Jerome Gambit: Facing the Kitchen Sink

In the following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game, my large pawn center is hit - hard.

Counterplay is swift and strong.

perrypawnpusher - henrymehta 

Wal2010's Third Thematic Tournament, lichess.org, 2026

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf8 

As old as Jerome - Brownson, Iowa, 1875 (1/2 - 1/2, 29).

6.Nxc6 bxc6 7.d4

According to the Database, my score is 3 - 0 in this line, but the most recent game was 14 years ago. 

7...Be7 

Also seen is the other withdrawal 7...Bb6, as in perrypawnpusher - hdig, blitz, FICS, 2007 (1-0, 17) and perrypawnpusher - mika76, GameKnot.com, 2008 (1-0, 17).

8.f4 

Creating this large pawn center is tempting, but Stockfish 17.1 prefers 8.Qf3+ Ke8 9.O-O. 

8...g5 

Going right at the center.

Instead, 8...Bh4+ 9.g3 Qe8 was in perrypawnpusher - badhorsey, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 26) 

Again, Stockfish 17.1 has a different perspective, suggesting 8...d5.

9.O-O 

Choosing the safety of my King, and enjoying lining up my Rook on the same file as my opponent's.

9...h5 

Tossing in the kitchen sink. A bit intimidating, but I have a clear response.

10.fxg5+ Ke8 

The King is a bit safer on g7, but that is mostly relative.

11.Qf3

Counter-attacking? Attacking?

Finishing the game...

11...Nf6 12.gxf6 Bxf6 13.Qxf6 Qxf6 14.Rxf6 

White is up two pawns and a piece.

14...d5 15.e5 Ba6 16.Be3 Rf8 17.Rxf8+ Kxf8 

18.Nd2 Rb8 19.b3 Ke7 20.Nf3 Rf8 21.Re1 Kd7 22.Bg5 

Black resigned

My opponent has had enough.

Jerome Gambit: Counting

 

I currently have 16 games ongoing in tournaments at Chess.com (time controls are 1 day per move, and 3 days per move).

That's a lot for me to keep track of.

Four of them are Jerome Gambits.

Ah - one just finished...

Jerome Gambit: A "Must Do"

Mild apologies for sharing the following encounter from a current tournament. I have promised to share my Jerome Gambit games, win, lose or draw - significant or not.

That is what my son, in pre-school, called a "must do".

I am the third-highest rated player, of six, in my group. One will advance. 

perrypawnpusher - Lukesx

6th Thematic Quick KOs: Italian Game 2026

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ 

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.

According to The Database, I have played it 78 times, scoring 75%.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 d5 8.dxe5

White won on time    

In the past I have faced 8...Ng4 in perrypawnpusher - NimbusReign, blitz, FICS, 2010 (0-1, 26) and 8...Bxf2+ in perrypawnpusher - Marcym, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 20)

Jerome Gambit: Comfortable in the Calmer Game

The defender in a Jerome Gambit game has the option of challenging his opponent to make his way through the complications that that opponent created with his two sacrifices - or for White to make something of a slower game, a pawn up, after the sacrifices are declined.

In the following game, Bill is comfortable in the calmer game, too.

Wall, Bill - NN

SparkChess, 2026

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4

The Database is incomplete when it comes to this move, even if it has 2,878 games with this position. It leads to a Jerome - Scotch gambit hybrid.

Similar treatment can be seen in the recent LSCLegend13 - Herculean_Widhynovich, 10 0 blitz, Chess.com, 2026 (1-0, 13) and LSCLegend13 - hughtuff230, 5 0 blitz, Chess.com, 2026 (1-0, 9). 

5...exd4 6.Ng5+ 

From "Jerome Gambit: The Improved Face Palm Variation?!"

Having taken a look at what I called the "Face Palm Variation" of the Jerome Gambit, I wondered if there was an "improved" variation, where White played an early d2-d4, so that his Knight could safely move to g5 with the support of his dark square Bishop.

I quickly recalled the game Wright -  Hunn, Arkansas,1874, played about a half year after Alonzo Wheeler Jerome published his first analysis of his gambit in the Dubuque Chess Journal. The game began 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+.

The line was referred to as The Macbeth Attack on the Italian language website Sacchi64. It has a relationship to the Italian Gambit, (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d4) as explored by Jude Acers and George S. Laven in their book The Italian Gambit and A Guiding Repertoire for White - 1.e4, (although they were not interested in Bxf7+)  as well as to the Lewis Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.d4) and the Von der Lasa Gambit, (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Bc4 Bc5).

As pointed out in "Brilliant But Not Sound" 

DCJ: "SK5 à la Jerome is better than SS5." [The Dubuque Chess Journal here uses descriptive notation with "S" for "Springer" instead of "N" or "Kt" for "Knight."]

However, Stockfish 16.1 agrees with Bill,  assessing 6.Ng5 as about a pawn better than 6.Ne5.

6...Kf8 

6...Ke8 was seen in Amateur - Amateur, Kent County Cup, 1899 (1-0, 27).

7.Qh5 

7...Bb4+ 8.c3 g6 

When your piece is attacked, instead of moving it, attack an opponent's piece, especially one of greater value.

9.Qf3+ 

Moving away, with check.

