Jerome Gambit: Updating Early Secrets (Part 4)

 

Continuing the series, started  a few posts ago, here are a few more updates from earlier blog posts featuring "Jerome Gambit Secrets".

"Jerome Gambit Secret #10": 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qf6 9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 11.d3 Ke7 12.c3

Moving a pawn instead of a Knight to c3 was the suggestion, although it does not appear to be much of an improvement. The Database has 33 games with 12.Nc3, with White scoring 70%; compared to 10 games with 12.c3, with White scoring 40%. Stockfish 15.1 does see 12.c3 as about a 1/2 pawn better compared to 12.Nc3, but both leave Black better.

In "Jerome Gambit Secret #11", after the Bishop-return line 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bb4+ 7.c3 Bxc3+ 8.Nxc3 Ng6 9.O-O 

the computer recommended either 9...d5 or 9...h5 for Black.

The Database has one game with 9...d5 (a win for Black) and no games with 9...h5, so the moves remain largely "secret".

Things were a bit different with "Jerome Gambit Secret #12": 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 Qe7 8.Qd5+

The highly dangerous (for White) 8.Qxh8 appeared in Jerome - Norton, D., correspondence, 1876 (1/2 - 1/2, 20) and Jerome - Whistler, correspondence, 1876 (0-1, 15). Jerome was fortunate to gain a half point from the two games. The December, 1876 issue of  American Chess Journal, commenting on the Whistler game, recommended 8.Qd5+ without analysis.

Then 8.Qd5+ practically disappeared from the face of the earth.

Years after this "Secret", things have become less secret. (For example, see Yury V. Bukayev's " Anatoly Karpov & Jerome Gambit (Part 7)" and "JG: The New in Its Opening Theory, in Its Psychology (Part 15)") The Database has 36 games with 8.Qd5+; White scores 50 %. Moreover, lichess.org has 421 games, with White scoring 48%.