OG Jerome Gambit Gemeinde Member, Pete Banks

Pete Banks.

If you have followed this blog for a long time, you know that he is a member in good standing of the modern Jerome Gambit Gemeinde. You have seen many of his games here - online and over-the-board - under his own name (an example) or his online "blackburne" handle. You may even have read about him in International Master Gary Lane's "Opening Lanes" columns at ChessCafe.com, or in IM Lane's book The Greatest Ever Chess Tricks and Traps (Everyman Chess, 2008).

Yes, he still finds time to play the occasional Jerome Gambit.

Welcome back to the blog, Pete.

(By the way, I will make a number of references in my notes to "The Database", which is my collection of almost 60,000 Jerome Gambit and Jerome-related games. The vast majority of the games were played online by club level players, making statistics representative of their/our level of play.)

pb-hal - HEIGRO
Chess.com, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 7.Qxc5 

Pete has never been a fan of  playing 7.Qd5+ - the nudge - first. Maybe after this game he will give it a whirl.

7...d6 8.Qe3 Nf6 

Compare this position with the one that comes about after 7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 where Black's King currently blocks his Rook's access to e8.

Consulting The Database, the position in the diagram has been reached 403 time, with White scoring 49%. (Pete's own record is 17 games with this position, scoring 53%.) That always has to be compared with similar statistics after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+: 14,456 games with White scoring 46%. The implication is that White is on the right track, according to Jerome Gambit praxis.

9.d4 

This move shows up in 73 games in The Database; Pete has played it 5 times previously. It is thematic, but rather risky - an odd thing to say in a Jerome Gambit game. Still, instead of "open" play, Stockfish 10 recommends a transition to "close" play, with 9.f3 (appearing only 4 times in The Database, scoring 50%) d5 10.d3.

9...Nxe4 

This is the thing: Because the White King and Queen are on the open file, Black can snatch the e-pawn. As is the case in Jerome Gambit practice, however, out of the 73 times that this position has been reached, per The Database, Black found this move only 4 times.

Knowing the "best" move in the Jerome Gambit often confers a significant advantage, and having a "mind map" of how play usually unfolds increases this. (I wonder if Pete remembers that 9...Nxe4 was played against him by Sir Osis of the Liver in the Jerome Gambit tournament at ChessWorld.com, a full ten years ago. Probably.)

10.Qb3+ 

No doubt Pete was thinking Nice move, there, but I'm the one playing the Jerome Gambit, and it takes more than one nice move to stop me.

10...d5 11.O-O c6 12.Nc3 Re8 13.Nxe4 Rxe4 14.Qf3+ 

This is funny: one of the larger "errors" of the Jerome is "too many Queen moves". Pete's psychological punch yields immediate results, as Black relaxes too soon.

14...Bf5

As my boss used to say, "Really? Really??"

Precisely the blunder that I have been expecting.

15.Qxf5+ Kg8 16.Bg5 Qf8 

Black refuses to try to add more chaos to the position with 16...Qb6, threatening 17...Qxb2 (and possibly a later ...Qxd4), even though it would lead to a relatively balanced "unbalanced" game.

On the other hand, White is quite willing to be "distracted" from his attack and go into an endgame a pawn up, with little risk.

17.Qxf8+ Rxf8 18.Rae1 Rfe8 19.Rxe4 Rxe4 20.Be3 Ne7 21.Re1 Nf5 

It is always interesting to observe a Bashi-Bazouk attack turn into a quiet endgame with advantage. A cool drink after an active workout.

22.c3 b6 23.Kf1 Nxe3+ 24.Rxe3 Rxe3 25.fxe3 a5

There is not much more to say. The game plays out until White's extra pawn prevails.

26.a4 b5 27.axb5 cxb5 28.Ke2 Kf7 29.Kd3 Ke6 30.e4 dxe4+ 31.Kxe4 g6 32.g4 Kd6 33.h4 b4 34.cxb4 axb4 35.b3 Ke6 36.d5+ Kd6 37.g5 Kc5 38.Ke5 Black resigned

White's King will escort the d-pawn to the 8th rank.

Jerome Gambit Explosion

!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Last month, July 2016, saw an explosion of visits to this site - over 2 1/2 as many Readers as those who stop by on an average month.

Some of this was due to a large increase in Readers from Russia. Добро пожаловат!

