A Strange, But Intriguing, Path (Part 1)

If I face the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) any time soon (not likely; see "I expected better...") I'd like to try out a relatively new, but strange and intriguing opening idea...

theprof - Brown

FICS, 2005

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6

What an odd move! Yet, there are 10 examples in the New Year's Database, and White only scored 30% in those games. As I've noted, this bears examination.

6.Nxc6 dxc6

My first thought: If 6.Nxc6 is the recommended response to the venerable 5...Kf8 – see "Critical Line: 5...Kf8 (1), (2),(3), and (Revisited)" – it should be the first thing to try when the Black King is even further afield.

Oddly, Rybka sees Black with his King on e6 as only 1/10th of a pawn or so worse than when the King is on f8. Overall, it sees Black as still being not quite a pawn better than White.

By the way, after 6.Nxc6, 6...dxc6 is the proper way to capture, not 6...bxc6, as the former prevents White from playing d2-d4 and opens up the c8-h3 diagonal for Black's light-squared Bishop, giving some protection to the King.

I have only one example of  the wrong capture, a back-and-forth game where Black finally won on time: 6...bxc6 7.0-0 [7.Qg4+ is the winning move: White will be able to either check the King and then win the Bishop; or capture on g7 with check and then win the Rook] Nf6 8.d4 Bb6 9.Nc3 Ba6 10.Re1 Kf7 11.Bg5 h6 12.Bh4 g5 13.Bg3 Qe8 14.Qf3 Kg7 15.e5 Nd5 16.Nxd5 cxd5 17.Qxd5 Qe6 18.Qe4 Raf8 19.c3 Rf5 20.a4 c6 21.b4 Bc4 22.a5 Bc7 23.Qe3 a6 24.f4 Rhf8 25.fxg5 Rxg5 26.Bh4 Rg6 27.Bf6+ Kh7 28.Rf1 d6 29.Rf3 dxe5 30.dxe5 Bd5 31.Rg3 Rfg8 32.Rf1 Rxg3 33.hxg3 Bxe5 34.Bxe5 Rg6 35.Qf4 Bc4 36.Rf2 Rg8 37.Qf7+ Qxf7 38.Rxf7+ Bxf7 39.Bd4 Bd5 40.Kf2 Rf8+ 41.Ke3 Rf1 42.Ke2 Rc1 43.Kd2 Rf1 44.Ke2 Rf5 45.Ke3 Kg6 46.Kd3 Rg5 47.g4 Rxg4 48.Ke3 Rxg2 White forfeited on time, fehim - Pawnshop, FICS, 2009

7.Qg4+

White's best.

7...Ke7

Critical was 7...Kf6, when White should loosen Black's Kingside with 8.Qh5+ g5 9.Qg3 followed by d2-d3 and possibly h2-h4 or f2-f4, when Black will still have an edge.

The text is an error which White immediately exploits.

8.Qxg7+ Kd6 9.Qxh8 Ne7 10.Qxh7 (better was 10.Qxd8+) Be6 11.d3 Qd7 12.Be3 (12.Bf4 checkmate) Rf8 13.Bxc5+ (13.e5+ Kxe5 14.Qg7+ Rf6 15.Qg3+ Rf4 16.Qxf4+ Kd5 17.Nc3 checkmate) Kxc5 14.Nc3 Kb6 15.f3 a6 16.Qh4 Ka7 17.Qf2+ Kb8 18.0-0-0 Ng6 19.Kb1 Nf4 20.g3 Ng6 21.f4 Ne7 22.h3 Bg8 23.g4 Nc8 24.f5 Qf7 25.b3 Nb6 26.Kb2 a5 27.Ra1 a4 28.Nxa4 Nxa4+ 29.bxa4 b6 30.Qd4 Kb7 31.Qc4 Qxc4 32.dxc4 Bxc4 33.Rad1 Re8 34.Rde1 Ka6 35.e5 Ka5 36.e6 Kxa4 37.f6 Bxe6 38.Re3 Kb5 39.Rhe1 Kc5 40.Rxe6 Rf8 41.g5 Kb5 42.R1e5+ c5 43.Re7 Ka6 44.Rxc7 Kb5 45.Ree7 Rd8 46.Rcd7 Rb8

The game was drawn here because both players had run out of time. However, White has had a significant advantage for quite a while.