Been There, Done That, Have the Points to Show It

As I play through new (to me) Bill Wall games, I am surprised at how many people throw the Blackburne Shilling Gambit back at his Jerome Gambit. Maybe they really expect him to play 4.Nxe5?!. Maybe they don't know about the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit. The fact is, when it comes to the BSJG, Bill's been there - and has the points to prove it.

Wall, Bill - Amoex
PlayChess.com, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Ke8

There are other choices, as Bill has encountered:

5...Kf6 6. f4 (for variety: 6.Ng4+ as in Wall,B - GYHZ, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 36] and Wall,B-Darksquare, www.Chess.com,  15 0, 2010 [1-0, 23]) 6...g6 7.c3 Ne6 8.O-O Ne7 9.Ng4+ Kg7 10.f5 Nc5 11.f6+ Kg8 12.d4 Ne6 13.f7+ Kg7 14.Bh6 checkmate, Wall,B - Mora, E, Chess.com, 2010; or

5...Ke6 as in Wall,B - apollyon, 2010, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 12) 

6. Qh5+ 

A bit stronger is 6.c3 which Bill has also played 6...Ne6 (6...Nc6 7.Nxc6 dxc6 8.Qh5+ Ke7 (8...g6 9.Qe5+ Qe7 10.Qxh8 Qxe4+ 11.Kd1 Qxg2 12.Re1+ Ne7 13.d3 Qxf2 14.h3 Bf5 15.Bg5 Qf3+ 16.Kc1 Kd7 17.Qxh7 Re8 18.d4 Qg3 19.Bd2 Bxh3 20.Na3 Bf5 21.Nc4 Kd8 22.Ne5 a6 23.Qh1 Kc8 24.Rg1 Qf2 25.Rg2 Qxg2 26.Qxg2 Nd5 27.Nxg6 Bxg6 28.Qxg6 Re7 29.Qf5+, Black resigned, Wall,B - Apple, Chess.com, 2010) 9.d4 Nf6 10.Qf3 Kf7 11.e5 Bg4 12.Qf4 Qe8 13.Be3 Bd6 14.exd6 cxd6 15.Qxd6 Ne4 16.Qc7+ Kf8 17.Qxb7 Rb8 18.Qxa7 Rxb2 19.Qa3+ Black resigned, Wall,B-Verrsili, Chess.com, 2010) 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 hxg6 9.Qxh8 Nh6 (9...Nf6 10.d3 Qe7 11.Be3 d6 12.O-O b6 13.Bh6 Kd7 14.Bxf8 Nxf8 15.Nd2 Ba6 16.Qh3+ Ne6 17.Nb3 Qh7 18.Qxh7+ Nxh7 19.c4 Rh8 20.f4 Rg8 21.f5 gxf5 22.exf5 Black resigned, Wall,B - Toyong, Chess.com, 2010) 10.O-O Nf4 11.Qe5+ Ne6 12.Qg3 Qg5 13.Qxg5 Nxg5 14.d4 Nhf7 15.Nd2 Be7 16.f4 Ne6 17.f5 gxf5 18.exf5 Neg5 19.g4 Bf6 20.h4 Nh7 21.Nf3 Nd6 22.Bf4 Ne4 23.Bxc7 d5 24.c4 Bd7 25.cxd5 Kf7 26.Ne5+ Bxe5 27.dxe5 Bb5 28.Rfe1 Nd2 29.e6+ Ke7 30.d6+ Ke8 31.d7+ Bxd7 32.exd7+ Kxd7 33.Rad1 Kxc7 34.Rxd2 Black resigned, Wall,B - Klevic, PlayChess.com, 2014.

Of course he has also done well with 6.f4 Nf6 7.c3 Nc6 8.O-O Bc5+ 9.d4 Bd6 10.Qb3 Bxe5 11.fxe5 d5 12.exf6 gxf6 13.exd5 Na5 14.Qb5+ c6 15.Qe2+ Qe7 16.Qh5+ Kd8 17.d6 Qxd6 18.Rxf6 Qd5 19.Bg5 Kd7 20.Rf7+ Ke6 21.Qh6+ Kxf7 22.Qf6+ Kg8 23.Bh6 Qf7 24.Qd8+ Qe8 25.Qxe8 checkmate, Wall,B - JoeNine, Chess.com, 2010; and

6.O-O Nf6 7.c3 Nc6 8.Nxc6 bxc6 9.d4 d6 10.Qf3 Bg4 11.Qg3 Qd7 12.Nd2 h5 13.h3 h4 14.Qe3 Bh5 15.e5 Nd5 16.Qe4 Qe7 17.c4 Nb4 18.a3 d5 19.Qb1 Na6 20.f4 Be2 21.Qg6+ Kd8 22.Qxc6 Bxf1 23.Qxa8+ Kd7 24.Nxf1 dxc4 25.d5 Nc5 26.Be3 Nd3 27.e6+ Kd6 28.Qc6 checkmate, Wall,B-Garri, Chess.com, 2010. 