While the second largest group of visitors in July was from the USA, I was astonished to see that the third largest group was from - the Republic of Mauritius! Bienvenue and welcome!

There are over 2,250 posts on this blog, and many more are planned. A brief suggested introduction:

It all starts with "Welcome!", a look at the earliest published analysis "In The Beginning...", and the most notorious Jerome Gambit game (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) - "Nobody expects the Jerome Gambit!",

About Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, the "inventor" of the Jerome Gambit, see "The Man, The Myth, The Legend..."

For early players and analyists see "The Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (early)". For a more recent list, see "The Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (modern)". (The latter certainly bears updating.)

What are the most important Jerome Gambit games? The list is changing, but take a peek at "The Classics I (a first look)" and "The Classics II (a first look)" for a start.

After that, you can search for a favorite move or line, or track down a favorite player (try: Blackburne, Philidor1792 and Wall for starters; or check out my modest games - perrypawnputher) - or just wander around.

Be sure to know that if you have Jerome Gambit games that you have played, I would love to see them and share them with other readers.

-Rick

Retro

My suggestion is that Readers start off the new year by looking back. There is a lot of information in the previous 2,160 blog posts here!

Not sure of the names of all of the lines in the Jerome Gambit? Review some "Jerome Gambit Nomenclature".

Check out "Some History of the Jerome Gambit" Part 1, Part 2 and Part 3.

Catch up on "Jerome Gambit: Early Opening Tomes" Part 1 and Part 2.

Meet "The Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (early)" and "The Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (modern)". 

Catch up on Alonzo Wheeler Jerome in "The Man, The Myth, The Legend" and "What kind of a man...?"

Play over "The Classics I (a first look)" and "The Classics II (a first look)".

Of course, if you want to go waaaaaaaaay back - with the help of the internet archive WaybackMachine - you can read my earliest posts at the Chess History Center website, which pre-date this blog, but show that I was investigating the Jerome Gambit as far back as 2001. 

Of Such Little Things...

Of such little things, it seems, victories are made.

In the following game the players quickly reach a Queenless middle game, with Black holding the extra piece while White has two extra pawns. Both have to decide their strategies - but, in the meantime, a small tactical "pothole" crashes the second player in short order.

Wall, Bill - Guest2651667
PlayChess.com, 2015

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5
d6 8.Qf4+ Qf6 9.d3 Qxf4 10.Bxf4 Nf6 

Bill Wall, like Philidor 1792 (to name another in the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde) is comfortable playing without Her Majesty.

11.Nc3 

Other games in The Database have seen 11.h3, 11.c3, 11.O-O, and 11.Be3.

11...a6 12.f3 

Bill is not in a hurry - yet. He can afford to see what else his opponent has on his mind.

12...Be6 13.Bg3 g5 14.e5 

Breaking in the center makes sense now that Black has further weakened his King with another pawn move (11...a6, 13...g5). The move also contains a trap that the second player immediately falls into.

14...dxe5

Better was 14...Nd5. 

15.Bxe5 Kf7

It all looks so routine and uneventful, but 15...Be7 was the proper defense. White could then snatch a pawn with 16.Ne4 (i.e. 16...Kg7 17.Nxg5) but Black might still have a small edge.

Now a simple combination decides.

16.Bxf6 Kxf6 17.Ne4+ Black resigned

After 18.Nxc5 White will have recovered his sacrificed piece and be a couple of pawns up; not something Black wanted to continue against.

Those Who Remember the Past Are Pleased to Repeat It

White has an obligation to punish opening mistakes, again and again. And again.

Wall,B - Guest1305432
PlayChess.com, 2014

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 Nf6 

Oh, yes, this is what we in the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde call "A Gimme". Remember it.

8.Qxe5+ Kf7 9.Qxc5 Nxe4 

Better, but not successful, was 9...Qe8: 10.Nc3 Nxe4 11.Qh5+ g6 12.Qd5+ Kf8 13.Nxe4 Qe7 14.0-0 c6 15.Qd4 Rg8 16.f5 c5 17.fxg6+ Ke8 18.gxh7 cxd4 19.hxg8Q+ Black resigned, Wall,B - IanJoshua, Chess.com, 2010.

10.Qd5+ 

Here Black resigned in Wall, Bill - Meinherr, Chess.com, 2010. 

