Jerome Gambit: It's Catching

The Jerome Gambit features the sacrifice of two pieces, to disrupt normal play, take Black out of his preparation, and expose the enemy King. 

In the following game, piece sacrifice appears to be contageous - although the intentions of the defender-turned-counter-attacker are less easily discerned.

Wall, Bill - Marobaut

internet, 2022

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.Qa5 

Bill likes to experiment. The Database shows that on different occasions in response to 8...d6 he has retreated his Queen to a3, a5, b5, c3, c4, e3 and h5. He has played 8.Qe3 the most.

9...Ne5 

Bill has faced 9...Nf6 in Wall,B - Guest1151077, PlayChess.com, 2013 (1-0, 33) and Wall,B - Guest6808573, PlayChess.com, 2019 (1-0, 26). 

10.d4 Ng4 

Black is feeling adventurous. There was no reason to bypass 10...Nc6. 

11.O-O Nxh2 

Getting in the sacrifical spirit of things.

12.Qh5+ g6 13.Qxh2 Nf6

This is another one of those Jerome Gambit positions that at first glance garners the assessment "White is up a pawn" - but his advantage is far greater than that. Stockfish 15 suggests more than two pieces and a pawn better.

14.Bg5 

Here is the first point: Black will lose a piece.

14...Kf7

The King hurries to protect the pinned Knight. If 14...h6 - oops, the h-pawn is pinned - 15.e5 Ng4 16.Bxd8 Nxh2 17.Bf6! Nxf1 18.Bxh8 when Black's Knight is trapped and will be lost. 

As it turns out, f7 is an unfortunate place for His Majesty.

15.e5 dxe5 16.dxe5 Ng4 17.Qf4+ Black resigned

White's Queen escapes from the attack, with check, leaving her counterpart vulnerable. Now 17...Nf6 simply loses a piece to 18.Bxf6.

From My Psychology Career to This Blog & Wiki's Attention

 

Years ago, I wrote over 100 reviews for the online chess site, Chessville.com. Alas, it no longer exists - although content can be found via The Wayback Machine, an internet archive ("Explore more than 771 billion web pages saved over time").

Recently Yury V. Bukayev sent me a link to a Wikipedia.org article on chess psychology that included a link to something I wrote for Chessville, many years ago.

Titled "My Chess Psychology Bookshelf" the piece includes short reviews of a number of chess psychology books, with links to an additional collection of longer reviews that I did for Chessville - about a couple dozen, in all.

They are well worth a read.

I have been interested in chess since the age of 7. Psychology was my career for 40 years. As Yury suggested, the combination of the two most likely led to my fascination with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+).

It is interesting to reflect upon my search over the years for what lines of play might have inspired Alonzo Wheeler Jerome to create "his" opening; while Yury has done me one better, by identifying what most likely inspired me to investigate the Jerome and introduce this blog (it all started in 2008 with "Welcome!").   

Jerome Gambit: Common Sense Fails Again

One of the interesting things about the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is how often "common sense" defenses fail. Defenders unfamiliar with the attack tend to underestimate it and decide upon a line of play that is reasonable and rational - and just might very well be wrong.  

Wall, Bill - Kulots

internet, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 

6...Bd6 

This move looks reasonable: Black must lose a piece, so he plans to answer 7.dxe5 with 7...Bxe5, getting a pawn back.

Experience facing the Jerome Gambit suggests that a Bishop retreat here is not the best choice - even if it is playable. Black should just give the Bishop up with 6...Bxd4 or counter-attack with 6...Qh4. 

By the way, according to The Database Bill is 29 - 0 in this position.

7.dxe5 Bxe5 

More common sense. After all, how hard is it to counter an opening where White has sacrificed 2 pieces in the first 5 moves?

More to the point was 7...Bb4+ 8.Bd2 Bxd2+ 9.Nxd2 Qe7 and Black is for choice. 

8.Qd5+ Kf8 9.Qxe5 d6 

Look where common sense has gotten Black: he is a pawn down with no compensation.

10.Qf4+ Nf6 11.O-O Qe7 12.Nc3 c6

A quick assessment might show that Black is not doing too poorly, he is just down a pawn.

Look at a few lines of play, however, as Stockfish 15 does, and you will rate White ahead the equivalent of a couple of pieces. 

13.Rd1 Qe5 14.Rxd6 Black resigned

White's lead in development and Black's uneasy King convince the second player that happiness is to found elsewhere.

Makes sense to me.

