I have been going through (again) my issues of the very creative German chess magazine Randspringer, which has received mention on this blog in the past (see "Randspringer!" and "Unorthodox Chess Openings Magazines"). In fact, the magazine has two short articles on the Jerome Gambit, the first being "Meet Jerome" by Jack Young in Randspringer #6 1990-1991, referred to in "Repairing a Variation (Part 3)". The second is in the pamphlet Eroffnungspraktikum 1. e4 & 'TROSSINGER PARTIE' 2. Lc4! auf alles (Randspringer #78, 2005), in the small "Lc4:f7+ (!; !?; ?!; ?) (von Kiew bis Kentucky)", with the famous Amateur - Blackburne game, and one by the editor/publisher of the magazine, himself. A number of years ago I included the Schlenker game in a note to a blog post (see "Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (12)") but I thought I would bring it out for some individual attention. Schlenker, R. - Sfrd (DWZ 1850+) May 24, 2002 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
There are about 330 games with this position in The Database - the vast majority of them played after this game. 9.O-O Re8 10.d3 Ng4 A common theme: Harass White's Queen! 11.Qe2 Later, players would show a preference for 11.Qf3+. The current retreat is enough to embolden Black further, but his "attack" is brushed off. 11...Qh4 12. h3 N4e5
The rejected Knight says "Kick me!" 13. f4 Nd7 Instead, Schlenker suggests 13...Nf6, to be met by 14.c3. The adventurous 13...Bxh3?! was successful in UNPREDICTABLE-Plafond, FICS, 2009, but should not have been:14.fxe5+ Kg8 15.gxh3 Nxe5 16.Qg2 Rf8 17. Bg5? (17. Be3) 17...Rxf1+ 18.Qxf1?! (18.Kxf1) 18...Qg3+ 19.Qg2 Nf3+ 20.Kh1 Qe1+ 21.Qg1 Qxg1# Once again, fortune favors the bold! 14. Nc3 c6 15. f5 Nge5
Instead, 15...Ngf8!, Schlenker. It is amazing how many opponents think that once you have played the Jerome Gambit, you have no more good moves left to play. Time to "kick" the other Knight. 16.d4 Nf6 17.dxe5 Black resigned
Schlenker points out if 17...dxe5 White has 18.Qc4+ Kf8 19.b3, and if 17...Rxe5 there is 18.Bf4. In both cases White is better.
Searching for improvements in play against the ...Ng6 defense to the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), the computer grabs a pawn – and has to struggle mightily not to fall to a crushing counter-attack. Crafty 19.19 - RevvedUp blitz 2 12, 2006 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+Ng6
7.Qxc5 Nf6 8.0-0 Crafty 19.19 prefers safeguarding the King over protecting the King's pawn, as 8...Nxe4 could be met with 9.Qd5+ 8...d6 9.Qe3 Rf8
As I've mentioned (see "Jerome Gambit: Don't open that door!") sometimes when I play over a Jerome Gambit game, I secretly root for Black... Here RevvedUp is pounding his adversary (who is rated over 1,000 points higher than he is). 17...Bxh3
It was not obvious at blitz speed that Black had a mate-in-9 here: 17...Nf4 18.Qa6 Qg3 19.Ne3 Nxh3+ 20.Kh1 Qe1+ 21.Nf1 Rxf1+ 22.Qxf1 Qxf1+ 23.Kh2 Nf4 24.Kg3 g5 25.d4 Qxg2 checkmate. He still has the better game after the text, though. 18.Qb3+ Be6
A humorous echo of move 10! However, after the safer 18...Kh8 the computer cannot escape mate.
19.Qxe6+ Kh8 20.d3 Qe1+ 21.Kh2 Qxd1
Good enough for the win, but 21...Rf1 instead was crushing.
22.Qd5 h623.Qe6 Rf1
Tough guy! Why notsac a piece?
24.Qxg6 Rh1+ 25.Kg3 Qe1+ 26.Kg4
26...Rh4+ Arrrgh! How unfortunate: 26...Qf2, hemming in the enemy King and threatening the pawn at g2 was the move that still won. But this is blitz, and such things happen. Crafty 19.19's King can escape – into enemy teritory – and RevvedUp is done for.
