Jerome Gambit: Study This Game

One way of learning the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is to go beyond the opening moves and take a good look at middlegame structures, and the attacks that come out of them. The following game is worth playing over and over, to catch the ideas that underly the attack. Both attack and defense can be improved - but, that is the point: the more you study the game, the more you will understand.

By the way, the game arrived with the following encouraging note 

I've been experimenting with the Jerome Gambit in a few anon games on lichess.com, and this one in particular led to a pretty nasty attack and checkmate. I thought you would enjoy this game. I'm going to keep playing it until I see someone defend against it well.

Anonymous - Anonymous

5 3 blitz, lichess.org, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 

The Jerome Defense to the Jerome Gambit, played at least as early as Jaeger, D - Jerome, A.W., correspondence, 1880, but already suggested in Jerome's 1874 analysis in the Dubuque Chess Journal.

7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qg3 Qf6 

9.Nc3 Be6 10.d3 h6 11.O-O Ne7 

12.Kh1 Kf7 13.f4 Rhf8 14.Bd2 Kg8 

Black is keeping pace with White, and still holds his extra piece for two extra pawns. He has castled-by-hand, although in this case it provides less security than expected.

White now begins his Kingside attack.

15.f5 Bd7 16.Rf4 Rf7 17.Rh4 Kh8 18.Rf1 

White could also have brought his Bishop into the attack with 18.Bg5. Komodo 10 suggests that the only way Black could keep his edge would be to return his piece (for 2 pawns) with 18...Nxf5, or 18...Qe5 19.Bf4 Nxf5. The problem with 18...Qd4 is 19.Bxh6 and an even game (although Black has to see to his defense).

18...b5

A sharp distraction.

19.Qh3 Kh7 

Black protects his h-pawn, but he might have backed away, instead, with 19...Kg8.

20.Rg4 

Consistent, but 20.g4!? would have been sharper.

20...Ng8 

It was time to believe in his counter and try 20...b4 21.Nd1 d5 when he would probably be better in a complicated situation.

21.Nd5 Qxb2

Looking for safety for his Queen, at a distance, but 21...Qe5 was the way to keep an edge.

22.Bc3 

The last piece in White's attack.

22...Qxc2 23.Qh5 Raf8 24.Qg6+ Kh8 25.Bxg7+ Rxg7 26.Qxg7 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: An Exchange of Emails

Recently I had a nice email exchange with a Reader.

I’ve have been following your blog for a while now, so I considered myself prepared to deal with most lines within the Jerome. To my shock, my opponent proved me wrong with the Jerome’s Gambit declined. After the game, he told me that he opted to go for this line since it avoided the tricky positions of Jerome’s Gambit Accepted.

It lead to a simple open position, with white having a slight advantage. I would love to hear your thoughts on this.

I was happy to respond.

The Jerome Gambit [declined] is rare, but it provides and interesting challenge to White, what to do when the defender doesn't want a "won" game by accepting a ton of material - starting with the bishop - and instead chooses to sacrifice a pawn (and his castling rights) to get out of White's plans.

My database (mostly online games by average club players) has 330 games with 4...Kf8, with White scoring 56%. This always requires interpretation, because The Database has 15,220 games with 4...Kxf7, with White scoring 46%. So, from a practical point of view, although the Jerome Gambit Declined hasn't scored impressively for the attacker, it has improved his results.

There are three general responses to 4...Kf8, and there is not a lot of practical experience to suggest a choice, it's more a question of personal preference (so it is worth having a response prepared).

Simplest is 5.Bxg8, getting rid of the bishop. It scores well (59%) but it is an exchange of a piece that moves 3 times for a piece that hasn't moved at all (although Black will have to use up a move to recapture). Also, that bishop can be quite useful if it's still on the board.

Withdrawing the bishop to d5 (67%), c4 (52%), or b3 (61%) keeps it alive, but, again, it's taken 3 moves to get settled. The compensation is a pawn and Black's king's lack of castling power. 

