A Jerome Gambit win, and some handy endgame play in another game, will allow me to move on to the 3rd round of play in both the "Italian Game Classic" and "Italian Game Battlegrounds" tournaments at Chess.com. There will be a bit of a wait, however, until I can play a few more Jerome Gambits, as each tournament has a number of games to complete before the round is finished.
The turning point in the following game reminds me of the light-hearted comment about giving up material: if it succeeds, it's a "sacrifice", if it fails, it's a "blunder". I would love to say that my chess has matured to the point where I made an intuitive sacrifice, but I have to admit that it was more of a fortunate oversight.
perrypawnpusher - mallack
Italian Game Battlegrounds, Chess.com, 2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 6. Qh5+ Kf8
The Jerome Defense, first suggested by Alonzo Wheeler Jerome in an article in the Dubuque Chess Journal of July, 1874, and seen, initially, in Jaeger - Jerome, correspondence, 1880 (1-0, 40).
The Database has 665 game examples, with White scoring 50%. My own experience is a bit better: in 36 games, I scored 79%. (That probably reflects experience with the line.)
7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qg3
As I noted in an earlier post
I experimented with Jerome's 8.Qf4+ in perrypawnpusher - Capt. Mandrake, Jerome Gambit 3 thematic tournament, ChessWorld.com, 2008 (1-0, 9) and perrypawnpusher - LeeBradbury, "Italian Game" Thematic, Chess.com, 2012 (1-0, 36).
I also tried 8.Qc3 in perrypawnpusher - Raankh, blitz, FICS, 2009 (0-1, 22).
There is not much difference in the strength between these two moves and the text, or even 8.Qh5, if Stockfish 9 is to be believed.
8...Nf6 9.Nc3
I am not sure why I chose the text move over 9.d3. Before this game, I was 3 - 1 with 9.Nc3 and 5 - 1 with 9.d3. The two lines sometimes transpose, and 9.d3 brings White one step closer to resolving the issue of Black's annoying dark square Bishop, so, perhaps it should be played first.
9...Be6
This was also played by Abhishek29 against me earlier this year. The move is good, and preserves Black's advantage, although it has the slight taint of placing the Bishop (possibly) in a place where an advancing White f-pawn might hit it.
10.O-O g6
This move, a novelty, according to The Database, does several things. It resists a possible f2-f4-f5 by White; it protects the Black g-pawn from White's Queen, and it gives the Black King a place to step out of the way, to castle-by-hand and allow his Rook to get into play.
11.d3 Kg7 12.Na4
Seriously?!
I was going to try this move, after the trials of my game against warwar, in the 3rd round of the Italian Battleground tournament (at Chess.com) earlier this year? Sure, the positions are not the same, but warwar did not meekly retreat his Bishop to b6, he brought it to d4, then e5 - and then threw in ...Nh5 for good measure. It was a messy game, even if I did weasel out a win.
Then, there was the additional anxiety related to my game against Abhishek29, when he did retreat the Bishop, and I was able to exchange it off.
Certainly, it was a time for in-depth concrete analysis - so, of course, I crossed my fingers for luck and just made the Knight move...
12...Bb6
Whew!
After the game, Stockfish 10 pointed out that 12...Bd4 13.c3 Be5 14.f4 would be hit by 14...Nh5. In fact, 13...Nh5 would have been good for Black, too. Yikes.
13.Nxb6 axb6 14.f4 Rxa2
This took me by surprise. It should not have - in a similar position against Abhishek29, I had prevented the capture by playing a2-a3. But, is the loss of the pawn a big deal, any way? It turns out, it is not. This is the sacrifice/blunder of material that I referred to in the introduction to this game.
15.Rxa2 Bxa2 16.b3
Black's Bishop has left his King, and is trapped. It is vulnerable to capture in a couple of moves, which explains Black's next choice.
16...Qa8
In for a penny, in for a pound.
Black has grabbed the pawn, and now feels the need to protect the locked-in Bishop, even at the cost of removing another defender from the Kingside.
