Jerome Gambit: The Face Palm Variation

I need to spend a moment or two on a Jerome Gambit variation that has been bothering me for almost 20 years. (See "Another Way to Sacrifice the Knight" and "PSA 2.0" for a couple of rants.) A disreputable line in a disreputable opening, it keeps showing up in games. I would like to call it the Face Palm Variation.

SPOKLECHAT - anzali
5 0 blitz, FICS, 2020

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

 4...Kxf7 5.Ng5+

This line does not have a name that I am aware of. It is based on a tactical shot that may be clever, but not convincing. (I gave a warning about a decade ago in the post "Public Service Announcment".)

The Database has 568 games with the line, with White scoring 23%. The earliest games that I have (6 losses) feature TiFoZi, at FICS, in 1999. I will try to message him there, but, according to the site, the last time he visited was October 22, 2001.

I can understand that a Jerome Gambit player might try the line on a lark, especially at blitz or lightning time controls; I noticed Jerome regulars such as COMTIBoy, DragonTail, drumme, HauntedKnight, JKELSEY, majorminor, MyGameUMove, Petasluk, snthor, sTpny, superpippo, Teterow, thmavz, ZahariSokolov, and yorgos, have given it a try.

5...Qxg5 

Of course.

The Database shows that this capture occurred 415 times, that is, in 73% of the games. (White scored 16%.)

6.d4 

The idea: the pawn attacks Black's Bishop, while uncovering an attack on Black's Queen.

One of the reasons that White fares so poorly in this line is that White played this thematic move in less than half of the games where Black had grabbed the Knight. But, why offer the piece unless you had this surprise in store? Another way of offering "Jerome Gambit odds"? Inattention?

One downside of the whole idea is that Stockfish 11 now rates Black's advantage to be about the equivalent of two Rooks and a piece...

6...Bxd4 

Out of 195 games, 16 times Black fell for this "trap". That is not very often (8% of the time after 6.d4; 3% of the games where White plays 5.Ng5+), although, when it did happen, White scored 69%.

In 147 of the games, Black played 6...Qxg2, and White still scored 11%, which is kind of amazing.

For the record, 6...Qxg2 crushes. After 7.Rf1 (best) Qxe4+ (capturing on d4 is fine, too) 8.Be3 (8.Qe2 does not provide any relief: 8...Qxe2+ 9.Kxe2 Nxd4+ 10.Kd1 d6 11.Be3 Bf5 11.Na3 Nf6 is gruesome) Nxd4 9.Nc3 Bb4 10.Qd3 (Stockfish 10 prefers castling-by-hand with 10.Kd2 and 11.Kc1, but, really) Bxc3+ 11.Qxc3 Nxc2+ and that should be convincing enough.

But, in the game we are looking at, Black fell down the well...

7.Bxg5 h6 

Black has 2 pieces for his Queen, and might as well try his luck with 7...Bxb2, going after the enemy Rook. Things can get a little complicated after 8.Na3 Nd4, but 9.0-0 Bxa3 10.f4 puts the heat back on the Black King.

After 7...Bxb2, there is also 8.Qh5+ g6 (8...Kf8 9.Na3 Bxa3 [9...Bxa1 10.Nb5] 10.Qf3+ Ke8 11.Qxa3) 9.Qf3+ Kg7 10.Nc3 Bxa1 11.Nd5 and Black will not be able to hold onto his Rook and two piece compensation for his Queen, e.g. 11...d6 12.Bf6+ Nxf7 13.Qxf6+Kg8 14.Nxc7 and White is not only threatening to win the Rook, he threatens to move the Knight to e8 to aid in checkmate.

Again, back to the game.

8.Qf3+ Nf6 9.Bxf6 gxf6 10.Qh5+ Kg7 

11.Nd2 Bxb2 12.Rb1 Bd4 13.Nf3 Bb6 

Black has secured most of his pieces, but he has left one at risk - his King.   

14.Nh4 d6 

Defense is hopeless. For example, 14...Ne7, 15.Rb3 with the idea of moving over to g3.

