The Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) has any number of unusual positions arising from White's attack and Black's defense/counterattack. The following game continues exploration of an odd one in particular, along with some very instructive tactical play.
Wall, Bill - Guest3742987
PlayChess.com 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bb4+ 7.c3
This is an interesting position. Check out "LPDO Revisited", "Gloom and Doom", "Here... No, there... No, Here... No, There..." and "Never Send A Pawn To Do A Job..." for some of the earlier looks at it.
Black's response with his Queen in this game is relatively rare. (Wildest is 7...Qh4!?)
7...Qe7 8.dxe5
Some other ideas:
8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxe5 Qxe5 10.dxe5 Bc5 11.O-O d6 12.exd6 Bxd6 13.Be3 Nf6 14.f3 Re8 15.Nd2 Be6 16.a3 Nh5 17.Rad1 Nf4 18.g3 Nd3 19.Rb1 Bc5 20.Bxc5 Nxc5 21.Rfd1 Rad8 22.Kf2 Rd7 23.Ke2 Red8 24.f4 Bg4+ 25.Ke1 Bxd1 26.Rxd1 Nb3 27.Nxb3 Rxd1+ 28.Ke2 Rh1 29.Kf3 Rxh2 30.Nd4 c5 31.Nb5 a6 32.Nc7
Rd3+ 33.Kg4 h6, White forfeited on time, iranstone - Mucke, FICS, 2013; or
8.Qb3+ d5 9.cxb4 Nc6 10.O-O Nf6 11.exd5 Nxd4 12.Qc4 Nf5 13.Bg5 Nd6 14.Qb3 Bf5 15.Nc3 Rhf8 16.Rfe1 Qd7 17.a4 Kg6 18.h4 h6 19.Bxf6 Rxf6 20.Ne2 Raf8 21.Nf4+ Kh7 22.h5 Be4 23.Ng6 Rxf2 24.Nxf8+ Rxf8 25.Rf1 Qg4 26.Qh3 Rxf1+ 27.Rxf1 Qe2 28.Rf2 Qd1+ 29.Kh2 Qxd5 30.Qh4 Nf5 31.Qf4 Nd6 32.Rd2 Qxh5+ 33.Kg1 Bg6 34.b3 Qg5 35.Rd4 Qxf4 36.Rxf4 Bc2 37.Rf3 Ne4 38.Kh2 c5 39.bxc5 Nxc5 40.Rc3 Bxb3 41.Rxc5 Bxa4 42.Rc7 a5 43.Rxb7 Bb3 44.Ra7 a4 45.Ra5 Kg6 46.Kg3 Kf6 47.Kf2 g5 48.Ke3 h5 49.Kd4 Kg6 50.Kc3 h4 51.Kb4 Kh5 52.Kc3 Kg4 53.Kd2 h3 54.Ke1 hxg2 55.Kf2 Kh3 56.Rxg5 Kh2 57.Rxg2+, Black forfeited on time, Nusiance - scaccopazzoo, FICS, 2009 ; or
8.O-O Bxc3 9.bxc3 Nc6 10.Qb3+ Ke8 11.Bd2 d6 12.Na3 a6 13.e5 Qf7 14.c4 Nxd4 15.Qd3 Nc6 16.exd6 Bf5 17.Rfe1+ Kd7 18.dxc7+ Kxc7 19.Bf4+ Kc8 20.Qb3 Na5 21.Qb6 Nf6 22.Qxa5 Nh5 23.Bd6, Black forfeited on time, stretto - Conga, FICS, 2007.
8... Bc5
8...Qxe5 9.Qf3+ Nf6 10.Nd2 d5 11.cxb4 dxe4 12.Nxe4
Qxe4+ 13.Qxe4 Nxe4 14.O-O Re8 15.Be3 Kg8 16.Rac1 c6 17.Rc4 b5 Black resigned, EvanJunior - seanwickham, FICS, 2008.
9. Qd5+
Alternately 9.Qf3+ Ke8 10.O-O Qxe5 11.Bf4 Qf6 12.e5 Qf5 13.Nd2 d6 14.exd6 Bxd6 15.Rfe1+ Kd7 16.Nc4 Qxf4 17.Qh3+ Kd8 18.g3 Qxc4 19.Qh5 Nf6 20.Qg5 Qf7 21.Rad1 h6 22.Qe3 Re8 23.Qd2 Rxe1+ 24.Rxe1 Bf5 25.b4 Kd7 26.c4 Qxc4 27.a3 Re8 28.Rc1 Qd5 29.Qc3 Bh3 30.f3 Re2 31.a4 Rg2+ 32.Kh1 Rf2 33.Qe3 Qxf3+ 34.Qxf3 Rxf3 White resigned, jfhumphrey - kenzie, FICS 2010.
9...Ke8 10.O-O c6 11.Qd1 d6
There was nothing wrong with 11...Qxe5.
12.b4 Bb6 13.exd6 Qe5 14.Bb2 Nf6 15.Nd2 Be6 16.Nf3 Qf4
If 16...Qxe4 then 17.Re1, as Bill points out; yet the central "Jerome pawns" are beginning to look like trouble. The game is about equal.
17.Bc1 Qg4 18.Re1 Nxe4 19.Be3 Rf8
Black probably should have gone in for the complications after 19...Nxc3 20.Qc2 Nd5 21.h3 Qf5 22.Qxf5 Bxf5 23.Bxb6+.