Finally, there is the let's-stir-things-up-further 5.Nxe5, which scored only 50%, but which certainly provides Black with many ways to go wrong.

Komodo 10, at 28 ply, prefers 5.Bb3 by 2/100ths of a pawn (!) over 5.Bd5 and rates White to be about 1 1/2 pawns better. (I suppose that means that it considers a displaced king as 1/2 of a pawn of liability. Interesting.)

My preference has been 5.Bb3. I am not convinced by 5.Bd5, as the bishop is immediately hit by 5...Nf6, and if I had wanted to exchange pieces I would have done it by 5.Bxg8. Also, the "threat" of 6.Bxc6 bxc6 7.Nxe5 is not very strong, as White's e-pawn will be at risk, too.

I haven't studied 5.Nxe5 enough, but, on the surface, it has the benefit of continuing along regular Jerome Gambit lines, and if Black ever captures the bishop, then the game has transposed, with Black a move down. The problem, however, is that after 5...Nxe5, if White continues with the normal 6.d4, looking for transposition, Black has 6...Bxd4 7.Qxd4 Nxf7, and Black seems to have improved his position above normal lines. I have only one game with 7...Nxf7, a win for Black.

In your game, your opponent was able to get his knight to capture at e5, but it was too late, as your bishop absconded to b3. After 7...Qe7, things looked quite messy for White, but there is no question that he was better, as you demonstrated.

I liked that you focused on castling and piece development. What was the time control of the game? Was it at lichess.org?

After 12...d6, material was even, and you had a slight development advantage. His king was no safer - I like that he then castled-by-hand.

You handled the tactics that followed well. Exchanging your bishop for his knight was a good idea - the pawn on g5 was weak, and you avoided a bishops-of-opposite-colors endgame, which is notoriously drawn. When his c7 pawn fell, it was clear that you were much better.

Very solid game, especially given that you were surprised by 4...Kf8. Thank you for sharing.

Here is the game.

Rao, Bradley - Anonymous

Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kf8 5.Nxe5 Nf6 

A recent game showed Black capturing the Knight: 5... Nxe5 6.Qh5 Qf6 7.f3 Qxf7 8.Qxe5 d6 9.Qc3 Nf6 10.d4 Bb6 11.a4 a6 12.Na3 Bd7 13.Nc4 Ba7 14.Bg5 h6 15.Bh4 g5 16.Bg3 Kg7 17.e5 dxe5 18.Bxe5 Rhe8 19.O-O-O Kg8 20.Ne3 Bc6 21.Ng4 Nxg4 22.fxg4 Bxg2 23.Rhg1 Be4 24.Rgf1 Qe6 25.Qh3 Rad8 26.Rf6 Qc4 27.c3 Bxd4 28.Bxd4 Rxd4 29.Rxd4 White won on time, ianfencer - NathanKelly, 1 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020) 

6.d4 Nxe5 7.Bb3 Qe7 8.dxc5 h6 9.O-O Nxe4 

White is about to lose his pawn advantage, but Black's awkwardly placed King and Queen give the first player the advantage, which would be emphasized now by 10.Re1.

10.Be3 Nxc5 11.Nc3 Nxb3 12.axb3 d6 13.h3 Kg8 14.Qd5+ Kh7 15.Nb5 Rf8 16.Rfe1 a6 

White did not capture the a-pawn directly, so Black decided to defend it. The defender has castled-by-hand, and the game looks about even.

17.f4 Ng6 18.Bd2 Qf7 19.Qxf7 Rxf7 20.Re8 Nh4 21.Nc3 b6 22.Be1 Ng6 23.Bd2 Nh4 24.Kf2 Bb7 25.Rxa8 Bxa8 

26.g3 Nf3 27.Rxa6 Bc6 28.Be3 Ng5 29.g4 Nxh3+ 30.Kg3 Ng5 31.Ra7 Ne6 

32.f5 Ng5 33.Bxg5 hxg5 34.b4 Bh1 

A slip, allowing the win of a pawn.