15.Qg6+ Kf8 16.Qxf6+ Kg8 17.Ng6 Black resigned

The Rook at h8, and possibly the one at a8 as well, will soon be leaving the board.

Hats off to SPOKLECHAT, who took great risks, but also took advantage of his opportunities.

Jerome Gambit: Finish Quickly

There are so many ways for those who defend against the Jerome Gambit to wander off of the main lines. In the following game, the attacker strikes quickly, before his opponent has any more ideas.

Wall, Bill - Guest2021162
PlayChess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Ke7 

Ah, yes. As I noted in the game ZahariSokolov - mmamaju
standard, FICS, 2015 (0-1, 44) - See"Jerome Gambit: Chaos Rules")

Here we have the "Jerome Gambit, Paulsen Variation", otherwise known as "An Odd Line in an Odd Line". It is more of a psychological ploy than a solid defense...

It is a rare line - there are only 13 examples in The Database, with White scoring 77 percent - but it is worth knowing the best response, if only, like in the current game, you want to finish quickly.

6.Qh5

Brute threat.

6...Nf6

Okay, it turns out that Black is not messing with his opponent's head, he's lost in an opening that he was not prepared for.

Komodo 10 suggests that the defender's only hope is 6...Bxf2+ 7.Kxf2 Qf8+ when White can settle for a somewhat boring pawn-up Queenless middlegame: 8.Kg1 Nd4 9.Nf3 Nxf3+ (if 9...Nxc2, then 10.Qc5+ will win the Knight) 10.Qxf3 Qxf3 11.gxf3 Nf6.

On the other hand, perhaps a Jerome Gambiteer, seeking a wild attacking game, would be upset by a boring, pawn-up Queenless middlegame? Perhaps, with the right opponent, at the right time, Black might do well to try...

7.Qf7+ Kd6 8.Nc4 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Deep Dive (Part 3)

[continued from the previous post]

ZahariSokolov - GizmoClass
FICS, 2019

If you are attacking, and you slip up, you might be down some material. If you are defending, and you slip up, you might be down your King. Keep this bit of wisdom in mind, as the game progresses.

19...Bh3 

Black senses he has time to strike back, not only defend. He misses a couple of points.

First, White still has the threat of 20.Bb4, skewering Black's Queen and winning the Knight on e7; that was why 19...a5, covering the b4 square, instead of the text, was essential.

Second, White's last move contains the threat Qxb5 checkmate, if Black should ever move his Queen away from protecting the pawn at b5 - making 20.Be3, pinning and winning the Queen, a grave danger. (If 20...d4, then 21.Bxd4.)

20.Re1 

Saving the Rook, but missing the winning move just mentioned.

The game now has the feel of time pressure about it. 

20...Bg2 

Continuing to overlook the main threat, as does his opponent. 

21.exd5 Bxf3+ 22.Kc1 Bxd5 23.c4 

Dizzying. White did not have 23.Be3 at his disposal, instead of the text, because of 23...Qxe3+ 24.Rxe3 Bxb3 25.Rxe7 Rae8 26.Rxe8 Rxe8 27.Ke2 Bf7, and Black would have a piece for a pawn.

23...a6 

Not appreciating the fact that White's last pawn move restored a major threat. Better was 23...Kb7, tip-toeing away from the Bishop pin, and, after 24.Re5 Rhd8, maintaining a roughly balanced game.

24.Be3

Yes.

24.Bxc4  25. Bxc5+ Kxc5 26. dxc4 b4 27. Qe3+ Black resigned

Quite a battle!

Jerome Gambit: Deep Dive (Part 2)

[continued from the previous post]

ZahariSokolov - GizmoClass
FICS, 2019

The game is unblanced and getting more complicated by the move: both Queens are out, both Kings are uneasy. Black should try 10...Ne7, but he prefers to unblock his d-pawn, to allow him to develop his light-squared Bishop. White presses his attack. (Luckily, I have Komodo 10 to help explain things.)

