Bill Wall is not a professional psychologist, but when it comes to playing off-beat chess openings, he understands a lot about how his opponents think. This can be of considerable help when playing the Jerome Gambit.
In some of the notes I give a number of complete Wall games that have been referred to in previous blog posts, but have never been presented in their entirety.
Wall, Bill - Guest2928386
PlayChess.com, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8
The Jerome Variation of the Jerome Gambit, played by Alonzo Wheeler Jerome against David Jaeger in correspondence, 1880.
7.Qxe5
d6 8.Qg3 Nf6 9.d3
Bill has also tried 9.Nc3 Nh5 (or 9...Kf7 as in perrypawnpusher - truuf, blitz, FICS, 2011 [0-1, 32] or 9...Ng4 as in perrypawnpusher - klixar, blitz, FICS, 2007 [1-0, 33]) 10.Qf3+ Qf6 11.d3 Qxf3
12.gxf3 Bd7 13.Ke2 Bd4 14.Be3 Bf6 15.Nd5 Bd8 16.Rhg1 Kf7 17.f4 c6 18.Nc3
g6 19.f3 Be6 20.Rad1 Rf8 21.d4 d5 22.Kd3 Bc7 23.Ne2 Ke7 24.e5 Ba5 25.c3
Bb6 26.a4 Rae8 27.Ra1 Ba5 28.b3 Kd7 29.Rg2 Kc8 30.Kc2 Ng7 31.Kb2 Kb8 32.b4 Bd8 33.a5 Bh3 34.Rg3 Bf5 35.Nc1 Ne6 36.Kb3 Be7 37.Rg1 Bh3 38.Nd3 g5
39.fxg5 Rxf3 40.Rg3 Rxg3 41.hxg3 Rg8 42.a6 Bxg5 43.Rh1 Bf5 44.Bxg5 Bxd3
45.Bh4 Bxa6 46.Kc2 Kc8 47.Rh2 Kd7 48.Rf2 Ke8 49.Rf6 Rg6 50.Rf5 b6 51.Rh5
h6 52.Bf6 Kd7 53.Rh3 Bc4 54.g4 a5 55.bxa5 bxa5 56.Rh2 a4 57.Kb2 Nf4 58.Ka3 Bb3 59.Rh4 Nd3 White resigned, Wall,B - Ahmadi,S, Chess.com, 2010.
9... Bg4
This is different that other defenses that Bill has either played or seen:
9...Nh5 10.Qf3+ Qf6 (10...Ke8 , perrypawnpusher - maxmi, blitz, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 42])
11.Qxf6+ Nxf6 12.Nc3 Ke7 13.Ke2 Be6 14.Be3 Bxe3 15.Kxe3 Ng4+
16.Ke2 Rhf8 17.f3 Nf6 18.d4 a5 19.a4 c6 20.Rhe1 Rae8 21.Rab1 Rb8 22.Kd2 Nh5 23.d5 Bd7 24.Re3 Be8 25.b4 axb4 26.Rxb4 Nf6 27.a5 c5 28.Rb1 Nd7 29.Nd1 b5 30.axb6 Nxb6 31.Kc1 Bg6 32.Reb3 Nd7 33.Ne3 Rxb3 34.Rxb3 Ra8 35.Kb2 Ra6 36.Rb7 Rb6+ 37.Rxb6 Nxb6 38.h4 Kf6 39.Ng4+ Ke7 40.Ne3 Kf6 41.g3 Be8 42.Kc3 Bg6 43.Ng4+ Ke7 44.Nf2 Be8 45.g4 Kf6 46.f4 Bb5 47.h5 h6 48.Kd2 Nc4+ 49.Ke2 Ne5+ 50.Ke3 Nc4+
51.Ke2 Ne5+ 52.Kd2 Nf7 53.Nd1 drawn, Wall,Bill - Guest6614602, PlayChess.com, 2014
9...Ng4 10.O-O Qf6 (or 10...Ke8 as in perrypawnpusher - salla, blitz, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 18])
11.c3 (or 11.Nc3 perrypawnpusher - marianomocoroa, blitz, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 14]) 11...Bxf2+ 12.Rxf2 Qxf2+ 13.Qxf2+ Nxf2 14.Kxf2 Be6 15.Nd2 Ke7 16.Nf3 Rhf8 17.h3
Rf7 18.Bg5+ Kd7 19.Kg3 h6 20.Bd2 g5 21.Rf1 Raf8 22.c4 c6 23.b4 b6 24.c5 g4 25.hxg4 Rg8 26.g5 hxg5 27.Rh1 g4 28.Ng5 Re7
29.cxd6 Kxd6 30.Rh6 Kd7 31.a4 Bf7 32.a5 b5
33.Bf4 Rg6 34.Nxf7 Rxh6 35.Nxh6 c5 36.bxc5 Kc6 37.Nf5 Re8 38.Bd6
Rd8 39.Nd4+ Black resigned, Wall,B - Filipmihov, FICS, 2012.