Jerome Gambit: Slowly Taking Advantage

The following Jerome Gambit battle between two younger players shows the first player slowly taking advantage, then exchanging to a won endgame and utilizing the cooperation of his King and Rook to make his remaining pawns shine. Very entertaining.

Mehul, SU - Chia, Min Zacha

Eastern Asia-ch U12, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 

7.Qxe5 Qe7 8.Qf5+ 

More frequently seen is 8.Qf4+. 

8...Ke8 

Again, more frequently seen is the developing 8...Nf6 but it is possible that Chia was already planning to semi-castle his King on the Queenside. 

9.O-O d6 10.Qh5+ g6 11.Qf3 Be6 12.c3 Kd7 

13.d4 Bb6 14.d5 Bf7

A followup consistent with Black's King maneuver that would return some material and also leave a balanced game - as the text does - would have been 14...Bxd5 15.exd5 Rf8.

15.Bg5 

A tactical shot with an offer to exchange pieces and allow the White Queen to get closer to the Black King. 

It is difficult to appreciate Stockfish 15's suggestion 15.a4 a5 16.Na3 Nf6 17.Nc4 Bc5 18.Qh3+ Kd8 19.Bg5 h6 20.Qh4 hxg5 21.Qxh8+ Be8 22.Nxa5 Rxa5 23.b4 Nxe4 24.bxa5 Qf7 25.c4 Nxf2 26.Rae1 Nd3+ 27.Kh1 Nf2+ leading to either a repetition of the position and a draw, or to 28.Rxf2 Bxf2 29.Rxe8+ Qxe8 30.Qf6+ Qe7 31.Qxf2 and an equal position.

15...Qe5 

Black should have gone for the exhange, 15...Qxg5 16.Qxf7+ as after 16...Qe7 17.Qxe7+ Nxe7 he would have the typical piece-for-two-pawns material advantage.

16.Qxf7+ Ne7 17.Qxe7+ 

Ahead material, White simplifies the game, and simplifies his task of winning. Alas, he missed 17.Bf6 Rhf8 18. Qxf8 Rxf8 19. Bxe5 dxe5 which would have won an additional exchange along with the removal of Queens.

17...Qxe7 18.Bxe7 Kxe7 

White is a couple of pawns ahead. He is not in a hurry. First, he exchanges his Knight for the Bishop.

19.Nd2 Rae8 20.Kh1 Kd8 21.f3 Rhf8 22.Nc4 Kc8 23.Nxb6+ axb6 

24.Rac1 c6 25.Rfd1 c5 26.a3 Kc7 27.c4 g5 28.h3 h5 29.Rc3 h4 30.Rc2 Rf4 31.Re2 Re5 32.Rf1 Kb8 

Black would like the position to remain as closed as possible.

33.g3 hxg3 34.Kg2 Ka7 35.Kxg3 Ka6 36.Rg2 

36...Rexe4 

Black wins a pawn.

In the following play, White's remaining Rook pairs with his King, while Black's forces are split and his weaknesses easier to exploit.

37.fxe4 Rxf1 38.Kg4 Re1 39.Kf5 Rc1 40.Rxg5 Rxc4 41.Rg2 

White will find a way to promote a pawn.

41...Rc1 42.h4 Rf1+ 43.Kg6 Rf4 44.h5 Rxe4 45.h6 Rh4 46. Rg5 Rh1 47.Rh5 Rg1+ 48.Kf7 Rf1+ 49.Ke6 Rf8 50.Kxd6 Rh8 

With Black's Rook tied down to White's h-pawn, the defender is unprepared to deal with another enemy passer.

He decides to sacrifice his Rook for the chance to advance his own pawn, but there is not quite enough time.

51.h7 Kb5 52.Ke7 Ka4 53.d6 Kb3 54.Rh2 Rxh7+ 55.Rxh7 Kxb2 56.Rh3 c4 57.d7 c3 58.d8=Q c2 

59.Qd4+ Ka2 60.Qc3 Kb1 61.Rh1+ Ka2 62.Ra1 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Running With Scissors

Adults know that it is not safe to run while holding scissors. You might fall and hurt yourself.

Yet, some of us, in a hurry, still do that.

That was my first thought when looking over the following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game. Every Russian school boy knows that you don't capture the h8 Rook when playing against Whistler's Defense. 

But, still...

Carllll - Pova_Vutin

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 Qe7

Whistler's defense, referring to Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's correspondence match with Lt. G. N. Whistler, secretary of the Lexington, Kentucky Chess Club, was seen in Jerome - Whistler, correspondence, 1876 (0-1, 15).