10...Kf8 11.Qxe4 Qh4+

Also seen: 11...d5 12.Qd4 Qe7+ 13.Kf2 Bg4 14.Qxd5 Qe2+ 15.Kg3 h5 16.h4 Re8 17.Nc3 Qa6 18.d3 Qg6 19.Bd2 Be6+ 20.Qg5 Black resigned, Wall,B - Dani, Chess.com, 2010.

12.g3 Qg4 13.b3 c6 14.Ba3+ Kf7 15.Qe7+ Kg6 16.Qd6+ Kf7 17.Nc3 Re8+ 18.Kf2 b5 19.Rae1 Re6 20.Rxe6 Qxe6 21.Qf8+ Kg6 22.g4 Qf6 23.Qe8+ Qf7 24.f5+ Black resigned

The Proper Way To Blunder A Piece

I was looking for a short Jerome Gambit game to share with Readers, and stumbled upon an "old colleague" - a line of play that keeps showing up, regardless of expectations.

KAVUA - wojowhiskey
standard, FICS, 2013

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

4...Kxf7 5.Ng5+ 

I was surprised to note that this line has been seen in 445 games in The Database. Amazingly, the natural response, 5...Qxg5, was seen in only 318 of those games. 

The first mention of the line on this blog was in "A Closer Look (Part I)" 2008 when I noted that

"The in-your-face 5.Ng5+ was championed by tournament winner Carlos Azcarate (see "Carlos Azcarate Topping Ninja Knights T3") to the tune of one win and four losses."

A year later, when talking about 4 more examples in "Eyeblink Chess: Crash", I wrote

"Relax, readers. This blog, and the support of the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde will help you avoid such crashes."

Alas, it was not to be. The following year "Opening Tale" featured bit of a mystery involving a player who wanted to know what to do, after losing to 5.Ng5+ (put forward by one of the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde).

"..I'm pretty bad at openings I don't know, and lower rated opponents beat me at these, here's a worst case example:"

Later on in 2010, "Death of A Variation" pointed out that

"DREWBEAR 63's only loss to date in the ongoing Jerome Gambit Thematic Tournament at ChessWorld came with the White pieces against his primary rival, Daves111, under unclear circumstances." 

[Daves111 finished first in the tournament with 21 points; DREWBEAR 63 tied for second with 17 1/2 points.]

"Theory From the Thematic Tourney (2)" in the same year presented 5 more games with the line, including 2 wins by White

To reinforce my message, I posted "Reinventing the Flat Tire" making it clear that the line was

"Outrageous, even by Jerome Gambit standards. On the surface, White hopes to exchange his Knight for Black's Bishop at c5 – but the game quickly becomes too chaotic for that."

All the games mentioned to date were played online at FICS, but during 2011, in "Relayed Deaction" I was able to post an over-the-board example of the line from the Nana Alexandria Cup, Poti, Georgia, 2009.

I posted my first PSA later, "Public Service Announcement" with 5 games.

In 2012, I pointed out that "A Mention Is Not An Endorsement".

Even as recently as this year, in "Truth Is Stranger Than - Whatever" I opined

"This move seems to throw away a piece. I much prefer that White throw away a piece, instead, with 5.Nxe5. Even the Jerome Gambit has its limits."

6.d4

This is White's "plan"...

6...Bxd4 7.Bxg5 Black resigned.

...And it worked to perfection.

Of course, it would only be fair to point out that Black's alternative, 6...Qxg2, wins crushingly.

Another Provocation

In my February 11, 2010 blog post, "Provoked", I noted about a chessfriend and Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member,

Welton Vaz de Souza is a nice guy. 

Sure, from time-to-time he crushes opponents with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), but he's a nice guy.

Suggestion: don't provoke him in a game of chess.

I was reminded of that when I ran into the following game.

Richad  - NeoNunes
blitz, FICS, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.0-0 

This is one of the orthodox treatments of the BSG, along with 4.Nxd4 or 4.c3. Not everyone wants to play the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, 4.Bxf7+!?

4...b5 

This move, however, proves to be too much provocation. White decides on a Delayed Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+

As I noted in that older post,

It turns out that 5.Bxf7+ is so strong (or 4...b5 so ill-advised) that White could simply grab back a piece here with the alternative 6.Nxd4. If Black responds 6...exd4 then White has 7.Qh5+ and a few checks later the Rook on a8 will be captured.

