Jerome Gambit: Fun

 

It is time to bring back, once again, the metaphor of "roller skating on ice" to describe the following 1-minute Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game.

At times, playing over the game, it feels like a scene from Laurel and Hardy (yes, I have used this photo before; see "Pie Fights")

Let's face it: the Jerome Gambit is fun.

Oh, and the above book (Ralph Nader, 1965) describes the car I regularly rode in to high school... Who knew that it would foretell this Jerome Gambit blog?

Ah, yes, the game...

Wolfpack1051 - Ck20

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2026

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Qe7 

10.Nc3 c6 11.d4 Bd7 

Stockfish sees this little move as changing its assessment of the position to equal.

12.O-O Nf6 13.f4 Ng4

Uh oh, the Knight harassing the Queen. 

(Sigh. I have over 100 such examples in my own games in The Database.) 

14.Qg3 Qh4 15.f5 Qxg3 

16.hxg3 

Reflex. 16. fxg6+ first was the way to go.

Remember, this is a bullet time control. During the course of the game players used, on average, about 2 seconds per move. 

16...Ne7 17.Rf4 h5 18.Bd2 Kg8 19.Raf1 Kh7 20.Ne2 Raf8 

21.R4f3 Rf6 22.Nf4 Rhf8 

Black's King, for safety, moved to a square in front of this Rook, on the h-file. With this move, the Rook joins in the action on the f-file - neglecting the pawn on the h-file.

Chess is a complicated game, especially when it is played at breakneck speed.

23.Nxh5 R6f7 24.Rf4 Nf6 25.g4 Nxh5 26.gxh5 

The intruder Knight has been chased off and exchanged.

26...Rf6 

Risky, as it strengthens the response g2-g4.

27.Rg4 

Missing a chance.

27...Rh6 

Ask not for whom the clock ticks, it ticks for thee...

28.Bxh6 gxh6 

Capturing with the King, 28...Kxh6, leaving the pawn on the g-file where it might meet White's f-pawn, was stronger.

It is easier to see the future after the game. 

29.f6 

Passed pawns must be... patient. (Often "pushed", but not here.)

29...Rg8 

You can feel the time pressure.

30.Rxg8 Nxg8 

Again, capturing with the King is relatively better. Relatively. Black's position would still be losing.

White's next move threatens an unavoidable checkmate.

31.f7 Kg7 

32.f8=B+

Sense of humor. "Objectively" 32.f8=Q+ was best

32...Kh8 33.Bxd6 Bg4 34.Rf7 Be2 35.Be5+ 

White won on time.

(He had a checkmate in 15 moves, or something like that. 😊)

Jerome Gambit: Danger

I am re-reading Amatzia Avni's classic, Danger in Chess, How to Avoid Making Blunders (Dover, 2003; Cadogan Books 1994).

Just, because.

Avni starts the chapter "Common Failures in the Sensing of Danger: Opponent-Related Factors", under the subtitle "When the opponent plays badly in the opening"

Suppose you play against someone who makes some silly moves, right from the start. He sheds material, or plays not in accordance with development rules, or he makes apparently self-destructive moves... Most chess players, when faced with such an enemy, tend to relax and expect an early success. It is a human trait to count on consistency in behaviour; if  our adversary played weakly until now, so we reason, he is likely to demonstrate the same low quality in the following phses of the game as well.

This line of thought is devoid of empirical justification. our opponent may posess poor openings knowledge, but still be a strong middlegame player. Or he may have deliberately made early provoations to lead us to think that our victory is assured.

Whatever our impression about our rivaal's level of play, we must stay on guard! 

The Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) comes to mind, doesn't it?

Checking with The Database, I have played 786 games with the Jerome Gambit, scoring 82%.

This is dwarfed by Bill Wall's 1,352 games, scoring 94%.

The moral is clear, our opponents must stay on guard: after all, Stockfish 16.1 evaluates the Jerome Gambit (35 ply) as being about 2 2/3 pawns better, for Black.

Tournaments Update

 

My play in the second Chess.com's "Italian opning rapid players" tournment has come to the end.

