Along with the game Bill Wall sent (see "Strike First!") recently came the (somewhat abridged) note
Oh, I have all my games up to a few weeks ago on my chess page at http://billwall.phpwebhosting.com/ which may have more Jerome Gambits in it that you may not have seen... It is under the collections column called Bill Wall 1969-2015... Something like 43,800 games so far.
Chess players who enjoy unorthodox chess openings, take note! In addition, here is a short win by Bill, from about 60 new-to-me games I found in his collection. Wall, Bill - Kaefer PlayChess.com, 2013 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+
The kind of quick reaction that occurs in blitz, and gets punished, appropriately. 9.Ng5+ Discussed in "Recurring Theme". No doubt played in a nano-second by Bill. 9...Kg6 Or 9...Ke7 10.Qxe6 checkmate, hinders - Devotion, FICS, 2001. hinders played over 30 6.Qe2 games on FICS in 2000 - 2002. 10.Nxe6
Thinking back upon the post "Wrong Piece - Oh, Never Mind!" I had to chuckle at the other piece capture, 10.Qxe6. Black should respond with ...Nd4, but, instead played 10...Kxg5 in linders - Lader, FICS, 2000, when the following unfolded 11.d4+ (instead, he had 11.Qf5+ Kh6 12.d4+ g5 13.Qxg5#) 11...Kg6 12.dxc5 Nd4 13. Qh3 dxc5 14. Qg3+ Kf7 15. Qxe5 Re8 16.Nb5? b6? 17.Qg3? Ne2+ White resigned 10...Bxf2+ Black throws in the towel (and a few pieces). He could have continued to fight, as in an earlier game: 10...Qe7 11.d3 Rfe8 12.Ng5 h6 13.Nf3 Kh7 14.Nh4 Qe6 15.Qb5 Bb6 16.Na4 Nd4 17.Qb4 Nxc2 18.Qd2 Nxa1 19.Qe2 Bd4 20.Qf3 Qg4 21.Qd1 Qxh4 22.g3 Qh3 23.Qf3 Nc2 24.Bd2 Bb6 25.Nc3 Nd4 26.Qd1 Ng4 27.Qxg4 Qxg4 28.h3 Qxh3 29.Nd5 Ne2 checkmate, hinders - Matheusaum, FICS, 2001. 11.Rxf2 Nxe4 12.Nxf8+ Qxf8 13.Qxe4+ Black resigned
The following game has a surprise move in a less-than-usual line, and when I researched it in earlier posts, I found a number of editorial errors. Strange...
A delayed Jerome Gambit move order (or a transition to a "modern" Jerome Gambit line, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc3 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.0-0 Nf6), although there are about 550 examples in The Database. I have never played the line, but of course Bill Wall has, as have GeniusPawn, GmCooper, HauntedKnight, hinders, sTpny, Teterow, DragonTail and jrhumphrey, to name just a few. The line was looked at in the games aymmd - MOMLASAM, blitz, FICS, 2010(0-1, 19) and Wall, B - Guest848078, PlayChess.com, 2012 (1-0, 10) although there were diagram errors and references that subsequently needed correction in both posts. 5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Nf3+
A surprise, but not as strong as the routine 7...Bxd4. 8.Qxf3 The correct capture, with a roughly equal game. 8...Bxd4 9.Bg5 Overlooking something, perhaps already short of time. 9...Bxb2
Surprisingly, not Black's strongest move, although it does lead to some advantage. Rybka prefers 9...d6 10.Nd2 h6 11.Be3 Bxe3 12.Qxe3 Re8 13.f3 Qe7 14.Rad1 Be6 15.b3 Kg8 with a clear advantage. 10.Nd2 White should try 10.Qb3+, as after 10...Kg6 11.Qxb2 Kxg5 12.e5 he has chances against Black's uneasy King. 10...Bxa1 11.Rxa1 d6 White forfeited on time.
Sometimes the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) can be just plain fun: sacrifice a couple of pieces, create a crazy-mixed-up position, and confuse the opponent enough that he can be defeated.
But, what if your opponent fights back–hard?
That is what the following game is about, as we see Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Bill Wall overcoming some serious counterplay.