6...g6 7.Nxg6 hxg6 

Or 7...Nf6 8.Qe5+ Ne6 9.Nxh8 Bg7 10.O-O Qe7 11.f4 Ng4 12.Qh5+ Black resigned, Wall,B - DSLC, FICS, 2013; or

7... Qf6 8. Nxh8+ Kd8 9. Nf7+ Ke7 10. d3 Nxc2+ 11. Kd1 Qxf2 12. Bg5+ Nf6 13. Nd2 Nxa1 14. e5 Bg7 15. Bxf6+ Bxf6 16.
exf6+ Qxf6 17. Re1+ Kf8 18. Ng5 d6 19. Re8+ Black resigned, Wall,B - Sharkia,A, Chess.com, 2010; or

7...Nxc2+ 8.Kd1 Nf6 (8...Nxa1 9.Nxh8+ Ke7 10.Qe5 checkmate, Wall,B - Apple69, Chess.com, 2010) 9.Qe5+ Be7 10.Nxe7 Qxe7 11.Qxe7+ Kxe7 12.Kxc2 Nxe4 13.Re1 d5 14.d3 Bf5 15.f3 Black resigned, Wall,B - Schlier,A, Chess.com, 2010. 

8.Qxg6+

White has two choices here, and two pieces of advice. The Database has 98 games with 8.Qxg6, with White scoring 58%; and
369 games with 8.Qxh8, with White scoring 52%. On the other hand, Stockfish recommends 8.Qxh8  and after 8...Nxc2+ 9.Kd1 Nxa1 10.Qxg8 Qg5 gives Black the edge.

As is often the case in club chess, the player who knows better what is going on in the game has the advantage - as the following moves show.

8...Ke7 9.Qg5+ Ke8 10.Qe5+ Ne6 11.Qxh8

White gathers in the Rook, after all. He has a Rook and four pawns against Black's extra two pieces.

Still, Black races to take advantage of White's "sidetracked" Queen and attack the enemy King, only to wind up dropping a piece in the process.

11...Qg5 12.O-O Nf4 13.g3 d6

Or 13...Ne2+ 14.Kg2 Nf4+ 15.Kh1 Qg4 16.f3 Black resigned, Wall,B - Creel,A, Chess.com, 2010. 

14.Nc3 Nh6 15.d3 Ne2+ 16.Nxe2 Black resigned

Jerome Pawn Fall

The "Jerome pawns" - the one White obtains in exchange for his piece(s) - can be a powerful attacking or positional force. However, if White does not take care of his pawns, they can also become targets and the cause of his downfall, as in the following game.

ulla - abebe
milenrousoulski's mini-tournament, 
GameKnot.com, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome gambit.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf6 

Four years ago, in "BSG: Later on in the Discussion", I suggested that now, after 6.Nf3, the game would be equal. Shortly afterwards, I faced 5...Kf6 played by RVLY, a specialist in the line (see "Whose Territory Are We Fighting On?"), but after 6.c3 Kxe5 we transposed into more regular 5...Ke6 lines. GOH, a member of the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde playing at FICS, has faced 6.c3 Ne6 and 6.c3 d6. To date, The Database does not include a game with my suggestion 6.c3 Nc2+!?

6.Ng4+

There are 66 games with this line in The Database, played by the likes of Jerome Gambiteers GOH, HauntedKnight, MyGameUMove, stretto, Wall and yorgos. 

6...Ke7 7.c3 Ne6 

Or 7...Nc6 8.d4 d6 9.d5 Bxg4 10.Qxg4 Qd7 11.Qxd7+ Kxd7 12.dxc6+ Kxc6 13.0-0 Nf6 14.f3 h6 15.Be3 Be7 16.Nd2 b5 17.Nb3 a6 18.Nd4+ Kb7 19.Nf5 Bf8 20.Bd4 Re8 21.Rfd1 Re6 22.a4 g6 23.axb5 gxf5 24.bxa6+ Ka8 25.exf5 Re5 26.Bxe5 dxe5 27.Rd8+ Ka7 28.Ra5 Bc5+ 29.Rxc5 Rxd8 30.Rxc7+ Kb8 31.Rc6 Nd5 32.Rxh6 Nf4 33.g3 Rd1+ 34.Kf2 Nd3+ 35.Ke2 Nxb2 36.Rb6+ Black resigned, Wall,B - GYHZ, FICS, 2010. 

8.d4 h5

Or 8...Nf6 9.d5 Nc5 10.0-0 Ke8 11.Bg5 Be7 12.Nxf6+ Bxf6 13.Bxf6 Qxf6 14.b4 Na6 15.e5 Qg6 16.Qd4 b6 17.f4 Bb7 18.f5 Qg5 19.Nd2 c5 20.dxc6 Bxc6 21.Ne4 Qg4 22.Nd6+ Kd8 23.Qxg4 Black resigned, Wall,B - Darksquare, 15 0 game, Chess.com, 2010.

9.Ne5 Qe8 10.d5 

Unsettling the pawn front and ignoring the pawns left behind (e.g. at g2). White should have tried 10.0-0 followed by adding another pawn to the center with f2-f4. 

10...Nc5 11.Bg5+ Nf6 12.Qd4 d6 13.Nc4

White might have done better to try 13.Nd2 dxe5 14.Qxc5+ Kd8 15.Qe3, although Black would still have the advantage. 

13...Qg6

Striking back at the pawns.

14.Bxf6+ gxf6 15.g3 Qxe4+ 16.Qxe4+ Nxe4 17.0-0

The g-pawn is safe, but Black will now unravel his position and make use of his extra material. White does not complicate enough to distract him.

17...Kf7 18.Re1 Ng5 19.Nbd2 Bg4 20.Re3 Bh6 21.f4 Nh3+ 22.Kg2 Rhe8 White resigned

There is still play in the game, even after the Rooks are exchanged, but with only a pawn for Black's piece, it would be all uphill for White.