Further Explorations (Part 1)

Not quite a  year ago, Rev. Tim Sawyer began his chess blog, initally focusing on the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit (1.d4 d5 2.e4!?), but quickly expanding to many other openings. With the title "Playing Chess Openings" he offered his readers

Read stories based on 40 years of chess play. I was a rated expert, a correspondence master, a blitz player rated over 2200 for over 10 years, and an author of four chess openings books. See how the Blackmar-Diemer Gambit (BDG) changed my career! 

Readers are encouraged to visit Tim's blog, and visit it often!

A recent post kindly mentions the Jerome Gambit and this blog. 

Rick Kennedy lists five Jerome Gambit options and writes about them passionately:
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Jerome Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.0-0 Nf6 5.Nc3 Bc5 6.Bxf7+ Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit

Tim adds a sixth option, which he calls "Open Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit". Before examining that, I want to review the first five lines.

The first, of course, is the Jerome Gambit proper, based on the analysis and play of Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, first published in the April 1874 issue of the Dubuque Chess Journal.

The name of the second line reflects the fact that adding the Bishop sacrifice to the Italian Four Knights Game has transformed play into one of the "modern" variations (i.e. not containing 5.Nxe5) of the Jerome Gambit, that is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nc3 Nf6.

Likewise, the name of the third line reflects the fact that adding the Bishop sacrifice to the Semi-Italian Opening (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6) produces another transposition to the Jerome Gambit, that is 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.0-0 h6.

The fourth line, the Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit is the conglomeration of the second and third lines. Q.E.D.

I admit that the fifth line, the so-called Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, is named with tongue-in-cheek. There is no evidence that Alonzo Wheeler Jerome ever played the line, but there is also no evidence that Henry Joseph Blackburne played 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4!? either, despite it being named after him. Play, though, and the attitude behind it, resembles the Jerome Gambit, so I have welcomed the line aboard.

Now 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.Bxf7+, the Open Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit (borrowing from the "Open" Ruy Lopez idea with ...Nxe4), knocks and bids to enter...


(The graphic at the top is from a t-shirt at the Cafe Press website. I chose it over their "Cheszilla" graphic. Check them out.)

Slow Down and Pay Attention

I have been adding a number of FICS (Free Internet Chess Server) games to The Database, and I have run across too many games where White is so excited (it seems) to be playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) that he or she races into danger with both eyes closed... The results are not pretty.


Please: slow down and pay attention; the King (or Queen) you save may be your own.


White - Black
blitz, FICS, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Ng5+ Ke8 7.Qh5+ 0-1


White - Black
standard, FICS, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qg4+ Nxg4 0-1


White - Black
standard, FICS, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qf3+ Nxf3+ 0-1


White - Black
blitz, FICS, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.0-0 Nf6 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Ng5+ Ke8 7.Qh5+ 0-1


White - Black
blitz, FICS, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Bc4 Nf6 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Ng5+ Kg8 7.Qf3 Nd4 8.Qe2 Nxe2 0-1

Unfinished Discussion

The following game is part of an unfinished discussion concerning a line in the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc3 Nd4!? 4.Bxf7+!?)


dudzlomo - LDRAGO
standard, FICS, 2012


1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.


4.Bxf7+ 


The Jerome treatment.


4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.c3 

More frequently see is the direct 6.Qh5+, although the text shows up 317 times in The Database, with White scoring 57%.


6...Ne6 


The wild 6...Qg5 was seen in suzana - Yaman, lightning, FICS, 2011.


7.Qh5+ g6 

Black forfeited by disconnection.


Quite possibly this was a case of the "outside world" intruding into the world of the chessboard. 


Although White has scored 60% here in the 63 games that appear in The Database, Black is hardly "objectively" worse after 8.Nxg6 Nf6 9.Qh4 hxg6 10.Qxh8 Nxe4, when he has two Knights to White's Rook and two pawns.

Chaos

The following game has its chaotic features. At the end, the positions were complicated enough that I am not at all surprised that we missed things. Toward the beginning, however, we also missed a lot, as, after the game, Rybka (in "blunder check" mode) was criticizing almost every move each of us made.

Still, the game moved me to 2-0 with the Jerome Gambit in the Italian Game tournaments, and that's nice.

perrypawnpusher (1820) - Chesssafety (1523)
Italian Game, Chess.com, 2012

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 Qe7 

The earliest examples I have of this position are from a couple of correspondence games, Daniel Jaeger - Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, 1880 (Black won both). 

8.Qf4+ Ke8 9.Nc3 Nf6 10.0-0 Bd6 

This is an interesting idea that sets up tactical chances on the Kingside – of which my opponent and I remain blissfully unaware.

11.Qe3

Carrying on as if everything is "normal", while Black actually can play 11...Ng4 now, with serious threats.

