It was the star-crossed lover Romeo who opined
What's in a name? That which we call a rose
By any other name would smell as sweet.
I chose that reference to reflect the game below, which contains a mis-named line, as well as a choice of moves by me that has the aroma more of a polecat than a fragrant flower...
perrypawnpusher - igormsp
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Nf3+
I checked, and this line is given the name the "Young variation" in the Nomenclature that Bill Wall put together for this blog, after Jack Young, the amazing opening inventor of "Bozo's Chess Emporium" fame.
I think I may have misled Bill in the information that I gave him about the line. Young actually faced the move at the "hands" of the Chess Challenger 10 computer in 1979. That might make it look like the "Challenger Variation," but I think that the name more likely should be the "Norton Variation", after the early Jerome Gambit game Jerome - Norton, correspondence, 1876 (0-1, 42).
My error.
However, the move, itself, is not an error. In fact, it is a great way to set a complacent Jerome Gambit player back on his heels.
9.Kf1
While playing the game, I remembered that the main line goes 9.gxf3 Qh4+ 10.Kd1 Qf2 and that I had quickly reached a drawn position in my game against Sir Osis of the Liver in our 2008 ChessWorld game (winning, when he over-reached).
I didn't remember much more.
More critical was 10...Ne7, from the game perrypawnpusher - sjeijk, blitz, FICS, 2011, (1-0, 19) but I was a little fuzzy on the details there, too.
So, hoping to "surprise" my apparently prepared opponent, I opted for Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's choice of moves against D. P. Norton.
Bad idea: the strategy, and the choice of moves.
9...Kc6
Okay.
There are many reasons that the Jerome Gambit will not be mistaken for, say, the Ruy Lopez, starting with the fact that most of the first 10 moves in the Spanish Game have already been mapped out.
My opponent took enough time in choosing his move for me to believe that I had surprised him. His choice, to leave his Knight en prise and tip-toe his King away from the center, is enough for a draw, similar to the Sir Osis game.
10.Qd5+ Kb6 11.Qb3+ Kc6 12.Qxf3
I could have split the point with 12.Qd5+, etc, but I thought that I would see if I could further confuse my opponent. I was betting on my "Jerome pawns" versus his extra piece, but my poor development seriously hampered my attacking possibilities and actually gave Black the better game.
After the game, Rybka 3 suggested that 12.Nc3 a6 13.d4 was the way for White to fight for a possible, slight, edge. Wow.
12...Qf6
I am sure that the poor Queen has been dying to move since Black played 8...Nf3+ instead of 8...Qh4+. Now, however, it will just be dying.
13.e5+ Black resigned
(See, I wasn't being "modest" when I referred to my recent "lucky wins" in "Three Years Running".)
Here is a recent, light, quick game from MrJoker, at the Internet Chess Club. His opponent must have felt like he had been run over by a truck. Did anyone get the license plate number?
MrJoker - enelec,
blitz 2 12, Internet Chess Club, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bb4
In all fairness, it is hard to tell if this move is an ultra-modern refinement of the double King pawn opening, or a mouse-slip. (Semyon Alapin used to play 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 Bb4 in the Spanish Game.)
I faced a similar idea (after 3...a6 4.0-0) in my game against dabbling. Actually, MrJoker faced the same move a week earlier; see below.
4.c3 Ba5 5.Bxf7+
Giving the opening the Jerome treatment.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ke6
Or 7...Ng6 8.Qd5+ Ke8 9.Qxa5 Qe7 10.d3 Nf6 11.0-0 b6 12.Qg5 d6 13.f4 Bd7 14.Nd2 Bb5 15.c4 Bc6 16.b3 a5 17.Ba3 Qf7 18.f5 Ne5 19.d4 h6 20.Qh4 Neg4 21.Rae1 Kd7 22.h3 h5 23.hxg4 hxg4 24.Qg3 Rh6 25.Kf2 Nh5 26.Qxg4 Rf8 27.d5 Bb7 28.Ke3 Kc8 29.f6+ Kb8 30.fxg7 Nf6 31.gxf8Q+ Qxf8 32.Qg5 Qh8 33.Rxf6 Rxf6 34.Bb2 Rg6 35.Bxh8 Rxg5 36.Re2 Rg3+ 37.Nf3 c6 38.Kf4 Rg8 39.Bd4 c5 40.Bc3 Bc8 41.e5 Rg4+ 42.Ke3 dxe5 43.Nxe5 Rg3+ 44.Nf3 Bg4 45.Be5+ Kc8 46.Bxg3 Black resigned, MrJoker - WhiteKnight-1, blitz 2 12, ICC, 2011.