9...Kf7 10.Be3 Bxe3 11.fxe3 Rf8 12.O-O Kg8 13.Nd2 Qe8 14.Nf3 Bd7 15.Rae1 a5 16.h3 Nxe4 17.dxe4 Qxe4 18.Nd4
Rae8 19.Rxf8+ Rxf8 20.Rf1 Rxf1+ 21.Kxf1 Qe5 22.Qxe5 dxe5 23.Nf3 Bf5 24.Nxe5 Bxc2 25.Kf2 Be4 26.g4 Kf8 27.Kg3 Ke7 28.Kf4 Bb1 29.a3 Ke6 30.h4 c5
31.Nf3 b5 32.e4 a4 33.Ng5+ Ke7 34.Ke5 h6 35.Ne6 Bxe4 36.Nxg7 Bf3 37.Nf5+
Kf7 38.Nxh6+ Kg6 39.Kf4 Bd1 40.Nf5 b4 41.h5+ Kh7 42.Ne3 Be2 43.Nd5 bxa3
44.bxa3 c4 45.Nc3 Bd3 46.Nxa4 Bc2 47.Nc3 Bd3 48.a4 Black resigned, Wall,B - Badbeat994, Chess.com, 2010.
9...Be6 10.O-O Qe8 11.Be3
Bxe3 12.fxe3 Qg6 13.Qe1 c5 14.Nc3 Ke7 15.Nb5 Bd7 16.Nc3 Bc6 17.Rf3 Raf8
18.Rg3 Qf7 19.Rf3 g6 20.Qh4 Qg7 21.Raf1 g5 22.Qg3 Nd7 23.Rf5 h6 24.Qf2
Rf6 25.d4 b6 26.d5 Bb7 27.e5 dxe5 28.d6+ Ke6 29.Rxf6+ Qxf6 30.Qe2 Qg6 31.Qg4+ Kxd6 32.Rd1+ Kc7 33.Qxd7+ Kb8 34.e4 Qe8 35.Qd6+ Ka8 36.Nd5 Bxd5 37.Rxd5 Qb8 38.Qc6+ Qb7 39.Qf6 Qb8 40.Rd7 Qc8 41.Qg7 Rd8 42.Rxa7+ Kb8 43.Rf7
Rd1+ 44.Kf2 Rd2+ 45.Kg3 h5 46.Qxe5+ Ka8 47.Qxg5 Qg4+ 48.Qxg4 hxg4 49.Rf2
Rxf2 50.Kxf2 Black resigned, Wall,B - Milsrilion, Chess.com 2010.
9... h6 as in perrypawnpusher - caterwaul, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 39).
10.O-O
Bill takes a wait-and-see stance. Similar, but for comparison: 10.Be3 Bxe3 11.Qxe3 Kf7 12.h3 Be6 13.f4 c5 14.f5 Bd7 15.g4 Re8 16.O-O
Bc6 17.Qf4 Qb6 18.b3 Rad8 19.Nd2 c4+ 20.Kh2 cxd3 21.Nc4 Qd4 22.cxd3 Qxd3
23.Rad1 Qc2+ 24.Rd2 Qc3 25.Nxd6+ Rxd6 26.Qxd6 Nxe4 27.Qc7+ Kg8 28.Rd8
Qg3+ 29.Kh1 Nf2 checkmate MrJoker - Macuta, Internet Chess Club, 2011.
10...Bh5
11.h3 Qe7 12.Nc3 c6 13.a3
Okay, Bill's got me puzzled - and I know something about the Jerome Gambit. How can he afford to play 11.h3 and 13.a3 when he is playing a gambit, and time is supposed to be of the essence?
As we will see, he accurately accesses his opponent as being unprepared or uncertain about the proper defense (although the light-squared Bishop is free and trying to protect the Kingside), so there is time for White to keep his options open.
Sometimes letting Black keep his options open can lead to him making errors.
13...Bg6 14.Bg5 Qe5 15.Bf4 Qe6 16.Na4
If nothing else, Bill can eliminate his opponent's "two Bishops".
16...Nh5 17.Nxc5 dxc5
Not 17...Nxg3 18.Nxe6+ Ke7 19.Bxg3
Kxe6 20.f4.
18.Bd6+ Ke8 19.Qh2
19...Kd7
Too casual. It is not clear that the King is safer in his new position, and the (doubled) pawn that he give up is certainly of worth.
20.Bxc5 b6 21.Bd4 Qf7
Black's pieces are not so much developed as they are jumbled on the Kingside. His Bishop should have gone to f7 on his last move.
22.f4 Qe7 23.g4 Nf6
24.e5 Nd5
Bill points out that Knight retreats lead to trouble too: 24...Ng8 25.f5 Be8 26.f6 gxf6 27.exf6 Qf7 28.Rae1 or 24...Ne8 25.f5 Bf7 26.e6+.
25.f5 Be8 26.c4 Nc7 27.b4
Those crazy pawns! All 8 of them.
It is important to mention that Stockfish 6 rates White about 1/2 pawn better in this position. If Black can remain calm, he should be able to hang on.
27...Rf8 28.e6+ Kc8 29.a4 Kb7
Black has castled-by-hand, but his King still needs to be careful. I've got him right where he wants me! he might have thought, somewhat confusedly.
