The watchwords of Aaron Nimzowitsch (1886-1935) "restrain, blockade, destroy" come to mind in playing over the following game, as Black seems to utilize "hypermodern" concepts in has battle against a clearly "neo-romantic" chess opening.
It is one of the stranger Jerome Gambits I have ever seen.
Wall, Bill - Guest4149739
PlayChess.com, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
7.Qd5+ Kf8
More common is 7...Ke8.
8.Qxc5+ d6
There is also 8...Qe7, as in Wall,B - Quack, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 22)
9.Qc3
The more-often played 9.Qe3 is as old as Vazquez,A -Carrington,W, Mexico, 2nd match, 1876 (1-0, 34) and as new as Wall,B - Vijay,V, Chess.com 2010 (1-0, 22) and Wall,B - LC, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 20)
9...Nf6 10.d3 Qe7
A slight improvement over 10...c6 as in Wall,B - Boris, Sparkchess.com, 2012 (1-0, 32). So far, we have a normal Jerome Gambit-style position.
11.O-O c6 12.f4 Bd7 13.f5 Ne5 14.h3
Bill later suggested 14.Bf4.
14...c5 15.g4 Bc6
White has activated his "Jerome pawns" and in response Black has started to restrain them and - with his Knights - blockade them.
An indication of how further "odd" the position can get is in Houdini's recommendation, instead of Black's last move: 15...g5 16.Bxg5 h5 17.h4 hxg4 18.a4 Be8 19.Nd2 Bf7.
16.g5 Nfd7 17.b4 h6 18.g6 Qh4
Black has about had it with all of White's pawn moves (Bill has also created this impatience in his opponents with repeated Queen moves) and decides to become aggressive, here threatening 19...Qg3+.
19.Kh2 b6 20.a4
Instead, 20.Bf4 was a possibility.
20...Nf6 21.Bf4
Bill shows how things could go horribly wrong for White: 21.bxc5? Nd5 22.exd5 Ng4+ 23.Kg2 Bxd5+ 24. Kg1 Qg3 checkmate
21...Re8
22.Nd2 Nh5 23.Bxe5 Rxe5
Threatening 24.. .Qg3+.
24.Rf3
White's King is still at risk: 24.bxc5? Qg3+ 25.Kh1 Rxe4 26.dxe4 (26.Nxe4 Bxe4+ 27.dxe4 Qxc3) 26...Qxc3.
24...Ke7 25.Rg1
White completes his development (!) and sets an interesting trap for his opponent.
25...Bxa4
This can lead to a slight advantage for White (better was 25...Kd7), or a whole lot more.
26.Ra1 b5
Black protects his Bishop and blocks the a-file against the White Rook. Instead, he should have retreated his piece with 26...Bd7 and let the White Rook in, facing a small disadvantage. However, this was far from obvious.
27.d4
With this move White takes over the game.
27...cxd4 28.Qc7+ Kf6
This leads to checkmate, whereas 28...Ke8 only leads to disaster after 29.Qc6+
29.Qxd6+
A bit faster was 29.Rg1
29...Kg5 30.Rg1+ Black resigned
It is ironic that Black, ahead in development for most of the game, should have his King expire with a Bishop offside and a Rook lollygagging at home.
Here is the latest Jerome Gambit from Bill Wall. (Notes by Bill, unless otherwise indicated.) It features a Kingside pawn storm that proves to be Black's undoing.
Wall,B - Guest154187
Playchess.com, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6
10.0-0 Kg8
[This move seems to be a "TN", somewhere between the 10...h6 of Wall - LC, Chess.com, 2012 (1-0, 20) and the 10...Kf7 of Wall - Vijay, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 22) - Rick]
11.Qb3+ Kf8 12.d3 Ne5 13.f4 Neg4?!
Better seems 13...Nc6
14.h3 Nh6 15.f5 Qe7 16.g4 Nf7 17.Nc3 c6 18.g5 Nh5 19.g6 Ne5
19...Nd8 looks stronger. White cannot penetrate yet.
20.d4 Qh4?
Black tries for counterplay, but he should defend with 20...hxg6 21.dxe5 dxe5 22.fxg6+ Nf6.
21.Ne2
To stop the 21...Qg3+ threat.
If 21.dxe5?? then 21...Qg3+ 22.Kh1 Qxh3+ 23.Kg1 Qg3+ 24.Kh1 hxg6 threatening 25...Nf4 mate
21...Ng3?
Not 21...Nd7?? 22.Qf7#;
Best is 21...Nc4 22.Qxc4 hxg6 23.fxg6+ Ke8 24.Qf7+ Kd8 25.Bf4 and White should be slightly better.