Although the top-rated player, I will finish fourth (not all the other players' games are completed) with a score of 12 - 4 - 6. 

Tadeasek200 is running away from the field with a score of 19 - 0 - 1, with two games left to complete.

I managed to play 2 Jerome Gambits - wins against BIJAN_H_F and diegorocha82 - and 2 Noa gambits - draws against Tadeasek200* and Serega40.

In the meantime, I have 2 games to complete in the Chess.com "Not only the Italians plays the Italian game" - both against JAMARTINO, which will decide second place.

Also, I have scored 2 - 0 - 0 in the third round of the Chess.com

"BISHOP'S OPENING CUP 2025". As I mentioned in "Jerome Gambit: Games Update"

My hope is to play a number of Abrahams Jerome Gambits, 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Bxf7+, a line that I have not tried before, but is worth exploring.

So far, no luck in being able to play an Abrahams Jerome.

*- My opponent made a mouse-slip that would cost him his Queen; I immediately offered him a draw: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe4 d5 7.Ng3 e4 8.Ng1 Bc5 9.N1e2 Rf8 10.0–0 Kg8 11.d4 Bd6 12.Be3 Bg4 13.h3 Be6 14.Qd2 h6 15.c4 Qh4 16.c5 Be7 17.Nf4 Nd8 18.Nxe6 Nxe6 19.Kh2 c6 20.Qe2 Bd8 21.Qg4 Qxg3+?? ½–½

Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit: Open Lines

In the following game, White opens lines against the enemy King and Queen, and then attacks along those lines. Black's King's mis-steps increased his danger.

PedrosF1 - reykarl

10 0 rapid, lichess.org, 2025

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

Blackburne Shilling Gambit

4.Bxf7+ 

Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf6 

Hoping to evict the enemy Knight.

6.Nf3 Nxf3+ 7.Qxf3+ Ke7 

Black has a piece for two pawns, but his King is poorly placed.

It is interesting that Stockfish 16.1 has White meeting 7...Ke6 with  8.Qf5+ Ke7 9.Qg5+ Ke8 10.Qh5+ Ke7 11.Qg5+ with a draw in the offing. 

8.O-O Ke8 

Instead of this retreat, 8...Qe8 9.d4 Qf7 is equal. 

9.d4 d6 

10.c4 Be7 11.Nc3 Nf6 12.Bg5 h6 13.Bxf6 Bxf6 14.e5 

14...dxe5 15.dxe5 Be7 16.Rad1 Rf8 17.Qh5+ Rf7 18.Rxd8+ 

Black resigned

Happy New Year!

 

Welcome to 2026!

I hope it is full of good health, supportive family, and wonderful chess.

Jerome Gambit: Wikipedia Talk

 

                                                        

Yury V. Bukayev sent me a link to the Wikipedia page,  Talk:Jerome Gambit, which has the following look at the game Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1885, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.0-0 Nf6 10.c3 Ng4 11.h3 Bxf2+ 12.Kh1 Bf5 13.Qxa8 Qxh3+ 14.gxh3 Bxe4 mate

10.Qd8 is much better, but it does not win...

Perhaps the engines available at the time of Seirawan's book were unable to find the draw, but it's a trivial matter now. After 10.Qd8! Bh3! 11.Qxc7+ (forced) Kf8 (forced) there are two paths to the draw. (1) 12.Qxb7 Bxg2 (or 12...Qg4 13.Qxa8+ [forced] Kf7 [forced] 14.Qb7+ [forced] Kf8 [forced] 15.Qa8+ etc.) 13.Kxg2 (or 13.Qxa8+ Ne8 14.d4 Qg4! 15.Bh6+ Ke7 16.Qb7+ Kd8 17.Qb8+ Ke7 18.Qb7+ Kd8 etc.) Qg4+ 14.Kh1 Qf3+ with a perpetual check. (Black has other tries that also draw, but this suffices to make the point.) (2) 12.gxh3 Qxh3 and White has no non-losing move that prevents a perpetual by 13...Qg4+, 14...Qf3+, 15...Qg4+ and so on. (I'm not sure what to give as a source - "Any competent user of a 2025 chess engine like Stockfish 17.1?") ~2025-34726-82 (talk) 00:23, 1 December 2025 (UTC)...

