One way to win a chess game quickly is to play quickly. Of course, that is also a way to lose quickly. Of course, in 1-minute chess, everything happens quickly.
In the following game, Black is doing well until he gets carried away with his attack
angelcamina - kursad33x
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
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
It feels like there are a gazillion games with this position in The Database, but there are actually only 203. Still, White scores 71%, so that's worth mentioning, too. (angelcamina got here in under 5 seconds.)
10.O-O Kf7 11.f4 Qe7 12.Nc3 Re8 13.d3 Ng4
When in doubt, hassle the enemy Queen.
14.Qg3 d5
Sometimes the computer can be boring: it recommends, instead, 14...Nf6. The pawn at d5 is at risk.
15.e5 Kg8 16.Nxd5 Qc5+ 17.Ne3 Nxe3 18.Bxe3 Qxc2
The position is about even, but Black's forces carelessly rush ahead. This can be dangerous in bullet chess.
19.f5 Nxe5 20.Bd4 Nxd3 21.Qxg7 checkmate
I enjoy the many ways that defenders cope with the Jerome Gambit. Some solutions are quite creative, and open a window into the minds of their creators.
angelcamina - ShadowKnight314
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 Bxf2+
Many Jerome Gambiteers have faced this home brew, including: annicks, blackburne, chessmanjeff, fehim, Gandybh, mrjoker, perrypawnpusher, Petasluk, shugart, Superpippo, UNPREDICTABLE, Wall and ZahariSokolov.
8.Kxf2 Qf6+ 9.Qxf6+ Nxf6
Black forced the exchange of Queens, taking the energy out of White's brash attack. However, the price is steep: he surrendered a "won" game for one a pawn down. Nonetheless, it can almost be considered a psychological counter-gambit, as White now has to come up with a whole new, quieter, game plan.
It is often easier to play quickly when you are ahead in material, and this becomes a factor in the game.
10.d3 d6 11.Rf1 Kg7 12.b3 Bg4 13.Bb2 Rhf8 14.Kg3 Bd7 15.Nd2 Kg8
Ooops! The time control is 1 minute, no increment, and this slip is going to make Black's chances shrink further.
16.Rxf6 Rxf6 17.Bxf6 Rf8 18.Bd4 c5 19.Bc3 b5 20.Rf1 Re8
21.Ba5 b4 22.Bc7 Re6 23.Nc4 Bb5 24.Nxd6 a6 25.Nxb5 axb5
26.e5 c4 27.dxc4 bxc4 28.bxc4 Rc6 29.Bd6 Rxc4 30.Rf2 Rc3+ 31.Kf4 Rc4+ 32.Ke3 Black lost on time
In the following bullet game - time control of one minute, no increment - Jerome Gambit veteran angelcamina plays a variation that has a brutal refutation; but his opponent does not reply sharply enough. The game dances on a knife's edge, and then White breaks through. It is fascinating to watch the thinking at an extremely rapid rate.
angelcamina - Marlon_Romano
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 Qe7
This is Whistler's Defense, which is relatively less complicated, but more dangerous, than Blackburne's Defense (7...d6). The Rook should not now be taken. That being said, the game remains quite complicated.
8.Qxh8
Wow. angelcamina has been here before, and should know the risks. Maybe he does. Maybe he likes the chaos.
8...Nf6
Black locks in White's Queen. This is a theme that can be found in Blackburne's Defense; it will be followed by developing Black's light-squared Bishop, attacking the White Queen with the remaining Rook.
Perhaps Marlon_Romano is familiar with Blackburne's Defense to the Jerome Gambit, but he seems less familiar with Whistler's Defense, which requires 8...Qxe4+ to start a ferocious attack on White's King. An earlier example is angelcamina - ssez222, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2018 - yes, even against the virulent counter-attack, angelcamina succeeded.
9.O-O
White realizes that he needs to safeguard his King, and this move leads to a relatively even game; but he could have combined defense with offense with the move 9.d3. He immediately shows an awareness of this.
