Saturday, December 14, 2013

Jerome Gambit-Inspired Play (Part 2)

Here we have another game from Philidor 1792 which appears to have been inspired by the Jerome Gambit. After a balanced opening, things suddenly shift - against White. Only by complicating - by attacking - is the first player able to turn things around and in his favor. Violent 3-minute chess.


Philidor 1792 - guest4211
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 Nf6 2.Bc4 Nxe4 3.Bxf7+ 




The Krejcik Gambit against Alekhine's Defense. Here's a bit of information about it at the Hanging Pawn blog site. It's been touched on a couple of times earlier in this blog - see "I want my Jerome Gambit!" and "Another Krejcik".


3...Kxf7 4.Qh5+ g6 5.Qd5+ e6 6.Qxe4 Bg7 




7.Qf4+ Kg8 8.Nf3 Nc6 9.d4 d6 10.Nc3 Qf6 11.Qe4 Nxd4 12.Be3 Nxf3+ 13.gxf3 d5 


14.Qa4 Qxf3 15.Kd2 c6 16.Rag1 Bd7 17.h4 e5 18.Qb3 b5 19.h5 Qf7 


20.Bc5 a5 21.h6 Bf6 22.Rg3 Qe6 23.Rhg1 Kf7 24.Rf3 e4 




Here, White now has a crazy, equalizing attack with 25.Nxe4 dxe4 26.Rxf6!?, but such things are easier to find in the calmness after the game.


25.Rf4 Qe5 26.Ne2 Bf5 27.Bd4 Qe7 28.Qc3 Rac8 




Black feels sufficiently defended (he is mistaken), and begins to attack again.


29.Rxf5 gxf5 30.Bxf6 Qxf6 31.Rg7+ Ke6 32.Nf4+ Black resigned




Black is losing his Queen and will soon be checkmated.

Thursday, December 12, 2013

Jerome Gambit-Inspired Play (Part 1)

Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Philidor 1792 is back with a whole passle of attacking 3-minute chess games, with tactical themes inspired by the Jerome Gambit. Of course, at such a time limit, the first rule almost always has to be: Attack! Attack! Attack!

guest34 - Philidor 1792

3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.d4 e5


The Englund Gambit, sometimes referred to as the Charlick Gambit, the latter being an Australian player with a connection to the Jerome Gambit.


2.c4 exd4 3.Nf3 Nf6


The game has transposed into a Budapest Gambit.


4.Nxd4 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Bc5 6.Nb3 Bxf2+ 




Just when the game was becoming a bit "normal", Black stirs it up again, Jerome Gambit-style.


7.Kxf2 Ne4+ 8.Kg1 Qf6 9.Be3 Qxb2



A bit of a bluff, which 10.Bd4 would call - but, remember this is a 3-minute game, and one of the best ways to stifle an attack is to swap Queens...


10.Qd4 Qxd4 11.Bxd4 0-0 12.Nc3 Re8 13.e3 




What a difference a move-order change makes: best was 13.Nxe4 Rxe4 and then 14.e3 


13...Nxc3 14.Bxc3 Rxe3 15.Bd4 Re6 16.Bd3 Nc6 17.Kf2 a5



In blitz, whenever you can, make a threat.


18.Bc3 d6 19.Nd4 Rf6+ 20.Kg3 Ne5 21.Rhd1 Nxd3 22.Rxd3 b6




23.Nc6 Rg6+ 24.Kf2 Kf8 25.g3 Bb7 26.Nd4 Re8 27.Nb5 Rg5



28.Nd4 Rc5 29.Re1 Rxe1 30.Bxe1 Rxc4 31.Nf5 Rc2+ 32.Rd2 Rc5 and here White's time expired. 




Black's four extra pawns are probably better than White's extra Knight. 


Tuesday, December 10, 2013

Lost in the Maze; Then Just Lost


If, occasionally, both my opponent and I get lost in the maze of the Jerome Gambit, I feel reassured that it is my maze, and that I will still be able to find my way out, safely.

perrypawnpusher - tjaksi
blitz, FICS, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 




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


7.Qd5+ Kf6 

Alert! Possible trouble on the d8-h4 diagonal!