 Could make a case for just deleting the game altogether. I doubt Blackburne was taking it very seriously, he probably just did the rook sac because it looked fun (and he knew he could easily beat this guy anyway). You're not likely to see any detailed annotations anywhere. MaxBrowne2 (talk) 22:50, 4 December 2025 (UTC)

 

Blackburne's game was likely played in a simultaneous exhibition (at least one source suggests that it was a blindfold simul), so, not being a "serious" game, might well have been "fun" for him.

A few relevant references

Brooklyn Chess Chronicle, J.B. and E.M. Munoz,Vol. III, August 15, 1885, p. 169 "The only hope he had was 10.QtoQ8, thus preventing the deadly move of Kt to Kt5" 

On this blog

"Updating the Blackburne Defense (Part 1 and Part 2)"

Siege: The Wall Falls

In the following game, White lays siege to Black's defense of his King, and, with a sacrifice, breaks the wall down and delivers checkmate.

angelcamina - lalakt

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.Bxf7+

Four Knights Game: Italian Variation, Noa Gambit; a relative of the Jerome Gambit. (See "Further Explorations 2, 3, 4, 5 & 6") 

According to The Database, angelcamina is 11 - 0 playing the gambit.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe4 d5 7.Neg5+ 

Or 7.Nc3 (a bit better than the text; best is 7.Ng3) e4 8.Ng1 Bc5 9.d4 Bxd4 10.Nge2 Bb6 11.O-O Rf8 12.Nxd5 Kg8 13.Nxb6 axb6 14.Qe1 Ne5 15.Qc3 Qf6 16.Bf4 Ng4 17.Qxf6 Nxf6 18.Bxc7 Bg4 19.Ng3 Rac8 20.Bxb6 Rxc2 21.Bd4 Rd8 22.Bc3 b5 23.a3 Rd3 24.h3 Be6 25.Rad1 Bb3 26.Rxd3 exd3 27.Rd1 Bc4 28.Ne4 Nd5 29.Nd2 Nxc3 30.Nxc4 Rxb2 31.Rxd3 Nd1 32.Kh2 Rc2 33.Rd8+ Kf7 34.Ne3 Nxe3 35.fxe3 Rf2 36.Rd7+ Kg6 37.Ra7 White won on time, angelcamina - florianschreib, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019

7...Kg8 

Best.

Also seen: 7...Ke8 8.d4 h6 9.Nh3 e4 10.Ne5 Nxe5 11.Qh5+ Nf7 12.Nf4 Qf6 13.Nxd5 Qd6 14.Bf4 Qc6 15.Nxc7+ Ke7 16.Nd5+ Ke8 17.Nc7+ Ke7 18.Nxa8 Qxc2 19.O-O Be6 20.Rac1 Qxb2 21.Rc7+ Ke8 22.Rxf7 Bxf7 23.Qe5+ Be7 24.Nc7+ Kf8 25.d5 Qb6 26.d6 Qxd6 27.Qxd6 Bxd6 28.Bxd6+ Kg8 29.Rc1 Bxa2 30.Nb5 a6 31.Nd4 Kh7 32.Rc7 Rd8 33.Be5 b5 34.Rxg7+ Kh8 35.Rd7+ Black resigned, angelcamina - Farbic, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024; 

7...Kf6 8.d4 Bg4 9.dxe5+ Nxe5 10.Qd4 Bxf311.Nxf3 Qe7 12.Bg5+ Black resigned, angelcamina - GrainBowl, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023; and

