It seems so unfair. Bill Wall's Queen gets to run abound the board, seemingly without consequence. His opponent's Queen, however, winds up tangled up in enemy pieces.
Here's Bill's latest Jerome Gambit, with some of his ideas and some of mine.
Wall,B - Guest7556673
PlayChess.com, 2014
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.Qb5+
More frequently seen is 9.Qe3, but Bill likes to be creative.
9...c6
Instead, 9...Qd7 was seen in Wall,B - Guest327668, PlayChess.com 2012 (1-0, 22).
10.Qb3 Qe7
Black also has 10...Nf6 as seen in Wall,B - Zhu,Y, Chess.com, 2011 (1-0, 19). Bill mentions the alternative 10...Qg5 11.g3
11.d3 Be6 12.c4 Nf6
Black has an extra piece and is better developed. His biggest challenge is to figure out how to further conduct the game.
13.0-0 Kf7
Bill points out Black's blow-up-the-center strategy: 13...d5 14.exd5 cxd5 15.Nc3
14.f4
Threatening 15.f5. Not wanting to let his b-pawn hang, Black fully retreats his light-square Bishop.
14...Bc8 15.f5 Ne5 16.c5+
This looks sharper than 16.d4 Ned7.
16...d5
Bill points out that 16...Ke8 and 16...Kf8 might be a little bit better.
17.d4 Ned7 18.e5
Threatening 19.e6. You have to love those "Jerome pawns".
Black decides to give back the extra piece.
18...Nxe5 19.dxe5 Qxe5 20.Nc3
Bill also mentions the pawn sac 20.Bf4 Qxf5 21.Be3.
20...Rb8?!
Bill sees as better: 20...Re8
21.Bf4
Or 21.Qa4 a6? (Black should retreat with 21...Ra8 22.Bd2) 22.Bf4.
21...Qd4+ 22.Kh1 Ra8
So far Black is holding things together, but the stress eventually shows.
23.Bd6 Ne8? 24.Rf4 Qe3
Or 24...Qd3 25.Rd1 Qe3 26.Rf3.
25.Re4 Qd3 26.Rd1 Black resigned.
Black must surrender his Queen, as the one escape - 26...Qa6 - allows White to play 27.Nxd5! when Black's only way of avoiding checkmate is 27...Nxd6, which would allow 28.Nc7+, and White will win the enemy Queen after all.
It is said that "variety is the spice of life."
While a defender may know that Bill Wall is going to play the Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+, he certainly will not know what variation Bill is going to spring upon him.
Wall,B - Guest2360621
PlayChess.com, 2013
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.Qa3
This is the 6th different Queen move that Bill has played in this position. As he notes, " I try to make a new move every time when I can, to see what happens. The Queen can probably go anywhere as long as it is not taken or trapped."
Previously,
9.Qe3 - Wall,B - Parsom, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 25); Wall,B - HeHe, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 19); Wall,B - Reza,A, Chess.com, 2011 (1-0, 43); Wall,B - G3LC, PlayChess.com, 2011 (1-0, 22); Wall,B - Guest3312852, PlayChess.com, 2012 (1-0, 26);
9.Qh5 - Wall,B - Guest1475978, Sofia, 2013 (1-0, 28);
9.Qb5+ - Wall,B - Zhu,Y, Chess.com, 2011 (1-0, 19); Wall,B - Guest327668, PlayChess.com, 2012 (1-0, 22);
9.Qc4 - Wall,B - Royercordova, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0,18);
9.Qc3 - Wall,B - NFTM, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 22); Wall,B - Jaar,J, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 19).
For the record, Houdini 3, given 10 minutes "thought" for "infinite analysis", prefers 9.Qe3 (-.92), followed by 9.Qc3 (-1.17) and 9.Qb5+ (-1.29).
9...Nf6
The current game is the only one in The Database with this line. Bill suggests as an alternative 9...Qh4.
10.0-0 Be6
Not 10...Nxe4? because of 11.Qa4+.
11.f4 Bf7 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc6 14.d5
Bill suggests as well the alternative 14.Qd3
14...Ne5
15.Re1 Qd7 16.Bf4 Nc4 17.Qc3 b5 18.b3 Nb6 19.e5 dxe5 20.Bxe5
Threatening 21.Bxf6+, winning the knight. Now Black could keep things in balance with 20...Nxd5, but the threatened discovered check is too uncomfortable.
20...Kd8 21.Bxf6+ Kc8 22.Bxg7
A little stronger might be Bill's suggestion 22.Re7
22...Rg8 23.f6
Threatening Re7
23...Nxd5 24.Qd4 Qd6 25.c4 bxc4 26.bxc4 Nb6
A bit better was 26...Nb4, threatening ...Nc2, winning the Rook, although White is still better after 27.Qxd6 cxd6 28.Nc3.
27.Qxd6 cxd6 28.Re7
28...Bxc4 29.f7 Bxf7 30.Rxf7 Nd7
The advanced "Jerome pawn" has cost Black a piece.
31.a4 Kc7 32.a5 Kc6 33.Na3 Nc5 34.Nc2 Rab8 35.Nd4+ Kd5
Black threatens 36...Rxg7 37.Rxg7 Kxd4
36.Nf5 Ne4 37.Rxa7
Threatening Ne7+, forking King and Rook, but Black had enough here and resigned.
The latest game from Bill Wall (with notes by him):
I played an interesting Jerome Gambit yesterday, and with a little luck I won in
22 moves. I sort of trapped his king and queen at the same time.
Wall,B - Guest327668
Playchess.com, 2012
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.Qb5+
[As seen in Wall - Yunfan, Chess.com, 2011, (1-0, 18) and Wall - Zhu, Chess.com, 2011, (1-0, 19) - Rick]
9...Qd7 10.Qe2 Nf6
11.d4 Qg4 12.f3 Qh4+ 13.g3 Qh5 14.Nc3 c6
15.e5 dxe5 16.0-0 Bh3
I expected that. Perhaps better is 16...Kf7, threatening 17...exd4.
17.Re1 Kf7
Or 17...Rf8 18.dxe5 Nd7.
18.Ne4
I wanted him to move the f6 Knight so I could get in g4 and not have hims sac to open up my king. I wasn't sure about 18.dxe5 Rhe8 19.f4 Bg4.
18...Nxe4 19.g4
This looked better than 19.Qxe4 exd4 and I am in trouble.
19...Qh4
The only place for the Queen and it seems trapped and out of play. I thought I could hold after 19...Bxg4 20.fxg4 Qh4 21.Qxe4.
20.Qc4+
Better than 20.Qxe4 Rhe8 21.Qf5+ Qf6.
20...Kf6
The king has to move somewhere. Perhaps better is 20...Ke8 21.Rxe4 Rf8.
21.Rxe4
I almost played 21.dxe5+ Nxe5 22.Qxe4, but Black has 22...Qxe1+! 23.Qxe1 Nxf3+ and Black wins.
21...Rhe8? 22.g5+ and Black resigned
If 22...Kf5, then 23.Qf7 mate. Black could hold out a little bit more with 22...Ke7 23.Rxh4 Nxh4 24.dxe5 Nxf3+ 25.Kh1, then 26.Qb4+, but White should win this.
