Making It

While it often seems the case that "Good players are lucky," it would be more fair to say, instead, that "Good players make their own luck."

Take the following Jerome Gambit game, where White is able to fashion a whole point out of absolutely nothing.

axykk  - ElFuriozo
blitz, FICS, 2011

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qxc5 d6 8.Qd5+ Be6

White threatens a pawn grab, and Black decides to let him have it.

9.Qxb7

A calculated risk. Given that Rybka 3 says that the best move for Black now is 9...Nh4!? I think that axykk has guessed right that his opponent won't find or play the kind of move that this position requires.

9...Nf6 10.d3 Rf8

Consolidating by castling-by-hand.

This is very prudent, but, again, to squeeze the most out of the position, Black needed to try 10...Nh4. As it is, the game is moving toward "even".

11.f4 Nh5 12.f5

This can, however, be considered pushing his luck too far. For White there is a piece to be won, but also a King to be lost. (Castling first keeps the game about even.)

12...Qh4+

Of course. These kinds of things happen occasionally when you give "Jerome Gambit odds". There's nothing to do but ride them out and keep your eyes open for opportunities...

13.Kd2 Qf2+ 14.Kc3

If you sacrifice a piece in the opening for an attack and it is your opponent who ends up threatening checkmate within ten moves, then something has gone wrong. - IM Gary Lane

14...Qc5+ 15.Kd2 Kg8 16.fxe6

Brazen.

On the other hand, if White's King survives, he will have a surplus of material.

16...Rf2+ 17.Ke1 Raf8

 18.Qb3 Kh8 19.Qc3 Rxg2

Let him double Rooks on the 2nd rank, or get his Queen there, and Black will finish up with gusto.

20.Qxc5 dxc5

Getting the Queens off the board, however, was a major coup for White. Now, despite his horrible lack of development, the two extra pawns give him the better game!

21.Na3 Nhf4 22.Bxf4 Nxf4 23.e7 Re8 24.Rf1 g5 25.h4 h6

This is all so very troubling for Black. There is no win any more, just the worry: how will his fractured and outnumbered pawns hold up against White's connected, healthy ones?

He will simply be ground down.

26.Rc1 Rxe7 27.hxg5 hxg5 28.Rf2 Rg1+ 29.Kd2 Rxc1 30.Kxc1 Kg7

After all the excitement, it looks as if White had simply castled Queenside.

31.Nc4 Nh3 32.Rf5 Kg6 33.Rxc5 g4 34.Ne3 g3 35.Nf5 Re5 36.Rc6+  Black resigned