The Jerome Gambit: Jerome Gambit: St. Jerome vs St. George.

The following game might be referred to as "St. Jerome vs St. George" - if St. Jerome had anything to do with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), which he didn't. I am just looking for an excuse to quote past World Champion Lasker

Emmanuel Lasker seems to have had the best, if not the last, word on the gambit, responding to a letter to “Our Question Box” in the March 1906 issue of Lasker’s Chess Magazine
No; the Jerome gambit is not named after St. Jerome. His penances, if he did any, were in atonement of rather minor transgressions compared with the gambit.

Anonymous - Anonymous

5 2 blitz, lichess.org, 2020

1.e4 a6

The St. George Defense, sometimes referred to as the Baker Defense, as the earliest known game with the line was a simultaneous game win by J. Baker against Wilhelm Steinitz on December 11, 1868.

It is worth quoting what Wikibooks has to say on the subject

When played seriously this defence is workable. Black lets White grab the center like in a "hypermodern" opening, while gaining power on the queenside. Usually, b5 and Bb7 will follow soon (attacking e4 pawn, eventually with help of Nf6). That way, Black can enter a very playable middlegame, contrary to what might have been expected. It remains viable in highly skilled games, such as Tony Miles overcoming Karpov using this opening.
In response to this move, White can either start taking control of the center with 2.d4 or try to prevent the b5 move with 2.c4. But this last move is considered inferior because of 2...e5, where Black would have a slight advantage (the same goes for 2.a4).
Also note that White can try to set a powerful trap for unadvised Black players (but those who play the St. George as Black are generally advised players) by playing 2.Bc4. If 2...b5, then 3.Bxf7+ Kxf7 4.Qh5+ and White can manage to win a rook.
White can also choose to develop a Knight first with 2.Nf3 or to challenge Black on the diagonal with 2.g3.

In this game, White has his own ideas.

2.a4 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.Bxf7+

Stockfish 11 sees the addition of a2-a4 and ...a7-a6 as helping Black by a little less than a half a pawn. If Black was planning on playing the St. George, however, and wound up facing the Jerome, that probably helps White.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ng6

8.Qd5+ Ke8 9. Qxc5 d6 10.Qe3 Nf6

Except for the a-pawns, this is a familiar Jerome Gambit position.

11.Nc3 Be6

This allows the typical pawn advance f2-f4, threatening f4-f5, forking two pieces, but White has a different idea in mind.

12.b3 Rf8 13.Bb2 Kf7 14.O-O-O Kg8

White has castled Queenside. Black has castled-by-hand. Now the pawns begin to march.

15.h3 c6 16.Rhf1 b5 17.f4 Bf7 18.g4

18...Nd7

Probably better was the consistent 18...d5, as 19.e5 could be answered by 19...d4.

19.Qd4 c5 20.Qxd6 c4 21.e5 Re8 22.d4 cxb3 23.f5 bxc2 24.Kxc2 Ngf8

25.e6

This wins a pawn in true Jerome fashion, but White's King is the one more at risk at this point. Even more so because White chose the "berserk" option in playing this game, giving him only about half of the time he would otherwise have, 2 1/2 minutes.

25...Nxe6 26.fxe6 Rxe6 27.Qf4 Bg6+