17.Bb2
This move reminded me of a booklet on the 2.b3 Sicilian that I bought in 1977, from Ron's Postal Chess Club, of all places. At the time, I was advancing the b-pawn one step against 1...c5 if I was feeling conservative, or two steps (the wing gambit) if I was feeling rowdy; and I even tried 2.b3 against the French and Caro Kann defenses. Nowadays you can find by Jerzy Konikowski and Marek Soszynski.
Oh - back to the game. White's attack is about to come together.
17...Rf8 18.f5
18...Qa5 19.fxg6 hxg6 20.Qf4 g5 21.Bxf6+
After the game, Stockfish 10 preferred 21...Qg4. I wanted my piece back, right away.
21...Kg8 22.Qg4 Qd2
Black's Queen cannot save the day.
23.Bxg5 Black resigned
You probably saw the cute checkmate, instead, with 23.Qe6+ Kh7 24.Qe7 Rf7 25.Qxf7+ Kh6 26.Qg7+ Kh5 27.Qh7+ Kg4 28.Qh3#.
Please note the stranded Bishop on a2.
While it looks like I am headed for a 3rd place finish (out of 6) in the 3rd round of the "Italian Battleground" tournament at Chess.com, I will at least have some Jerome Gambit tales to tell from the experience.
I have already shared my 3rd round game perrypawnpusher - Abhishek29, "Italian Battleground", Chess.com, 2019 (1-0, 35) - my second win in this tournament against that opponent, having defeated him in in Round 1 - see perrypawnpusher - Abhishek29, "Italian Battleground", Chess.com, 2019 (1-0, 19).
The current game is a rematch with an opponent that I faced in Round 2 - see perrypawnpusher - warwar, "Italian Battleground", Chess.com, 2019 (1-0, 39). I was a bit concerned, the way "real" chessplayers are concerned about "real" chess openings: how much had he learned about the Jerome Gambit in the meantime?
It turned out to be an interesting battle between the "Jerome pawns" and the defender's extra piece, but, most of all, between someone who had prepared the opening and someone who had to improvise in the middlegame and endgame.
perrypawnpusher - warwar
"Italian Battleground", Chess.com, 2019
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
When the game was over, the Chess.com site offered to do a quick computer analysis. Not surprisingly, this move was labelled a blunder.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8
warwar adopts the Jerome Defense, first suggested by Alonzo Wheeler Jerome in his analysis in an article in the Dubuque Chess Journal of July, 1874. It was first played in Jaeger - Jerome, correspondence, 1880 (1-0, 40).
Interestingly enough, Abhishek29 was playing the same defense against me in the same round, too. My record, at that point, against the line was 25 - 6 - 3, a decent 78% score.
7.Qxe5 d6
As I wrote in the article that I had prepared for Kaissiber (unfortunately, never published)
The defenses 6…Kf8 and 6…Ng6 have had their supporters and detractors, depending on how each evaluated the alternatives – was it better to hold onto a little material and avoid complications, or to enter them confidently, knowing that they would turn the game even more in your favor?
Jerome (DCJ 7/1874) first suggested 6…Kf8. He followed it with 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qf4+ Nf6 9.c3 Kf7 10.d4 Bb6 11.e5 dxe5 12.dxe5 Re8 13.0-0 Kg8 14.exf6 Qxf6 15.Qxf6 gxf6 16.Bh6 “and White has a pawn ahead.” (Actually, the game is even; but Jerome missed that earlier his 11.e5 was premature, as after the pawn exchange 12…Qd3 would be crushing – Paul Keiser, personal communication. The alternative 8…Ke8 was seen in 5 games in the Yetman – Farmer 2008 match.)
As Sorensen (NS 5/1877) did not mention 6…Kf8, it was not touched upon by other writers until Freeborough and Rankin (COAM, 1889) suggested that it led to a safe game for Black, giving the line 7.Qxe5 Qe7 8.Qf5+ Ke8 9.Nc3 d6 10.Qf3 Qf7 (or 10...Nf6!) 11.Qe2 Nh6 (or 11...Ne7 or 11...Nf6) with “a superior position or game” to Black.
