I apologize, Jerome Gambit

One of the "benefits" of playing an off-beat opening like the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is that it has a built-in excuse for any loss: Of course I would have crushed him if I had been playing the Catalan...

Sometimes, though, even a disreputable opening like the Jerome – given enough cooperation by the opponent, of course – delivers a game that is quite playable, if not downright winable; and at that point, success or failure depends upon the player, not the opening. For the following game, I have to say: I apologize, Jerome Gambit...

perrypawnpusher - peroneal
blitz 10 0, FICS, 2009

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

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

7.Qd5+ Ke8

Worth mentioning here is the game perrypawnpusher - hogmaster, chessworld, 2008 which is referred to in the note after move 10: 7...Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.0-0 b6 11.f4 Bb7 12.d3 Qe7 13.Nc3 Re8 14.Bd2 h6 15.h3 Qd7 16.Qg3 Ne7 17.e5 Nfg8 18.Rae1 Nf5 19.Qf2 Nge7 20.g4 g6 21.gxf5 gxf5 22.Re3 Rg8+ 23.Rg3 Kf7 24.Ne2 h5 25.Kh2 Rg6 26.Rfg1 Reg8 27.Nd4 dxe5 28.Rxg6 exd4 29.Rxg8 Nxg8 30.Qg3 Ne7 31.Qg7+ Ke6 32.Re1+ Kd6 33.Qe5+ Kc6 34.Qxe7 Qxe7 35.Rxe7 Kd6 36.Re5 Bc8 37.Kg3 Black resigned

8.Qxc5 d6

Also relevant to the next note, perrypawnpusher - Lark, blitz, FICS, 2009 continued: 8...N8e7 9.0-0 b6 10.Qe3 Rf8 11.f4 d6 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4 14.Qg3 Rf7 15.Nc3 Kf8 16.Bg5 h6 17.Bc1 Bb7 18.f6 Rxf6 19.Rxf6+ gxf6 20.Bxh6+ Ke8 21.Qg7 Kd7 22.Qg4+ Ke8 23.Qg7 Nd2 24.Qxf6 Bxe4 25.Nxe4 Nxe4 26.Qh8+ Kd7 27.Qxd8+ Rxd8 28.Re1 Nf5 29.Rxe4 Nxh6 30.Rh4 Nf5 31.Rh7+ Kc6 32.c3 Re8 33.Kf2 a5 34.b3 Rf8 35.Ke2 Re8+ 36.Kd2 Ne3 37.Rg7 Nf1+ 38.Kd3 Nxh2 39.g4 Nf3 40.g5 Nh4 41.c4 Nf5 42.d5+ Kb7 43.Rh7 Re7 44.Rxe7 Nxe7 45.Ke4 Ng6 46.Kf5 Nh4+ 47.Kf6 Kc8 48.g6 Nxg6 49.Kxg6 Kd7 50.Kf6 c6 51.Kf7 cxd5 52.cxd5 b5 53.a3 Kc7 54.Ke7 b4 55.a4 Kb6 56.Kxd6 Ka6 57.Kc6 Ka7 58.Kc7 Ka6 59.d6 Black resigned

9.Qe3 Nf6

Okay, I've been here before. This is my 6th game (up until now 3-1-1) with this position which was first seen, according to my database, in Charlick - Mann, correspondence 1881 (1-0, 71).

10.0-0 Bd7

A new move, with the idea of putting the Bishop on the a8-h1 diagonal, to pressure the e4 pawn. Other players, like hogmaster and Lark (above) have fianchettoed the Bishop at b7.

11.f4 Qe7 12.Nc3 Bc6 13.f5 Ne5 14.d4 Nc4

This kind of Knight attack on the Queen has happened a lot recently: see my games against DysonLin, episodeninetynine, Joejox and Lark.

15.Qd3

Where should the Queen go? Probably 15.Qe2 was a bit better. Proper positioning of the heavy pieces behind the "Jerome pawn" center will be an important test of the middlegame play – a test that I barely passed, with a "D".

15...Bb5 16.b3

Shoot. Me. Now.

Just like in my previous game, my opponent hangs a piece – and I miss it!

16...Ne3 17.Qxb5+ c6 18.Qd3 Nxf1 19.Kxf1 Rd8

White has two pawns for the exchange. Considering Black's King stuck in the center of the board, White has to have the advantage.

20.Bg5 Rf8 21.Qe3

In this position Fritz8 prefers 21.Re1, if only to answer 21...h6 with the surprising 22.Nd5 – after 22...cxd5 23.e5 dxe5 24.dxe5 hxg5 25.exf6 Rxf7 26.Rxe7+ Kxe7 White should have the advantage. I think 21.Re1 is good for calmer lines, too.

21...h6 22.Bh4 Qd7

It might have been time to put the King on that square, instead, and continue with him to c8 – castling-by-hand on the Queenside.

23.Kg1 Rc8 24.e5

Breaking in the center – probably too early. White's Rook could have gone to f1 or e1 first.

24...Nd5

After 24...dxe5 25.dxe5 Ng4 26.Qxa7 White would be better – for example, after 26...Rxf5 27.Rd1 followed by Nc3-e4 – but things would be messy; and the result would be better than after the text.

25.Nxd5 cxd5 26.exd6+ Kf7

What now?

White should be winning, and there should be some kind of "killer" move here – but I couldn't find it during the game.

Fritz 8 suggests 27.Be7! Then, if 27...Rfe8, White calmly plays 28.Re1 and his threat to infiltrate with the Queen forces Black to liquidate to a lost ending: 28...Rxe7 29.Qxe7+ Qxe7 30.Rxe7+ Kf6 31.Rxb7. Totally beyond my calculation at the time, as well, was if Black played the odd 27...Ke8 (Fritz 8's second choice) then White has 28.f6. All a bit too beyond me.

My move leads to an equal game.

27.Qe6+ Qxe6 28.fxe6+ Kxe6 29.Re1+ Kxd6

Wait a minute! With 29...Kd7 Black probably keeps the game a draw. The text move returns a favor.

30.Be7+ Kd7 31.Bxf8 Rxf8

All Rook endgames are drawn, right? Actually, I thought I had good chances to win this one.

32.c3 Rc8 33.Re3 Kd6 34.Kf2 a6 35.Ke2 b6 36.Kd3 g6 37.c4 dxc4+ 38.bxc4 Rf8

So far, so good. My extra pawn is protected and passed.

39.d5 Rf2 40.Re2

White's job is simplified if he can exchange Rooks.

40...Rxe2 41.Kxe2 b5

Black's last gasp.

I looked at 42.cxb5 Kxd5 43.bxa6 and even though Black can catch the forward White a-pawn, there's still the other a-pawn to be distracted by, while White's King feasts on the Kingside pawns... With only that amount of thought, I played

42.cxb5

only to see instead

42...axb5

Oooops...

The game is now drawn. The winning move, of course, was 42.Kd3.

43.Kd3 Kxd5 44.a3 Kc5 45.Kc3 g5 46.g4 Kb6 47.Kb4 Kc6 48.h3 Kb6 49.Kb3 Kc5 50.Kc3 Kb6 51.Kb4 Kc6 52.Kb3 Kb6 53.Kb4 Kc6 54.Kb3 Kc5 55.Kc3 Kb6 56.Kb4 Kc6 Game drawn by repetition

Nice work, peroneal!

Another game like my last two, and the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde might suspend my membership!