30.a5 Na6 31.b5 cxb5 32.cxb5 Bxb5 33.Rfb1 Nc7
Black's light-squared Bishop continues to defend valiantly with the Knight, but - those pawns...
34.axb6 axb6 35.Qg2+ Kc8
Black's situation has deteriorated to the point that only 35...Kb8 would save him from a forced checkmate.
36. Rxa8+ Nxa8
37.Qxa8+ Kc7 38.Be5+
Black resigned
I hope the Jerome Gambit brings you lots of "presents" - interesting games, maybe even winning ones - Rick
It can be fun for Black to play a game of "duelling Knights" in certain lines of the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit - his Knight is busy on one side of the board while White's is busy on the other - but he has to be careful not to fall victim of a poisoned piece.
aguisou - Gomenovich
blitz, FICS, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+
Interestingly, drumme - Gomenovich, blitz, FICS, 2014 continued 6.c3 Nc6 before the Queen check, 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 Qf6 9.Nxh8+ Kd8 10.Nf7+ Ke7 11.d3 Qxf7 12.Bg5+ Nf6 13.Bxf6+ Qxf6 14.Qxh7+ Qg7 15.Qh4+ Ke8 16.0-0 Ne5 17.Nd2 Nxd3 18.Nf3 d6 19.e5 Qg4 20.Qh8 dxe5 21.Nxe5 Nxe5 22.Qxe5+ Be7 23.Rae1 Bd7 24.Qxe7 checkmate.
Kicking the Knight first didn't work in gregweb - Gomenovich, blitz, FICS, 2015 as Black had an effective counter 6.c3 d6 7.cxd4 dxe5 8.dxe5 Qe7 9.d4 Bd7 10.0-0 Nh6 11.Nc3 c5 12.Nd5 Qd8 13.Bxh6 gxh6 14.Nf6+ Kf7 15.Qh5+ Ke7 16.d5 Bg7 17.d6+ Kf8 18.e6 Bxe6 19.e5 Bxf6 20.exf6 Qxf6 21.Qxc5 Kf7 22.Qc7+ Kg6 23.Qxb7 Rhb8 24.Qe4+ Bf5 25.Qe7 Qxe7 26.dxe7 Re8 27.Rfe1 Kf7 28.Rac1 Rac8 29.Rcd1 Rxe7 30.Rxe7+ Kxe7 31.Rd5 Be6 32.Ra5 Rc7 33.Rh5 Rc1 checkmate.
aguisou has had some experience with 6.c3 as well, in a couple of games played a couple of months apart: 6...Qg5 7.cxd4 Qxg2 8.Qf3 Qg5 9.Qf7+ (here Black resigned in aLmaLja - aguisou, blitz, FICS, 2014) Kd8 10.Qxf8 checkmate, aLmaLja - aguisou, blitz, FICS, 2014.
6...g6 7.Nxg6 Nxc2+
The pawn is digestible, but the Rook is poisoned.
8.Kd1 Nxa1
A quick look at The Database shows 65 games with this position. White scores 82%.
9.Nxh8+ Ke7
10.Qf7+
Or 10.Qe5 checkmate. perrypawnpusher - mbranimir, blitz, FICS, 2009.
10...Kd6 11.e5+
Or 11.Qd5+ Ke7 12.Qe5 checkmate. Yes, I missed the mate, too, in perrypawnpusher - robertpthom, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 32).
White has his own ideas on how to win the game.
11...Kc6 12.Qc4+ Bc5
There is danger everywhere: 12...Kb6 13.Nc3 (13.d3 Qg5 14.Bxg5 Black resigned, Handlangari - PlatinumKnight, FICS, 2005) 13...c5 14.Nf7 Qe7 15.Nd5+ Black resigned, GOH - Neca, FICS, 2008.
13.d4 b5 14.Qxc5+ Kb7 15.Qxb5 checkmate.
Today's blog is full of games relevant to our main one. There is a little bit of "theory" tossed in, too. Enjoy the efforts of steveod and PEITONER.
PEITONER - steveod
blitz, FICS, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4
The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit. Black may be hoping for 4.Nxe5?!, and he may be expecting 4.Nxd4, 4.c3, 4.d3 or 4.0-0; but now he has something new to think about.
In this case, over the last decade plus, steveod has played quite a few BSGs at FICS, faced quite a few BSJGs, and even played a few himself. I thought it would be interesting to share his experiences as they appear in The Database, positive and negative. His games provide a pretty good overview of the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
Let me start by presenting a Jerome Gambit / Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit hybrid game: 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Ke6 7.Qg4+ Kxe5 8.f4+ Kd6 9.e5+ Kc6 10.b4 d5 11.Qg3 Nxc2+ 12.Kd1 Nxa1 13.b5+ Kb6 14.Qd3 c6 15.Na4+ Kc7 16.Nxc5 b6 17.Na6+ Bxa6 18.bxa6 Ne7 19.Ba3 Ng6 20.Bd6+ Kc8 21.Qf5+ Qd7 22.Qg5 Re8 23.Rf1 Ne7 24.Qxg7 Nf5 25.g4 Nxg7 White resigned, crystalleaf - steveod, FICS, 2013.
