The Jerome Life: Scrambled

The Jerome Gambit and related openings have their main lines and strategies, but it is important to remember that many times those games quickly become scrambled - and players have to ask themselves why they are trying to remember the "right" moves in the midst of all the chaos. It is important to remember that in many club games, the winner is the one who makes the next-to-last error. 

susant - seanypf
blitz, FICS, 2012

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.Nc4 

This is an interesting idea - there are 140 examples in The Database. White scores 52%. The sharpest alternative is 6.c3.

6...Nf6 7.e5

Going right for the attack. White is most likely to decrease Black's advantage with 7.c3, however.

7...Nd5 

So simple - but so wrong. Stockfish 8 says this leads to an even game, preferring 7...d5, i.e. 8.c3 Nf5 9.exf6 dxc4 10.fxg7 Bxg7 with the advantage to Black. The extra White pawns don't compensate for the sacrificed piece, the computer believes.

As for game examples, The Database has only two, featuring 7...Ne4? Here they are, with light notes: 8.Qg4+!? (8.c3 Nf5 9.d4 [9.d3!?] 9...c6 [9...Kf7!?] 10. O-O b5 11. Ne3 g6 12. d5+ Ke7 13. d6+ Ke8 14. Nxf5 gxf5 15. Qh5 chekmate, DougDDG - nicapol, FICS, 2007) 8...Kd5? 9.Ne3+ (9.O-O!? d6 [9... Kxc4 10. Qxe4 d5 11. exd6 Bxd6 12. Nc3 c6 White is better] 10. Ne3+ Kxe5 11. f4+ Kf6 12. Qh4+ g5 13. fxg5+ Kg7 14. Qxe4 c5 White is better) 9...Kxe5 10.c3 (10. Qh5+!?) 10...d5 11.cxd4+ Kxd4 12.Nc3? (12. Qe2!?) 12...Bxg4 13.Nb5+ Kc5 14.Nc3 Nxc3 15.bxc3 Qe7?! (15...Qh4!?) 16.O-O? (16.Ba3+!) 16...Be2 17.Ba3+ Kc6 18.Bxe7 Bxf1 19.Bxf8 Rhxf8 20.Kxf1 Rae8 21Rb1 b6 22.Rb4 a5 23.Rh4 h6 24.Rg4 g5 25.Rg3 Re4 26.Rh3 Rh8 27.Nf5 h5 28.Ng7 h4 29.Nf5 Ra4 30.Nd4+ Kb7 31.Ne6 Rxa2 32.Nxg5 Rxd2 33.Nf7 Rd1+ 34.Ke2 Re8+ 35.Kxd1 Re7 36.Ng5 Rf7 37.Nxf7 c5 38.Rxh4 b5 39.Rh6 b4 40.cxb4 a4 41.Nd6+ Black forfeited on time, hest - alipax, FICS, 2010.

8.Qg4+ 

Not surprisingly, Stockfish 8 prefers 8.c3, with an even game.

8...Nf5 

An improvement over the earlier 8...Ke7 9.Qxd4 c6 10.d3 h6 11.Nc3 Nxc3 12.bxc3 g5 13.Ba3+ Ke8 14.Bxf8 Rxf8 15.Nd6+ Ke7 16.O-O Qb6 17.Qg4 Rf4 18.Qh5 Kd8 19.Qxh6 Kc7 20.Ne8+ Kb8 21.d4 d5 22.Qd6+ Qc7 23.Qxc7 checkmate, shredderchess - PsychoGod, FICS, 2011.

9.Qe4

Reasonable, as was 9.O-O Qh4 (9...h5 10.Qg6+ Nf6 11.exf6 Qxf6 12.Re1+ Kd5 13.Qxf6 gxf6 14.d3 Nd4 15.Ne3+ Kc6 16.c3 Ne6 17.b4 b6 18.Bb2 Bg7 19.a4 Kb7 20.Nf5 Bf8 21.c4 Bxb4 22.Re3 Rg8 23.Rf3 Kb8 24.Nd4 Bb7 25.Rxf6 Nxd4 26.Bxd4 Bxg2 27.Rh6 Be4+ 28.Kf1 Bxd3 checkmate, biased - suequntf, FICS, 2009) 10.Qf3 Bc5 11.c3 Qxc4 12.d3 Qh4 13.d4 Bb6 14.Nd2 Rf8 15.Ne4 d6 16.exd6 cxd6 17.Ng5+ Kd7 18.Qxd5 h6 19.Qe6+ Kc7 20.Qc4+ Kd8 21.Nf7+ Ke7 22.Re1+ Kf6 23.Nxd6 Nxd6 24.Qe2 Bf5 25.Qe7+ Kg6 26.Qxd6+ Rf6 27.Qe7 Raf8 28.Qxb7 Be4 29.Qxe4+ Qxe4 30.Rxe4 Rxf2 31.Be3 Rxb2 32.c4 Re2 33.c5 Ba5 34.Rg4+ Kh5 35.Rg3 Bc3 36.Rf1 Rxf1+ 37.Kxf1 Rxa2 38.Rxg7 a5 39.Rh7 a4 40.Rxh6+ Kg4 41.Rg6+ Kf5 42.Rg5+ Ke4 43.Re5+ Kd3 44.c6 Bxd4 45.Bxd4 Kxd4 46.Re8 Rc2 47.Ra8 Rc4 48.c7 Ke3 49.Re8+ Kd4 50.c8=Q Rxc8 51.Rxc8 a3 Black resigned, mhmf - JhondEdie, FICS, 2014.

White can't quite take advantage of the pin on the Knight at f5, as 9.Ne3 would be met by 9...Nxe3 10.dxe3 and now 10...d5 would prevent the new e-pawn from attacking the Knight, while 10...Qh4 would disrupt the pinning Queen.

9...Qh4 10.Qe2 

White's dilemma is that an exchange of Queens would allow Black's King to eventually escape his uneasy position in the middle of the board.

10...Nd4

11.Qd3 

Protecting c2 from the fork, but even the timid 11.Qd1 would fail - to 11...Qe4+ 12.Ne3 Nxe3 13.dxe3 Nxc2+, etc. White's game goes to pieces.

11...Nb4 12.Qb3 Nbxc2+ 13.Kd1 Nxb3 White forfeited by disconnection

Okay, so maybe it is a good idea to learn some opening theory.