A Delayed Jerome Gambit

How does that horror movie voice-over go? "Just when you thought it was safe to play ...Bc5..." 

In the following 3-minute game Philidor 1792 is so interested in playing the Jerome Gambit that he is willing to drop a tempo (4.Bb3) in order to allow Black another chance to play ...Bc5. The defender, apparently suspicious of the "free" pawn on e4, ignores the capture and moves right along with White's plans.

Philidor 1792 - guest3
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Bb3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ 

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 

It should be noted that long-time Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member jfhumphrey has been arriving at this position with the tempo-eating 4.d3 and 7.d4; while equally-dedicated HauntedKnight has encountered 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5 Nxe5 6.d4 Nf6!? (leaving White a tempo up on the text game) on a number of occasions. Both Jerome Gambiteers play on the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS) and their games can be found in The Database.

Philidor 1792 has been here as well, in Philidor 1792 - guest1063, blitz 3 0, www.bereg.ru, 2013 (1-0, 37)

7...Nxe4 8.Qh5+ Ng6 9.Qd5+ Ke8 10.dxc5 Qe7 

11.0-0 c6 12.Qd4 d5 13.cxd6 Nxd6 14.Bd2 Qe5

Black, perhaps under-estimating the "strength" of White's Bishop's one-step, perhaps overly-focused on White's Queen (it happens in blitz), misses the "bigger picture".

15.Re1 Nf7 16.Nc3 Bf5 17.Rxe5+ Nfxe5 18.Re1

Encore!

18...Rd8

Collapsing.

19.Rxe5+ Nxe5 20.Qxe5+ Kf7 21.Qxf5+ Ke7 22.Bg5+ Black resigned

The Evans Jerome Gambit Declined

Philidor 1792's gambit play is out-running my naming nomenclature! In the game below, Black manages to decline the Evans Gambit, but accepts the Evans Jerome Gambit. I think...


Philidor 1792 - guest344
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 

The Evans Gambit. This time, Black declines the pawn.

4...Bb6 5.b5 Na5 6.Bxf7+ 

The Evans (Declined) Jerome Gambit?!

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Kf8 8.Bb2 

Varying from 8.d3 as in Philidor 1792 - guest2019, 3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013 (1-0, 33) and 8.Qf3+ as in Philidor 1792 - guest343, 3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013 (1-0, 41). 

8...Qh4 9.Qe2 Nf6 10.d3 d6 11.Nf3 Qh5 12.Nbd2 Kf7 13.0-0 Re8 

14.Rfe1 d5 15.e5 c6 16.a4 Bg4 17.h3 Bxf3 18.Nxf3 Re6

This gives White a target, and his pieces quickly swing into action.

19.Qd2 Nd7 20.Ng5+ Ke7 21.Nxe6 Kxe6 22.Bc3 Black resigned

Is There No Escape?

The following game is a beautiful example of the coordination of pieces and pawns that occurs in a deadly attack. Black's game slowly slips away, until he has nothing left but to face checkmate.


Philidor 1792 - guest1132
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 

4...Bxb4 5.c3 Bc5 6.Bxf7+ 

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ng6 9.Qd5+ Ke8

Instead, Charlick - Holloway, Australia, 1877 (1-0, 76),the earliest example of the Evans Jerome Gambit in The Database, continued 9...Kf8.

10.Qxc5 Nf6 11.0-0 Kf7 12.f4 Re8 13.f5 Ne5 14.d4 d6

15.Qb5 Nc6 16.Nd2 Kf8 17.Qd3 Kg8 18.Bb2 Qe7

Black has castled-by-hand, while White has readied his "Jerome pawns".

19.c4 Bd7 20.Bc3 Qf7 21.Rae1 Rad8 22.e5 dxe5 23.dxe5 Bc8

24.Qg3 Nh5 25.Qh4 g6 26.e6 Qe7 27.Qg4 Qc5+ 28.Kh1

28...Ne7 

Black might have done better by sacrificing the exchange to get rid of White's dangerous Knight, with 28...Rxd2.

Now White's attack crashes through.

29.Ne4 Qb6 30.fxg6 hxg6 31.Nf6+ Nxf6 32.Rxf6 Bxe6 33.Rxg6+ Kf7 34.Rf6 checkmate

And Yet Again!

