The following blitz game allows me to comment on a rare Jerome Gambit line (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.0-0 h6 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ by transposition) and an improvement for Black that has yet to be played, despite its mention here. perrypawnpusher - Duwasi 10 0 blitz, FICS, 2016 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 The Semi-Italian Opening. 4.O-O Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit. 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ g6
Black's best choice is 8...Bf8, as the Rook is then off-limits - 9.Qxh8? Bg7 10.Qh7 Nf6 and Her Majesty is doomed. White does best with 9.d4, but after 9...d6 10.Qb5 c6 11.Qd3 Black is better. It is possible that Black's move in the game - and the Rook sacrifice - was prompted by some knowledge of the game Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1885, but the addition of ...h6 and 0-0 in our game makes a big difference. 9.Qxh8 h5 10.Qc3
Quickly extracting the Queen, and unnecessarily so, as safety was no longer an issue. It was wiser to play 10.d4 Bb6 11.Qh7+ Kf8 12.Bh6+ Nxh6 13.Qxh6+ Kf7 and gain some more material. Still, White is the exchange and a couple of pawns ahead, and plays it safe the rest of the way. 10...Be6 11.d4 Bb6 12.d5 Bd7 13.Qf3+ Nf6 14.Bg5 Bg4 15.Qxf6+ Qxf6 16.Bxf6 Kxf6
I think Black played on because he was ahead on the clock and I was playing in an uninspiring manner - a reasonable idea, although, in this case, an unsuccessful one. 29...a6 30.Rf1 Bxd5 31.Rh8 Kxe6 32.Re1+ Kd7 33.Rxh4 Kc6 34.c4 Be6 35.Rxe6 b5 36.cxb5+ axb5 37.Rb4 Kc5 38.c3 c6 39.Ree4 d5 40.Rh4 Kd6 41.g4 Ke6 42.g5 Kf5 43.Rhg4 Kg6 44.h4 Kh5 45.Kg2 Kg6 46.Kg3 Kg7 47.Rbf4 Kg6 48.Rf6+ Kg7 49.h5 c5 50.h6+ Kh7 51.Kh4 d4 52.cxd4 c4 53.Rb6 c3 54.Rxb5 c2 55.Rg1 Kg6 56.Rc1 Kh7 57.Rxc2 Black resigned
While I was finishing up my games in the third round of the Chess.com Italian Game thematic tournament, I received a challenge from another player, and was able to inject some more Jerome-ish fun into my game.
We followed a line that I was familiar with, and although it took an odd turn or two, the result was pleasing. perrypawnpusher - eaadahl Chess.com, 2013 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian Opening. 4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit. I have played it 51 times, scoring 88%. pblond has two of the three wins against me; the other was an embarassing mouse-slip Queen-loss on move 8. 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ g6
The time limit on our game was three days per move, but obviously this was played too casually. 14.Bxf6 Kxf6 15.Nd5+ Kg7 16.Nxc7 Rb8 17.Nd5 d6
I was pretty sure that if I opened the game up, Black's two Bishops would be a good match for my Rook and Knight. Therefore I took some time to see how I could make use of my extra pawns. 18.c3 Be6 19.Nf4 Bf7 20.d4 Bb6 21.Nh3 Bc4 22.Rfe1 Re8 23.f4 d5 24.e5 Bc7 25.Nf2 a5 26.g3 b6 27.h3 Bd8
I don't think that my timid play impressed my opponent. 28.b3 Bb5 29.Rac1 Bc7 30.c4 dxc4 31.bxc4 Ba6 32.d5 Bc8
Black is ready to play cat-and-mouse, his Bishops against my pawns, but it is time to open the position and finish things up.
33.d6 Bb834.c5 bxc5 35.Rxc5 a4 36.Rb1 Ba737.Rc7+ Black resigned
The following game takes its time getting where it's going. In fact, it probably could have taken even longer, if my opponent had not forseen the future and decided to stop travelling.
perrypawnpusher - VGxdys blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian Opening.