9...b6
Getting ready to uncover the Rook to attack the Queen.
10.e5 Qxe5 11.d4 Bxd4
Opening the c1-h6 diagonal for the Bishop in an attack that rescues the Queen.
12.c3
A temporary slip. White quickly turns back to attack.
12...Bc5
Taking the Bishop out of danger, and preparing to reposition it; but, likewise, a slip. 12...Bb7 was the consistent move.
13.Bh6
Now the game is in balance: 13...Bb7 14.Qg7+ Ke6 15.Nd2 Bf8 16.Qxf8+ Rxf8 17.Rae1 Re8 18.Rxe5+ Kxe5 looks even.
13...Bd6
The checkmate threat is not enough.
14.Qg7+ Ke6 15.f4 Qc5+
White is up the exchange. His attack rolls on.
16.Kh1 Ba6 17.Re1+ Kf5
18.h3 Qf2 19.g4+ Black resigned
If you are going to play bullet chess, you have to be prepared for just about anything. The story of the following game is that Black was not prepared - for the Jerome Gambit.
angelcamina - ShadowKnight314
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1. e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 h6 5.O-O Bc5 6.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.
6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.d4 Bxd4 9.Qxd4
9...Qe7 10.f4 c5
Sometimes this pawn "kick" works, sometimes it doesn't. It is best to work it out beforehand, as there is not a lot of time to figure it out as the play develops in bullet.
11.Qxe5 Qxe5 12.fxe5 Black resigned
Black will be down a piece, with no compensation.
angelcamina, playing online at lichess.org, likes to play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and other Jerome variants in bullet games with a time control of one minute, no increment. (Kind of like heavyweight boxers, wearing roller skates, on ice.) He beats his opponents when he has the advantage, and he beats them when they have the advantage. Both ways, quickly.
angelcamina - regullele
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4
The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.Qh5
I have already pointed out
White's strongest move here is 6.c3, but any Queen move has to be scary for Black, and takes up thinking time to figure out how to deal with it.
6...Qf6
A little bit stronger was 6...Nf6, as in angelcamina - rabirabi, lichess.org, 2019 (1-0, 13) and angelcamina - shahramkhoshseffat, lichess.org, 2019 (1-0, 13).
7.Ng4
A small improvement over 7.Qe8+ in angelcamina -Skhokho1507, lichess.org, 2019 (1-0, 12).
7...Nxc2+
This fork is always tempting when it appears in the BSJG, but it would have been wiser to settle things down with 7...Qg6 8.Qd5+ Ke7 9.Qxd4 Qxg4 10.O-O Kd8, with Black for choice.
8.Kd1 Qg6 9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Ne5 Qe6
11.Qxe6+
The Queens probably have to be exchanged, but 11.Kxc2 Qxd5 12.exd5 was the way to do it, with a roughly balanced game. With the text, White sheds his advantage - which only means he has to work a little bit harder.
11...Kxe6 12.Kxc2 Kxe5 13.d3 d5 14.f4+ Kd4
Inexplicably headed for trouble. angelcamina obliges.
15.Re1 Be6 16.Be3 checkmate
The Four Knights Opening has a reputation for being somewhat drawish, so Black, in the following game, might have relaxed a bit when his offer of an Alekhine's Defense turned into a Four Knghts.
Of course, White's plans were anything but peaceful.
angelcamina - marcldk
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1.e4 Nf6 2.Nc3 e5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bc4 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4
Neg4
The Knight escapes danger, while thinking of aggression.
Best was probably 7...Bd6, which, in the regular Jerome Gambit line (minus Nc3 and ...Nf6), would be an error. With enough time, all this can be worked out; but, in a one minute game, who has enough time?
8.dxc5 c6
This creates a bit of a hole at d6 in Black's position, which White will eventually exploit.
