A Little Magic

It's always fun when the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) brings about a little magic. The following game starts off routine, moves to a middlegame that is 21st Century, and then finishes with a sparkle. I can overlook a number of blemishes along the way and appreciate the final position. 

perrypawnpusher  - pfink

blitz 10 0, FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5

My opponent plans a defensive setup using a fianchettoed Queen Bishop. This is a relatively new idea in the Jerome Gambit, one that I've seen only a few times.

One example came out of the Semi-Italian game: 3...h6 4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ng6 8.Qd5+ Kf8 9.Qxc5+ N8e7 10.Nc3 b6 11.Qe3 Bb7 12.f4 d5 13.f5 d4 14.fxg6+ Kg8 15.Qf4 dxc3 16.Qf7 Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - sarBear, blitz FICS, 2009.

4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

As with my game against sarBear, I think that the 6...Ng6 defense, while one of the recognized Jerome Gambit refutations, has the slight disability of losing the Bishop at c5 – allowing White's f-pawn to advance after he castles.

7.Qd5+ Kf8

An alternative: 7...Ke8 8.Qxc5 N8e7 9.0-0 b6 10.Qe3 Rf8 11.f4 d6 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc4 14.Qg3 Rf7 15.Nc3 Kf8 16.Bg5 h6 17.Bc1 Bb7 18.f6 Rxf6 19.Rxf6+ gxf6 20.Bxh6+ Ke8 21.Qg7 Kd7 22.Qg4+ Ke8 23.Qg7 Nd2 24.Qxf6 Bxe4 25.Nxe4 Nxe4 26.Qh8+ Kd7 27.Qxd8+ Rxd8µ 28.Re1 Nf5 29.Rxe4 Nxh6 30.Rh4 Nf5 31.Rh7+ Kc6 32.c3 Re8 33.Kf2 a5 34.b3 Rf8 35.Ke2 Re8+ 36.Kd2 Ne3 37.Rg7 Nf1+ 38.Kd3 Nxh2 39.g4 Nf3 40.g5 Nh4 41.c4 Nf5 42.d5+ Kb7 43.Rh7 Re7 44.Rxe7 Nxe7 45.Ke4 Ng6 46.Kf5 Nh4+ 47.Kf6 Kc8 48.g6 Nxg6 49.Kxg6 Kd7 50.Kf6 c6 51.Kf7 cxd5 52.cxd5 b5 53.a3 Kc7 54.Ke7 b4 55.a4 Kb6 56.Kxd6 Ka6 57.Kc6 Ka7 58.Kc7 Ka6 59.d6 Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - Lark, blitz FICS, 2009

8.Qxc5+ Qe7

9.Qe3 Nf6 10.d3 d6

Black by-passes the (probably better) freeing (and center-crunching) 10...d5 because he has a different idea in mind. The "hyper-modern Jerome Gambit"?

11.0-0 b6 12.f4 Bb7 13.f5

An alternative which was about equal to the text, with Black also having a bit of an advantage, was 13.Nc3, as in 13...Re8 14.Bd2 h6 15.h3 Qd7 16.Qg3 Ne7 17.e5 Nfg8 18.Rae1 Nf5 19.Qf2 Nge7 20.g4 g6 21.gxf5 gxf5 22.Re3 Rg8+ 23.Rg3 Kf7 24.Ne2 h5 25.Kh2 Rg6 26.Rfg1 Reg8 27.Nd4 dxe5 28.Rxg6 exd4 29.Rxg8 Nxg8 30.Qg3 Ne7 31.Qg7+ Ke6 32.Re1+ Kd6 33.Qe5+ Kc6 34.Qxe7 Qxe7 35.Rxe7 Kd6 36.Re5 Bc8 37.Kg3 Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - hogmaster, JG3 thematic, Chessworld,  2008.

13...Ne5 14.Nc3 Rd8 15.Qg3 d5

As planned, although after the game Rybka 3 was skeptical, suggesting that the following keeps a slight advantage for Black: 15...Kf7 16.Ne2 c5 17.Bg5 Rhe8 18.Nf4 Kg8 19.Ne6 Rc8. A pretty complicated position.  

16.d4 Nf7 17.e5

This was my planned reaction to ...d6-d5. My hope was to put my "Jerome pawns" to work before Black was able to play ...c7-c5 and trouble my center.