4.O-O Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ng6 8.Qd5+
Interestingly, Rybka 3 (at a depth of 20 ply) sees this "nudge" as 1/2 pawn better than the immediate capture, 8.Qxc5.
Taking the King off of the dangerous e-file, if temporarily putting him on the dangerous f-file. Black's plan is to castle-by-hand, with the King ending up on h7. Instead a center strike with 11...Qe7 12.d3 d5 occurred in perrypawnpusher - LeifPetersen, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 30).
12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4
It was probably safer to play 13...Nf7, but who can resist harassing the Queen?
14.Qd3 b5
Oddly similar to our earlier game, referred to above.
15.b3 Nb6 16.Nc3 Kg8 17.Qxb5 a6 18.Qe2 Kh7
White has grabbed a Queenside pawn while Black has castled-by-hand on the Kingside. The game is about even.
19.e5 dxe5 20.dxe5 Nfd5 21.Bb2
Good enough, although with White's forces focusing on the f6 square, 21.Ne4 would have been even better.
The game has taken on some of the annoying aspects of the typical Jerome Gambit Bishops-of-opposite-colors endgame. Still, I was willing to exchange Queens and try my luck. Too, exchanging Queens was Black's best chance.
35.Qf1 Qe3+ 36.Kh1 Bxc2 37.e7 Bd3
A slip, which should have been punished by 38.e8/Q, winning the Bishop.
38.Qg1 Qe6 39.Bh4 Qf7
40.Qe1 Bb5 41.Qe4+ Kg7
Another slip: White can now check the King and win the Bishop.
My opponent seems to have been a bit too comfortable with his assessment of the endgame as drawish. That made two of us.
42.Qg4+ Kh7 43.Qe4+ Kg8 44.h3
A small idea, but a useful one. With the back-rank checkmate prevented, my Queen can wander more successfully, not just limiting herself to offeres to exchange or checks on the enemy King.
44...Bd7 45.Kh2 Qe8
White's e-pawn is effectively blockaded, his Queenside pawns will not produce a passer on their own, and creating one on the Kingside will expose the White King to plenty of attacks. A win for for me, if it is there, is a long way down the road.
46.Qc4+ Kh7 47.Qxc7 Black resigned
With my King safe, however, my pawns do not have to do it on their own. The Queen will soon pick off Black's a-pawn, and then White's Queenside pawns will begin to advance and assert themselves.
My opponent decided that there was no need to let things go that far.
It's hard to know what progress, if any, the following game shows for my recent play. Several times when things were getting interesting, the bottom dropped out of my opponent's play...
I have had similar positions coming out of the regular Jerome Gambit line (i.e. no ...h6, not yet 0-0) and it is clear that White benefits here from the Semi-Italian move order.
11...Qd7
A bit puzzling: I really don't know what this move was about. Black can't afford to throw tempi about. Instead, perrypawnpusher - apinheiro, blitz, FICS, 2011, continued 11...Rf8 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4 14.Qg3 Rg8 (1-0, 25)
12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4
14.Qe2
Grabbing a tempo by attacking the Knight, while staying on the e-file with the enemy King (and off the d-file with the enemy Queen). After the game Rybka expressed a preference for 14.Qg3.
14...b515.b3
Another kick at the Knight, while preparing to put my Bishop on the a1-h8 diagonal (a plan that I subsequently dropped).
An alternate idea was to undermine Black's Knight with 15.a4. It looks like after the consistent liquidation 15...d5 16.axb5 Nd6 17.Nc3 dxe4 18.Nxe4 Nxe4 19.Qxe4 Qd5 20.Qxd5 Nxd5 21.c4 Nf6 White's 3 pawns balance out Black's Knight.
analysis diagram
15... Ba6
A strange oversight. Retreating the Knight to b6 was the move.
16.bxc4 bxc4 17.Nc3 Rf8
The nice thing for Black about the Jerome Gambit is that he can often drop a piece, and still have a tolerable game.