4...Kxf7
I have not promoted declining the gambit, in fact I have referred to it as intending some kind of "Jedi mind trick", but I note that steveod has played several games with 4...Ke7:
5.Nxe5 d6 6.Nc3 (6.Bxg8 dxe5 7.d3 Rxg8 8.Bg5+ Black resigned, frizerkaHR - steveod, FICS, 2012) dxe5 7.Qh5 Nc6 8.Nd5+ Kd6 9.f4 Nf6 10.Qg5 h6 11.fxe5+ Nxe5 12.Qe3 Nxf7 13.e5+ Nxe5 14.d4 Nxd5 15.Qxe5+ Kc6 16.c4 Bd6 17.cxd5+ Kb6 18.Qxg7 Qe7+ 19.Qxe7 Bxe7 20.Rf1 Rf8 21.Be3 Rxf1+ 22.Kxf1 Bd7 23.d6 Bb5+ 24.Kg1 Bxd6 25.Rc1 c6 26.b3 a5 27.a4 Bd3 28.d5+ Kc7 29.Rc3 Be4 30.dxc6 Bxc6 White forfeited on time, AndrejRussia - steveod, FICS, 2014;
5.Nxd4 Kxf7 (5...exd4 6.Bxg8 Rxg8 7.d3 Ke8 8.c3 dxc3 9.Nxc3 c6 10.Qh5+ g6 11.Qxh7 Rg7 12.Qh6 Qf6 13.Bg5 Qd4 14.0-0 d6 15.Be3 Qb4 16.Rab1 Be6 17.d4 Kd7 18.e5 dxe5 19.dxe5 Kc7 20.Bg5 Bf5 21.Bf6 Rf7 22.Rbc1 Bxh6 23.Nd5+ Kb8 24.Nxb4 Bxc1 25.Rxc1 Rd7 26.h3 a5 27.Nc2 Bxc2 28.Rxc2 b5 29.Rxc6 Kb7 30.Rc5 Kb6 31.Rc3 b4 32.Rg3 Rg8 33.e6 Rd6 34.f4 Rxe6 35.Be5 g5 36.Bd4+ Kb5 37.f5 Re4 38.Bf6 Rf4 39.h4 Rxf5 40.hxg5 Rxf6 41.gxf6 Rxg3 42.f7 Rd3 43.f8Q Rd1+ 44.Kh2 Rd5 45.Qb8+ Kc4 46.b3+ Kd4 47.Qf4+ Kc5 48.Qc4+ Kd6 49.g3 Rd2+ 50.Kh3 Rxa2 51.g4 a4 52.Qxb4+ Kd5 53.bxa4 Re2 54.Qb5+ Kd6 55.Qxe2 Black resigned, roosmanla - steveod, FICS, 2008) 6.Nf3 d6 7.c3 h6 8.d4 exd4 9.cxd4 Be6 10.d5 Bd7 11.Nc3 g5 12.Qd4 Bg7 13.Qd3 a6 14.Be3 Qe7 15.Bd4 Bxd4 16.Qxd4 Nf6 17.0-0 Rae8 18.Rfe1 g4 19.Nd2 Nh5 20.Re2 Rhg8 21.g3 Qf6 22.Qxf6+ Nxf6 23.Rae1 Rg5 24.f4 gxf3 25.Nxf3 Rg4 26.e5 Nxd5 27.Nxd5 c6 28.Nf4 Be6 29.Nxe6 Rxe6 30.exd6 Rxd6 31.Re7+ Kf6 32.Rxb7 Rd3 33.Kg2 Rb4 34.Rxb4 Black resigned, bushytail - steveod, FICS, 2010; and
5.Bxg8 Rxg8 6.d3 h6 7.Nxe5 d6 8.Nf3 Bg4 9.Nbd2 Kd7 10.b3 Qg5 11.Bb2 Bxf3 12.Nxf3 Qxg2 13.Rf1 Nxf3+ 14.Ke2 Nxh2 15.Re1 Qf3+ 16.Kd2 Qxf2+ 17.Re2 Qf4+ 18.Re3 Nf1+ 19.Qxf1 Qxf1 20.Rxf1 Be7 21.Kc1 Bg5 22.Rfe1 Raf8 23.Kb1 Bxe3 24.Rxe3 Rf1+ 25.Bc1 g5 26.e5 h5 27.e6+ Ke7 28.d4 c6 29.Kb2 g4 30.b4 h4 31.Re4 h3 32.Be3 h2 33.Bf4 h1Q White resigned, EstonianBear - steveod, FICS, 2002.