22.Nxg3 and Black runs out of good moves and resigns.
He could play 22...Nc4, but now White plays 23.Rf3 and wins and not 23.Qxc4?? Qxg3+ 24.Kh1 Qxh3+ 25.Qg3+ 26.Kh1 hxg6+ and Black mates.
Every time I play a game that seems "good" to me, I turn it over to my friends Houdini, Rybka or Fritz and they tear it all apart.
Just this one time, let me keep the notes light and pretend that my Jerome Gambit's attack carried the day...
perrypawnpusher - yasserr
blitz, FICS, 2011
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
10.0-0 Kf7 11.f4 Re8 12.f5
There are a number of games in The Database with 12.d3, including some by mrjoker and myself, but I think the text, properly followed up, is better.
12...Ne5 13.Nc3
Hesitating, when 13.d4 was the right move, from Vazquez - Carrington, Mexico, 2nd match, 1876 (1-0, 34) to Wall -Vijay, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 22) and perrypawnpusher - whitepandora, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 64).
13...b6 14.d4 Ned7 15.Qd3 Bb7 16.Bg5 Qc8 17.Rae1 Ba6
18.Nb5 Bxb5 19.Qxb5 Kf8 20.Qd3 a5
I think my 18.Nb5 surprised my opponent, and after he exchanged off the piece (perhaps not figuring out what else to do) I sent my Queen back to support the center.
Yasserr's pawn move is odd, and I am not sure what he intended.
I intended a killing attack, but, as often happens, it deflated slowly, like a baloon losing air...
21.Bxf6 Nxf6 22.e5 dxe5 23.dxe5 Nd7 24.f6
24...g6 25.e6
After the game, my, er, friend, Houdini, suggested 25.Qh3 Kg8 26.f7+ Kg7 27.fxe8N+ Qxe8 28.e6 Nf6 29.Rxf6 Kxf6 30.Qc3+ Ke7 31.Qxc7+ Kf6 32.Qe5+ Ke7 33.Rd1 h5 34.Rd7+ Qxd7 35.exd7+ Kxd7 36.Qd5+.
25...Nc5 26.e7+
And here, 26.Qe3, with mate threats, is more brutal, i.e. 26...Nxe6 27.Qh6+ Kg8 28.Rxe6 Qd7 29.f7+ Qxf7 30.Rxf7 Kxf7.
26...Kf7 27.Qd5+
(Try 27.Qe3)
27...Ne6 28.Rf3 c6 29.Qb3
At least White will be able to exchange his "Jerome pawns" for the sacrificed piece.
29...Qd7 30.Rfe3 Kxf6 31.Rxe6+ Kf7 32.Rd6+ Black resigned
In a recent game by Bill Wall (see "Speaking of Bill Wall...") we can see some of the Jerome Gambit's (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) storied past, as well as understand why it is still being enjoyed by club players in modern times.
Wall,B - Vijay,V
Chess.com, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6
10.0-0 Kf7 11.f4 Re8 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Neg4
14.Qb3+ Kf8 15.h3 Nh6
Vijay improves on a game almost 135 years old!
Andres Clemente Vazquez, chess champion of Mexico, played two matches in 1876 with the American amateur William Carrington, winning the first one 12-3-0 and winning the second one 12-3-1.
Vazquez played the Jerome Gambit three times in the second match, winning each time.
The first game of the second match continued from the diagram above with Carrington returning a piece to break up White's center: 15...Rxe4 16.hxg4 Rxg4. Black had an even game, but was subsequently outplayed: 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 - Carrington, Mexico, 2nd match, 1876.
16.Bxh6 gxh6 17.Nd2
White's "Jerome pawns" are healthy (for the moment), and Black's Kingside haven has been wrecked, but the second player may still have a small advantage.
17...Nxe4 18.f6
18...Nxd2
Who hasn't complained: I can resist everything except temptation!
Here Black grabs a "free" piece and attacks White's Rook. The White Knight turns out to be "poisoned".
According Rybka, Black's best was 18...Nxf6, although White may be able to summon enough pressure along the f-file (Rf4, Raf1, Qf3) to keep the game in balance.
19.Qg3
19...Qd7
Black's best required a King walk during which he shed his two extra pieces: 19...Kf7 20.Qg7+ Ke6 21.Rae1+ Kd5 22.Qf7+ Be6 23.Rf5+ Kc6 24.d5+ Bxd5 25.Qxd5+ Kd7 26.Qxd2.
20.f7 Nxf1 21.Qg8+ Ke7 22.Re1+ Black resigned