11...c6

"Normal" again, while 11...Ng4 was the way to go.

12.d4 

Wash. Rinse. Repeat.

Better was 12.h3 to keep the enemy Knight off of g4.

12...Bc7

All according to plan, but a better plan included 12...Ng4.

13.f4 Bb6 14.e5 Nd5 15.Nxd5 cxd5 

16.Qd3 d6 17.Bd2 g6 18.Bb4 Bd7 

This move gave me pause. My guess is that my opponent suddenly realized that after 16...d6 I could have won a pawn with 17.Qb5+ and 18.Qxd5. He suddenly takes time to cover up that glitch.

Actually, 17.Qb5+ Bd7 18.Qxd5 is well met by 18...Bc6 19.Qc4 dxe5 20.fxe5 Qxe5.

19.Bxd6

Actually, 19.Rae1 might be a little bit better here, according to the computer.

19...Qh4 

All those pawns, Bishops and Queens looking diagonally...

20.c3 Bf5 21.Qb5+ Bd7 22.Qxd5 

White has four pawns for his sacrificed piece, and they look like they can both provide protection as well as cause trouble, provided White doesn't allow himself to be checkmated first.

22...Rc8

I was expecting 22...Bc6, which I was going to answer with 23.Qe6+. 

23.Qxb7 Qg4

Positioning the Queen for defense and attack, but it is too late.

24.e6 Qxe6 25.Rae1 Black resigned

Fair Weather to Foul

Just as it looks like I will score my second Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) win in the two Italian Game tournaments that I am playing at Chess.com, (for the first win, see "A Successful Tournament Already") I have started a third Jerome game – against a player who started off the tournament rated over 400 points higher than me (which is not quite the same thing as giving "Jerome Gambit odds"). Since I beat him in our first game, his motivation is high, and I suspect the over-the-board weather is likely to change from fair to foul...

Just One More

Dave Black, in raising the issue of the Evans Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc/a5 6.Bxf7+) shows up the inadequacy of The Database in this area, as it contains only three examples: Dave's recent game, an Evans Jerome that I faced, and the following game.


Gain,K - Bharadwaj,M 
India, 2004


1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.Bxf7+ 

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ke6 9.Qh3+ Kd6 10.d4 Ng6 11.Qh5 Qe8 


Counter-attacking White's e-pawn, but it comes too late.


12.Ba3+ c5 13.Qxc5+ Ke6 14.Qf5 checkmate 

Exploring the Evans Jerome Gambit

Once again, the email box brings some interesting news from our regular correspondent in the United Kingdom, David Black. This time he has plucked an idea from the early history of the Jerome Gambit, the invention (as far as I know) of Henry Charlick (of 1.d4 e5 fame), the Evans Jerome Gambit. There is much, much more to be discovered in this line ("Hoist by my own petard..." is one primitive example).

Hiya Rick,

I have a very interesting game for you here that needs a bit of an explanation.

This online program is at http://www.chess.com/play/computer.html and it's a different beast from the ill fated Boris. It's easy to set-up Jerome type positions and has a number of settings from beginner to expert. In your latest blog you mentioned the Evans gambit and that gave me an idea (which may or may not have been tried before... I don't know).

The Evans starts 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4... After 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3, the Bishop must move or be captured. The 2nd most popular retreat is 5...Bc5 in this position, so I wondered what would happen if I applied the Jerome treatment to this line. Worth mentioning that the "expert" setting takes a little while to make it's moves although I tried to play blitz-ish.


Black,D - Computer - Hard 

Chess.com, 24.05.2012

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Bc5 4.b4 Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.d4 Qh4 9.0-0 Ne7 10.Qb3+ d5 11.dxe5 Qxe4 12.Nd2 Qxe5 13.Nf3 Qd6 14.Bb2 Qb6 15.Qc2 Bf5 16.Ne5+ Ke6 17.Qe2 Be4 18.c4 Bd4 19.cxd5+ Kxe5 20.Bxd4+ Qxd4 21.Rad1 Qb4 22.f3 Nxd5 23.fxe4 Qxe4 24.Qh5+ Kd6 25.Rfe1 g6 26.Qg5 Qxe1+ 27.Rxe1 Rhe8 28.Rd1 c6 29.Qf6+ Re6 30.Qf7 Re7 31.Qf6+ Kd7 32.Qb2 b6 33.Qb3 Rf8 34.a4 Rf4 35.g3 Rfe4 36.a5 R7e5 37.axb6 axb6 38.Qa3 Re7 39.Kg2 b5 40.Qb3 Kd6 41.Qa3+ b4 42.Qa6

Now unfortunately I had to quit the game here as something came up. The computer certainly seems to have a big advantage but maybe not enough to escape a perpetual? Looks like there is a lot of mileage in this variation although I  don't know if it falls under the scope of your blog.