youth Chess Championships in Turkey and Vietnam. More recently, while other Brandeis students adjusted to life back at school after winter break, Shankland was in Brazil playing for the U.S. chess team. Even though he missed a week and a half of school, "it just wasn't a question," he says.
Shankland is both reasonable and level-headed, two qualities that shine through in his style of play. A "universal" and "versatile player," as he describes himself, Shankland is able to approach matches with the ability to focus on attacking opponents' weaknesses. "If I see someone who's very good at one thing, and not very good at another, I feel very comfortable switching styles when a lot of other people have the one thing they do well, and just do that," he says.
He also attributes his success to his hard work, conceding that, "there are a lot of players out there who are more talented than me and who didn't get as far because they didn't work as hard," a humble admission that translates into thorough preparation for each game.
Part of this preparation, says Shankland, is studying numerous past games of his opponents in order to learn their style. For example, "I'll filter through all their games to look at what openings they play, and how they compare with my openings," he says. "It's not uncommon for the first 15 moves of chess to be completely prepared at home. There are lots of different ways they could play, so I have to prepare for all of those."
Shankland, who is fondly known on campus as having set up multiple chess boards in a circle using tables in Upper Usdan and challenging any student to a match, certainly has a tenacious dedication to the game. Although, according to a previous interview done with the Justice, Shankland considered quitting upon entering college, his accomplishments in the sport have amazed the chess world.
The Frank P. Samford Fellowship ensures that Shankland's chess career will be well supported. And while he may still be found attending Economics lectures at Brandeis for another year, his favorite place is in front of a chessboard, one checkmate away from victory.