8.d4 

Interestingly enough, Houdini shows about a half-pawn preference for 8.Qxc5 over the text. That is not immediately obvious, although both  MrJoker and I have generally had success with that move - perrypawnpusher - zsilber, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 9); perrypawnpusher - useche, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 22); perrypawnpusher - wbrandl, blitz, FICS, 2011 (0-1, 28); MrJoker - ipon, Internet Chess Club, 2011 (1-0, 33); and MrJoker -vicwill, Internet Chess Club, 2011 (1-0, 12).

8...h6

My opponent responds to the perceived threat. The computer prefers 8...Bb4+ 9.c3  and then 9...Ke7, allowing for the Black Knight to intervene at f6, e.g. 10.Bg5+ Nf6 when White will recover one of his two sacrificed pieces, but Black will still have the advantage.

Instead, 8...Bb4+ 9.c3 c6 was seen in perrypawnpusher - whitepandora, blitz, FICS, 2008 (1-0, 41); while 8...d6 9.Bg5 checkmate, from mrjoker - Taj, Internet Chess Club, 2009 also has to be mentioned.

9.Qxc5 N8e7 10.e5+ Kf7 11.Qc4+ Kf8 12.0-0 b6 


Black is preparing to take advantage of White's pieces on the a6-f1 diagonal. It was probably better to play the straight-forward 12...d5. 

13.f4 a5 14.f5 Ba6 

Much to my opponent's delight, I have fallen into his trap: the Black Bishop skewers my Queen. However, I've suggested in "BSJG: Don't Try To Out-Think Me", and here is another case of that. Instead, after the game Houdini recommended the related 14...Nxe5 15.dxe5 Ba6 when 16.Qe4 Bxf1 17.Kxf1 d5 18.exd6 cxd6 19.Nc3 d5 would be about equal, White having a pawn for the exchange.

While Black was planning his maneuver, I used my moves to allow a discovered check.

15.fxg6+ Ke8 16.Qf7 checkmate


Sunday, December 8, 2013

What You Don't See CAN Hurt You (on the dark diagonals)


After the previously posted game, my opponent challenged me to a game with White, and, after I introduced him to "the cheapo defense to the Scotch Opening", we went back at it again with the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

There are some howlers in the following game, but there are some points of interest, as well.

perrypawnpusher  - michon
blitz, FICS, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 




The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7 6.c3 



Again, Black's King ends up on e7 - but that is okay for this variation.

My move is more accurate than the 6.Qh5 in perrypawnpusher - vlas, blitz, FICS, 2009 (0-1, 26). 

6...d6 

In turn, this is an improvment over 6...Ne6 seen in perrypawnpusher - Macgregr, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 56). 

7.cxd4 dxe5 8.dxe5 

Here, the computers now like 8...Qd3 9.Qe2 Qxe2+ 10.Kxe2 c5 with and edge for Black. White has three "Jerome pawns" for his sacrificed piece.

8... Bg4 9.f3 

Okay, okay, let's just move along here...

I think my opponent just overlooked the fact that his Bishop was unprotected. I've noticed that I have a tendency to respond to "impossible" moves (impossible in my deliberations) with knee-jerk, stereotypical moves (Bishop attack; block Bishop).

9...Bh5 10.d4 c5 11.Bg5+ 

The same kind of problem on the same diagonal as last game.

11...Nf6 12.exf6+ gxf6 13.Be3 Kf7 



Black's two Bishops don't make up for his two (soon three) lost pawns.

14.Nc3 Bg7 15.dxc5 f5 16.0-0 Bxc3 17.bxc3 Qf6 



Played too quickly. Now the a1-h8 dark diagonal joins the d8-h4 diagonal as a source of pain.

18.Bd4 Qb6 Black resigned

A mouse-slip on the final, fatal dark diagonal, a7-f2, is enough to turn over his King.