Daniel Fernandez is an American chess Grandmaster who was born on December 5, 1994, in Illinois, United States. He was a student at The University of Texas at Rio Grande Valley, where he played for the university's championship-winning chess team.
Fernandez initially demonstrated his chess abilities in middle school, becoming a National Master at 14 and an International Master at age 15. As a young player, he earned the distinction of being National High School Chess Champion in 2008.
Some of his notable achievements include placing second in the 2016 North American Chess Championship, earning him the Grandmaster title. In 2016, he also won the Southwest Open and Texas Collegiate Super Finals, while in the same year his university team clinched the President's Cup.
He has also authored multiple chess-related books, with one earning the honour of Book of the Year from the English Chess Federation in 2012.