[continued]
As noted in the previous post, I just completed my 3rd Jerome Gambit game in the first round of the "Italian Battleground" tournament at Chess.com.
The challenge after a dozen moves in this game was to transition from a wild attack to a more measured, patient approach, and then match wits with an opponent who had reset the battlefield as an endgame.
perrypawnpusher - zmarian
"Italian Battleground" tournament, Chess.com, 2018
12.Bg5 h6 13.Bxf6 Kxf6 14.Ke3 c6
15.Rhf1+ Ke7 16.Rf2 Raf8 17.Raf1 Rxf2 18.Rxf2 Be6
I had expected 18...Rf8 19.Rxf8 Kxf8 exchanging off the Rooks. Gaining control of the f-file isn't immediately helpful, but its value will grow.
19.Ne2 Bf7 20.b3 Re8
Black wanted to be ready for when I played e4-e5. On the other hand, I was trying not to play the move too early.
21.c4 g5 22.Nc3 Bg6
23.d5 c5
A committal move. I had planned to meet 23...cxd5 with 24.Nxd5+, infiltrating on the f-file. After the game, Stockfish 8 suggested the slow 23...a5 24.Kd4 h5 25.c5 dxc5+ 26.Kxc5 Kd7 27.Kd4 cxd5 28.exd5 Re1, and Black would continue to resist, although White would be better.
24.e5
24...dxe5
Black preferred not to face 24...Kd7 25.e6+ Ke7, but that might have been better.
25.Ne4
I was pleased with the clearance sacrifice, but, in all fairness, there were not a lot of ideas in the position, so I was bound to trip over it eventually.
25...b6 26.Rf6
26...Bxe4
Possibly hoping for 27.Kxe4? Kxf6, winning.
27.Re6+ Kf7 28.Rxe8 Kxe8 29.Kxe4 Black resigned
The pawn on e5 will fall, and then the ones on the Kingside.
I just completed my 3rd Jerome Gambit game in the first round of the "Italian Battleground" tournament at Chess.com. The win, making me 2 - 0 - 1 with my favorite opening, so far, should be enough to earn me first place in my group, and allow me to eventually move on to the second round.
perrypawnpusher - zmarian
"Italian Battleground" tournament, Chess.com, 2018
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+
Despite Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's early preference, and that of Bill Wall and others, I have only played 6.d4 once, and that game took a bit of a swindle for me to get a draw. To each one's own.
6...g6
This move was not a surprise. The best known Jerome Gambit game, Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1884 (see "Nobody expects the Jerome Gambit!" and "Jerome Gambit: Dr. Harding Checks In") features this move, and if my opponent was likely to know anything about the opening, this would be it.
7.Qxe5 Bxf2+
A bit of a surprise - but not really.
Instead of offering a Rook with the Blackburne Defense, 7...d6!?, or preparing a wicked counterattack with Whistler's Defense, 7...Qe7!?, my opponent plays what I have elsewhere referred to as an "inoffensive defense" (see "An Inoffensive Defense") and a "calming defense" (see "Nothing Happened").
The Database has a surprising 1,375 games with this position, with White scoring 53%, which compares favorably with ther 46% produced by 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+. (Nine games are mine, with White scoring 89%).
In our first game in this tournament, we quickly moved to an endgame where I was a pawn up - but it took some fancy calculating to win the game. My opponent currently has fashioned a very interesting blockading position in one of his other games (he is a pawn down) and should soon split the point. So, to see our game move quickly to a Queenless middlegame, with the promise of an endgame, was understandable - zmarian likes endgames.
8.Kxf2
ZahariSokolov of FICS has played 8.Ke2?!, but I can't recommend the move: 8...d6? 9.Qxh8? Qf6? 10.Qxh7+Kf8 11.h3 b6 12.Rf1 Ba6+ 13.d3 Re8 14.Rxf2 Rxe4+ 15.Be3 Qxf2+ 16.Kxf2 Black resigned, ZahariSokolov - Posapiano, standard, FICS, 2015.
8...Qf6+
Black did not improve things by playing 8...Qh4+ 9.g3 Qf6+ 10.Qxf6+ Nxf6 11.Nc3 Re8 12.d3 c6 13.Kg2 Kg7 14.Bg5 Ng4 15.h3 Nh6 16.Rhf1 d6 17.Rf2 Be6 18.Raf1 Rf8 19.Bxh6+ Black resigned, perrypawnpusher - Hensel, blitz, FICS, 2014.
9.Qxf6+ Nxf6
The curious game perrypawnpusher - ronn, blitz, FICS, 2009, continued 9...Kxf6 Black resigned.
10.Nc3
I have played 10.d3 a couple of times, in perrypawnpusher - Edvardinho, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 42) and perrypawnpusher - Dubnobase, blitz, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 49).
10...d6
Black has a number of replies. I have faced 10...Re8 a couple of times: perrypawnpusher - Conspicuous, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 22) and perrypawnpusher - BEEB, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1/2-1/2, 63).
(Oddly enough, I don't seem to have posted either of these games on this blog. I will have to remedy that.)
11.d4
Playable is 11.d3, which I have tried a couple of times: AlonzoJerome - adroit, blitz, ICC, 2011 (1-0, 25) and perrypawnpusher - HelloGoodbye, blitz, FICS, 2012 (1/2-1/2, 34).
(You wouldn't have known it by this blog, though: two more games to find and post. What was going on in 2011 and 2012, I wonder.)
11...Bd7
Interesting. Understandable was 11...Rf8, which I have also faced in perrypawnpusher - Mences, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 48).
(Also not posted here. Very odd. My "to do list" is growing.)
[To be continued]