20.Bxb6 axb6
Now the tactics build around the Knight at e4.
21.Qd4 Rf4 22.h3 Qg6 23.Ne5 Qf5 24.Nd3 Rh4 25.Qxg7
White grabs a pawn before returing to the pressure on e4.
25...Qf7 26. Qd4 Rd8 27. Rxe4 Rxe4 28.Qxe4 Rxd6
White is up a couple of pawns, but the tactical thrust-and-parry continues.
29.Re1 Kf8 30.Ne5 Qf5 31.Qe3 Bxa2 32.Qxb6 Rd2 33.Qe3 Rd6 34.Qc5 Qe6 35.Re3 Qh6
36.Nd7+ Kg8 37.Qe5 Rd1+ 38.Kh2 Rxd7 39.Qe8+ Qf8 40.Qxd7
The advantage has grown to the exchange and some pawns, and Bill is willing to simplify into a stone cold won pawn ending.
40...Bf7 41.Qxb7 Qd6+ 42.g3 Kf8 43.Rf3 Qe6 44.Qxf7+ Qxf7 45.Rxf7+ Kxf7 46.c4 Ke6 47.b5 Kd7 48.f4 Kd6 49.b6 c5 50.f5
Black resigned
I have been watching the early movies of the Marx Brothers, and I have to say that they are pretty serious about their silliness. In a similar way (except for my glaring lack of talent) I can be rather serious about the silliness that is the Jerome Gambit (and its relatives).
Fortunately, not everyone is.
HauntedKnight - sarahdaniel
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
The good old Jerome Gambit. I've researched its history, analyzed its lines, annotated games and gathered a large database.
As Chico might say, "Why a duck?"
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bd6
This unusual defense seems to be borrowed from the "fork trick".
The Database has 41 games with this line. White scores 61%.
7.dxe5 Bxe5 8.Qh5+
This is the strongest line for White. It is interesting to note, however, that in the 24 games with 8.Qh5+ in The Database, White has scored 54%.
Yes, that's right: the best move scored worse than the lesser alternatives.
8...Ke6 9.Qf5+
Again, this is the strongest continuation of the attack for White; yet it appeared in less than 1/4 of the games in the 6...Bd6 line: 10. In those, White scored only 50%, a result less succesful than that of the worse alternative moves combined.
Happily for HauntedKnight his opponent now responded with
9...Resigns.
Other games from The Database continued. We will look at them, too.
9...Kd6
10.Na3
This is White's strongest move, planning a Knight fork to the enemy King and Bishop, with check, winning a piece. It is not easily met, but after 10...Bf6 11.e5+ Ke7 12.exf6+ Nxf6 13.Bg5 d5 14.Bxf6+ gxf6 15.Qf3 followed by 0-0 or 0-0-0 White will have equalized in material while having the better pawn structure and safer King.
analysis diagram
Instead of the text, 10.f4 is very Jerome-ish. With 10...Bf6 Black can return the piece (i.e. 11.e5+) for an even game. The contest wzeller - bourgas, FICS, 2005 instead entered the world of "optical illusions" with 10...Qf6 11.fxe5+ Qxe5+ 12.Bf4 and White won (1-0, 62).
10.Nc3 is not dangerous enough, although White won against 10...a6 in jfhumphrey - jrhicksdotnet, FICS, 2008 (1-0, 14). The better defense 10...Qf6 brought Black victory in jfhumphrey-biryuk, FICS, 2010 (0-1,65) and duanezz - pawelek, FICS, 2005 (0-1, 38).
Likewise, 10.0-0 also falls to 10...Qf6 but not as often as expected. White's plan is to continue his attack on the King with 11.Rd1+, and after 11...Ke7 12.Bg5 he was successful ("optical illusions" again!) twice: EvanJunior - BeNumberOne, FICS, 2008 (1-0, 22) and AGRPlayer - trebbor, FIC, 2010 (1-0, 19). However, Black's King should escape the Rook check to fresh air with 11...Kc6 instead and then White cannot conjure up either an attack or a recovery of material, as seen in carlkrull - bodensee, FICS, 2009 (0-1, 28).
10.b3 contains a great little trap – if Black now takes the Rook with 10...Bxa1 he is checkmated after 11.Ba3+ c5 12.Qxc5+ Ke6 13.Qf5# – but the proper response, 10...Qf6 White could not escape in ljar - Castled, FICS, 2006 (0-1, 39)
10...Qf6
Not the strongest response, as indicated in the note to 10.Na3, but certainly one that White can expect to see.
11.Nc4+ Ke7
Falling in with his opponent's plan too quickly. He should have at least tried 11...Kc5, since after 12.Nxe5 Qxf5 13.exf5 White's advantage is only a doubled pawn. After the better 12.Qxe5+, however, Black needs to cooperate with 12...Qxe5 13.Nxe5, as the obstreperous 12...Kxc4 – which may have been Black's intent – falls to chekmate after 13.b3+ Kb4 14.c3#.
12.Qxe5+ Qxe5 13.Nxe5 d6
White is a safe pawn up in a quiet position.
However, in the Jerome Gambit "safe" and "quiet" are relative terms, and Black eventually won in noatun - Papaflesas, FICS, 2008 (0-1, 48)...
(By the way, all of the games mentioned here are available in The Database – just email me and ask.)
graphic by Jeff Bucchino, the WizardofDraws
