Crossword Genius

He may be grand at chess (6)

Ross

I believe the answer is:

master

I'm a little stuck... Click here to teach me more about this clue!

'he may' is the definition.
The answer is a person as well as being a singular noun. This is suggested by the definition.

'grand at chess' is the wordplay.
I cannot quite see how this works, but
'grand' could be 'm' (synonyms) and 'm' is located in the answer.
The remaining letters 'aster' is a valid word which might be clued in a way I don't see.
This explanation may well be incorrect...

'be' acts as a link.

Can you help me to learn more?

(Other definitions for master that I've seen before include "'Jack of all trades and . . . . . . of none'" , "Main; overcome; original recording" , "Male teacher or ship's captain" , "Dominate" , "Artist of consummate skill" .)

I've seen this clue in the Evening Standard.
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