The Eeeeeeeeeeeeeee File Again

Again disaster arrives down the e-file. Even if you are playing against a refuted opening like the Jerome Gambit, it is not a good idea to keep your King and Queen too long on an open file.

perrypawnpusher - OverwiseMan
blitz, FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

An earlier game with my opponent continued: 6...Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qe8 9.fxe5+ Kc6 10.c3 Ne7 11.Qg5 g6 12.d4 h6 13.Qg3 Bb6 14.d5+ Kb5 15.Na3+ Ka6 16.Qd3+ Ka5 17.Qb5 checkmate, perrypawnpusher - OverwiseMan, blitz, FICS, 2010.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 N8e7

More often seen is 9...Nf6. The text move can be a prelude to play along the f-file.

10.0-0

Or 10.f4 Rf8 11.0-0 Nc6 12.f5 Nge5 13.d4 Ng4 14.Qg3 h5 15.Be3 Nxe3 16.Qxe3 Qf6 17.c3 g6 18.Nd2 g5 19.e5 dxe5 20.dxe5 Qxe5 21.Qxe5+ Nxe5 22.Rae1 Kf7 23.Rxe5 Kf6 24.Re2 Bd7 25.Ne4+ Kg7 26.f6+ Kg6 27.Rfe1 h4 28.c4 g4 29.Rf2 Rae8 30.Rfe2 Bc6 31.Nd2 Rd8 32.Ne4 h3 33.gxh3 gxh3 34.Kf2 Rde8 35.Kg3 Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - taman, blitz, FICS, 2010.

10...d5

A good idea.

Earlier I saw 10...Be6 11.f4 d5 12.f5 d4 13.Qg3 Bc4 14.d3 Bxd3 15.cxd3 Nf8 16.Qxg7 Rg8 17.Qe5 c5 18.f6 Nfg6 19.f7+ Kf8 20.Bh6+ Rg7 21.Qxg7 checkmate, perrypawnpusher - perama, blitz, FICS; and 

10...Rf8 11.f4 c6 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Ng4 14.Qg3 Nf6 15.Qxg7 Rg8 16.Qxf6 Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - Kovrad, blitz, FICS, 2010.

11.exd5

After the game Rybka preferred 11.d3 followed by f2-f4.

11...Qxd5 12.Nc3 Qe5

The first confrontation on the e-file. I wasn't happy with the idea of exchanging Queens, but I couldn't think of anything better.

13.d4 Qe6

Puzzling: I thought he would have been happy with 13...Qxe3. Maybe he was thinking, If White wants to exchange Queens, then I don't want to.

14.Qg3 c6

15.Bg5 Nf5 16.Qd3 h6

Mistakenly assuming that White will move his Bishop. But, instead, there is the eeeeeeee-file!

17.Rae1 Ne5

Bad things are happening on the e-file, and this doesn't help. "Best" was 17...Kf7. 

18.Rxe5 hxg5 19.Rxe6+

Sufficient, but 19.Qxf5 was stronger.

19...Bxe6 20.Re1 Rd8

And White finishes up.

21.Rxe6+ Kf7 22.Qxf5+ Kg8 23.Qxg5 Rxd4 24.Re8+ Kf7 25.Rxh8 Ke6 26.Re8+ Kd6 27.Qe7 checkmate

Why must he lose to this idiot?

Not every chess player wakes up and says to himself (or herself) "I think I'll destroy a Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) today!" In fact, not many chess players even know what the Jerome Gambit is – so, it can be a puzzlement to not only be playing against it, but to find yourself losing against it...

perrypawnpusher  - Kovrad
blitz, FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

In our first attempt at a game, my opponent disconnected here, and FICS aborted the game. This was probably all beyond Kovrad's control, as he has this explanatory message posted at FICS "Please note that at times I can have a very bad internet connection. Therefore don't be surprised when I 'disconnect'. I will always try to come back and finish the game (though sometimes it's impossible). If my position is lost I will resign. Sorry for inconvenience."

Fair enough.

