Jerome Gambit: A Conflict of Ideas

The following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game features a conflict of ideas that plays out over the board, with the gambiteer coming out a move too late.

xElucidatoRx - polgg98

2 1 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 

7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.O-O Bh3 

This interesting offer of a piece was looked at 16 1/2 years ago, in the post Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (4)

A very interesting miscalculation: if the "material grubbing" computer now takes the Bishop with 10.gxh3, Black draws with 10...Nf6 11.Qxa8 Qxh3 12.Qxb7 Qg4+ 13.Kh1 Qf3+ 14.Kg1 Qg4+ etc.

White does better to rescue his Queen with 10.Qc3 – which explains why Blackburne's move [Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1885] was 9...Nf6 (instead of the text 9...Bh3) trapping Her Majesty.

Further, in Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (5), it was clear that Black should have played 9...Nf6 instead of 9...Bh3.

By the way, the whole "Drilling Down" series of posts, starting with Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (1), is worth revisiting

This post starts an extended series (which may be interrupted from time-to-time for news, games or analysis) wherein the intrepid "RevvedUp" (a good chess player) and his trusted companions Hiarcs 8, Shredder 8, Yace Paderborn, Crafty 19.19 and Fritz 8 explore the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) by taking turns playing the White and Black pieces. 

The human moves first, and takes notice of the defense the computer plays. In the next game, where he moves second, the human plays that defense against a new computer – and sees how it attacks. In the third game, the human plays the recent attack against his new computer foe. Collectively, the players drill deeper and deeper into the Jerome Gambit.

10.d4 

The Database contains 7 other games with this move, with White scoring 3 - 4.

10...Qxe4 

I have seen only one game where Black, instead, grabbed the opportunity to play 10...Nf6 11.Qxa8 Qg4 12.g3 Qf3 White resigned, quimera999 - olakunran, 2 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020. 

11.f3 

Blitz games can be exciting, but they can also be dangerous. White's last chance was 11.Qxh7+ followed by 12.Qxh3.

11...Bxd4+ 12.Kh1 Qe2 13.Qxh7+ 

The right idea, but too late.

13...Bg7 14.Qxh3 Qxf1 checkmate