8.Qf5+ Kd6 9.d4 Qf6
Normally, a reliable defensive idea. But not today.
10.dxe5+ Qxe5 11.Bf4 Black resigned
In my writing at Chessville (alas, the site is still without new content) I have reviewed a number of books in the Secrets of Opening Surprises series (#4, #6, #7, #8, #9, #10, #11, #12), edited by Jeroen Bosch. They are surprisingly addictive, sometimes startling, and always creative. As the series describes itself,
No time to study main lines? Shock your opponent with an SOS!... Secrets of Opening Surprises brings you a wide variety of unusual opening ideas. They may seem outrageous at first sight, but have proven to be perfectly playable.
After the introductory "S.O.S. Files", chronicling how earlier suggestions have worked out in over-the-board combat, Volume #13 contains:
- Sicilian Najdorf: the Czebe Attack (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 d6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nf6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Qe2!?) GM Arthur Kogan
- The North Sea Defence (1.e4 g6 2.d4 Nf6) IM Jeroen Bosch
- The Williams Anti-Grünfeld Variation (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 g6 3.h4) GM Simon Williams
- The Scotch Game: Carlsen Leads the Way (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.d4 exd4 4.Nxd4 Bc5 5.Nb3 Bb6 6.Nc3 Nf6 7.Qe2) GM Konstantin Landa
- The Budapest Gambit Delayed (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 e6 3.g3 e5) IM Jeroen Bosch
- French Defence: Obtaining Two Bishops (1.e4 e6 2.d4 d5 3.Nc3 Bb4 4.Nge2 dxe4 5.a3 Bxc3+ 6.Nxc3) GM Alexander Finkel
- Grabbing a Pawn in the Réti/Catalan (1.Nf3 d5 2.g3 c5 3.Bg2 Nc6 4.d4 e6 5.0-0 Bd7 6.c4) GM Glenn Flear
- Sicilian: Karma Chameleon (1.e4 c5 2.Ne2 d6 3.c3) GM Dimitri Reinderman
- The Centre Game in Viking Spirit (1.e4 e5 2.d4 exd4 3.Qxd4 Nc6 4.Qa4) IM Jeroen Bosch
- Slav: The Easy Way (1.d4 d5 2.c4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nbd2) GM Efstratios Grivas
- Spanish: Kortchnoi's Idea in the Central Attack (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bb5 a6 4.Ba4 Nf6 5.d4 Nxd4) GM Adrian Mikhalchishin
- Panic in the London (1.d4 Nf6 2.Nf3 d6 3.Bf4 Nh5) GM Dimitri Reinderman
- Pirc Defence - Taking off the Gloves (1.e4 d6 2.d4 Nf6 3.Nc3 g6 4.f4 Bg7 5.Nf3 0-0 6.e5 Nfd7 7.h4) GM Alexander Finkel
- New Recipe in Old Indian (1.d4 Nf6 2.c4 d6 3.Nc3 e5 4.Nf3 Nbd7 5.e4 Be7 6.Be2 0-0 7.g4) IM Jeroen Bosch
- Sicilian Mission: To Boldly Go... (1.e4 c5 2.Nf3 e6 3.d4 cxd4 4.Nxd4 Nc6 5.Nc3 a6 6.Bf4 d6 7.Bg3) GM John van der Wiel
- Surprising Sacrifice in the Giuoco Piano (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.c3 Nf6 5.d4 exd4 6.cxd4 Bb4+ 7.Bd2 Bxd2+ 8.Qxd2!) GM Ian Rogers
Another fine collection of off-the-beaten path openings!
