Jerome Gambit: How's That For A Kick In The Head?

It is quite possible that playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7) at slower time controls allows you to absorb enough knowledge about the opening that you can play it at a very fast speed, as well. Here is a third game from our featured anonymous player. It finishes with a bang that is overwhelming - maybe the defender could find a way out, if only he had enough time...

Anonymous - Anonymous
1 0 bullet, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6
9.Qe3 Nf6 

This position goes back at least as far as the game Charlick - Mann, correspondence, Australia, 1881 (1-0, 72).

10.Nc3 Bd7 

This move is new, according to The Database. It develops a piece, modestly, and avoids percipitating f2-f4, which would have happened after 10...Be6, and avoids forcing White to strengthen his center, with 10...Bg4 11.f3.

11.d4 Kf7 12.f3 Re8 13.b3 Kg8 14.Bb2 

Black has castled-by-hand. White has a solid, but not particularly mobile, center.

14...a5 15.a4 c6 16.h4 

With aggressive intent.

16...Nh5 17.Ne2 Nxh4 

I don't think that the pawn is worth the risk.

18.O-O-O 

The reason he took Kingside liberties with his 16th move: His Majesty is going Queenside, a very reasonable decision that can be made in an eyeblink, even with the risks that sometimes occur when Kings find their homes on opposite sides of the board.

There was also the possibility of 18.Qf2 directly, but it leads to the kind of messy play you might want to avoid in bullet chess: 18...g5 19.g3 Rf8 20.gxh4 g4 21.Rg1 Qf6 22.Ba3 Qxf3 23.Qxf3 Rxf3 24.Bxd6 and it is not clear whose passed pawn is better, and if the whole thing is going to boil down to a Bishops-of-opposite-colors ending that would be quite drawish.

18...b5 19.Nf4 

Tricky, relying on the Rook on the open h-file, but 19...Ng3 is a proper response. Again, he could have considered 19.Qf2.

19...Nxf4

That's the thing about bullet play: aggression is often rewarded because defense takes time to figure out. 

20.Qxf4 Ng6 21. Qxd6 bxa4 22. d5 axb3 

There's aggression on both sides of the board.

23.Rxh7 

"How's that for a kick in the head?", as they used to say.

Stockfish 10 says that Black can take the Rook and still draw, but computers do not live in the real world. I'm pretty sure Black crossed his fingers for luck and played...

23...bxc2 

Grandmasters might play: 23...Kxh7 24.Rh1+ Nh4 25.Qg3 g5 26.Rxh4+ Kg6 27.dxc6 Rc8 28.f4 Rxe4 29.cxd7 Rxc2+ 30.Kb1 Rxb2+ 31.Kxb2 Qf6+ 32.Kb1 Rd4 33.Qg4 Qf5+ 34.Qxf5+ Kxf5 35.fxg5 Rxd7 36.Kb2 Rd2+ 37.Kxb3 Rxg2 38.Ka4 Rxg5 39.Kxa5 and each would then complain about "losing a point".

If it's any consolation, 23...Ne5 24.Rh5 bxc2 would probably lead to a draw, as well.

24.Rxg7+ Kh8 25.Rh1+ Nh4 26.Qh6 checkmate

Very, very nice.