Stand up! Fight back!

In the following game I was giving "Jerome Gambit odds" to a player rated a couple hundred points lower.

I was impressed by how well he was able to stand up to my "bullying" – for about a dozen moves, anyhow. Unfortunately, he became over-confident and fell apart.

 perrypawnpusher - stcamillis
blitz, FICS, 2010

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

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

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6

So far, so good.

10.0-0 Kf7 11.f4 Re8 12.d3

Or 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Neg4 14.Qb3+ Kf8 15.h3 Rxe4 16.hxg4 Rxg4 17.Qf3 c6 18.Nc3 d5 19.Bf4 Kg8 20.Be5 h5 21.Rae1 Bd7 22.Re3 Qb6 23.b3 Rf8 24.Na4 Qb4 25.Nc5 Bc8 26.c3 Qb6 27.Bxf6 gxf6 28.Qh3 Rg5 29.Ne6 Bxe6 30.fxe6 Qc7 31.e7 Re8 32.Qe6+ Kh8 33.Qxf6+ Rg7 34.Qf8+ Black resigned, Vazquez - Carringtonm Mexico, 2nd match, 1876.

12...Kg8 13.Nc3

More solid than 13.f5 Ne5 14.Nc3 c6 15.d4 Nc4 16.Qf3 Qb6 17.Qd3 d5 18.e5 Nd7 19.b3 Ncxe5 20.Qd1 Nf7 21.Na4 Qd8 22.Qh5 Nf6 23.Qh4 Ne4 24.Qg4 b5 25.Nc5 Nxc5 26.dxc5 Qf6 27.Bd2 Re4 28.Qf3 Ne5 29.Qh3 Ba6 30.Bc3 Re8 31.Rae1 b4 32.Rxe4 dxe4 33.Bxe5 Qxe5 34.Re1 Qf6 35.g4 Bc8 36.Qe3 Qh4 37.h3 Qf6 38.Kg2 Qe5 39.h4 Qd5 40.Kg3 a5 41.Re2 Qf7 42.Qd4 g6 43.Rxe4 Rxe4 44.Qxe4 gxf5 45.gxf5 Bxf5 46.Qxc6 Qg7+ 47.Kh2 Qe5+ 48.Kg1 Qg3+ 49.Qg2 Qxg2+ 50.Kxg2 Bxc2 51.Kf3 Kf7 52.Kf4 Ke6 53.c6 Kd6 54.c7 Kxc7 55.Ke5 Bb1 56.Kd5 Bxa2 57.Kc4 Kc6 58.h5 Bb1 59.h6 Bc2 White resigned, perrypawnpusher - Nadante, blitz, FICS, 2010.

13...Bd7 14.f5 Ng4

With his King castled-by-hand and with a lead in development, my opponent decides to harass my impudent Queen. It will cost him a piece, but it should not cost him the game.

15.Qg3 N6e5 16.d4

Typical Knights vs "Jerome pawns" action.

Now, after 16...Nf6 17.dxe5 Rxe5 18.Bf4 Re7 19.Bg5 Qf8 20.Nd5 Nxd5 21.exd5 Rf7 White is a long way from triumph.

16...Nxh2 17.Qxh2 Ng4 18.Qg3

White is a pawn ahead, and his pawn center promises trouble for his opponent. Black, however, continues to target White's Queen – without enough forethought in this case...

18...Qg5 and Black resigned

Disassembled

I share my Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) games – wins and losses – because I like the renegade opening. Given the right circumstances White can win. Of course, he can lose, too. (That's a joke.)

In the following game my opponent does not blow up the Jerome Gambit (which would have been bad enough) but takes it apart piece-by-piece.

perrypawnpusher  - Nadante
blitz FICS, 2010

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

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

Black's most popular response, according to the New Year's Database.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6

Before this game I was 7-1-2 from this position, certainly not a cause for alarm.

10.0-0 Kf7 11.f4

In the past I liked this move a bit better than 11.Nc3.

11...Re8

12.d3 Kg8

This move is a clear improvement over Comunista's 12...Nd5 (1-0, 29) and thehunterjames' 12...c5 (0-1, 25).

13.f5

This move is new to me. To recover from this game I will be studying the alternatives played by Louis Morin (mrjoker): 13.Nc3 (3 times), 13.h3 (2 times), 13.Nd2 and 13.Qf3.

13...Ne5 14.Nc3 c6

Black's Knights are sitting there like great big targets for the "Jerome pawns." It doesn't seem right for the White d-pawn to have to take two steps to get to d4; but h2-h3, preparing for g2-g4 (and dreaming of g4-g5) also seems slow.

15.d4

After the game Rybka recommended 15.h3, instead, although Black was still on top after: 15...Qb6 16.a4 Qxe3+ 17.Bxe3 d5.

15...Nc4

A bit stronger was 15...Nf7.

16.Qf3

Likewise, 16.Qd3 was a stronger move for White.

16...Qb6 17.Qd3 d5

Thematic, but 17...Nxb2 18.Bxb2 Qxb2 won a pawn.

18.e5

Both my opponent and I temporarily overlooked the fact that the White d-pawn is pinned by Black's Queen, and therefore it does not protect the pawn at e5.

White's best was 18.b3 Ne5 19.Qd1 Nxe4 20.Na4 Qc7 21.dxe5 but  Black would still have been better.

18...Nd7

Simply 18...Nxe5.

19.b3

It was time for White to escape the pin with 19.Kh1, after which he would have an even game after Black returned his extra piece: 19...Ndxe5 20.dxe5 Nxe5.

19...Ncxe5 20.Qd1

I was not going to find the "computer-like" move 20.Qe3 in a blitz game, but it would have helped:  20...Nf6 21.dxe5 Rxe5 22.Qxb6 axb6 23.Bf4 Rxf5 and Black's advantage has not grown further.

20...Nf7

A person could get severe eyestrain looking for White's compensation for his sacrificed piece.

21.Na4 Qd8 22.Qh5

The Kingside is where the action is going to have to be if White wants to win, but it looks like the rest of his pieces didn't get the memo.

22...Nf6 23.Qh4 Ne4 24.Qg4

24...b5 25.Nc5 Nxc5 26.dxc5 Qf6 27.Bd2 Re4 28.Qf3 Ne5 29.Qh3 Ba6

30.Bc3 Re8 31.Rae1 b4 32.Rxe4 dxe4 33.Bxe5 Qxe5 34.Re1 Qf6

At this point, only a flat-out blunder by Black or severe time trouble for the second player will jeopardize my loss.

35.g4

Hope springs eternal...

35...Bc8 36.Qe3 Qh4 37.h3 Qf6

38.Kg2 Qe5 39.h4

If we had ham, we could have ham and eggs – if we had eggs.

39...Qd5 40.Kg3 a5 41.Re2 Qf7

My opponent was in no hurry.

42.Qd4 g6 43.Rxe4 Rxe4 44.Qxe4 gxf5 45.gxf5 Bxf5 46.Qxc6 Qg7+

47.Kh2 Qe5+ 48.Kg1 Qg3+ 49.Qg2 Qxg2+ 50.Kxg2 Bxc2

The rest of the game is "just a matter of technique."

51.Kf3 Kf7 52.Kf4 Ke6 53.c6 Kd6 54.c7 Kxc7 55.Ke5 Bb1 56.Kd5 Bxa2 57.Kc4 Kc6 58.h5 Bb1 59.h6 Bc2 White resigned