Jerome Gambit: It Is A Matter of Conservation

If you are playing blitz, and you get into a lost position, do you want to play on - and on, and on - with the hope of salvaging a half point, or do you conserve time, resign, and start another?

The following game sparked some consideration.

minhsuper14. Cliffe481

10 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf6 

Black protects his Knight - he thinks - but winds up surrendering two pieces.

7.Qf5+ Ke7 8.Qxe5+ Kf8 9. Qxc5+ d6 Black resigned

White has recovered his two sacrificed pieces, which means he is two pawns ahead.

Another way of looking at it is that Black has sacrificed two pawns, for negative compensation - his King cannot castle.

Komodo 12.1.1 rates White 2 1/2 pawns ahead.

The Database has 604 games with this position, with White scoring 67%.

If you are playing Black, do you hang in there, or do you surrender and start another game?