Format
HB
Hercules, Benjamin Vincent
CM🇿🇦FIDE 14301938· Male· South Africa· Born in 1991
Follow Benjamin Vincent HerculesTrack his monthly FIDE ratings, games, tournaments and more.
Benjamin Vincent Hercules, a 35-year-old South African Candidate Master, is rated 2092 and ranked 28th among South African players, and in the top 7% worldwide. He has held steady between 2050 and 2100 for 4 years. 22 rated games in the past year (≈21/year long-term). Recent standard appearances include 2026 MCA Welcome Tshwane (A), Bojanalas FIDE ON THE ORION EXPRESS (Queens), and 2025 South African Open Chess Championships (Championship). He took a 34-month break between Sep 2022 and Aug 2025. His peak of 2209 was reached at age 28 (Nov 2019); he also reached South African #11 in Mar 2019.
Awarded CM in 2022 (age 31). At junior level, he reached #1, #1 and #1 nationally in U20, U18 and U16.
Current rating
2092
Standard
Rpd2162·Blz2152
All-time high
2209
−117 pts below
Nov 2019 · age 28
Nov 2019 · age 28
Activity
7
games / yr avg. · ≈1/mo
22 past 12 mo · ≈2/mo
classical only
Occasional
classical only
Occasional
Signature stat
#28
#28 · South African players · of 1,804
Career timeline
16 entries2022
Inactive for 34 months
paused at 2084 → returned at 2058
Sep 2022
CM title awardedCM
at age 31
Jun 2022
2019
Crossed 2200
at age 28
Nov 2019
All-time peak 2209
at age 28 · −117 from today
Nov 2019
Peak South African rank: #11
at age 28 · rated 2194
Mar 2019
2016
Best 12-month gain (+74 Elo)
2082 → 2156
Mar 2016
Standard rating history
Peak
FIDE title
Threshold
First rated
Inactive period
COVID-19
Activity & highlights
Top opponent
Evolution
+8
2084 → 2092
Tournaments
3
22 games
Score
15/ 2268.2%
12W6D4L
Top 3 wins
Top 3 losses
Last 12 months — tournaments
3 events| Event | Date | Score | Rank | Perf | Δ Elo |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Swiss | Jan 2026 | 4/5 | #4 | 2152 | 0.0 |
Swiss | Oct 2025 | 5/6 | #1 | 2275 | +33.8 |
Open Swiss | Jun 2025 | 6/11 | #15 | 1991 | -25.6 |
Worst Elo result: 2025 South African Open Chess Championships (Championship) (-25.6 Elo, finished #15).
Most-Played Opponents
vsJohannes Manyedi MabuselaIM
🇿🇦RSA·2112
+0 −6 =5
11 games·last met Aug 2022
View head-to-head →
vsRodwell MakotoIM
🇿🇼ZIM·2325
+0 −4 =5
9 games·last met Apr 2019
View head-to-head →
vsDmitar S. Ristovich
🇿🇦RSA·2032
+4 −1 =3
8 games·last met Jan 2026
View head-to-head →
vsKeith KhumaloCM
🇿🇦RSA·2201
+4 −1 =3
8 games·last met Aug 2022
View head-to-head →
vsCalvin John KlaasenFM
🇿🇦RSA·2171
+0 −4 =3
7 games·last met Dec 2019
View head-to-head →
Rankings
/
South Africa
#28
out of 1,876 players
Africa
#292
in continent
World
#16,149
out of 400,000+
National ranking
Europe & World
Europe
World
South Africa
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