35.Nb5 Bc6 36.Rxc7 Rxc7 37.Nxc7 Kh6 

White is a pawn up, but Komodo 10 evaluated the position as him being more than the equivalent of a Rook ahead. Why is that? Black's problem was that his pawns were all isolated and easy targets for the Knight. At the same time, Black's King could not leave the Kingside, so White's King could become more mobile.

What follows is a nice, technical win. 

38.c4 Bd7 39.b5 g6 40.f6 

Another problem: a passed pawn.

40...Kh7 41.Nd5 Kg8 42.Nxb6 Be6 43.Nd5 Kf7 44.b6 Bc8 45.Kf3 

White's King prepares to join the party.

45...Ba6 46.Ke4 Bb7 47.Kd4 Bc6 48.Kd3 Ba8 49.Nc7 Bc6 50.Nb5 Kxf6 51.Nxd6 Ke7

 

52.b7 Bxb7 53.Nxb7 Kd7 54.Nc5+ Kd6 55.Ne4+ Kc6 56.Kd4 Kb7 57.b4 Kc7 58.b5 Kb6 59.Kd5 Ka5 60.Kc5 Ka4 61.b6 Kb3 62.b7 Kb2 63.b8=Q+ Kc2 64.Kd5 Kc1 65.c5 Kc2 66.c6 Kc1 67.c7 Kc2 68.Qb4 Kc1 69.c8=Q+ Kd1 70.Qd2 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Help With Studies

It should come as no surprise that the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) doesn't always win. Readers of this blog usually send me their wins, but sometimes those wins are with Black.

Paolo De Santis recently sent me one of his games, noting "After Queen h5 I didn't remember the best move but I knew surely that the king must move to the center and not back. Finally I think White didn't play aggressive as the opening requests. I hope this game will help your studies."

I appreciate the help. Just like I enjoy answering the question "How did White win?" I find it educational to answer the question "How did White lose?" 

SayOne9 - Desa96

10 5 blitz, lichess.org, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

7.Nc3 

A natural move. Checking The Database, I see that it is relatively rare, with White scoring 5 - 6 - 1 for 46%. It is a solid developing move, and White is ready to kick the enemy Queen with Nd5, should she come, unprepared to f6; but 7.Nc4 is not very forcing. 

In comparison, The Database has 553 games with 7.f4, with White scoring 63%. The game immediately sharpens, as the first player wins back a piece, sometimes at the cost of not being able to castle Kingside.

The Database also has 550 games with 7.Qf5+, with White scoring 50%. Again, White is pushing the tempo of things.

7...Nf6 

Interesting. Another natural move. Probably better was 7...d6, holding onto the second extra piece.

8.Qh3+ 

White had some interesting alternatives.

He could have tried 8.Qf5+ Kf7 9.Qxe5 winning the Knight, but he had to be prepared for 9...Bxf2+!? (a novelty, not seen in the two relevant games in The Database), clawing back a pawn and forcing White's King to move, as 10.Kxf2 would be met by 10...Ng4+, forking the King and Queen.

Stockfish 11 prefers the retro move 8.Qd1, another novelty. It explores one wild line, 8...Bb6 9.d4 Ng6 10.e5 Ng8 11.h4 d5 12.h5 Nge7 13.g4, but, as much as I want to root for the pawns, Black is still up a couple of pieces. The same goes for 8...Bd4 9.Ne2 Bb6 10.d4 Nf7 11.e5 Ng8.

8...Kf7 9.d4 

White has to try something.

9...Bxd4 10.Bf4 Re8 11.Nb5 Bxb2 12.Rd1 Nc6 

White is working on his development, but his opponent has too many pieces.

13.Bg5 Kg8 14.O-O Rxe4 15.Nc3 Rc4 16.Nd5 Rxc2 17.Qf3 Qf8

 

18.Nxf6+ gxf6 19.Bxf6 Bxf6 20.Qg3+ 

Instead, 20.Qb3+ Qf7 21.Qxc2 would win a Rook. Interestingly, Stockfish 11 still rates Black in that position to be about a Queen ahead!

