Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit: Objective and Subjective

When putting together a Jerome Gambit repertoire, it is useful to have access to both "objective" evaluations - say, from a computer chess engine - and "subjective" evaluations - as from a collection of games that can tell you how successful a line has been. Often a move that is not "objectively" best may score very well in actual play. The following game, and its notes, illustrate this.

Anonymous - Anonymous
5 8 blitz, lichess.org, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit, a tricky, trappy line that Black hopes comes as a surprise for White.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, which usually comes as a surprise for Black.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 

Black often plays 5...Ke8, encouraging White's Queen, as several recent games show: 6.Qh5+ g6 (6...Ke7 7.Qf7+ (7.d3 Nf6 8.Qh4 d6 9.Bg5 dxe5 10.Nc3 Nxc2+ 11.Kd1 Nxa1 12.Nd5+ Kf7 13.Nxf6 Be7 14.Qh5+ g6 15.Qh4 Bxf6 16.Bxf6 Qxf6 17.Qg3 Rf8 18.f3 Kg8 19.Kd2 Qf4+ 20.Qxf4 exf4 21.Rxa1 Be6 22.Rd1 Bxa2 23.Ke1 Bb3 24.Kf1 White resigned, Akash_12345 - lord-stanly, 5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020) 7...Kd6 8.Nc4+ Kc6 9.Qd5 checkmate, Akash_12345 - Oliv99, 5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020) 7.Nxg6 hxg6 (7...Nxc2+ 8.Kd1 Nxa1 9.Nxh8+ Ke7 10.Qf7+ Kd6 11.Qd5+ Ke7 12.Nc3 Bg7 13.Qf7+ Kd6 14.Qxg7 Nf6 15.Nf7+ Black resigned, Akash_12345 - me_am_emson, 5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020; 7...Qf6 8.Nxh8+ Kd8 9.Nf7+ Ke7 10.Ne5 d6 11.d3 dxe5 12.Bg5 Nxc2+ 13.Kd1 Nxa1 14.Bxf6+ Nxf6 15.Qxe5+ Kf7 16.b3 Bb4 17.Qxa1 Bg4+ 18.f3 Be6 19.Qd4 Be7 20.Qe3 b6 21.Qf4 Bd6 22.e5 Be7 23.exf6 Bxf6 24.g4 Ke7 25.Qxc7+ Bd7 26.Re1+ Be5 27.Rxe5+ Black resigned, Akash_12345 - dibeantonio, 5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020) 8.Qe5+ Ne7 9.Qxh8 Black resigned, brunchess34 - Anonymous, Chess.com, 2020, 9...Ng8 Black resigned, Anonymous - Anonymous, lichess.org, 2020.

For the record, The Database has 1,788 games with 5...Ke8, with White scoring 60%.

6.Qg4+ 

The Database has 121 games with this move, with White scoring 42%.

Also recently seen: 6.Qh5 Nf6 7 Qf7+ Kxe5 8.f4+ Kd6 9.e5+ Kc6 10.exf6 Qxf6 11.Qc4+ Kb6 12.O-O a6 13.d3 c5 14.Be3 Be7 15.c3 Nc2 16.Qb3+ Nb4 17.cxb4 Kc7 18.bxc5 Kb8 19.Nc3 d6 20.Nd5 dxc5 21.Nxf6 Black resigned, angelcamina - luquitas2018, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020. The Database has 155 games with 6.Qh5, with White scoring 57%

White's strongest move, "objectively", is 6.c3. The Database has 392 games with 6.c3, with White scoring 62%.

6...Kxe5 7.f4+ Kxe4

One of the reasons White plays 6.Qg4, is so that if Black grabs the Knight, he can offer more material with 7.f4+, because if Black grabs the e-pawn... What happens next??

Don't worry. White was asked this question 24 times in The Database, and only scored 50 %.

Wait until next time! That's why I analyze games and share them. 

8.d3+ Kd5 9.c4+ Kc6 10.O-O Nc2 

There is nothing exactly wrong with this move, but shouldn't Black be thinking about safeguarding his King, not grabbing more material? If I were White, even though I was down 2 pieces, I would feel a stirring of hope.

11.Qf3+ Kb6 12.Qf2+ c5 

Proof that Black considers the game already won. Otherwise, what move would he have played that definitely would have produced "resigns"?

13.Qxc2 Qf6 

Amazingly enough, now, with 14.Nc3 (with the plan to go to d5) White would equalize.

14.Qb3+ Kc7 15.Qa3 d6 16.Nc3 Qd4+ 17.Kh1 Qxd3 

Time error?

18.Nb5+ Black resigned

Ow.

White never gave up.