17...Nd7

This is an error – 17...Ne8 – was better; but I think my opponent decided to return a piece for a less-complicated game.

18.e6 Nf6 19.exf7 Qxf7

At first glance this does not look too bad for Black: he is down a pawn, but the open e-file suggests that the major pieces (Rooks and Queens) might be exchanged there, and the possible outpost for the Black Knight at e4 suggests an exchange as well; leaving a Bishops-of-opposite-colors endgame that could be draw-able.

Black can hope.

20.Bg5 h6 21.Bxf6 Qxf6

Keeping his Kingside pawns intact, although 21...gxf6 was stronger, as now White can grab the c7-pawn.

22.Qe5

Mostly a bluff, as I didn't think my opponent wanted me to have a passed, protected pawn at e5 in an ending. Pulling my Queen Rook over to the e-file was a better move for me.

Pfink should have swapped Queens.

22...Qf7 23.f6

Looks scary...

23...Re8 

A costly slip. 23...g6 was necessary, if uncomfortable, because Black's "Jerome Rook" is still stuck in the corner.

24.fxg7+ Kg8 25.gxh8Q checkmate

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, the Wizard of Draws

Every Game An Exploration, Every Move A Discovery

While I was planning what I thought would be a routine Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) treatment of the semi-Italian Opening (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6), my opponent was working to achieve a defensive formation that he had found in the past to be successful against a handful of White piece setups. As a result, we created something new and interesting.

perrypawnpusher  - sarBear
blitz FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6

4.0-0

Although I am still not sure that this is the best "waiting" move (as opposed to 4.Nc3) I keep playing it.

4...Bc5 5.Bxf7+

For the record, after the game I asked Rybka to "blundercheck" (at 5 minutes per move) and this is what it suggested that I play, instead of the sacrifice: 5.c3 d6 6.d4 exd4 7.cxd4 Bb6 8.Nc3 Nf6 9.h3 0-0 10.Re1 a6 11.Bf4 Na5 12.Bf1 White has a slight advantage.

analysis diagram

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ Ng6

Here, again, there is a choice of moves, and I think that the one played is not best, as it allows me to capture the Black Bishop on c5, which in turn releases the pin on my f-pawn without me having to spend a move with my King to do so. 

8.Qd5+ Kf8 9.Qxc5+ N8e7

This is a new move (9...d6 is more usual), and part of  sarBear's defensive formation.

10.Nc3 b6 11.Qe3

After the game Rybka suggested 11.Qh5 as better, but I don't think it fits in with what I'm trying to do.

11...Bb7

The fianchetto of the Queenside Bishop for Black in Jerome Gambit and Jerome-ish games is relatively modern – examples that I have are 21st Century ones.

I have faced something similar in one of my games, but, as usual, one of the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (in this case, Louis Morin) had earlier contact. 

perrypawnpusher - hogmaster, JG3 thematic chessworld, 2008: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.0–0 b6 11.f4 Bb7

guest1730 - guest1656, ICC, 2001: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 N8e7 9.0–0 b6 10.Qe3 Bb7




12.f4 d5

This is Black's idea, to delay castling-by-hand (generally an early anti-Jerome strategy) and hit hard at the center.

13.f5

Of course, my idea was if 13...Ne5 then 14.d4 Nf7 15.e5 when White's "Jerome pawns" are advanced and Black's light-squared Bishop is misplaced. 

13...d4

I think that my opponent was excited about this move, which may explain his upcoming error. Whenever Black is pleased to have reached equality in a Jerome-style game, given that he started out with a couple of extra pieces, something strange is going on.

14.fxg6+ Kg8

Rybka prefers keeping the King in the center with 14...Ke8, something that at first glance seems counter-intuitive. The idea, of course, is to develop the imprisoned Rook from h8 to the deadly f-file, such as: 15.Qf3 dxc3 16.Qxc3 Rf8

15.Qf4

I admit that this was a gamble, that I was pretty sure that sarBear wanted his piece back. The correct continuation according to Rybka was 15.Qd3 Nxg6 16.Nd5 with advantage to White. Surely then there would be a lot of play left in the position.

15...dxc3

Black's one move to avoid disaster was 15...Nxg6. It was a move worth finding, as 16.Qg4 dxc3 17.Qxg6 cxd2 would force White to take the perpetual with 18.Qe6+ Kh7 19.Qf5+ Kg8 etc.

16.Qf7 checkmate