10...Kc6 11.Qd5+ Kb6 12.Nc3 

White knows that he has the advantage, and that his focus is the enemy King. Development seemed most helpful, although Komodo 10 liked a few Queen checks followed by a pawn strike, instead: 12.Qb3+ Ka6 13.Qa4+ Kb6 14.b4!? when the Bishop will fall, one way or another. (Or, maybe not. Komodo 10 suggests that after 14...Bf2, White probably does best to play 15.Nc3, after which things continue 15...a6 16.Qa5+ Kc6 17.b5+ Kd6 18.Qb4+ c5 19.bxc6+ Kxc6 20.d4 when things are a royal mess, but the computer believes White to be better.)

12...Ne7 

In turn, Black would have done much better to move a pawn, first, tossing the extra piece to get his monarch some safety: 12...c6 13.Na4+ Kc7 14.Qxc5 Qxf4 15.Qf2 d6 and White is only up a pawn. 

13.Na4+ Ka5 

This is the kind of position that screams: tactics! White now has a checkmate - how?

14.Qb3

Another good move, although missing the better 14.b4+ Kxa4 15.Qb3+ Kb5 16.a4+ Kb6 17.bxc5+ Kxc5 18.Ba3+ Kc6 19.Qb5 checkmate. Nice.

14...Qh5 

Black protects his Bishop - and dreams of threatening ...Qxf3+, winning a Rook, if White ever leaves the pawn unprotected, or if he blocks his Queen's protection of f3 with Nc3 or c3 or d3.

15.Rf1 

The reasoning behind this move is unclear. White's best was probably 15.c4 c6 16.d4 and White's pressure would increase. As it is, Black gets a slight breather.

15...b5 16.Nxc5 

White could have grabbed a piece back with 16.Qc3+ b4 17.Qxc5+ Qxc5 18.Nxc5. 

16...Qxc5 

17.d3 d5

Overlooking a tactic.

18.Bd2+ Kb6 19.a4 

Missing the skewer 19.Bb4, winning the Knight on e7.

[to be continued]

Jerome Gambit: Deep Dive (Part 1)

It has been a while since I took a deep dive into a Jerome Gambit game, so I decided to inspect a 2019 game played by ZahariSokolov, online at FICS. He has 410 games in The Database, scoring 50%. Many of his games explore important lines, and can be quite complicated.

ZahariSokolov - GizmoClass
FICS, 2019

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6

What could be more understandable than wanting to hold on to your extra 2 pieces? It is too early in the game to assess whether GizmoClass is naive or knowledgeable in making this move choice. (The Database has 1,121 games with this position; White scores 54%.)

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Nf3+ 

Aha! The player of the Black pieces knows a bit about the Jerome Gambit, or he has a solid creative streak about him.

This Norton Defense, which first appeared in Jerome - Norton, correspondence, 1876 (0-1, 42), was referred to as "a new departure" in the September, 1876 issue of the American Chess Journal. "[...Qf6] is the usual play. The text move prevents White from castling."

The "usual play" appeared in Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's analysis of the Jerome Gambit that appeared in the April 1874 issue of the Dubuque Chess Journal; as well as in the games Jerome - Shinkman, Iowa, 1874 (0-1, 21) and Jerome - Brownson, Iowa, 1875 (1-0, 43).

The text move, 8...Nf3+, can be found in 14 games in The Database, with White scoring a deceiving 71% (Komodo 10 assesses the position as even). It can be contrasted with 8...Qh4+ 9.g3 Nf3+ , the "Nibs" defense, which dates back at least as far as 1899. (The Database has 54 games; White scores 54%.)

Interestingly enough, despite Black's apparent knowledge of the Jerome Gambit, only one other game by GizmoClass appears in The Database - a 83-move draw (6...Kf8) played against ZahariSokolov, 6 months earlier. Did somebody "book up", afterwards?