Wall,B - Letsplaychess blitz 10 0, FICS, 2011 notes by Bill Wall [and Rick]
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Nc6 4.Bc4 Bc5
[Italian Four Knights Game]
5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Qe2
[I was always curious about the attraction of this move. The game continuation shows one reason to play it. - Rick]
6...d6 7.Qc4+ Be6? 8.Ng5+
[There's that pesky Ng5+ again! Letsplaychess has been officially identified as someone who does not read this blog, or he might have been forewarned. According to The Database, an FICS player named hinders pulled off this maneuver a half dozen times in 2000-2002. - Rick]
8...Kg6 9.Nxe6
[Black has returned the sacrificed piece, but he is not content to shiver and shake in the dark. Hinders had it easier. - Rick]
Here is another short Jerome Gambit game from Bill Wall. It contains a motif that has showed up in recent posts – that of Ng5+ with an attack on Black's King as well as on a piece at e6 (see "Sunday Tournament Update" and "Ng5+") – and comes with a reminder that snap defensive moves can have long term consequences.
Bill has utilized the Qe2 attack before ("No Getting Around This Wall" is particularly interesting), so, for study purposes, I have included earlier games of his, even when he has played the move sooner than in the text. I have also included a number of games by hinders, of FICS, who played the line (with mixed success) a while back.
Here is the latest Jerome Gambit game from Bill Wall. It is another example of an opponent deciding, if you want me to play that, I won't! As usual, this means that Black exchanges a theoretically won game for one where he is immediately worse... Wall,B - Buster Chess.com, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kf8
Declining the Bishop. Buster has already shown in an earlier game against the same opponent (see "The Anti-Bill Wall Gambit") that he has his own ideas about the Jerome Gambit, and they do not include cooperating with White's plans.
5.Qe2
A move that Richard Moody, with his interest in early Queen creeper moves, would fully enjoy.
5...Qf6
The only other example that I have with 4...Kf8 5.Qe2 in The Database continued: 5...d6 6.Nc3 Bg4 7.Bd5 Nd4 8.Qd1 c6 9.0-0 Bxf3 10.gxf3 Qh4 11.d3 Nf6 12.Bxc6 bxc6 13.a3 Kf7 14.b4 Bb6 15.Na4 Qh3 16.c3 Nxf3+ 17.Kh1 Qxh2 checkmate, hinders - pvm, FICS, 2001.
6.Bb3 Nd4
Black has only a tempo (and a misplaced King) for his lost pawn. The text does not look like an efficient use of that "compensation".
7.Nxd4 Bxd4 8.0-0 d6 9.c3 Bb6 10.d3
10...Ke7
Black appears nervous about having his King and Queen on the same file as White's Rook, but expending a tempo to put his monarch further into the center only encourages White to offer a pawn to open lines of attack.
11.d4 Nh6
Black wants no part of something like the pawn grab 11...exd4 12.cxd4 Bxd4 13.Nc3 which could only go horribly wrong after a second helping of pawn: 13...Bxc3 14.bxc3 Qxc3 15.Bb2 and White's position looks like a Danish Gambiteer's dream.
12.dxe5 Qxe5
Keeping the d-file closed at the cost of having his Kingside pawns broken up.
13.Bxh6 gxh6
14.Nd2 h5 15.Nc4 Bg4 16.Qd3 Qc5 17.e5
17...Raf8
Black's pieces are developed, with pressure on the White King, but it is too late.
18.exd6+ cxd6 19.Rae1+ Kd820.Nxd6
This is more than just another pawn captured: it is another line opened against the enemy King.
20...Kc7 21.Re7+ Kb8 22.Rxb7+ Ka8 23.Qe4 Rxf2 24.Rxb6+ Black resigned
Of course, part of the fun of playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and related lines is that there is often a quick win (see "Eyeblink Chess: Crash" for the alternative) awaiting the attacker (with occasional help from the defender, of course).
(By the way, the character in the graphic is Perry the Platypus, a nice name in my opinion – but then, I'm perrypawnpusher, and I play the Jerome Gambit, the duck-billed platypus of chess.)