So I signed on again and challenged Kovrad again.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5

I found a couple of other games with my opponent defending against the Jerome Gambit:

5.d4 Bxd4 6.Ng5+ Ke8 7.c3 h6 8.Qh5+ g6 9.Qxg6+ Black resigned, DragonTail - Kovrad, FICS, 2009; and 
5.0–0 d6 6.c3 Ke8 7.d4 exd4 8.cxd4 Bb6 9.Ng5 Bxd4 10.Qh5+ g6 11.Qf3 Bf6 12.h4 Ne5 13.Qb3 Qe7 14.Nc3 c6 15.Bf4 h6 16.Bxe5 hxg5 17.Bxf6 Qxf6 18.hxg5 Qxg5 19.e5 Qh4 20.exd6 Qh1 checkmate, sebya - Kovrad, FICS, 2008.

6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 N8e7

Not as popular as 9...Nf6, but very clear: Black wants play on the f-file.

10.0-0 Rf8

Provocative was 10...Be6, as in 11.f4 d5 12.f5 d4 13.Qg3 Bc4 14.d3 Bxd3 15.cxd3 Nf8 16.Qxg7 Rg8 17.Qe5 c5 18.f6 Nfg6 19.f7+ Kf8 20.Bh6+ Rg7 21.Qxg7 checkmate, perrypawnpusher - perama, blitz, FICS, 2010.

11.f4 c6

Or 11...Nc6 as in perrypawnpusher - taman, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1–0, 35).

12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Ng4 14.Qg3

 14...Nf6 15.Qxg7

Despite appearances, everything is under control for Black. He can play the prepared 15...d5, and after 16.exd5 Qxd5 he is prepared for 17.Bg5 which he can meet with 17...Nxf5 18.Rxf5 Bxf5 19.Bxf6 Qf7 20.Qxf7+ Kxf7 21.Be5 Bxc2 when Black has an edge.

Instead, he played a reflexive move – and then resigned in apparent disappointment.

15...Rg8 16.Qxf6 Black resigned

Black is down three pawns, and the open lined to his King and the white "Jerome pawns" will cause more grief.

I am sure Kovrad was much too much a gentleman to exclaim, as Nimzowitsch once did, "Why must I lose to this idiot??"

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, The Wizard of Draws

Perhaps the best chess advice that I ever read...

...was that if your opponent attacks one of your pieces, don't hurry to move it away. First, see if there is an attack that you can make, one that is more serious than his, one that can allow you to ignore your opponent's threat while he pays attention to yours.

My opponent's play in the following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game shows that he was aware of that gem of knowledge, as well.

perrypawnpusher  - perama
blitz 10 0, FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

According to the updated New Year's Database, 6...Ng6 is the most popular reaction to the Queen check, followed by 6...Ke6, with 6...g6 and 6...Kf8 about equally third. All, of course, are considered refutations of the Jerome Gambit.

 7.Qd5+ Ke8

According to the Database, this move (first seen in Jerome - Brownson, Iowa, USA,1875) is about twice as popular as the reply 7...Kf8 (first see in Vazquez - Carrington, 2nd Match, Mexico, 1876).

8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 N8e7

Keeping the Knight out of danger, and preparing for ...Rh8-f8.

10.0-0 Be6

This move gives me a chance to complicate things.

Since Black has nothing to "prove" – he is comfortably ahead in material – he could rely on simple development and castling-by-hand to maintain his advantage: 10...Nc6 11.d3 Kf7 12.Nc3 Rf8 13.f4 Kg8

analysis diagram








11.f4 d5

Black's Bishop needed to move.

12.f5 d4

White attack's Black's pieces. Black, in turn, attacks White's Queen. In general, this is an admirable strategy, but in this particular case, to my good fortune, White's Queen can escape while maintaining threats.

13.Qg3 Bc4

Again: White threatens a piece, so Black threatens a Rook.

After the game Rybka suggested that Black could keep White's advantage to less than a pawn's worth with: 13...d3 14.cxd3 Qd4+ 15.Qe3 Qxe3+ 16.dxe3 Rd8 17.fxe6 Rxd3

analysis diagram







14.d3 Bxd3

Giving back the piece, although a stouter defense might have been to offer a Knight instead: 14...Bf7 15.fxg6 Nxg6.

15.cxd3 Nf8 16.Qxg7 Rg8

Stuck in the middle of the board, Black's King is in grave danger.

17.Qe5 c5 18.f6 Nfg6 19.f7+ Kf8 20.Bh6+ Rg7 21.Qxg7  checkmate