Jerome Gambit: Needing More Than A Parasol

If it's raining outside, you can put on a hat, rain coat, and boots, and carry an umbrella. That will help. If you only take out a little parasol from the last cocktail you had - it won't provide much shelter.

So it is, when you are facing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+). You may not need the most exacting defense - say, Whistler's, or the "annoying defense", or even Jerome's defense - but you will need to have some kind of defense prepared. Otherwise, you will just get soaked.

Witness the following game. It shows how White can wrap things up early.

Wall, Bill - Dippoldi
PlayChess.com, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 

6...Bb4+ 

This can work, if it is followed up correctly.

7.c3 Bd6

According to The Database, Black has won every time he has played the alternative, 7...Qh4!? - 13 times - except for the 2 times that it was played against Bill Wall.

8.dxe5 Bxe5

Bill points out that 8...Bf8 and 8...Be7 were the way to go. White would have only a small advantage, if any.

9.Qd5+

Also successful was 9.Qh5+  - 9...Ke6 10.Qf5+ Kd6 11.Na3 Ne7 12.Nc4+ Kc6 13.Qxe5 d6 14.Na5+ Kd7 15.Qg5 c6 16.Nc4 b6 17.Bf4 Ng6 18.Qf5+ Kc7 19.Qf7+ Qd7 20.Bxd6+ Kb7 21.Qf3 b5 22.Ne5 Nxe5 23.Bxe5 Ka6 24.g3 Bb7 25.a4 c5 26.axb5+ Kxb5 27.O-O Rhe8 28.c4+ Kc6 29.Rad1 Rxe5 30.Rxd7 Kxd7 31.Qf7+ Kc8 32.Qf8+ Kc7 33.Qxg7+ Kd6 34.Qxb7 Ree8 35.Rd1+ Ke6 36.Qd7+ Kf6 37.Rd6+ Ke5 38.Rd5+ Kf6 39.Rf5+ Kg6 40.Qf7+ Kh6 41.Rh5 checkmate, Sir Osis of the Liver - Crusader Rabbit, Jerome Gambit Tournament 4, ChessWorld, 2009. 

9...Kf6

Just about as effective as 9...Kf8, seen in Wall, - Holzkopp, PlayChess.com, 2017 (1-0, 27).

10.f4

Deadly enough was 10.h4 - 10...Ne7 11.Bg5+ Kg6 12.Qxe5 d6 13.Qxe7 Qxe7 14.Bxe7 Re8 15.h5+ Kf7 16.Bg5 Rxe4+ 17.Be3 Bf5 18.Nd2 Re6 19.O-O-O a5 20.Rde1 Rae8 21.Nb3 Re5 22.Nd4 Bg4 23.Kd2 c5 24.Nb5 Rd5+ 25.Kc1 c4 26.Nc7 Black resigned, HauntedKnight - anaribusm, FICS, 2012.

10...Qe7

Also coming to no good end: 10...Kg6, as in Wall,B - Guest6953174, PlayChess.com 2016 (1-0, 15) and 10...c6 11.fxe5+ Kg6 12.Qd6+ Kf7 13.O-O+ Black resigned, Wall,B - Guest11386950, PlayChess.com, 2019.

11.fxe5+ Qxe5

Even LuigiBot could not escape, trying 11...Kg6 - 12.O-O Nh6 13.Rf3 Rf8 14.Rg3+ Kh5 15.Qd1+ Rf3 16.Qxf3+ Kh4 17.Rh3 checkmate, Fandral - LuigiBot, FICS, 2013. 

12.O-O+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Plenty of Ways to Go Wrong

One of the attractions of the 6.d4 line in the Jerome Gambit (a favorite of Bill Wall) is that Black has to figure out what to do with his dark squared Bishop. As the following game shows, there are plenty of ways to go wrong. White's mating attack is very attractive.

Wall, Bill - Holzkopp
PlayChess.com, 2017

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 

6...Bb4+ 7.c3 Bd6

Bill has faced a variety of alternatives:

7...Nc4 as in Wall,B - Anonymous, lichess.com, 2016 (1-0, 18);

7...Qe7 as in Wall,B - Guest3742987, PlayChess.com, 2015 (1-0, 50);

7...Bxc3+ as in Wall,B - Caynaboos, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 26); Wall,B -ChessFlower, PlayChess.com, 2012 (1-0, 27); Wall,B -Boris, Sparkchess.com,  2012 (1-0, 31); and Wall,B - FJBS, FICS, 2015 (1-0, 14); and

7...Be7 as in Wall,B - ChrSav, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 11).

Black's strongest response is 7...Qh4!?, which has been seen seen 10 times in The Database (with all wins for Black). See "Gloom and Doom",  "Beyond Gloom and Doom" and "Jerome Gambit: Unresolved".

8.dxe5 Bxe5 

Black would still retain an edge after 8...Be7.

9.Qd5+ 

9.Qh5+ has also been seen: there are 6 wins for White and one draw in The Database.

9...Kf8

Or 9...Kf6 10.f4 Kg6 11.O-O Bf6 12.f5+ Kh5 13.Qd1+ Kh4 14.Rf4+ Kg5 15.Rf3+ Black resigned, Wall,B - Guest6953174, PlayChess.com, 2016. 

10.Qxe5 d6 11.Qd5 Nf6 12.Qd3 Be6 

White has an extra pawn and the safer King. Black has the better development.

13.O-O c6 14.b3 Kf7 15.Ba3 c5 

The position is complicated. Stockfish 8 suggests, instead, 15...Re8 16.Nd2 d5 17.e5 Ng4 18.Nf3 Kg8. 

16.f4 Qb6 17.c4 Qa5 

Overlooking White's tactical play in the center. 

18.e5 Ng4 19.f5 Nxe5 20.fxe6+ Kxe6 21.Qd5+ Kd7 

22.Qxb7+ Ke6 23.Nc3 

A nice finish: Black cannot afford to capture either of the two offered pieces.

23...Qxc3 24.Qd5+ Ke7 25.Bxc5 Rad8 26.Rae1 Qa5 27.Qf7 checkmate