9.gxf3 

Capturing the Knight is best, but even the Gambit's creator slipped and chose 9.Kf1 in a game, instead: 9...c6 10.gxf3 Qe7 11.b4 Bb6 12.Bb2 Kc7 13.Qe5+ Qxe5 14.Bxe5+ d6 15.Bxg7 Bh3+ 16.Ke2 Bg2 17.Rd1 Ne7 18.Bxh8 Ng6 19.d4 Rxh8 20.Kf2 Nxf4 21.c3 Rg8 22.Nd2 Kd7 23.Ke3 Rf8 24.Rg1 Bd8 25.Kf2 Rg8 26.Ke3 Nh3 27.f4 Nxg1 28.Rxg1 Rg4 29.Nf1 Bh3 30.Ng3 Rh4 31.Nf5 Bxf5 32.exf5 Bf6 33.Rg3 Rxh2 34.a4 Rh1 35.a5 Re1+ 36.Kf3 Re7 37.Rh3 c5 38.bxc5 dxc5 39.Rh6 cxd4 40.cxd4 Bxd4 41.f6 Rf7 42.Ke4 Bxf6 and Black won, Jerome,A - Norton,D, correspondence, 1876.

To be fair, I should mention that I have played 9.Kf1 a couple of times, too - perrypawnpusher - igormsp, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 13), and perrypawnpusher - rheapennata, blitz, FICS, 2012 (1-0,12) - and ZahariSokolov has gotten away with 9.Kd1, as well in  ZahariSokolov - LAVAL, FICS, 2015 (1-0, 32). I have already argued, elsewhere, that "Good luck is better than a license to steal."

9...Qh4+ 10.Kd1

An earlier mistake that he shied away from was 10.Ke2, as in ZahariSokolov - Quarte, FICS, 2015 (0-1, 17); but it is hard not to enjoy the follies of an early computer against Jack Young: 10.Ke2 Qf2+ 11.Kd3 Qxf3+ 12.Kc4 b5+ 13.Kxb5 Rb8+ 14.Ka5 Bb4+?! 15.Ka4 Qxh1?? 16.Qe5+ Kc6 17.Qd5+ Kb6 18.Qxb5 checkmate

How should Black proceed?

Of course, 10...Qe7 11.Qd5 checkmate, is not optimal, at least for the defender, ZahariSokolov - GhengusFungus, FICS, 2014. 

Instead, 10...Qf2 allows White to sue for peace by initiating repeated checks, e.g. 11.Qe5+ Kc6 12.Qd5+ Kb6 13.Qb3+ Ka6 14.Qa4+ Kb6 15.Qb3+ Kc6 16.Qd5+, etc. Actually, the American Chess Journal editor William Hallock, commenting on Jerome,A - Norton,D, correspondence, 1876 (see above) wrote that after 10...Qf2 "Black has the better position". I challenged this notion in perrypawnpusher - Sir Osis of the Liver, Jerome Gambit 3 thematic tournament, ChessWorld.net, 2008, and, when my opponent was unwilling to split the point, I went on to win (1-0, 19).

ZahariSokolov had already faced 10...Nf6, which led to an edge for White, but he lost after an unusual and unfortunate oversight: 11.e5+ Kc6 12.exf6 d6 13.Nc3? Bxf5 14.d3 gxf6 15.a3 Qf2 16.Bd2 Qxf3+ 17.Kc1 Be3 18.Bxe3 Qxe3+ 19.Kb1 Qxf4 20.Ka2 Be6+ 21.b3 Qd2 22.Kb2 Rhg8 23.Ne4 Qe3 24.Rae1 Qd4+ 25.Ka2 Bxb3+ 26.Kxb3 Rg2 27.Rd1 Qb6+ 28.Kc3 Rag8 29.Nxf6 Qa5+ 30.Kb3 Qb5+ 31.Kc3 Qe5+ 32.d4 Qxf6 resigned, ZahariSokolov - panpanOneTwo, FICS, 2018.

Best is probably 10...Ne7, but that is not what GizmoClass played.

 [to be continued]

Jerome Gambit: Out of Order

Many a chess master has lamented, after a loss, that he had gotten his opening line out of order: instead of playing move A, and then move B, he started out with move B - and it made a grave difference.

The following game - with a time limit 20 minutes per side - shows that club players, too, can fall prey to that kind of "Ooops!", even in the Jerome Gambit. Ouch!


