Most of the time the computers are faithful friends. Sometimes they seem to mislead.
perrypawnpusher - bnxr
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
The Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 N8e7
I've faced this position a half-dozen times without surrendering a half-point.
Black wants his King's Knight developed in a way that does not impede his King's Rook, which in turn will come into place as he castles-by-hand.
From White's point of view the development at e7 puts less pressure on the "Jerome pawns" in the center, but creates an additional possibility when considering returning a piece for two pawns when one of the White foot soldiers advances to f5.
10.f4 Rf8 11.0-0 Kf7
To castle-by-hand, as noted above. My response: " 'Jerome pawns', advance!"
By the way, a "position search" here in The Database is confounding, making it of less use, a similar situation to the one I mentioned in Monday's "Checking Back" post. In this line of play, I like the intermediate "nudge" 7.Qd5+, instead of the immediate capture of the Bishop with 7.Qxc5, so my game has reached this position along with four games by Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Petasluk and an earlier game, erik - jimi, blitz, FICS, 2001; but here it is White's move, while in their games it is Black's.
12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4 14.Qd3 d5
15.Nc3 h6
Black wants to keep White's Bishop off of g5, but a better move was to pull back his advanced Knight to d6.
16.g4
Supporting the advanced f-pawn, but this is too stereotyped.
As Rybka 3 instructed me after the game, White could already grab a pawn with 16.Nxd5; and after 16...b5 he could move in on Black's King with 17.Nxe7 Qxe7 18.f6 (a clearance sacrifice) 18...gxf6 19.e5 f5 20.Qf3 (a nice move, as the loose Rook at a8 gives the Queen the tempo she needs to continue on to the Kingside) 20...Bd7 21.Qh5+ Kg8 22.Bxh6 Qh7 23.Qg5+ Kf7 24.Bxf8 Rxf8 when White would have a Rook and three pawns for two pieces, and the advantage.
That's a nice line of play, something some readers may have seen. One reason that I turn the post mortem over to the silicon brains is so that I can see what I should have seen.
Certainly I should have seen the gain of the pawn at d5, but I'm still working on having the feel for the kind of sacrifice that 18.f6 would be. The Queen transfer via f3 was nice, but I'm not ready to say that I would have played 17.Nxe7 because I saw the coming win of the exchange with 24.Bxf8.
16...Kg8 17.e5
Instead, 17.Nxd5 was still the right move for White, as he can answer 17...Nxd5 with 18.Qxc4 threatening a discovered check.. After 17...Nd6 18.Nf4, according to Rybka 3 White's advanced "Jerome pawns" balance out the missing piece.
17...b6
Black's plan is to post the Bishop on the a6-f1 diagonal where the White Queen and Rook are currently residing.
Looking at the diagram, I get the feeling that White needs a dose of developed pieces, but Rybka and Fritz give the first player the edge.
18.b3 Ba6 19.Qg3
Slow. White probably could have gone all-out with 19.f6 or played it safe with 19.Rf2.
19...Na5 20.Ba3
Two can play at this game, was my thought, but certainly 20.Rf2 was more to the point.
20...Bxf1 21.Rxf1 Rf7
Black is now up a Rook for two pawns. Frankly, I was amazed that I wasn't having an anxiety attack. It is true that I didn't mind giving up the exchange on f1; after all, look at Black's parked Queen Rook and his offside Queen's Knight. Also, the "Jerome pawns" look scary, but are they a Rook's worth of "scary"?
Rybka and Fritz seem to think they are, and they rate the position about equal. It is easy to follow their suggested line of play, 22.e6 Rf8 23.Bxe7 Qxe7 24.Nxd5, gaining a pawn, but the question remains: Where does White's counter come from? Especially since what is recommended as best for Black is now the exchange of Queens, 24...Qd6 25.Qxd6 cxd6.
analysis diagram
Can anyone spot the hidden Rook?
Back to the game...
I decided that I needed to attack Black's King before he got his forces together. As we have seen, this is not the recommended direction.
22.f6 Nec6 23.Qe3 gxf6 24.Qxh6
24...fxe5
Occasionally it is important for me to remind myself that if a position is complicated for me, it is usually complicated for my opponent, too.
Here, according to Rybka, my opponent overlooks his chance to transition into a better endgame where he has a piece for two pawns... 24...Rh7 25.Qd2 fxe5 26.dxe5 Qh4 27.Qg2 Rg7 28.Nxd5 Rxg4 29.Nf6+ Qxf6 30.Qxg4+ Qg7 31.Qxg7+ Kxg7 32.e6 Re8 33.Rf7+ Kg6 34.Rxc7 Rxe6
analysis diagram
Instead, Black's move is an error.
25.Rxf7 Kxf7
26.Qh5+
How annoying it was to see after the game that if I had played 26.Qh7+ I had a win: 26...Kf6 27.dxe5+ Nxe5 28.Be7+ Qxe7 29.Nxd5+. Wow.
26...Kg8
It seems a bit of hard luck that my opponent let me off of the hook here, when 26...Kg7 would give him a better game; or so the computers say.
Now I saw the draw and went for it. After all... I was a Rook down.
27.Qg6+ Kh8 28.Qh6+ Kg8 29.Qg6+ Kh8 30.Qh6+ Kg8 31.Qg6+ Kh8 32.Qh6+ Game drawn by repetition
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