9...Qf6 10.cxb4 Qxf3 

Too cooperative. He could try 10...h6!?, which might lead to an edge, e.g.: 11.b5 hxg5 12.bxc6 Qxf3 13.gxf3 bxc6 14.Bxg5 Rb8 15.Nd2 Rxb2 16.Nb3 c5 17.Bd8 c4 18.Nxd4 c5 19.Ne2 Rh3 20.Ng3 Ne7 21.O-O Nc6. 

11.Nxf3 Nxb4 12.Nxd4 

White has an edge, but that's all Bill really needs.

12...c5 13.Bd2 cxd4 14.Bxb4+ Kf7 15.Bc5 b6 16.Bxd4 Nf6 17.f3 

White has a solid position and an extra pawn. His only "danger" is that if the Rooks and Knights come off the board, the Bishops-of-opposite-colors endgame would be drawish.

17...Re8 18.Nc3 d5 

A tactical slip, costing more material, as Bill shows.

19.Bxf6 Kxf6 20.Nxd5+ 

20...Kg7 21.Nc7 Bb7 22.Nxe8+ Rxe8 23.Rc1

Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Pawn and Knights

In the following game, White makes use of his advanced pawns and Knights, to dominate his opponent.

Wall, Bill - Iiii

SparkChess, 2026

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. Bxf7+ Kf8

Checking Bill's games, I see White is 10 - 1 in this Jerome Gambit Declined line. 

Oh, and in that one loss by White, Bill was playing Black. 

5.Bxg8 Rxg8 

Capturing with the King would move it a step away from the center. Instead, after the Rook capture, the piece is now placed to advance his g-pawn. 

6.Nc3 

It was possible to execute the standard Jerome Gambit tactic, 6.Nxe5 Nxe5 7.d4. 

By declining the offered Bishop, Black has changed the game from a wild gambit to a quiet, pawn-up game for White.

Bill can deal with that.

6...d6 7.d3 Bg4 8.O-O Ne7 

I am not sure what the Knight is doing. White motors on.

9.h3 Bh5 10.a3 a6 11.b4 Ba7 12.Rb1 h6 13.Re1 g5 

With a Rook on b1, White is not likely to fianchetto his Bishop.

Without his light-squared Bishop, he will want to deal with the pin on his f3 Knight a different way.

14.Be3 Bxe3 15.Rxe3 Kg7 

Black castles-by-hand.

16.d4 Rf8 17.g4 Bg6 

18.dxe5 Nc6 19.e6 

This advanced "Jerome pawn" will cause Black difficulties.

19...Ne7 20.Nd4 Rf4 21.Nf5+ Bxf5 22.exf5 

And then there were two.

22...Nc6 23.Nd5 Ne5 24.e7 Qd7 

25.Nxf4

The removal of this defender spells upcoming checkmate.

25...gxf4 26.Rxe5 Re8 27.Re6

Black resigned

White is up a Rook and a pawn. He also threatens checkmate in 14.

In Contrast with the Post ‘Worst Piece Attack’

 

In Contrast with the Post ‘Worst Piece Attack’ 

 

(by Yury V. Bukayev) 

 

Dear readers, now let me continue to tell you some new bright things about “rare” responses after 1.d4 including the opening variation 1.d4 e6, which is extremely far from Open Games, but got some connection with Jerome gambit due to the post ‘Worst Piece Attack’ on this famous blog. 

I offer the new name for 1.d4 e6 – the ‘Stop trompowskism opening’. As you know, the ‘Trompowsky attack’ in chess is 1.d4 Nf6 2.Bg5. Here White plays 2.Bg5 with forming no pin. Let’s consider the position after 1.d4. After all (excluding 1…e6) Black’s possible known strong responses – 1…d5, 1…c6, 1…d6, 1…f5, 1…c5, 1…g6, 1…Nf6 – White can play 2.Bg5 and get a position (with no pin) which is playable for White as minimum. White’s idea 2.Bg5 in all these openings is enough similar to the Trompowsky attack, so we can connect 2.Bg5 here everywhere with Trompowsky’s name as trompowskism. And 1…e6 is an alone strong response which can stop White’s 2.Bg5 (1.d4 e6 2.Bg5?? Qxg5 is a start of White’s worst piece attack in chess, as you know), all alternative ways to stop 2.Bg5 – 1…h6, 1…f6, 1…e5 – are weak and can’t be recommended for a grandmaster level of play.  

It should be noted that the name ‘Pseudo-Trompowsky’ (or ‘Pseudo-Tromp’ – briefly) is used sometimes for variation 1.d4 d5 2.Bg5, but this name is used sometimes also for 1.Nf3 Nf6 2.d4 d5 3.Bg5, so its meaning isn’t certain, I shouldn’t use “pseudo-” to form my offer. And the old name of 1.d4 e6 isn’t absolutely right. So my offer is explained now. 

And you can see, there is no move 1…a6!? in my above list of first moves, because it isn’t known yet as a strong response. But let us consider it more attentively. This move can be extremely useful for Black when we look at early stages of Slav defence, Benoni defence, English opening and some other important openings. Here are my new variations: 

1.   1.d4 a6!? 2.c4 c5 3.Nf3 cxd4 4.Nxd4 e5 (or 4…Nc6 with the idea e7-e5), 

2.   1.d4 a6!? 2.c4 c5 3.d5 b5.  

3. 
   

Everywhere the pawn a6 plays an important role here.  

Finally, let me show you my new opening idea after 1.d4 a6 2.Bg5 c6 3.c4 (3.e3?? Qa5+): it is 3…d5 4.e3?! dxc4!, and the pawn c4 will be not weak, Black stands very well.