5.Nxe5+ Ke6
Black has also tried:
5...Ke7 6.Qh5 (6.d3 h6 7.c3 Ne6 8.Qf3 Kd6 9.d4 Qf6 10.Qxf6 gxf6 11.Nf7+ Ke7 12.Nxh8 Ng5 13.Ng6+ Kf7 14.Nxf8 Kxf8 15.Bxg5 hxg5 16.Nd2 d6 17.0-0-0 a5 18.a4 Bd7 19.f3 Bxa4 20.b3 Bb5 21.c4 Bd7 22.h4 g4 23.f4 a4 24.f5 a3 25.Kc2 b5 26.h5 Nh6 27.Nf1 bxc4 28.bxc4 Ba4+ 29.Kc3 Bxd1 30.Ne3 Be2 31.Ra1 Ra4 32.Kd2 Bxc4 33.Nxc4 Rxc4 34.Rxa3 Rxd4+ 35.Ke3 Rc4 36.Ra8+ Ke7 37.Rh8 Nf7 38.Rh7 Kf8 39.g3 Kg8 40.Rxf7 Kxf7 41.Kf4 c5 42.h6 d5 43.h7 Kg7 White forfeited on time, Tetragon - steveod, FICS, 2006; 6.c3 Ne6 7.d4 h6 8.d5 d6 9.dxe6 dxe5 10.Qxd8+ Kxd8 11.0-0 Ke7 12.Be3 b6 13.Nd2 Bxe6 14.Nc4 Bxc4 15.Rfd1 Rd8 16.Rd5 Bxd5 17.exd5 Rxd5 18.Re1 Nf6 White resigned, jwilled - steveod, FICS, 2004) 6...Qe8 7.Qg5+ Nf6 8.Na3 d6 9.Nec4 h6 10.Qa5 Nc6 11.Qc3 Qg6 12.0-0 Be6 13.d4 Nxe4 14.Qe1 Bxc4 15.Nxc4 d5 16.Ne5 Nxe5 17.dxe5 Kd7 18.Be3 Bc5 19.Bxc5 Nxc5 20.Rd1 c6 21.c4 Qe6 22.cxd5 cxd5 23.Qe2 a6 White forfeited on time, MyGameUMove - steveod, FICS, 2012; and
5...Ke8 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Nxg6 Nf6 (7...Nxc2+ 8.Kd1 Nxa1 [8...Bg7 9.Nxh8+ Ke7 10.Qf7+ Kd6 11.Qxg7 Nxa1 12.Nf7+ Black resigned, steveod - Smeet, FICS, 2002] 9.Nxh8+ Ke7 10.Qf7+ Kd6 11.e5+ Kc6 12.Nc3 Ne7 13.Qc4+ Kb6 14.Qb5 checkmate, suchatzi - steveod, FICS, 2005; 7...Qf6 8.Nxh8+ Ke7 9.Qxh7+ Qg7 10.Ng6+ Kf7 11.Nxf8 Nxc2+ 12.Kd1 Nxa1 13.Qf5+ Nf6 14.e5 Qxf8 15.Qxf6+ Kg8 16.Qxf8+ Kxf8 17.b3 d6 18.exd6 cxd6 19.Bb2 Bf5 20.Na3 Nxb3 21.axb3 Rc8 22.Bc3 b5 23.b4 a6 24.Re1 d5 25.Nc2 Rc4 26.Ne3 Re4 27.Nxf5 Rf4 28.Nd6 Rxf2 29.Re5 Rxg2 30.Rxd5 Rxh2 31.Ne4 Rh1+ 32.Kc2 Ra1 33.Bxa1 Kf7 34.Rd6 Ke7 35.Rxa6 Kd7 36.Rb6 Kc7 37.Rxb5 Kc6 38.Rc5+ Kb6 39.d4 Kb7 40.d5 Kb6 41.d6 Kb7 42.d7 Kb6 43.d8Q+ Kb7 44.Nd6+ Ka6 45.Qa5 checkmate, steveod-Smeet, FICS, 2002) 8.Qe5+ Kf7 (8...Qe7 9.Nxe7 Black resigned, MikP - steveod, FICS, 2002; 8...Ne6 9.Nxh8 Bg7 10.Nf7 Kxf7 11.d4 Ng4 12.Qf5+ Nf6 13.e5 Nxd4 14.Qf4 Nxc2+ 15.Kf1 Nxa1 16.exf6 Bxf6 17.Nd2 d5 18.Nf3 Qd6 19.Qh6 Ke8 20.Qxh7 Qa6+ 21.Kg1 Qc4 22.Bh6 Be7 23.Qg8+ Kd7 24.Ne5+ Kd6 25.Nxc4+ dxc4 26.g3 b6 27.Kg2 Bb7+ 28.Kg1 Rxg8 29.Bf4+ Ke6 30.h4 Rd8 31.Kh2 Nc2 32.Rc1 Nd4 33.Re1+ Kf6 34.Bg5+ Black forfeited on time, Dipsy - steveod, FICS, 2001) 9.Nxh8+ Kg8 10.Qxd4 Kxh8 11.e5 Ng8 12.0-0 Qg5 13.Nc3 c6 14.d3 Qh5 15.Ne4 Bg7 16.Nf6 Qf5 17.Ng4 d6 18.Qxd6 Qxg4 19.f4 Bf5 20.Bd2 h5 21.Rf3 h4 22.Raf1 Qh5 23.h3 Nh6 24.Bc3 Rg8 25.e6 Bxc3 26.bxc3 Qg6 27.Qd4+ Kh7 28.Qd7+ Rg7 29.Qxg7+ Qxg7 White forfeited on time, rexsolus - steveod, FICS, 2006.