7...Kg6 8.d4 h6 9.Nxe5+ Nxe5 10.dxe5 hxg5 11.Qd3+ Kf7 12.O-O Bc5 13.Be3 Bxe3 14.fxe3+ Kg8 15.e4 dxe4 16.Qxd8+ Kh7 17.Qxg5 Be6 18.Qh4+ Kg8 19.Qe7 Bf7 20.Rxf7 Kh7 21.Rxg7+ Kh6 22.Qf6+ Kh5 23.Rg5+ Kh4 24.Qf4 checkmate, angelcamina - cheesecomputer, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025

8.d4 h6 

8...e4 9.Ne5 Nxe5 10.dxe5 h6 (10...Be7 11.Nxe4 (11.h4 h6 (11...c6 12.Qh5 Qf8 13.e6 h6 14.Nf7 Rh7 15.Qg6 Bxe6 16.Nxh6+ Kh8 17.Qxe6 gxh6 18.Be3 Re8 19.Bd4+ White won on time, angelcamina - CATCHESS11, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025) 12.Nh3 Bxh4 13.Nf4 Bg5 14.Qxd5+ Qxd5 15.Nxd5 c6 16.Bxg5 hxg5 17.Ne7+ Kf7 18.Rxh8 Kxe7 19.O-O-O b5 20.Rdd8 Bb7 21.Rxa8 Bxa8 Black resigned,angelcamina - filipe-abc, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025) 11...dxe4 12.Qxd8+ Bxd8 13.Bf4 Bf5 14.O-O-O Be7 15.e6 Rd8 16.Rxd8+ Bxd8 17.Re1 Bf6 18.f3 exf3 19.e7 f2 20.e8=Q checkmate, angelcamina - rutkaycabuk, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024; 10...c6 11.Nxe4 Bf5 12.Ng3 Bg6 13.O-O h6 14.f4 Be7 15.f5 Bf7 16.Qg4 Kh7 17.Nh5 Bxh5 18.Qxh5 Qb6+19.Kh1 Rhf8 20.Qg6+ Kh8 21.f6 gxf6 22.exf6 c5 23.Qg7 checkmate, angelcamina - Lelzwashere, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024) 11.Nxe4 Bb4+ (11...Bg4 12.Qxg4 dxe4 13.Qxe4 Bc5 14.Bd2 Qe7 15.O-O-O a5 16.f4 b5 17.f5 Kf7 18.e6+ Kf6 19.Bc3+ Kg5 20.h4+ Kh5 21.g4 checkmate, angelcamina - dv_66, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2025) 12.c3 Be7 13.Ng3 c6 14.O-O Be6 15.f4 Kh7 16.f5 Black resigned, angelcamina - Otschin_Karascho, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

9.Nh3 e4 

10.Ne5 Nxe5 11.dxe5 Bxh3 12.gxh3 Bc5 

It's hard to see what White has gained from his opening, besides a level of chaos that he is familiar with. Maybe he has more time on his clock. In any event, he has a solid idea of how to proceed.

13.Rg1 c6 14.Qg4 g5

Ill advised, as angelcamina immediately shows.

Stockfish 16.1 assesses the position as equal, but White shows again that, at the club level, it is easier to attack than to defend.

15.h4 Kh7 

This has to be due to time pressure.

Instead, Black could defend with 15...Qd7 or counter with 15...Qf8. 

16.hxg5 

Good enough. With a bit more time (or a lot more time) he would find I and 17.Bxg5 and Black's defense would collapse.

16...hxg5 17.Qh5+ 

The wall has been breached.

17...Kg7 18.Rxg5+ Qxg5 19.Qxg5+ Kf7 

20.Qf6+ Kg8 21.Be3 Bf8 22.O-O-O Bg7 

23.Rg1 Rh7 24.Bh6 Rxh6 25.Qxh6 Kf7 $2 26.Rxg7+ Ke8 27.Qh8 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Development is Not Enough

The following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game shows that sometimes mere development is not enough for a defense to be effective - specific moves are necessary.

For that matter, it is not enough to have a tactical "shot", you have to take it.

The faster the time control - in this case, 5 0 blitz - makes finding those moves more difficult.

Chicco79 - galdan

5 0 blitz, 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.O-O Qf6 9.Qh5 

White would prefer to not exchange Queens.

