Jerome Gambit: Taking What Is Given

In the following game, Black is quite willing to accept the material that is given him.

In turn, Whites is happy to accept the opportunites given him to gain material and then construct a sacrificial attack, ending in an attractive checkmate.

Wall, Bill - Dasasary

SparkChess, 2024

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.Qc4 

The two have also contested 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.h3 Be6 11.Nc3 a6 12.f4 Bf7 13.O-O Kd7 14.d4 Re8 15.f5 Ne7 16.e5 Nfd5 17.e6+ Kc8 18.Nxd5 Nxd5 19.Qg3 Bxe6 20.fxe6 Rxe6 21.Qg4 Qe7 22.Bg5 Qe8 23.Rae1 Kd7 24.Rxe6 Qxe6 25.Rf7+ Ne7 26.Rxe7+ Black resigned,Wall,B - Dasasary, internet, 2023.

9...Nf6 10.d3 Qe7 11.O-O a6 

Preparing a strike against White's Queen.

12.f4 b5

As expected, but ill considered, as it creates a weakness White immediately pounced upon.

13.Qc6+ Kf7 14.Qxa8 Rd8 15.Qc6 Kg8 16.Be3 Kh8 

White is up 2 pawns and the exchange.

17.Nd2 d5 18.Bd4 Rd6 19.Qc5 dxe4 20.Bxf6 Qxf6 21.Nxe4 Rc6 22.Qd5 Qe6 

An exchange of Queens might blunt White's aggression, but would not help the material imbalance.

23.Qd8+ Qg8 24.Qg5 

White chooses to leave the Queens on the board. He now gives up a couple of pawns, to distract Black's pieces and focus on the enemy King.

24...Rxc2 25.Rac1 Rxc1 26.Rxc1 Qxa2 27.Rxc7 

27...Qa1+ 

This aggression hastens his doom, as there is now a checkmate in 11.

28.Kf2 Qxb2+ 29.Kf3 Be6 

Black has run out of any useful checks.

30.Rc8+ Bg8 31.Rxg8+ 

Of course. Destroying the last effective defender.

31.Kxg8 32.Qd5+ Kf8 33.Qd8+ Kf7 34.Ng5 checkmate

Very nice!

Jerome Gambit: Return of the Centaurs

In a complicated position, White's attack breaks through.

Checking the notes, you can refer to a number of human + computer games. As I wrote in a post 6 years ago in "Jerome Gambit: Centaurs"

Recently Bill Wall sent me 16 of his Jerome Gambit games that were Human + Computer vs Computer encounters. Such teamwork is sometimes referred to as advanced chess, or cyborg chess, or centaur chess.

Wall, Bill - Tigi

SparkChess, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

7. 4 Qf6 8.Rf1 g6 9.Qh3+ Ke7 

Bill has also seen

9...Kf7 10.fxe5 Qxf1+ 11.Kxf1 d6 12.Qc3 Black resigned, Wall,B-Guest1690223, PlayChess.com 2012; and 

9...Ng4 10.Qxg4+ Ke7 in Wall,B - Guest3164644, PlayChess.com 2013 (1-0, 20); Wall,B - Betarsolta, PlayChess.com 2015 (1-0, 12); and Wall,B - Gordy, SparkChess 2024 (1-0, 19).

10.Nc3 

Varying from 10.fxe5 that he played in Wall/Stockfish - Crafty, Palm Bay, FL 2018 (1-0, 23). 

10...d6 

Or 10...c6 11.fxe5 Qxe5 12.d3 Bd4 (12...Nf6 13.Qh4 Bd4 14.Bg5 Bxc3+ 15.bxc3 Qxc3+ 16.Ke2 Qxc2+ 17.Bd2 Qb2 18.Rxf6 Qxf6 19.Bg5 Rf8 20.Bxf6+ Rxf6 21.e5 Black resigned, Wall,B - XCCY, FICS 2011 [1-0, 21] )13. Qh4+ Ke8 14. Bd2 Qg7 15. O-O-O d6 16.Rf3 Be6 17. e5 Bxe5 18. d4 Bxd4 19. Bf4 d5 20. Rxd4 Qxd4 21. Qe1 Kd7 22. Be5 Qg4 23. Bxh8 Qxg2 24. Rf2 Qg4 25. Be5 Re8 26. Rf4 Qg5 27. h4 Qd8 28. Rb4 b6 29.Ra4 Qa8 30. Qe3 Qb7 31. h5 gxh5 32. Qf3 b5 33. Rd4 Bg4 34. Qf7+ Re7 35. Qf4 Qc8 36. a4 a6 37. axb5 axb5 38. b3 Ke8 39. Bd6 Re6 40. Kb2 Rf6 41. Qh2 Ne7 42. Bc5 Ng6 43. Nd1 Qe6 44. Nf2 Qe5 45. Nxg4 hxg4 46. Qxh7 Kd8 47. Qg8+ Nf8 48. Ka2 Kc7 49. Rxg4 Rf1 50. Qg7+ Nd7 51. Qxe5+ Nxe5 52. Rg7+ Kc8 53. Bd6 Nf7 54. Bc5 Nd8 55. Rg6 Kd7 56. Rd6+ Kc7 57. Rg6 Rf7 58. c4 dxc4 59. bxc4 bxc4 60. Rg4 Ne6 61.Rxc4 Rf5 Draw, Fritz 12 - Wall/Houdini, Palm Bay, FL 2018;

Or 10...Kd8 11.fxe5 Qxe5 in Wall,B - Amyan engine, Palm Bay, FL 2015 (1-0, 25) and  Wall,B - Abrok chess engine, Palm Bay, FL 2015 (1-0, 20). 

11.Nd5+ Kd8 

A stronger response than 11...Kf7 seen in Wall,B-Guest5541035, FL, 2014 (1-0, 17).

12.Qg3 Qe6 

Stronger was 12...Nd3+ as in Wall,B - BBchess engine, Lahore 2015 (1-0, 51). 

13.fxe5 Ne7

Not 13...dxe5 14.d4 as in Wall,B - Aburasian, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 33). 

14.d4 Bxd4 15.Qh4 Kd7 16.Rf6 

The position is getting complicated, as White attacks.

16...Nf5 17.Rxe6 Nxh4 18.Re7+ Kd8 19.Bg5 

19...Nxg2+ 20.Kd2 h6 21.Rh7+ hxg5 22.Rxh8+ Kd7 23.e6+ Kxe6 24.Rh7 Ke5

His Rook will outplay Black's two Bishops, and it looks like White will wrap things up - but not yet.

25.Re7+ Be6 26.Nxc7 Be3+ 27.Kc3 Nf4 

Black's chances for survival lay in pinning White's Knight to White's King: 27...Rc8 28.Rxd6+ Kf4 29.Rf1+ Kb4 30.Re7 Bb6 31.Rff7 Bg1 32.Kb4 Bxh2 and White will work hard to take the full point.

28.Nxa8 d5 29.Rd1 Kf6 30.Rxb7 dxe4 31.Nc7 Bxa2 32.b3 Black resigned