Jerome Gambit: Their Majesties

Here is the latest Jerome Gambit from Vlasta Fejfar, featuring two wandering Queens. White's Queen successfully attacks, while Black's Queen is a few steps slow in defending. In a surprise twist, the player who loses his Queen, wins the game!

vlastous - Marwan 86
internet, 2018

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4

This move is at least as old as D'Aumiller - AP, Livorno, 1878 (1-0, 19), appeared in 2 of the Jerome - Charles correspondence games in their 1881 match (both games incomplete), and appeared in 6 of the games in the legendary (to Jerome Gambit players, anyhow) Fisher-Kirshner - KnightStalker match of 1993.

4...Qf6 8. Rf1 g6 

We have seen a couple of Vlasta's opponents try other ideas:

8...Nd3+ "creatively returning a piece" in Vlastous - Kombe, internet, 2017, (1-0, 22); and

8...Nc6 "cold-blooded, but playable" in Fejfar,V - Vins, corr Czech Republic, 2015, (1-0, 23). 

9.Qh3+ Ke7 10.fxe5 Qxe5 11.Qf3 Qf6 

A common criticism of the Jerome Gambit is that White moves his Queen too early and too often. So far in this game, however, Black has kept pace with White.

Vlastous 2344 -Daboa 1799, Chessmaniac.com, 2016, (1-0, 42) saw the alternative, 11...Nf6.

12.Qe2 Qa6 

You can almost hear Black sigh "Enough, already!". The threat to exchange Queens is easily parried, though, and Her Majesty soon finds that she needs to get back in the fray.

13.d3 Ke8 14.Nc3 Ne7 15.Nd5 Qc6 

To protect against the threatened Knight fork at c7.

Black's best defense was 15...Kd8, when a typical messy game can continue with 16.Bg5 c6 17.b4 cxd5 18.bxc5 dxe4 19.Rf7 Re8 20.Qxe4 Qe6 21.Qxe6 dxe6 22.Rxh7 when White clearly has compensation for his sacrificed material, although the game is about even. (Who is more comfortable, though?)

16.Qf3 Nxd5 

Opening the e-file with the enemy Queen facing the King is pretty risky, but the best move, 16...Nf5, still loses. (And it turns out that White doesn't need the e-file after all.)

17.Qf7+ Kd8 18.Bg5+ Be7 

Black does not want to give up his Queen with 18...Qf6.

White decides to give up his.

19.Qf8+ Rxf8 20.Rxf8 checkmate

Very nice.