9...g6 10.Qd1 Ne7 

Simple development here lets much of Black's advantage slip away. Instead, 10...Ke7 11.Nc3 c6 12.Ne2 Nf7 13.d4 Bb6

11.d4 Bxd4 12.Qxd4+ Ke6 13.f4 

13.Be3 was the move. See why?

Consult "Jerome Gambit: What Did Both Black and White Miss?"

13...N5c6 

Missed it.

13...Nf3+ would have won White's Queen.

14.Qc4+ Kd6 

This has to be due to the clock, in a blitz game. Best was 14...d5.

15.e5+ Nxe5 16.fxe5+ Qxe5 17.Bf4 Black resigned

Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit: Faster Than A Speeding...

The following game shows that when fast time controls are in play, it is worth playing aggressively and taking risks - within reason.

Chicco79 - jim714

5 0 blitz, Eastern Blitz Arena, lichess.org, 2025

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf6 6.O-O 

Offering the Knight on e5. It can be taken - with care.

6...Kxe5 7.c3 Ne6 8.Qh5+ 

This is a 5-minute blitz game, and such moves are often tried - and are often successful.

Also fun, for the attacker, is 8.d4 Kxe4? 9.Qf3 checkmate.

A Jerome-ish, pawnful alternative, is 8.d4 Kf6 (best) 9.f4 h5 10.f5 Ng5 11.e5 Kf7 althought the line is, admittedly, better for Black (Stockfish 16.1, 30 ply, less than a pawn).

8...Qg5 

You can move your Queen, I can move my Queen.

Ill-advised, but, again, this is blitz.

9.f4+ 

Uh oh.

There is also 9.d4+ Kf6 10.Bxg5+ Nxg5 11.e5+ Ke7 12.Qxg5+. 

9...Nxf4

Yes, and No. In this kind of position, it hardly matters.

10.Qxg5+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Partial Solution

In the following Jerome Gambit game, the second player starts with one of the strongest defenses, but only completes part of it. 

This gives the first player time to execute his attack and produce a miniature.

Chicco79 - Satkhan1

5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2025

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 Qe7 

As I noted back in "Flaws (Part II)"

Black has a stronger [than 7...d6] counter-attack here, starting with 7...Qe7! as Jerome discovered to his dismay in the games of his correspondence match with Lt. G. N. Whistler, secretary of the Lexington, Kentucky Chess Club, in 1876.

 8.Qxh8 

Taking the Rook can be dangerous for White, if Black knows the correct follow-up. He does - for a while.

8...Qxe4+ 9.Kf1 b6 

Black plans to add his light-squared Bishop to the attack on the enemy King.

However, this gives White time to even the game and fight for a draw, by demonstrating the vulnerability of Black's King.

10.Qxh7+ Kf8 11.d3 Ba6 

If either - or both - players wanted to split the point, there is 11...Qd4 12.Be3 Qxb2 13.Bh6+ Nxh6 14.Qxh6+ Ke7 15.Qh7+ Kd8 16.Qg8+ Ke7 17.Qh7+ etc,  draw 

Instead, Black pins the annoying d-pawn, increasing the pressure.

However, there is time for White to perform the same exchange of pieces as in the note - only this time, for advantage.

12.Nc3 Qf5 13.Bh6+ 

13...Ke8 

Not much better is 13...Nxh6 14.Qxh6+ Kg8 15.Qd2 when White's Queen has returned home, ahead two pawns and the exchange. 

14.Re1+ Ne7 

Only the sad 14...Kd8 15.Qxg8+ Bf8 16.Qxf8+ Qxf8 17.Bxf8 avoids checkmate. 

White now has a choice of checkmates. 

Which one would you pick?

15.Ne4 

Or 15.Qg8+ Qf8 16.Qxf8 checkmate. 

Or 15.Qh8+ Kf7 16.Qg7+ Ke8 17.Qg8+ Qf8 18.Qxf8 checkmate 

15...d5 16.Nxc5 bxc5 17.Qxe7 checkmate