ZahariSokolov - JasonXu
20 0 blitz, FICS, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 

The Blackburne Defense. This can lead to the most notorious of Jerome Gambits, where White was crushed: Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1884. It can also lead to an analytical draw, as uncovered by Chandler and Dimitrov. Or, it can lead to success for White: The Database has 886 games with the variation, with White scoring 69%.

It all depends on how much the attacker and defender understand and remember.

8.Qxh8 Nf6 9.Qxd8 Black resigned

Oh, that's right - first you move the Black Queen to h4, then you develop the Knight...

A GM Faces the Jerome Gambit (Part 2)

[continued from previous post]

Cliff Hardy (2285) - GM Yasser Quesada Perez (2275), 

Lichess, 1 0, 2019

notes by Cliff Hardy and Rick

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5

Finally! A GM has walked into my trap!

4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ 

Interesting. Some players - including Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, at first - prefer 6.d4, instead. The line is less forcing than the text, and gives Black more chances to go astray. Would the GM have found the sharpest reply, 6...Qh4!? That is a tale for another day, another game.-Rick

6...Kf8 

So, is this the revealed wisdom of the grandmaster? Is Black's best defense to the Jerome Gambit the Jerome Defense, seen in two Daniel Jaeger - Alonzo Wheeler Jerome correspondence games,  from 1880, both wins by Black?

Not necessarily.

There are at least 3 ways to address this issue.

First, we can ask another "grandmaster", Stockfish 10, what its choice is. It prefers 6...Ke6 over 6...Kf8 by about 3/4 of a pawn, although, of course it sees both moves as decisive for Black.

Secondly, we can check with The Database, which will give feedback on the results of different defensive moves, drawn from online club level player games. There are 529 games with 6...g6, which can lead to either the Blackburne or Whistler's Defenses, and against which White scores a surprising 72% - no doubt because of the complexity of the play. There are 2,071 games with 6...Ng6, and 1,101 games with 6...Ke6; against each White scores 53%. Finally, there are 663 games with 6...Kf8, against which White scores 49%.

So, if the grandmaster is "thinking like a club player", he will choose 6...Kf8.

I am not sure that GM Quesada Perez has ever given a thought to the Jerome Gambit, let alone prepared a special "best" defense against it. I suspect that when confronted by the Jerome in a bullet game, he simply grabbed a move that looked okay, that didn't advance his King further into danger, and that didn't possibly weaken his pawn structure.

To be fair, if the GM had 8 seconds left on his clock at the end of the game, then he used up 52 seconds for 54 moves - an average of slightly less than a second per move. That he spent twice that average - a whole 2 seconds - on 6...Kf8, might be significant only in humorous commentary. (I recall a master suggesting that in over-the-board blitz games, it was best to choose moves on the side of the board closest to the clock.)- Rick

7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qg3 Nf6 9.Nc3 Qd7

Perez's 9...Qd7 caught me on the hop. With more time, I probably would have played 10.h3 here to stop black going for a queen swap with 10...Qg4. Keeping queens on the board, I think gives White better attacking prospects, though I'd be interested in what the database has to say about the success rates of White's different options on this tenth move!

9...Qd7 is a novelty, according to The Database, although there are a couple of related games that this game will transpose into:

ChessCoachUA - PArnaudov, 3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2017: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qg3 Nf6 9.d3 Qd7 10.Nc3 Qg4 11.Qxg4 Bxg4 12.h3 Be6 13.Be3 Bxe3 14.fxe3 Ke7 15.O-O Rhf8 16.Nb5 c6 17.Nd4 Nd7 18.a4 Rxf1+ 19.Rxf1 Rf8 20.Rxf8 Nxf8 21.Kf2 g6 22.Nf3 Nd7 23.b3 a5 24.Ke2 Nc5 25.e5 dxe5 26.Nxe5 Kd6 27.d4 Nd7 28.Nd3 Bf5 29.g4 Bxd3+ 30.Kxd3 b5 31.axb5 cxb5 32.e4 a4 33.bxa4 bxa4 34.h4 a3 35.Kc3 Nb6 36.Kb3 Nc4 37.c3 Nd2+ 38.Kxa3 Nxe4 39.c4 Black lost on time; and