6.c3
Also:
6.f4 h5 (6...d6 7.Qg4+ Ke7 8.Qg5+ Nf6 9.Nf3 [9.Ng4 Nxc2+ 10.Kf1 h6 11.Qh4 Bxg4 12.e5 dxe5 13.fxe5 Qd3+ 14.Kg1 Qd4+ 15.Qf2 Qxf2+ 16.Kxf2 Nxa1 17.exf6+ gxf6 18.Na3 Kd7 19.Nc4 Be6 20.b3 Bxc4 21.bxc4 Nc2 22.Bb2 Be7 23.a3 c5 24.Rc1 Nd4 25.Bxd4 cxd4 26.d3 Bxa3 27.Rb1 Bc5 28.Rb5 b6 29.Kf3 Kc6 30.h3 a6 31.Rb1 a5 32.Re1 Rhd8 33.Re6+ Rd6 34.Re1 a4 35.Ra1 a3 36.Ra2 Ra4 37.g4 Rb4 38.Ke4 Rb2 39.Ra1 Rh2 40.Kf5 Rxh3 41.Kg6 Rxd3 42.Kxh6 f5+ 43.Kg5 fxg4 44.Kxg4 Rc3 45.Kf4 Rxc4 46.Ke4 Re6+ 47.Kf5 Re3 48.Kf4 d3+ White resigned, KnightBiker - steveod, FICS, 2004] 9...Nxc2+ 10.Kd1 Nxa1 11.e5 dxe5 12.fxe5 h6 13.exf6+ gxf6 14.Re1+ Kf7 15.Qh5+ Kg7 16.Nh4 Rg8 17.Qg6+ Kh8 18.Qf7 Bg4+ 19.Re2 Bxe2+ 20.Kxe2 Qe7+ 21.Qxe7 Bxe7 22.Kd1 Rae8 23.b3 Rg4 24.Bb2 Nxb3 25.Nf5 Nc5 26.Nxe7 Nd7 27.Nd5 Rxg2 28.Nxf6 Nxf6 29.Bxf6+ Kh7 30.Nc3 c6 31.Na4 Ree2 32.Bc3 Rxh2 33.Nc5 b6 34.Nd3 b5 35.Nf4 Ref2 36.Ne6 Rf7 37.Nd8 Rc7 38.Be5 Rc8 39.Nxc6 Rh1+ 40.Ke2 Rxc6 White resigned, latinicon-steveod, FICS, 2004; 6...Qh4+ 7.g3 Qh6 8.Qg4+ Ke7 9.b3 d6 10.Nc3 Bxg4 11.Nd5+ Kd8 12.Nf7+ Kd7 13.Nxh6 Nxc2+ 14.Kf2 Nxa1 15.Nxg4 Nc2 16.Bb2 Re8 17.d3 Be7 18.Rc1 c6 19.Nxe7 Rxe7 20.Rxc2 Nf6 21.Nxf6+ gxf6 22.Bxf6 Re6 23.Bxh8 h5 24.f5 Re5 25.Bxe5 dxe5 26.h3 b5 27.g4 h4 28.g5 Kd6 29.g6 c5 30.g7 Black resigned, steveod - Smeet, FICS, 2002); 7.c3 (7.0-0 d6 8.Nf3 Nxf3+ 9.Qxf3 Ne7 10.f5+ Kd7 11.d4 c6 12.Qa3 Kc7 13.Bg5 b6 14.d5 c5 15.f6 gxf6 16.Bxf6 Rh6 17.Bh4 Rg6 18.Nc3 Qd7 19.Ne2 Qg4 20.Bg3 h4 21.Nf4 Rg8 22.Be1 Bh6 23.Ne6+ Bxe6 24.Rf2 Bd7 25.Bd2 Bxd2 26.Rxd2 h3 27.g3 Qxe4 28.Rf1 Nxd5 29.Qf3 Qxf3 30.Rxf3 Nb4 31.c3 Nc6 32.Rf7 Ne5 33.Rh7 Nf3+ 34.Kf2 Nxd2 35.Rxh3 Nc4 36.Ke2 Nxb2 37.Rh7 Na4 38.Kd2 Rae8 39.Kc2 Re2+ 40.Kb3 b5 41.c4 a6 42.cxb5 axb5 White forfeited on time, wardcleophus - steveod, FICS, 2014) 7...Nc6 8.Ng6 (8.Qb3+ d5 9.exd5+ Qxd5 10.Qxd5+ Kxd5 11.Nf7 Rh7 12.0-0 Nh6 13.Ng5 Rh8 14.Na3 Bc5+ 15.Kh1 Bxa3 16.bxa3 a6 17.a4 Bf5 18.Ba3 Rae8 19.Rfe1 Na5 20.Bb4 Nc4 21.Rxe8 Rxe8 22.Rf1 Nxd2 23.h3 Nxf1 24.g4 Be4+ 25.Kg1 Nd2 26.Kf2 Nc4 27.Kg3 Nxg4 28.Nf7 Nge3 29.Kh4 g5+ 30.Kxh5 Bg6+ 31.Kxg6 Re6+ 32.Kg7 gxf4 33.Ng5 f3 34.Kf8 f2 35.Nxe6 Black forfeited on time, nonself - steveod, FICS, 2007) 8...Rh6 9.f5+ Kf6 10.d4 Rxg6 11.fxg6 Kxg6 12.0-0 d6 