Here, White is better (up a pawn, more center control, safer King) but the game is far from over. My plan was to break through with e4-e5, but only after I had made sure that I could do so safely and with proper development.
18.Ba3
Linking my Rooks and targetting e7 and f8.
18...Kd8 19. g4Nc620. Rad1
20...g521.e5 Nxd4
Again, incomprehensible.
22.Rxd4 h5
A spirited notion: how about some counterplay on the h-file?
23.h3
This was an I-don't-want-to-think-about-it-right-now move. Too bad I missed 23.Bxd6.
23...hxg4
24...Qh7
Planning to back the Queen up with ...Rh8 if he gets a chance.
He doesn't.
25.exd6 Kc8
If, instead, 25...c5, one of the few moves that does not lead directly to checkmate, I had 26.Qe7+, ending all counterplay and winning the exchange as well with 26...Qxe7 27.dxe7+ Kxe7 28.Bxc5+
Sometimes I look over a game that I have played and the strange thing seems to have little substance, being mostly bluster and a frantic waving of arms on my part.
On those sobering occasions, I console myself with having won the game, anyhow.
After the game I was testing a new engine, Houdini, and it recommended 14.Qe2, instead, leading to a highly tactical line, 14...d5 15.Nc3 Nd6 16.Bxh6 gxh6 17.f6, where best play by Black can keep White's advantage to a minimum, but poor play will be punished quickly.
14...Rg815.Nc3 Kf8
Walking into the line of fire.
16.b3
Houdini preferred 16.Qh4 with play on the light or dark squares, depending on how Black chose to defend.
16...Nb6 17.f6
This advance is premature. I needed more developed pieces to support an attack.
17...Ke8
It is true that after the correct 17...gxf6 White can continue 18.Bxh6+ and if 18...Kf7 thre is the exciting 19.Rxf6+!? with a continuing attack; but if Black's King retreats, instead, with 18...Ke8 White has no better than an even game.
Black's move in the game is an unfortunate oversight, and his game proceeds to unravel.
18.f7+ Kf819.fxg8Q+
Even stronger was 19.Bxh6.
19...Kxg8 20.Bxh6 g6 21.Rf8+ Qxf8 22.Bxf8 Kxf8
Black has only two pieces in return for his Queen, and White has open lines to continue his assault.
23.Qf4+ Kg724.Rf1 Be6
Losing a piece, but "best" according to Houdini was 24...Bf5, which still drops the Bishop.
I suppose I should take a break from playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), calm myself, do some more analysis of the opening and study to improve my game, especially tactics – but I can't stay away. If I give my favorite opening my best play, it usually returns the full point to me...
perrypawnpusher - apinheiro blitz, FICS, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6
The Semi-Italian Opening.
4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit.
5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ g6
Without ...h6 and 0-0, this would be the beginning of either the Blackburne or Whistler defense. As it is, stronger than the text would be 7...Ke6.
A couple of days before this game I faced the same (not-so-good) Bishop move in a regular Jerome Gambit (without ...h6 and 0-0) against Sirenus. The updated New Year's Database does not have an example of 8...Bd6 in the Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit – until now.
9.Qxh8 Qf6 10.Qxf6+ Nxf6
White is the exchange and a couple of pawns ahead. I should win – once I get past feeling shaky. (See "Crushed" and "A Severe Challenge" not to mention that my only win since was when my opponent resigned in a better position, "Worth the time?".)
11.d3 Be5 12.Bxh6
What is this? I'd like to pretend that it is a fancy sacrifice of the exchange, but it's simply a mistake – or it would have been, if my opponent had noticed, or if he hadn't been suspicious of my intent.
12...Ng4
Forcing me to fix my mistake at the cost of returning a pawn. Instead, Black had 12...Bxb2 13.Nd2 Bxa1 14.Rxa1 d5, when he would have recovered the exchange. He would still be worse, but not as desperate.
