Disassembled

I share my Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) games – wins and losses – because I like the renegade opening. Given the right circumstances White can win. Of course, he can lose, too. (That's a joke.)

In the following game my opponent does not blow up the Jerome Gambit (which would have been bad enough) but takes it apart piece-by-piece.

perrypawnpusher  - Nadante
blitz FICS, 2010

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

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

Black's most popular response, according to the New Year's Database.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6

Before this game I was 7-1-2 from this position, certainly not a cause for alarm.

10.0-0 Kf7 11.f4

In the past I liked this move a bit better than 11.Nc3.

11...Re8

12.d3 Kg8

This move is a clear improvement over Comunista's 12...Nd5 (1-0, 29) and thehunterjames' 12...c5 (0-1, 25).

13.f5

This move is new to me. To recover from this game I will be studying the alternatives played by Louis Morin (mrjoker): 13.Nc3 (3 times), 13.h3 (2 times), 13.Nd2 and 13.Qf3.

13...Ne5 14.Nc3 c6

Black's Knights are sitting there like great big targets for the "Jerome pawns." It doesn't seem right for the White d-pawn to have to take two steps to get to d4; but h2-h3, preparing for g2-g4 (and dreaming of g4-g5) also seems slow.

15.d4

After the game Rybka recommended 15.h3, instead, although Black was still on top after: 15...Qb6 16.a4 Qxe3+ 17.Bxe3 d5.

15...Nc4

A bit stronger was 15...Nf7.

16.Qf3

Likewise, 16.Qd3 was a stronger move for White.

16...Qb6 17.Qd3 d5

Thematic, but 17...Nxb2 18.Bxb2 Qxb2 won a pawn.

18.e5

Both my opponent and I temporarily overlooked the fact that the White d-pawn is pinned by Black's Queen, and therefore it does not protect the pawn at e5.

White's best was 18.b3 Ne5 19.Qd1 Nxe4 20.Na4 Qc7 21.dxe5 but  Black would still have been better.

18...Nd7

Simply 18...Nxe5.

19.b3

It was time for White to escape the pin with 19.Kh1, after which he would have an even game after Black returned his extra piece: 19...Ndxe5 20.dxe5 Nxe5.

19...Ncxe5 20.Qd1

I was not going to find the "computer-like" move 20.Qe3 in a blitz game, but it would have helped:  20...Nf6 21.dxe5 Rxe5 22.Qxb6 axb6 23.Bf4 Rxf5 and Black's advantage has not grown further.

20...Nf7

A person could get severe eyestrain looking for White's compensation for his sacrificed piece.

21.Na4 Qd8 22.Qh5

The Kingside is where the action is going to have to be if White wants to win, but it looks like the rest of his pieces didn't get the memo.

22...Nf6 23.Qh4 Ne4 24.Qg4

24...b5 25.Nc5 Nxc5 26.dxc5 Qf6 27.Bd2 Re4 28.Qf3 Ne5 29.Qh3 Ba6

30.Bc3 Re8 31.Rae1 b4 32.Rxe4 dxe4 33.Bxe5 Qxe5 34.Re1 Qf6

At this point, only a flat-out blunder by Black or severe time trouble for the second player will jeopardize my loss.

35.g4

Hope springs eternal...

35...Bc8 36.Qe3 Qh4 37.h3 Qf6

38.Kg2 Qe5 39.h4

If we had ham, we could have ham and eggs – if we had eggs.

39...Qd5 40.Kg3 a5 41.Re2 Qf7

My opponent was in no hurry.

42.Qd4 g6 43.Rxe4 Rxe4 44.Qxe4 gxf5 45.gxf5 Bxf5 46.Qxc6 Qg7+

47.Kh2 Qe5+ 48.Kg1 Qg3+ 49.Qg2 Qxg2+ 50.Kxg2 Bxc2

The rest of the game is "just a matter of technique."

51.Kf3 Kf7 52.Kf4 Ke6 53.c6 Kd6 54.c7 Kxc7 55.Ke5 Bb1 56.Kd5 Bxa2 57.Kc4 Kc6 58.h5 Bb1 59.h6 Bc2 White resigned

Cave Man Chess

When I play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) nobody has ever accused me of playing an "advanced" form of chess – more often, just the reverse.

I'm sure that if anyone ever develops an "ACO" opening tome – Atavistic Chess Openings – the Jerome will fit in there nicely.

perrypawnpusher - Comunista
blitz 10 0, FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5

The set-up.

4.Bxf7+


The sac.

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



The defense.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6

Time for each of us to get down to business. There are 15 games with this position in my database (not including this one), including 7 by Louis Morin and 4 by me. White scores 82%. I guess we'll have to check out the Critical Line in this defense, as well.

10.d3 Kf7 11.0-0 Re8 12.f4
Interesting: this position (not including this game) shows up 3 times in my database, and White has two losses – with me going 0-1. Comunista is finding his way through the "tree of variations" quite nicely.

12...Nd5


A novelty – and a cute one, at that – but more to the point would be putting a pawn on d5. Black plans to move the action to the Queenside, while I want to stay focused on his King on the Kingside.

13.Qg3 Nb4 14.Na3
Sensible, but more straight-forward would have been 14.f5, as in 14...Ne5 (14...Nh8 is probably safer) 15.Bg5 Qd7 16.d4 Nec6 17.Qb3+ Kf8 18.f6 when things would begin to move White's way.

14...a6 15.Bd2

Again, 15.f5 followed by 16.Bg5 was more incisive.

15...Nc6 16.Bc3

This gets the Bishop on an attacking diagonal, but overlooks what Black has been preparing.

16...b5


17.Bxg7

Played quickly, for maximum impact, but a bluff. Just like I had overlooked 16...b5, I had overlooked a resource for Black at move 18. Yipes!

17...Kxg7 18.f5 Nd4

This move maintains Black's advantage, but 18...Qh4 would have put an end to his worries.


19.Qf2 c5

Again, not bad, but getting the Queens off of the board (e.g. 19...Qf6 20.fxg6 Qxf2+ 21.Rxf2 hxg6) was a better idea. Black is thinking "counterattack."

20.fxg6 Rf8 21.Qd2 hxg6 22.c3 Ne6 23.Nc2 Qh4

See?

24.Rxf8 Nxf8 25.Rf1 Ne6 26.g3 Qg4


Egads... Black still has the advantage, but it is more of the traditional Jerome gambit piece-vs-two-pawns variety. I knew that if I could get my Queen and Knight re-positioned, the tide would turn in my favor.


27.Qf2 Kh6



Tide's turned!

It's hard to see at first that this innocent move upsets Black's position enough to shift the initative to White.


28.Ne3 Bb7

A terrible oversight that ends an exciting game. After 28...Qg5 White could have continued nibbling at the Black Queen with 29.h4 Qe7 30.Nd5 when the difference in development woulc be all on the first player's side.

29.Nxg4+ Black resigned

Many thanks to Comunista for the challenge!

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, Wizard of Draws