13.Qf3 Nf6 14.Bf4 Bg4 15.Qg3 Nxe4 16.Qd3 Bf5 17.Bg3 h4 18.Rxf5 Kxf5 19.Nd2 hxg3 20.Qxe4+ Kg5 21.hxg3 Qe7 22.Nf3+ Kh6 23.Qf4+ g5 24.Qg4 Qe3+ 25.Kh2 Be7 26.Re1 Qf2 27.Re6+ Kg7 28.Nxg5 Rh8+ 29.Nh3+ Kf8 30.Re4 Qf7 31.Rf4 Bf6 32.Qc8+ Kg7 33.Qxb7 Ne7 34.Qxc7 Ng6 35.Qxf7+ Kxf7 36.g4 Nxf4 37.Kg3 Nd3 White resigned, malesposo - steveod, FICS, 2015;
6.Nf3 Qf6 (6...Nxf3+ 7.Qxf3 Qf6 8.Qb3+ [8.Qg4+ Kf7 9.d3 d6 10.Qf4 Qxf4 11.Bxf4 h6 12.Nc3 c6 13.0-0-0 g5 14.Be3 Be6 15.Rdf1 Bg7 16.Ne2 Ke7 17.f4 gxf4 18.Nxf4 Kd7 19.Ng6 Rh7 20.Rf2 Ne7 21.Nf4 a5 22.Rhf1 Bg8 23.Ne2 Be5 24.g3 b5 25.Kb1 c5 26.c3 b4 27.c4 a4 28.Nf4 Rf7 29.Nh5 Rxf2 30.Rxf2 Bd4 31.Bxd4 cxd4 32.Rf6 Nc6 33.Rxh6 Rf8 34.Rf6 Rf7 35.Rxf7+ Bxf7 36.Nf6+ Ke6 37.Nd5 b3 38.a3 Ne5 39.Nf4+ Kf6 40.Kc1 Nf3 41.h3 Be6 42.g4 Bf7 43.Kd1 Kg5 44.Ke2 Kxf4 White resigned, wayuat - steveod, FICS, 2010] 8...Ke7 9.0-0 Kd8 10.d4 d6 11.Be3 Ne7 12.f4 Qe6 13.Qd3 Qd7 14.c4 c6 15.b4 a6 16.a4 g6 17.e5 d5 18.c5 Qf5 19.Qe2 Be6 20.Nc3 h5 21.b5 a5 22.bxc6 Nxc6 23.Rfb1 Rb8 24.Rb6 Kc7 25.Nb5+ Kc8 26.Rb1 Qf7 27.Nd6+ Bxd6 28.cxd6 Bd7 29.Qd1 Nb4 30.Bd2 Rf8 31.g3 g5 32.Bxb4 axb4 33.R1xb4 gxf4 34.Rxb7 Rxb7 35.Qc2+ Kb8 36.Rxb7+ Kxb7 37.Qc7+ Ka8 38.a5 fxg3 39.Qc1 Qf2+ 40.Kh1 Qxh2 checkmate, Miguara - steveod, FICS, 2014) 7.Nxd4+ Qxd4 8.0-0 Ke7 9.c3 Qf6 10.d4 Qf7 11.Bg5+ Ke8 12.e5 h6 13.Bh4 g5 14.Bg3 Be7 15.f4 Qg6 16.f5 Qf7 17.f6 Bf8 18.Nd2 d6 19.Nf3 Be6 20.b3 c6 21.c4 d5 22.Rc1 Ba3 23.Rc2 Rc8 24.cxd5 Bxd5 25.Re2 Rd8 26.h4 g4 27.Nh2 h5 28.Rfe1 Be6 29.Nf1 Bb4 30.Nd2 Nh6 31.Bf2 Nf5 32.Rf1 g3 33.Be3 Nxh4 34.Bg5 Nf5 35.Ne4 Rxd4 36.Qc2 h4 37.Rxf5 Bxf5 38.Nd6+ Bxd6 39.Qxf5 Rd1+ 40.Qf1 Rxf1+ 41.Kxf1 Bb4 42.e6 Qg6 43.f7+ Kf8 44.e7+ Bxe7 45.Bxe7+ Kxf7 46.Bc5 Qb1+ 47.Re1 Qxa2 48.b4 b6 49.Re7+ Kf6 50.Rb7 bxc5 51.bxc5 Qa1+ 52.Ke2 Re8+ 53.Kf3 Qc3+ 54.Kg4 Re4+ 55.Kh3 Qe1 White forfeited on time, Zuriko - steveod, FICS, 2015;
6.Nd3 Qg5 7.0-0 Ke7 (7...Bd6 8.c3 Nc6 9.f4 Qe7 10.Qg4+ Kf7 11.Ne5+ Ke8 12.d4 Bxe5 13.dxe5 d6 14.f5 Nxe5 15.Qh5+ Kd8 16.Nd2 Nf6 17.Qe2 h6 18.Rf4 b6 19.Nf1 Bb7 20.Ng3 Kd7 21.Be3 Rae8 22.Bd4 g5 23.fxg6 Rhg8 24.Nf5 Qe6 25.Nxh6 Rxg6 26.Nf5 Bxe4 27.Bxe5 dxe5 28.Rd1+ Kc8 29.Qa6+ Kb8 30.Ne3 exf4 31.Nc4 Rxg2+ 32.Kf1 Qh3 White resigned, stemplarv - steveod, FICS, 2006) 8.Nc3 c6 9.Ne1 d6 10.Nf3 Nxf3+ 11.Qxf3 Qf6 12.Qe2 Kd7 13.d3 Kc7 14.d4 Qe6 15.d5 cxd5 16.Nxd5+ Kb8 17.Be3 Ne7 18.Rad1 Nxd5 19.Rxd5 Qe7 20.Bf4 Qf6 21.Bxd6+ Bxd6 22.Rfd1 Rd8 23.e5 Qe7 24.Rxd6 Rxd6 25.Rxd6 a6 26.f4 g6 27.Qd2 Ra7 28.Qd1 b5 29.a3 Rd7 White forfeited on time, Pmoura - steveod, FICS, 2012;