After 6.Nxd4 Nf6, White retreats his Knight with 7.Nf3 and is better.

6...Ke6

Instead, 6...Ke8 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 was seen in Ghandybh - BoogieKnights, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 16) and mikelovell - rogerlovell, FICS, 2012 (1-0, 44).

The alternative, Black's strongest move, 6...Ke7, was seen in Rub - Wall,B, Palo Alto, 1989, (0-1, 12), mukund - jantonacci, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 10) and Chabus - AlfonsoX, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 14).

7.f4 

Stronger was 7.c3, as in mukund - jantonacci, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 10) and Chabus - AlfonsoX, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 14). 

7...Nf6 8.c3 Nc6 9.d4 

 9...Nxe5

Courting danger.

10.fxe5 c6 11.exf6 gxf6 12.Qg4+ Kd6 13.Bf4+ Ke7

14.Nd2

This move is good enough, but White misses the hilarious 14.Be5!?
when Black cannot capture the Bishop, as he will be checkmated; so the cheeky prelate can go on and capture at f6.

Black's next move hangs a piece, but White is in no hurry: he builds his attack and breaks through.

14...Bg7 15.Rae1 Rg8 16.e5 d5 17.exf6+ Kf7 18.Qh5+ Kf8 19.fxg7+ Rxg7 20.Bh6+ Kg8 21.Bxg7 Kxg7 22.Rf7+ Kg8 23.Qxh7 checkmate

(May 2014 was the highest visited month in the history of this blog, going back to 2008. Many, many thanks to readers - and please feel free to continue to visit. - Rick)

"...All of the way up to the point that I checkmated you."

Years ago I regularly played chess against a co-worker, and he constantly complained that he was winning the whole time - "All of the way up to the point that I checkmated you," I would reply.

Philidor 1792's play here reminds me of those fun days.

Philidor 1792 - guest2445
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2014

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 

The Semi-Italian opening.

4.Nc3 Nf6 5.Bxf7+ 

Instead, 5.0-0, hoping for 5...Bc5, so that White can play 6.Bxf7+, would be the Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.

In the game, White stops waiting and makes his sacrifice. It is a that was favored by Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member yorgos about 5 years ago.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Nc6

An earlier game was over before Black knew what was going on: 7...Ng6 8.e5 Nh7 9.Qf3+ Kg8 10.Qd5 checkmate, You - Stranger, blitz, Chess-Samara.ru 2014. 

8.e5 Ne8 9.0-0 Kg8 10.f4 d6 11.Be3 Bf5 12.g4 Bh7 13.Qe2 dxe5 14.Qc4+ Qd5 15.Qxd5 checkmate

A Delayed Jerome Gambit

How does that horror movie voice-over go? "Just when you thought it was safe to play ...Bc5..." 

In the following 3-minute game Philidor 1792 is so interested in playing the Jerome Gambit that he is willing to drop a tempo (4.Bb3) in order to allow Black another chance to play ...Bc5. The defender, apparently suspicious of the "free" pawn on e4, ignores the capture and moves right along with White's plans.

Philidor 1792 - guest3
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Bb3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ 

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 

It should be noted that long-time Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member jfhumphrey has been arriving at this position with the tempo-eating 4.d3 and 7.d4; while equally-dedicated HauntedKnight has encountered 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5 Nxe5 6.d4 Nf6!? (leaving White a tempo up on the text game) on a number of occasions. Both Jerome Gambiteers play on the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS) and their games can be found in The Database.

Philidor 1792 has been here as well, in Philidor 1792 - guest1063, blitz 3 0, www.bereg.ru, 2013 (1-0, 37)

7...Nxe4 8.Qh5+ Ng6 9.Qd5+ Ke8 10.dxc5 Qe7 

11.0-0 c6 12.Qd4 d5 13.cxd6 Nxd6 14.Bd2 Qe5

Black, perhaps under-estimating the "strength" of White's Bishop's one-step, perhaps overly-focused on White's Queen (it happens in blitz), misses the "bigger picture".

15.Re1 Nf7 16.Nc3 Bf5 17.Rxe5+ Nfxe5 18.Re1

Encore!

18...Rd8

Collapsing.

19.Rxe5+ Nxe5 20.Qxe5+ Kf7 21.Qxf5+ Ke7 22.Bg5+ Black resigned