20...Bg7 21.Qxc7 d6 22.Rxd6 Bd4 

23.Rd1 Qxf2+ 24.Kh1 Bh3 25.Rd3 Qxg2 checkmate

Okay, that was helpful in studying the Jerome Gambit, even if it was a loss.

Jerome Gambit: Against A Decent Sparring Partner

Playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) against a top level computer at its highest rating would be a recipe for disaster. However, finding the right program at the right level of play means a decent sparring partner, and an enjoyable game. Here is an example, with another one in the notes.

carlopatti - Computer Level 6

Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 

(6...Ke6 7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qe7 9.d3 Nh6 10.Qxe5+ Qxe5 11.fxe5+ Kxe5 12.Rf1 Ke6 13.Nc3 Rf8 14.Nd5 Rxf1+ 15.Kxf1 Bd6 16.Bf4 b6 17.e5 Bxe5 18.Bxe5 Kxe5 19.Nxc7 Rb8 20.Re1+ Kd6 21.Ne8+ Kc5 22.Re5+ Kc6 23.Nxg7 Bb7 24.c4 Rg8 25.Nh5 Rh8 26.d4 a5 27.d5+ Kc5 28.b3 Ba6 29.Nf6 Kd6 30.Re4 Bc8 31.h4 Ba6 32.g4 Rb8 33.g5 Rf8 34.Ke2 b5 35.Nxh7 Rf7 36.Nf6 Rxf6 37.gxf6 Kc5 38.Kd3 a4 39.b4+ Kxb4 40.cxb5+ Kxb5 41.Kd4 Kb6 42.Re7 Nf5+ 43.Ke4 Nd6+ 44.Ke5 Kc5 45.h5 Bd3 46.Rxd7 Be2 47.h6 Nc4+ 48.Kf4 Nb6 49.Re7 Kc4 50.Rxe2 Nd7 51.f7 Nf8 52.Re8 Nd7 53.f8=Q Kxd5 54.Qe7 Nf6 55.Qe5+ Kc4 56.Rc8+ Kb4 57.Qc5 checkmate, carlopatti - Computer Level 6, Chess.com, 2020) 

7.Qxe5 Nf6 

When Black plays 6...g6 as part of a plan, he is ready to sacrfice his Rook after either 7.Qxe5 d6 or 7.Qxe5 Qe7. When he plays 6...g6 as a knee-jerk reaction to White's Queen check, he winds up protecting the Rook in this way, but dropping his Bishop.

8.Qxc5 Nxe4 

Yes. The computer risks 9.Qd5+ Kg7 10.Qxe4 because of 10...Re8, pinning and winning the Queen. Beware the e-file!

9.Qc4+ d5 10.Qd4 Ng5 11.O-O Bf5 12.d3 c5 

An interesting idea to exchange c-pawns, but the computer has not looked deep enough.

13.Qxc5 Rc8 14.Qxa7 Ne6 15.Na3 Rc7 

16.Nb5 Rc5 17.Qxb7+ Kf6 18.b4 Rc8 19.c4 Rf8 20.cxd5 Rc2

 

Black's Rook finally gets to c2 - without a pawn capture. It keeps White's Bishop off of b2, but the move costs material.

21.dxe6 Bxe6 22.Bh6 

White keeps coming with threats. Even a computer respects that.

22...Rg8 23.Rae1 Bc8 

Attempts at defense fail.

24.Qf3+ Bf5 25.Re3 Rc8 26.Rfe1 Qd7 27.Qf4 g5 28.Re6+ Qxe6 29.Bxg5+ Rxg5 30.Rxe6+ Kf7 31.Qxg5 Kxe6 32.Nd4+ Kd5 33.Qxf5+ Kxd4 34.Qxc8 

The smoke has cleared. The computer hangs on to the bitter end.

