Pie Fight

I discovered the following game while preparing yesterday's blog post (see "My work is not nearly over..."), and for some reason it reminded me of a pie fight. I had originally planned on imbedding a Three Stooges video, but I decided at the last moment to go with a Laurel and Hardy still photograph.

Funny?? Absolutely!

But... is it chess?

GOH - crazymaniac
lightning game, FICS, 2004

Okay, from the first move this game is going to be unusual, because the time limit is "lightning" – traditionally, one minute for each side per game.

At FICS, lightning time limits can stray a bit from "1 0": there can be small increments per move, for example; but generally games that consume less than three minutes per side (however achieved) are considered to be of this faster-than-blitz variety.

By the way, there's a cool resource on "Psychology of lightning chess" at Olimpbase.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit. White is supposed to grab the pawn with 4.Nxe5 and then suffer untold horrors after 4...Qg5.

4.Bxf7+

But, of course. A guiding rule in lightning chess is: don't waste time thinking, attack!

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6

6.c4

As I mentioned before, 6.c3 is the "correct" move at more reasonable time limits.

Of course, White might have meant to play that move here (he played 6.c3 forty three times previously), but maybe this time he made a mouse-slip and pushed the pawn too far... 

6...Kxe5 7.f4+

7...Kxe4

Capture first; think later. 

8.Nc3+

8...Kxf4

Burp!

Rybka suggests that after 8...Kf5 9.Qh5+ Ke6 10.0-0 d6 11.Qd5+ Kd7 12.Qxd4 White would have regained some material, but Black would still be better.

analysis diagram





9.d3+

Black's King is a long way from home, even if he has picked up a couple of pie(ce)s in his journey.

White's game would have been even stronger after 9.Qh5.

9...Kf5 10.0-0+ Ke6

11.Qg4+ Kd6 12.Qxd4+ Ke7

13.Re1+

Of course, there was always the alternative 13.Qe5 checkmate.

13...Kf7 14.Qd5+ Kf6

Black could hang on longer with 14...Kg6.

15.Bg5+ Kg6 16.Bxd8 Black resigned.

My work is not nearly over...

Getting the word out on how to play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and related openings – with the black and white pieces – is a fun, but seemingly full-time job. As the following recent game shows, there is still a lot of the "basics" to teach and spread around.

vsvor - MULENGA

FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit. Timely.

4.Bxf7+

The updated New Year's Database shows 2,349 games with this position, with White scoring 56%.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6

6.f4

The move recommended around these parts is 6.c3, which leads to an even game where White has chances. (For the record, in 180 games in the Database, White scored 57%.)

The text move shows up in 163 games in the Database, with White scoring 47%.

6...Nf6

When White has played f2-f4 before castling, it is always a good idea to check out the possibilites associated with a Black Queen check; here, 6...Qh4+. After 7.g3 Qh3, the White may have nothing better than the retro 8.Nf3 Nxf3+ 9.Qxf3, which keeps Black's advantage alive.

Of course,  you can always go your own way with 6.c4, as one Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member did: 6...Kxe5 7.f4+ Kxe4 8.Nc3+ Kxf4 9.d3+ Kf5 10.0-0+ Ke6 11.Qg4+ Kd6 12.Qxd4+ Ke7 13.Re1+ Kf7 14.Qd5+ Kf6 15.Bg5+ Kg6 16.Bxd8 Black resigned, GOH - crazymaniac, FICS, 2004. This game is worth a blog post of its own.

analysis diagram







7.d3

A bit better was the thematic 7.c3.

7...Bc5

Someday Black will play 7...d6, and his opponent will get immediate induction into the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde by playing 8.f5+, enticing Black to take another piece with 8...Kxe5. 

8...d6 9.f5+

Ah, yes, what a difference a delay makes... There is little danger in taking the Knight, now.

9...Ke7

By being careful, Black limits his risks – and his gains.

10.Ng4 Nxg4 11.Qxg4 Qf8 12.Bg5+

Here we have an interesting position.

Black will no doubt place his King on the unstable-looking d7 (12...Kd7), after which White might as well castle Queenside (13.0-0-0), leaving Black with an edge, as nothing (except some uneasy feelings for the defender) will come from advancing the f-pawn with discovered check (13.f6+)...

Actually, Black resigned. As this was a "standard" game at FICS, it is not likely that the second player over-stepped his time limit in 11 moves.

It'll take me some more work to explain that.

This changes everything...

I've unpacked and filtered the FICS games from 1999 through 2004 so far, and I have been amazed how many people have played the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and its relatives so many times!

The New Year's Day Jerome PGN file, for example, already has over fifty-one hundred games in it, and may reach ten thousand before I am done.

This also means that I will be updating my information here (over a year-and-a-half of daily posts, so far) as many moves that I had thought were new have turned out to have been played earlier. Apparent "TNs" (and "TLs") have precedents.

Many more unsung members of the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde have turned up, as well.

There are exciting battles to share – and enough strangeness to amaze and amuse.

For example, there is a short game played over and over by a host of different characters across the years: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nge7 4.Ng5 f6 5.Bf7 checkmate.

It's not Jerome-ish, but it might be worth remembering in a quick game against 3...Nge7.

Also, the proper move after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 is 4.Bxf7+, not 4.Nxe5

Of course, after 4...Nxe5 5.Bxf7+ Black has 5...Nxf7, remaining a safe two pieces ahead.

Yet, I've run into a number of games where Black has played the very cooperative 5...Kxf7 – transposing back to regular Jerome Gambit lines.

Strange.

Again:

GOH  - netwell
blitz FICS, 2002

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.c3 Kxe5 7.cxd4+ Kxd4 8.b3 Nf6 9.Bb2+ Kxe4 10.Qf3 checkmate

Ouch!

Eyeblink Chess: Soar

Of course, part of the fun of playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and related lines is that there is often a quick win (see "Eyeblink Chess: Crash" for the alternative) awaiting the attacker (with occasional help from the defender, of course).

PeoKratoR - kirki

blitz FICS, 2000
1.Nc3 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.e4 Nf6 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Kf8 6.Bc4 Black resigned


Darrenshome - gleyhorizon
blitz FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ Ke7 5.Bxg8 Nxf3+ 6.Qxf3 Qe8 7.Bb3 Black resigned


UNPREDICTABLE  - Sanomis
blitz FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Nxc6 dxc6 7.Qh5+ Black resigned


GOH  - imre
blitz FICS, 2000
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 h6 4.d4 Nxd4 5.Bxf7+ Ke7 6.Nxe5 Ne6 7.Nc3 d6 8.Nd5 checkmate


hinders  - hober
blitz FICS, 2000
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Qe2 d6 7.Qc4+ Be6 8.Ng5+ Black resigned


thin  - rusalka
blitz FICS, 2000
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.d3 Nge7 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Ng5+ Kg8 7.Qf3 d6 8.Qf7 checkmate


Cherokee - Gepetto
FICS, 2000
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.Qg4+ Kxe5 7.f4+ Kxe4 8.Nc3 checkmate


(By the way, the character in the graphic is Perry the Platypus, a nice name in my opinion – but then, I'm perrypawnpusher, and I play the Jerome Gambit, the duck-billed platypus of chess.)