A hundred years after Jerome, Harding, in his Counter Gambits (1974), varied, after 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qf4+ Nf6 with 9.d3 Kg8 10.Nc3 Qe8 11.Be3 Bb4 12.0-0 Be6 13.Ne2 Qh5 14.Nd4 Bd7 15.c3 Bc5, advantage to Black. His comment in The Italian Game (1977) was that after 7…d6, White was left “without genuine compensation for his piece.” He sagely recommended the 6…Kf8 line as “other lines would allow White to attack the exposed black king or to win back the sacrificed material.”
8.Qg3
I experimented with Jerome's 8.Qf4+ in perrypawnpusher - Capt. Mandrake, Jerome Gambit 3 thematic tournament, ChessWorld.com, 2008 (1-0, 9) and perrypawnpusher - LeeBradbury, "Italian Game" Thematic, Chess.com, 2012 (1-0, 36).
There is not much difference in the strength between these two moves and the text, or even 8.Qh5, if Stockfish 9 is to be believed.
My opponent and I exchanged wins in the second round of our Chess.com "Italian Game" Thematic tournament. I'm not sure what tie-break is being used (first in our group is JoseSoza, but I don't know if one or two players will advance) but it should be "most wins with the Jerome Gambit" if you ask me.
perrypawnpusher - LeeBradbury
"Italian Game" Thematic, Chess.com, 2012
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 Be6 10.0-0 Qxf4 11.Bxf4 Nf6
I don't think that I have ever played the Queen exchange variation in this line. I was intrigued by Philidor1792's play in past games.
12.Nd2 Ke7 13.c3 Rhf8 14.d4 Bb6
Trickier, but not necessarily better, was 14...Nxe4 15.Nxe4 Rxf4 16.Rae1 Kd7 17.dxc5 Bc4 18.cxd6 Bxf1 19.Kxf1 cxd6.
15.Bg3 Ng4
I am not sure what this is about. Perhaps, like the next move, it is aimed at preventing White's f2-d4.
16.Rae1 g5 17.h3 Nf6 18.e5 dxe5 19.Rxe5 Rae8 20.Rxg5 Bd5
I was happy to grab a third pawn for my sacrificed piece. This move suggests that my opponent was happy to open a line for his Rook to attack along the g-file, cooperating with his light-squared Bishop.
I decided to take advantage of his wish to keep the Bishop on the a8-h1 file.
21.c4 Be4 22.c5 Ba5 23.Nb3 b6 24.Nxa5 bxa5 25.Bxc7 a4
Too much looking "over there" instead of "over here". Protecting the advanced a-pawn costs the exchange. Better was the consistent 25...Rg8.
26.Bd6+ Kf7 27.Bxf8 Rxf8
White now has a Rook and four pawns against a Knight and Bishop, but there are still technical difficulties to overcome.
28.Rd1 Ke6
After the game Houdini suggested 28...Rb8 29.b3 axb3 30.axb3 Rxb3 31.Ra1 Rb7 32.f3 Bd5 33.Kf2 White still would be better, but Black would have more counter-chances.
29.Re5+ Kd7 30.d5 Bg6
Now the pawns are going to cause too much trouble.
31.c6+ Kc7 32.Re7+ Kb8 33.d6 Be8 34.d7 Bxd7 35.cxd7 Rd8 36.Rf7 Black resigned
I have mentioned earlier (see "Only Seemed Fair" and "Through To Two" for two accounts) my participation in a couple of Chess.com's Italian Game thematic tournaments where opportunities to play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) surfaced.
In one tournament I failed to advance (see "You have been eliminated") but in the other, I have just started the second round in a 4-player group, alongside two 3-player groups.
As always, I will do my best to uphold the, ahem, good name of the Jerome Gambit (while trying not to make a fool out of myself), and will share my games with readers, come what may.
I am again matching wits with JoseSoza, whom I defeated in the first round with the Black pieces (against his Evans Gambit), but who defeated my Jerome Gambit, giving me my only loss. In this second round I gave him the opportunity to play the Jerome against me, but he decided on 4.c3 instead. We drew in 10 moves.
Guess what opening he allowed me to play with the White pieces?
Meanwhile, LeeBradbury has also allowed me to play 4.Bxf7+, and perhaps Philip6Esq will as well (ooops, he lost that game on time).
