It's A Small World After All (Part 1)

I would like to share another typical Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) story. "Typical" in that, of course, it has several rather odd features...

A Reader from the Netherlands requested a copy of The Database the other day.

Like my book, The Marshall Gambit in the French and Sicilian Defenses, which was more popular in Europe than in the USA, this blog has a decent international following. (There is nothing quite like watching a player from Moldova, in the current ChessWorld Jerome Gambit Thematic Tournament, successfully play a move that I have championed, and others mostly have ignored.)

I was happy to oblige.

I was even happier when the Reader offered, in return, his Jerome Gambit (and related openings) collection. Although The Database has over 25,500 games, it is focused largely on FICS games and those that I have discovered in my historical research. I know that there are many, many other games out there.

One of my new aquisitions was the 1964 "offhand game" between "Marfia, J" and "Stelter, J".

I wondered: was that Jim Marfia, author of four books on the U.S. Open in the 1980s; author of Queen's Gambit with Bf4 and Queen's Indian with 4.g3; and translator for Botvinnik's 15 Games and Their Stories and Botvinnik on the Endgame, as well as Korchnoi's Persona Non Grata, Nimzovich's Carlsbad International Chess Tournament 1929, and Bronstein's Zurich International Chess Tournament 1953 (among others)?

After some searching, I discovered that "the" Jim Marfia was involved in West Michigan Chess. Further searching oncovered a recent game and the fact that he was playing games online at queenalice.com and GameKnot.com under the handle "fluffybunnyfeet".

As my wife said, "You can't make this stuff up..."

[to be continued]

   

3 = 1

GM Bronstein suggested that in chess three "little" mistakes add up to one "big" mistake.

That could well be the watchwords of the Jerome Gambit player who would gladly accept a blunder on his opponent's part, but who otherwise hopes to see about three little mistakes to even out the game after his own big mistake – playing the Jerome Gambit, of course!

perrypawnpusher - parlance
blitz, FICS, 2011

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Ng6

9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qxc5+ Ke8

A rare move. Usually seen is 10...d6 as in perrypawnpusher - GabrielChime, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 29)

11.0-0 d6 12.Qe3 N8e7

Probably stronger was 12...Nf6. White is now even, if not a bit better.

13.f5 Ne5 14.d4 Ng4

Rash, but irresistible.

White can now answer this move with 15.Qg5 reaching a complicated position after 15...Nf6 16.Qxg7 Rf8 – the same he could have achieved in the game.

15.Qg3 h5

After the game Rybka gave a preference for retreating the Knight with 15...Nf6 16.Qxg7 Rf8 (as above). It then looks like an even game is the result of 17.Nc3 d5 18.e5 Nxf5 19.Rxf5 Bxf5 20.exf6 Qxf6 21.Qxf6 Rxf6, with White having two pawns for the exchange (after 22.Nxd5).

analysis diagram








Probably White can do better in this line with 18.Bg5 instead of 18.e5 – this is another example of a time when the center pawn advance is not best. After 18...Rf7 19.Qh6 Nxe4 20.Rae1 Nxg5 21.f6 Ne6 22.fxe7 Rxf1+ 23.Rxf1 Kxe7 24.Qh5

analysis diagram








White's lead in development and attack against Black's King will fully compensate for the sacrificed piece and even give White the advantage (again, according to Rybka).

Going over the game afterwards I was stunned by the computer's suggestion that 15...Nf6 16.Qxg7 Rf8 17.Nc3 d5 18.Bg5 Rf7 could also be met by White with 19.Qh8+ (instead of the more prudent 19.Qh6) Rf8 20.Bxf6!?  – with an even game (according to Rybka) after the Queen sacrifice 21...Rxh8 22.Nxd5.

analysis diagram








I'll let readers figure that out while I return to the game at hand...

16.h3 Nf6 17.Qxg7 Rf8

The position is similar to one we looked at above, with the addition of ...h7-h5 and h2-h3. Clearly 18.Bg5 or 18.Nc3 should be played.

18.e5

This leads only to an even game.

18...dxe5 19.Bh6

Panic.

White can hold on with the intended 19.dxe5 although he will drop two pawns after 19...Qd4+ 20.Kh1 Qxe5 21.Bg5 Bxf5.

analysis diagram








After 22.Nc3 White maintains many threats and Rybka's suggestion is for Black to liquidate to an even game with 22...Ng4 23.Qxe7+ Qxe7 24.Bxe7 Kxe7 25.hxg4. 

19...Qxd4+ 20.Kh1 Rf7

Even stronger was 20...Rg8 which would win the Queen after 21.Qxf6 Nd5.

21.Qh8+ Neg8

This move gives White a slight chance out – he should have blocked with the other Knight.

22.Nc3

Collapsing.

After 22.Bg7 Kd7 23.Nc3 Kc6 24.Rad1 Qc4 25.Bxf6 Nxf6 26.Qh6 Rybka evaluates the game as about even – White either wins the pinned Knight at f6 or bring his Queen close enough to Black's King to deliver a repetition of checks.

22...Rh7 White resigned

Black wins White's Queen. Nicely done!