9.O-O Re8 10.Bg5 Ne5
The Knight seems to have lost its sense of direction. It will eventually sacrifice itself for a couple of pawns, as a "scientific" response to the gambit, but things never work out quite right.
11.f4 Ng6 12.e5 Nxe5 13.fxe5 Rxe5 14.Bxf6 gxf6
Material is even, and the pawn at c5 looks about ready to fall, but the first player's lead in development is what really matters.
15.Qd3 Qg8
Protecting the h-pawn, but there is not time for that. Best was 15...Qe7, although the game would quickly slide downhill, anyhow: 16.Qxh7+ Ke8 17.Qg8+ Qf8 18.Qg6+ Kd8 19.Ne4!? another classic case of retarded development, Black's d-pawn blocking his light-squared Bishop, which, in turn, blocks in his Rook.
16.Rae1
This is a solid move, and White trades off his opponent's defender. With more time to calculate, he would have found (but didn't need) 16.Rxf6+ Kxf6 17.Re1+ and he would quickly recover his sacrificed Rook.
16...Rxe1 17.Rxe1 b6
Struggling to free the Queenside - too late.
18.Qd6 bxc5 19.Re7+ Kg6 20.Qg3+ Kh6 21.Qxg8 Bb7 22.Rxh7 checkmate
The following bullet game makes the Jerome Gambit look so easy... like a pleasant day in the sunshine. It is easy to see why angelcamina keeps coming back to the Jerome...
angelcamina - PMLJ
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
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 Qe7
10.O-O Nf6 11.Nc3 Bd7 12.f4 Bc6 13.d4
Think quick: as Black, do you want to grab a pawn, or do you want to edge your King out of the line of fire?
13...Kg8 14.e5 Nd5 15.Nxd5 Bxd5 16.b3 h6 17.c4 Bf7 18.f5
Those pawns!
18...Nf8 19.Bb2 dxe5 20.dxe5 Re8 21.Qg3 Nd7 22.Rae1
22...Kh7 23.e6 Bxe6
Hoping that returning some material will help. It won't.
24.fxe6
This is fine, and winning. More cruel was 24.Qg6+ Kg8 25.Rxe6.
24...Nf6 25.Qd3+ Kg8 26.Qg6 Rd8 27.Bxf6
Black resigned
Winning with the Jerome Gambit is fun.
Checkmating your opponent with the Jerome Gambit is even more fun.
Checkmating your opponent with the Jerome Gambit in a 1 0 bullet game is even more fun, on top of that.
Let angelcamina, at lichess.org, show you.
angelcamina - khoshghadam
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6
7.f4 g6
A knee-jerk reaction - Kick that Queen! - that surrenders Black's advantage. The defender spent 3 seconds on this move, which is a bit of a luxury in a bullet game, and which illustrates the dangers of facing the Jerome Gambit at high speed: it's a whole lot easier to figure out a defense when you have time enough to think about it.
8.Qxe5+ Kf7 9.Qxc5
Recently, we saw Bill Wall capture the Rook at h8, instead.
9...d6 10.Qe3 Nf6 11.O-O Re8 12.d3 Bg4
I am not sure what this move is about. Black could have hit the center with 12...d5, or protected a part of it with 12...c6, instead.
13.h3 Bd7 14.Nc3 Bc6 15.Qg3 d5
Okay, but White's attack rolls on.
16.e5 Nh5 17.Qf3 d4
Black attacks a Knight while uncovering an attack on the Queen. However, White's natural response is sufficient.
18.Ne4 Ng7
Anticipating action at f5, but he is already too late.
19.g4 Ne6 20.f5
20...Bxe4 21.dxe4
If you saw that 21.fxg6+ right away led to an even faster checkmate, good for you.
21...Ng5 22.fxg6+ Kxg6 23.Qf5+ Kg7 24.Bxg5 Qc8 25.Qf7+ Kh8 26.Bf6 checkmate
A fun conclusion.