34...h6 35.b5 h5 36.b6 h4 37.b7 Ke5 38.b8=Q+ Kf6 39.Qb5 h3 40.Qbf5+ Kg7 41.Qcf8 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Overthinking? (Part 2)

[continued from the previous post]

perrypawnpusher - Tacotopia

1 day / move, Chess.com, 2020

 

Well, here we are. Sometimes the Jerome Gambit leads to a crushing win by White. Sometimes, Black defends well - the opening is refuted, after all - and White finds himself patiently looking for an opportunity to strike back. I placed my hopes on the central "Jerome pawns", but any success was going to take some work (and a little bit of help).

25.Ke3 b5 

I want my King in play. My opponent is planning a sort of minority attack.

26.Rf2 Be6 27.a3 a5 28.Ra1 

With the idea that if 28...b4 29.axb4 axb4 30.Rff1, not surrendering the a-file.

28...c4 29.d4 

A small thing. After the game, both the Chess.com computer and Komodo 10 rated Black as about 2 pawns better, but I was happy with my pawn center.

29...h5 

Labelled an "inaccuracy", but I think Tacotopia was trying to work on both sides of the board, using his centrally placed Bishop. The machines didn't like my next move, either.

30.c3 Rab8 31.h4 Bg4 32. Raf1 Re7 33.g3 

33...b4 34.axb4 axb4 35.Ra1 bxc3 36.bxc3 Rb3 37.Rc1 

All but one of my pawns were out of reach of my opponent's Bishop. His c-pawn could become a weakness.

37...Kh6 38.e5 

Advancing the other pawn might have been a bit better.

38...Rb5 39.Rf6 Bf5 40.Rc6 Bd3 41.Rf6 Rb2 42.Rf2 

Exchanging a pair of Rooks would make the defense easier.

42...Rb3 43.Rf6 Rbb7 44.Rf2 g5 

Hoping for 45.hxg5+ and his King could enter the play.

45.Rf6+ Bg6 46.Rc6 Rec7 

The Chess.com computer labelled this move a "blunder". After the exchange of Rooks, I found an amusing draw, but I think that even without the swap, a win for Black would have been difficult, and at least time-consuming.

47.Rxc7 Rxc7 48.d5 Rd7 49.d6 gxh4 50.gxh4 Bf7 

White's pawns were blockaded, but Black could make no further gains.

51.Rg1 Be6 52.Kd4 Rd8 53.Rf1 Kg7 54.Rg1+ Kf7 55.Rg5 Rh8 56.Kc5 Rc8+ 57.Kd4 Bg4 

Black's pieces deftly exchanged their defensive roles, to no avail.

58.Kd5 Be6+ 59.Kd4 Bg4 60.Kd5 Be6+ 61.Kd4 drawn by repetition

A hearty congratulations to Tacotopia, who shook off an almost 500 rating point difference and forced me to find a draw!

Jerome Gambit: Overthinking? (Part 1)

A while back, I posted about giving "Jerome Gambit odds" in one of my games, to a player rated lower than me. I predicted that the material that I sacrificed would offset the difference in strength, and that the game would end up a draw. And, so it did.

However, I have received a lot of games where "Jerome Gambit odds" have resulted in smashing wins for White - as well as games where White was the lower-rated player, and still won.

So, maybe I was just overthinking about my game. 

In any event, my opponent played quite well, and, if anything, he would be the one disappointed at "losing a half point". The Chess.com computer analysis after the game put it this way "One player was winning, but then blundered it away". I think that is a bit harsh, especially since its evaluation of Tacotopia's "Accuracy" was 97.3%, vs my own 95.5%.

perrypawnpusher - Tacotopia

1 day / move, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 6. Qh5+ g6 

According to The Database, I have been in this position 48 times, and have scored 89%.

7.Qxe5 Qe7 

Whistler's Defense. Prior to this game, I had a couple of wins and a draw against it, scoring 83%. (For the record, I have had 11 wins and 2 losses against the Blackburne Defense, 7...d6, scoring 85%.)

Capturing the Rook, now, is now a big problem for White - or, it should be. The Database has 498 games where White does so, and he scores an amazing 66%. Even in the 375 games where Black properly responds with 8...Qxe4+!, White scores a surprising 62%. 