In the following game Philidor 1792's discovers he must contend with the Evans Gambit, the Jerome Gambit, and the ever-ticking clock, in an aggressive 3-minute game.

Philidor 1792 - guest206
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4

4...Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.Bxf7+ 

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ng6 9.Qd5+ Kf8 10.Qxa5 b6

Black varies from the equally good 10...Qe7 of Philidor 1792 - guest23, blitz 3 0, www.bereg.ru, 2013 (1/2-1/2, 63).

11.Qa3+ d6 12.d3 Nf6 13.0-0 Bb7

14.f4 Kf7 15.Qb3+ Ke7 16.e5 Nd5 17.d4 dxe5 18.fxe5 

18....Re8 

Likely a time-slip.

19.Bg5+ Black resigned

Black will have to give up  a piece with 19...Nf6, and, after 20.exf6+ Kd7 21.fxg7 the advanced enemy pawn will also be a headache.

And Again!

Here we have another wild attack, and in a 3-minute game it can be a race as to what will finish off the Black King - enemy pieces or the clock.

Philidor 1792 - guest221
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4 

4...Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.Bxf7+ 

The Evans Jerome Gambit.

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ke6 9.Qf5+ Kd6 10.d4 

10...Qe8 11.dxe5+ Kc6 12.e6 Kb6 

Protecting the bishop and varying from 12...Qxe6 of Philidor 1792 - guest2001, 3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013, (1-0, 26).

13.Na3 d5 14.Rb1+ Ka6 15.exd5 

It looks like Black lost on time. He had 15...Qg6 as a defensive move, although after 16.Qf3 b6 (to castle-by-hand) 17.0-0 White would be better.

The Evans Jerome Gambit Strikes Again!

An abiding concern for Black, besides dealing with the attack that comes with the Evans Gambit and the Jerome Gambit, is not using up too much time figuring out how he is going to respond. Sometimes a successful defense over-the-board is undone by a shortage on the clock.

Philidor 1792 - guest2001
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.b4

The Evans Gambit.

4...Bxb4 5.c3 Ba5 6.Bxf7+ 

The Evans Jerome Gambit.

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.Qh5+ Ke6 9.Qf5+ Kd6 10.d4 

Philidor1792 tried 10.Ba3+ in 4 games against guest1321 in 2013, winning in 14, 16, 17 and 18 moves. 

10...Qe8 11.dxe5+ Kc6 12.e6 Qxe6 13.Qxa5 Qxe4+ 14.Be3 b6 15.Qg5 Qg6 

16.Nd2 Qxg5 17.Bxg5 h6 18.Be3 Ne7 19.0-0-0 Ba6

20.Nf3 d5 21.Rhe1 Rhe8 22.Ne5+ Kb7 23.f4 c5 24.g4 Rad8 25.Bf2 Nc6 26.Nf7

At this point, in a relatively balanced game, White won on time.

It Is Easier To Attack Than To Defend

Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Philidor 1792 has sent another batch of Jerome and Jerome-ish games played at the 3-minute time limit, showing that an attacking spirit is a very dangerous thing!

Philidor 1792 - guest2187
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.d4

This is a rare line (there are only 6 other game examples in the 30,000+ game The Database) whose idea is clear - more open lines at the cost of an additional pawn.

7...Bxd4 8.Qf5+ Kd6 9.Bg5 Nf6 10.Na3 Rf8 11.Nb5+

Another aggressive idea is 11.0-0-0. White is not going to win this game in a long, drawn-out ending - he is looking for checkmate.

11...Kc6

This is what he was waiting for. Instead, 11...Kc5 12.Nxd4 d6 and Black still has the advantage. 

12.Nxd4+ Kc5 13.Qxe5+ Kc4

The only way to prevent mate was 13...d5, but Black would still be lost. 

14.b3+ Kc3 15.Nc6+ Kxc2 16.Rc1+ Kd3 17.Qd4 checkmate

[January 2014 was the fourth-highest most-viewed month in this blog's existence, behind only December 2013, November 2013 and May 2011. Many thanks to Readers everywhere - Rick]