ZahariSokolov - puthoor, 5 0 blitz, FICS, 2017: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qd5 Nf6 9.Qd3 Qd7 10.O-O Qg4 11.Nc3 Be6 12.h3 Qg6 13.Qf3 Ke7 14.Nb5 Bb6 15.d3 a6 16.Na3 Rhf8 17.Qe2 Rae8 18.Be3 Bxe3 19.Qxe3 Kd8 20.Qa7 Bxh3 21.g3 Bc8 22.Qd4 Bd7 23.Rfe1 c6 24.Nc4 Ng4 25.Nxd6 Re6 26.Nxb7+ Kc8 27.Nc5 Rd6 28.Qb4 Qh6 29.Nxd7 Qh2+ White resigned - Rick

10.0-0 Qg4 11.Qxg4

Escaping the queen swap with 11.Qd3?! looked a little silly, with the queen blocking the d-pawn. (Yes, see the ZahariSokolov - puthoor game, above - Rick)

11...Bxg4 12.h3 Be6 13.d3 d5 14.e5 Nd7 15.Kh1

15...g6

For a second, I thought I'd botched the game, as I missed that 15...Nxe5?? was a possibility. However, if that had been played, 16.Re1 Bd6? 17.Bf4! would then have been a strong line for White, winning the piece back.

16.Bh6+ Ke7 17.f4 Bd4 

I am not sure what is going on here. It looks like Black wants to attack White's pawn at e5, to make the advance of the "Jerome pawns" more difficult. Komodo 10 gives two interesting lines, both with the second player sacrificing the exchange and both leading to equality: 18.g4 Raf8!? 19.Bxf8 Rxf8 20.Ne2 Bb6 21.d4 c5 22.c3 and 18.g4 Be3 19.Nd1 Bb6 20.f5 gxf5 21.gxf5 Raf8!? 22.Bxf8 Rxf8 23.Nc3 Rxf5 24.Rxf5 Bxf5 25.Nxd5+ Ke6 26.Nxb6 Nxb6. - Rick

18.Bg5+? -++

The bishop was actually better placed on h6, where it would be hard for Black to remove it. On g5, it allows Black the chance of a bit of kingside counterplay by moving the h-pawn. 18.Rae1 would have been a better move, though Black would still have had a clear advantage. Unfortunately, after this move, I didn't really get back into the game. My 'trap' is starting to look not quite so good 😉.

18...Kf7 19.Rab1 h5 20.Ne2 Bb6 21.c3 

Hoping to get in d3-d4, but his opponent does not allow it.- Rick

21...Bf5 22.Rbd1 Nc5 23.Nc1 Ne6 24.Bh4 Be3 25.Ne2 c5 26.Bf2 Bxf2 27.Rxf2 d4 

White's extra pawns are blockaded. Slowly, Black makes his extra piece tell. There is a lot of serious strategy in this 1-minute game.- Rick

28.c4 h4 29.Kg1 a6 30.Kf1 b5 31.Ng1 Rab8 32.b3 bxc4 33.dxc4 a5 34.Nf3 a4 

35.Ng5+ Nxg5 36.fxg5 Ke6 37.Rf3 axb3 38.axb3 Rb7 39.Re1 Rhb8 40.Rf2 Rxb3 41.Ra2 Rb2 42.Ra6+ R8b6 43.Ra7 R2b3 44.Rh7 Rb1 45.Rxh4 Rxe1+ 46.Kxe1 

White still has two pawns for a piece, but Black has the dangerous passer.

46...Rb1+ 47.Kf2 Rb2+ 48.Kg3 Rb3+ 49.Kh2 Rb2 50.Rh7 Kxe5 51.Ra7 Kf4 52.Ra6 Ke3 53.Rd6 Rc2 54.Rf6 Rxc4 and White lost on time.

Wow.

Thanks, Cliff, for fighting the good fight - and then sharing it with us. - Rick