Okay, okay, the position is complicated, but here are a couple of lines after 8.Qxh8 Qxe4+: 9.Kd1 Qg4+ 10.Ke1 Qxg2 11.Qxh7+ Kf8 12.Rf1 d5 13.d4 Bh3 14.Bh6+ Nxh6 15.Qxh6+ Kg8 16.Nd2 Re8+ 17.Kd1 Qg4+ 18.f3 Qe6 19.Ne4 Bf1 20.Qh7+ Kxh7 21.Ng5+ Kg8 22.Nxe6 Bd6; 9.Kf1 Qh4 10.g3 Qh3+ 11.Ke1 Qe6 12.Kf1 Nf6 13.d3 Qd5 14.Bh6 Qxh1+ 15.Ke2 Qxh2 16.Qg7+ Ke6 17.Be3 Bxe3 18.Kxe3 Qg1. Complicated, but Black is clearly better.

8.Qf4+ Qf6 

Black moved to g7 immediately in perrypawnpusher - tmarkst, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 43).

9.Qg3 Kg7 

I faced 9...d6 previously, in perrypawnpusher - alvarzr, blitz, FICS, 2014 (1-0, 49) and 9...Ne7 in perrypawnpusher - Yaku, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1/2 - 1/2, 26). 

10.Nc3 c6 11.e5 

My plan was to hold back Black's d-pawn, which would hem in his Bishop, which would block his Rook - a typical Jerome Gambit strategy. It did not work, however, and my opponent developed a more open position for his two Bishops. The simple 11.0-0 was a bit better. The Chess.com computer's post mortem suggestion was 11.d3.

11...Qf5 12.d3 d5 

13.exd6 Nf6 14.O-O Re8 15.Be3 Bd7 

16.Rae1 Nh5 17.Qh4 Bxd6 

Okay. Sometimes the Jerome Gambit leads to crashing victories for White. That's nice. Sometimes, however, Black defends well, and White has to move on to Strategy #2.

Here, the Chess.com computer evaluated Black as having a 1 2/3 pawn advantage here. That's not too much of a problem, but my attack had faded. My pawn majority on each side was only going to pay off in the endgame - if at all. It was clearly time to play solid defense, and see what my opponent could make of his advantage. Often this strategy pays off for the Jerome Gambiteer, if he is patient and alert.

18.f3 Bc5 19.Ne4 

The Chess.com computer suggested, instead, 19.Bd4+, with the idea, I guess, of 19...Nf6 20.Qf2 Bxd4 21.Qxd4. Komodo 10 had the follow-up, instead, 20.b4!?, with an idea that probably would have worked in blitz, 20...Bxb4 21.Rxe8 Rxe8 22.Bxf6+ Qxf6 23.Qxb4 - but not with a time control of one day per move. Besides, it recommended answering 20.b4 with 20...g5, and back White's Queen would go to f2, anyhow.

19...Bxe3+ 20.Rxe3 Nf6 

The Black Knight, having bumped the White Queen from her protection on the pawn on d6 - which was subsequently captured - returned to its proper post. While calling it a "good" move, the Chess.com computer preferred 20...Qf4, with an exchange of Queens. I suspect my opponent wanted to leave my Queen offside.

21.Ree1 

This is simply a mistake, although a small one (an "inaccuracy" according to the Chess.com computer). Instead, White could have won the exchange for a pawn with 21.Nd6 Qc5 22.Nxe8+ Rxe8 23.d4 Qxc2 24.Rxe8 Bxe8 25.Qc2. White would have a Rook and a pawn for two pieces, a slight disadvantage in the middle game, but maybe an edge in the endgame.

21... Nxe4 22.fxe4 Qc5+ 23.Qf2 Qxf2+ 24.Kxf2 c5 

Black had a piece for two pawns. He has played well, and held on to his advantage for a couple dozen moves. White had hopes for his protected, passed pawn, but he still looked mostly toward a draw - unless he received some help.

[to be continued]