perrypawnpusher - LuigiJerk
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6
7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Nf7
Sometimes this Knight move both takes the steed out of danger and provides for the defense of the Black King. In this game, that is exactly what it does, but it should not have.
Yet, the position is not simple. Not even ten moves in, and the Jerome Gambit still has its secrets!
White should now take the Knight with 9.Qxf7, threatening to next to take the Bishop after Qd5+.
Black has a tricky counter-attack with 9...Nf6, covering the d5 square. This seems to give away another piece after 10.e5+ Kc6, but pay attention to White's uncastled King: it is unsafe to now grab material and open both the e- and g-files. White's best is 11.d4, instead, when 11...Bxd4 can be answered with 12.Qc4+ Bc5 12.b4. If Black tries 11...Ne4 instead, White can retreat his Queen with 12.Qb3 or try 12.c4, answering 12...d5 with 13.Qxd5+ Qxd5 14.cxd5 Kxd5 15.dxc5 Nxc5.
Black can also defend d5 with 9...c6, when 10.Qxg7 Nf6 11.Qxf6 Qxf6 12.e5+ Qxe5 13.fxe5+ Kxe5 leads, as with 9...Nf6, to an edge for White.
All of this I learned after the game, with the help of Rybka 3 and Fritz 8.
9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qxc5+ d6
The alternative, 10...Ke8, was seen in perrypawnpusher - calexander, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 25). (Yes, I missed taking the Knight on f7 there, too.)
11.Qe3 Be6
Here Black has an edge. His Knight on f7 slightly out-weighs my two "Jerome pawns".
12.f5 Bd7 13.d4 Nf6 14.e5 dxe5 15.dxe5 Nd5
After 15...Ng4 the game would be tactically tricky, but roughly balanced. (I don't think I'll ever criticize myself for castling "too early" in a Jerome Gambit again.)
16.Qa3+
A strange move. Simply 16.Qc5+ allows White to win the Knight at d5.
16...Ke8
While a superficial look (like the kind that I took) shows that White is on the edge of forking two pieces with his e-pawn, anything deeper shows the first player's King at great risk.
White needs to castle here.
17.e6 Qh4+ 18.Kf1
Going the wrong way, but after 18.Kd1 Bc6 19.exf7+ Kxf7 White's extra pawn would mean nothing, while his insecure King and undeveloped pieces would give Black the advantage.
Quite a lesson about King safety for the Jerome Gambiteer!
18...Bb5+ White resigned
8...Qf6 seems like a killer black reply in the position you described ?
ReplyDeleteWhat has been tried here ?
Guido,
ReplyDeleteYou are right, 8...Qf6 is strong for Black. It is at least as old as A.W. Jerome - W. Shinkman, USA, 1874 (0-1, 21).
The Database is somewhat misleading in this regard, as it has 50 games with 8...Qf6, with White scoring 58%.
After 9.fxe5+ Qxe5 The Database has 53 games (it picked up two games with 8...Qe7 and one with 8...Qe8) with White scoring 59%.
White has tried 10.Qxe5+, 10.Qf8+, 10.Qg4, 10.Nc3, 10.c3 and 10.Qf3 with different degrees of success.
10.Qf8+ scores worst (0%, 3 games) and 10.Qg4 scores best (100%, 1 game); with 10.Qf3 being the currently recommended move (71%, 27 games)
This topic certainly deserves a post or two -- and soon! I will get to work on it.
Thanks.
Rick