8.Qxh8 

As I recently wrote in "Jerome Gambit: Still, Advancing... (Part 1)"

Capturing the Rook is objectively dangerous (because of the counter-attack 8...Qxe4+) but the play can be complicated.

The complications complicate the problem: according to The Database, in 637 games with this capture of the Rook, White scored a surprising 62%. 

Materially, White is up the exchange and a pawn, but Stockfish 15 evaluates him as almost a Queen down.

Is it wise to go into a "bad" variation, if you believe you can benefit from the complications?

The same question, of course, can be applied to the Jerome Gambit itself.

More sedate is the alternative 8.Qf4+. 

8...Qxe4+ 

The Database points out that in 75% of the games, Black makes this powerful move.

If you are playing White and hoping that Black does not play 8...Qxe4+, your odds are better than drawing to an inside straight in poker - but still not good.

In the games that I have found played by Alonzo Wheeler Jerome against the defense, he has a draw and two losses. There is an indication that he lost more games to Whistler, that have not yet been discovered.

9.Kf1 Nf6 10.Nc3 Qxc2 11.g3 Qd3+ 12.Kg2 b6 

The danger to both White's King and Queen is paramount.

White will have to either give up his Queen or be checkmated.

13.Rf1 Bb7+ 14.Kg1 Rxh8 White resigned

Do JEt-set ROnaldo and MEssi Want to Promote the JE-RO-ME Chess Drawn Final? (Part 1)

 

Do JEt-set ROnaldo and MEssi Want to Promote  

the JE-RO-ME Chess Drawn Final? (Part 1) 

  

(by Yury V. Bukayev) 

 

 

Very often current world news can be used to create new ideas. Thus, recently two jet-set football superstars Lionel (Leo) Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo have promoted together the drawn final of the game WCC Top GM Magnus Carlsen vs Top GM Hikaru Nakamura (a draw by a perpetual check, https://www.chessgames.com/perl/chessgame?gid=1877676 ), and there have been superstar comments after it. I have created the following new idea, it is for them, first of all, and it uses the certain final of the Jerome gambit (JG) battle. 

 

The part 10 of my analytical research ‘JG: The New in Its Opening Theory, in Its Psychology’ (its parts 1-11 were published on Rick Kennedy’s blog in 2020-2022) on the standard line of JG contains the following new theoretical way: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qh3+! Ke7! 8.Qc3! Bxf2+! 9.Kxf2! Qf8+! 10.Ke1! Qf4! 11.Qb4+! Kd8!? 12.Rf1!? c5! 13.Qxc5! Qxe4+! 14.Kd1! Qg4+! 15.Rf3! Nxf3!? 16.Qf8+! Kc7 17.Qc5+! Kd8 18.Qf8+!. Please, look at the diagram.

We have a draw this moment of the perpetual check or as a result of the end of the perpetual check after 18…Kc7 19.Qc5+! Kd8. This variation (15…Nxf3) was named as ‘the War’s Stop First Variation’.  

 

Thus, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo can promote this Jerome gambit’s drawn final analogously to that their promotion. Why will everyone be able to understand their choice of the Jerome gambit as a chess opening? Firstly, “JE” means “jet-set”, “RO” means “Ronaldo”, “ME” means “Messi”, and we get “JE-RO-ME”. Secondly, Mr. Ronaldo and Mr. Messi are chess beginners, and my other analytical research ‘Was H.Nakamura Right? Is JG ‘Unbreakable’, Is EG ‘Legendary’ For Beginners’ Games?’ (its part 1 was published on Rick Kennedy’s blog in 2022) proves first that the standard line of the Jerome gambit can be extremely effective for chess beginners’ practice (due to the First Golden Beginner’s Trap), much more than a lot of other opening systems including 1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.h3 of that Carlsen – Nakamura game. Thirdly, Mr. Ronaldo as White (who has said about his checkmate there) will be able to say legally about his possible immediate checkmate here: 18…Kc7 19.Qc5+! Kb8?? 20.Qd6!#. 

 

Do they want to promote it? Unfortunately, now they don’t know about this my idea. So everyone will know about it after their reading, thinking and so on. Who wants to promote it also, after or before these sport superstars?   

 

 

Contact the author:  istinayubukayev@yandex.ru  

 

© 2022 Yury V. Bukayev (Copyright © Bukayev Yury Vyacheslavovich 2022). All rights reserved.  

[A legal using of this investigation with a reference to it is permitted  

and doesn’t require author’s consent.]