Sunday, February 16, 2025

Jerome Gambit: Off-Setting Errors

In the following game, White's slip-up on move 9 was balanced by Black's slip-up on move 11, which is a major reason that the game lasted only 15 moves.

farhadba - nukechess2023

10 0 rapi, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Bd4 


First seen, according to The Database, in 5 of the games between Fisher-Kirshner and an early version of Fritz, known as KnightStalker. Black won 4 of those games.

9.c3 

Attractive, but flawed. Instead 9.fxe5+, as played by Fisher-Kirshner, was the way to go, although after 9...Kc6 White's idea of 10.b4? was too far out - 10.c3, as in the current game, was the right idea.

9...Nd3+ 10.Ke2 Nxc1+ 11.Rxc1 Bb6 

Wrong retreat. What worked was 11...Bf6

12.d4 

Missing 12.Qe5+ Kc6 13.Qd5 checkmate 

12...Qf6 

It must be the clock. It was time, instead, to safeguard the King with 12...Ke7

13.e5+ Ke7 14.exf6+ Nxf6 15.Nd2 Re8 Black resigned



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