Jerome Gambit: The Speed of the Game Propels Both Players

Jerome Gambit games played with the time control of one minute, no increment, leave me slack-jawed. I don't know how the players do it.

With 1,038 games in The Database angelcamina has scored 62% playing Jeromes at that time control. 

Impressive.

angelcamina - eastern_routine

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+ g6 

Or 6...Ke7 7.Qf7+ Kd6 8.Nc4 checkmate, angelcamina - SammmDBest, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2021

7.Nxg6 Qf6  

Often in the Jerome Gambit, Black's Queen goes to f6 to help with the defense and even prepare for a counter-attack. In this case, however, Her Majesty is misplaced.

Insufficient is 7...hxg6, e.g. 8.Qxh8 Kf8 9.O-O d6 10.c3 Be6 11.d4 Bb6 12.d5 Bf7 13.dxc6 bxc6 14.Bh6+ Ke7 15.Bg5+ Nf6 16.Bxf6+ Ke6 17.Bxd8 Rxd8 18.Qxd8 Bxf2+ 19.Rxf2 d5 20.exd5+ cxd5 21.Rf6+ Ke5 22.Nd2 c5 23.Qe7+ Be6 24.Qxe6 checkmate, angelcamina - MegaBanem,1 0 bullet lichess.org, 2019;

While 7...Nf6 is a better choice, but not always successful 8.Qh4 Nxe4 9.Qxe4+ Ne7 10.Nxh8 d6 11.Qxh7 Be6 12.O-O Qd7 13.Ng6 Nxg6 14.Qxg6+ Bf7 15.Re1+ Kf8 16.Qh6+ Kg8 17.c3 Qf5 18.d4 Bb6 19.Bg5 d5 20.Bf6 Qh7 21.Qg5+ Qg6 22.Qh4 Qh7 23.Qg3+ Qg6 24.Qxg6+ Bxg6 25.Nd2 c6 26.Re7 Bc7 27.Rae1 Bd6 28.Rd7 Bf8 29.Nf3 Rb8 30.Be7 b5 31.Bxf8 Kxf8 32.Ree7 Be8 33.Rxa7 White won on time, angelcamina - stockfishdanirealno1, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2021) 

angelcamina faced the strongest counter, 7...Bxf2+ (going back to Hultgren,R - Harrow, Campbell, CA 1960 and Blackstone - Dommeyer, skittles game, California, USA 1960 ) in angelcamina - boarnara, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023 (1-0, 10); angelcamina - Fabior-rj, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023 (1-0, 19); and angelcamina - PinkPandaPresident, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023 (0-1, 45)

8.Nxh8+ Kd8 

Also 8...Ke7 9.Qxc5+ d6 10.Qe3 Qxh8 11.O-O Be6 12.c3 Rf8 13.d4 Kd8 14.d5 Bxd5 15.exd5 Re8 16.Qg5+ Nge7 17.dxc6 bxc6 18.Na3 Rg8 19.Qh4 Qg7 20.g3 Kd7 21.Qh3+ Kd8 22.Bh6 Qg6 23.Rae1 Nd5 24.Qh4+ Nf6 25.Re6 Qd3 26.Rxf6 Kc8 27.Rf8+ Rxf8 28.Bxf8 Kb7 29.Bxd6 cxd6 30.Qb4+ Kc7 31.Qc4 Qg6 32.Re1 Qg7 33.Qa6 Kd7 34.Qb7+ Kd8 35.Qxg7 Kc8 36.Re7 Black resigned, angelcamina - Hajile07, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020; and

8...Kf8 9.Qxc5+ d6 10.Qc3 Nd4 11.O-O Qxh8 12.d3 Qg7 13.f4 Ne2+ 14.Kh1 Nxc3 15.Nxc3 h5 16.f5 h4 17.Rf3 Bd7 18.g3 Qh7 19.Bg5 hxg3 20.Rxg3 Nh6 21.Rag1 Nf7 22.Be3 Ke7 23.Rg7 Qh3 24.Nd5+ Kf8 25.Rg8 checkmate, angelcamina - karimov1, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022. 

9.d4 

You know that things are going well for you when you can also play 9.O-O and still win quickly 9...Qxh8 10.Qxc5 Qf6 11.d4 d6 12.Qh5 Nxd4 13.Bg5 Ne2+ 14.Kh1 Nf4 15.Bxf6+ Kd7 Black resigned, angelcamina - KC3000, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019; 

and, even better 9.Qxc5 Qxh8 10.Qf8 checkmate, angelcamina - DenBlood, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022. 

9...Bxd4 

Instead, 9...Be7 would save his Queen, but not the game.

10.Bg5 Bxb2 11.Bxf6+ Nxf6 12.e5 

The kind of thing that sometimes happens in a bullet game - and the kind of oversight I seldom see angelcamina make.

12...Bxe5 

Likewise.

13.Nf7+ Ke8 14.Nxe5+ 

Again. Twice in a game? Unprecedented.

14...Ke7 

The speed of the game propels both players.

15.Nxc6+ dxc6 16.O-O Black resigned

White has sufficient material (and good fortune) to win, even after 16...Nxh5.