Jerome Gambit: Easy for You, Difficult for Me

The following game is an interesting example of how complicated a Jerome Gambit attack can become. White wins a miniature, while the computer grumps in the notes. The checkmate is very nicely executed.

Wall, Bill - Guest1352598

PlayChess.com, 2021

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 6. Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qxc5 d6 8.Qd5+ 

This move poses the question to Black: Is developing the Bishop worth the b-pawn? (After all, the Bishop will have to move again after f2-f4.)

According to The Database, ZahariSokolov at FICS has played this move 80 times. 

8...Be6 9.Qxb7 N8e7 

Better was 9...Nh4 as seen in Wall, Bill - CheckMe, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 23).  

Bill has also seen 9...Ne5 in Wall,B - Guest249301, PlayChess.com 2013 (1-0, 30).

10.O-O Re8 

Preparing to castle-by-hand. Stockfish 12 prefers the move subtle 10...Nf4 11.d3 Ne2+ 12.Kh1 Nxc1, winning the Bishop for the Knight. 

11.f4 Bd7 

Here the computer suggests 11...Qd7 12.Qa6 Kg8 13.f5 Nxf5 14.exf5 Bxf5 with an even game. It rejects 12.f5 because of 12...Bc4 13.fxg6+ Kxg6 14.d3 Reb8 winning the White Queen, with a small advantage for Black e.g. 15.Qxa8 Rxa8 16.dxc4 Qc6.

12.Qb3+ Kf8 13.f5 Ne5 14.d4 Nf7 

Black safeguards his Knight from those aggressive "Jerome pawns". 

Instead, he could have complicated things with 14...Rb8, and White could have responded with the equally complex 15.f6. Stockfish 12 sorts it all out as being kind of equal, but that's a computer for you - in real life, somebody would have tumbled into a bad position.

15.f6 gxf6 16.Rxf6 d5 

Black wants to block the Queen's deadly attack on f7. Sadly, this doesn't work.

The computer suggests more complications: 16...Nd5 17.Bh6+ Ke7 18.Rxf7+ Kxf7 19.Qxd5+ Kg6 20.Be3 Qe7 21.Nc3 c6 22.Qc4 Rf8 when White would have 3 pawns for the exchange, and the advantage.

17.Bh6+ 

You saw this, right?

17...Kg8 18.Qg3+ Ng6 19.Rxg6+ Kh8 20.Bg7+ Kg8 21.Bf6+ Black resigned