6.Qh5 Nxc2+ 7.Kd1 Nxa1 8.Qf5+ Ke7 9.Qf7+ Kd6 10.Nc4+ Kc6 11.Qd5 checkmate, yorgos - steveod, FICS, 2010;
6.Nc4 Qg5 7.0-0 b5 (7...d6 8.Nc3 c6 9.d3 Qg6 10.Qg4+ White resigned, HauntedKnight - steveod, FICS, 2006) 8.d3 Qh4 9.Ne3 Bd6 10.g3 Qf6 11.f4 Bc5 12.c3 Nc6 13.Qb3+ Ke7 14.e5 Qg6 15.d4 Bb6 16.d5 Na5 17.Qb4+ Ke8 18.f5 Qh6 19.Rf3 Bb7 20.Qxb5 a6 21.Qe2 Bxd5 22.Rf4 Bc4 23.Qf2 Bxe3 24.Bxe3 Qc6 25.Na3 Bb5 26.Nxb5 axb5 27.e6 d6 28.f6 Nxf6 29.Bd4 Rf8 White forfeited on time, stemplarv - steveod, FICS, 2006.
6...Kxe5
Best, but:
6...Qg5 7.Nf3 Qxg2 8.Nxd4+ Ke7 9.Qf3 Qxf3 10.Nxf3 Nf6 11.e5 Nd5 12.d4 h6 13.Na3 b6 14.c4 Nb4 15.Bd2 Nd3+ 16.Ke2 Nxb2 17.Rhg1 Ba6 18.Rac1 d5 19.Bb4+ Kd7 20.Ke3 Bxb4 21.Nb5 Nxc4+ White resigned, marcoseneca - steveod, FICS, 2013;
6...Nc6 7.d4 Nxe5 8.Qb3+ Ke7 9.dxe5 Ke8 10.0-0 Qe7 11.f4 b6 12.Bd2 Bb7 13.f5 Bxe4 14.f6 Qc5+ 15.Kh1 gxf6 16.Re1 f5 17.e6 d5 18.c4 Qxc4 19.Qh3 Nf6 20.Bg5 Qd4 21.Nc3 Rg8 22.Nxe4 Nxe4 23.Rxe4 dxe4 24.Qxf5 Qg7 25.Qb5+ c6 26.Qxc6+ Qd7 27.Qxd7 checkmate, pigsfeet - steveod, FICS, 2012.
7.cxd4+ Kxd4
The King retreat is safer, but not without its perils, as White has shown: 7...Ke6 8.Nc3 Nf6 9.e5 Nd5 10.Qg4+ Kf7 11.Nxd5 d6 12.Qf4+ Kg8 13.0-0 dxe5 14.Qxe5 Bd6 15.Qe4 h6 16.d3 Bd7 17.Re1 Bc6 18.Ne7+ Bxe7 19.Qxe7 Qxd4 20.Qe6+ Kh7 21.Qf5+ Kg8 22.Be3 Qh4 23.d4 Rf8 24.Qe6+ Kh7 25.d5 Bb5 26.Rac1 c6 27.d6 Rhg8 28.Rcd1 Kh8 29.d7 Qb4 30.Bd4 Bc4 31.Qxh6 checkmate, PEITONER - aresa, FICS, 2015
8.d3 Bb4+ 9.Nc3
A natural response. In "The Threat Is Greater..." I mentioned the two alternatives, 9.Ke2!? and 9.Kf1!?, which threaten to win a piece after 9...Ke5 10.Qb3 followed by 11.Qxb4. The Database shows that these suggestions have yet to be followed.
9...Ke5
Or 9...Bxc3+ 10.bxc3+ Ke5 (10...Kxc3 11.0-0 Qf6 12.Be3 Kb4 13.Rb1+ Ka5 14.Qb3 c6 15.Qa3 checkmate, Edisce - nkm, FICS, 2005) 11.f4+ (11.Qh5+ was the correct move, as in perrypawnpusher - AdamRou, blitz, FICS, 2010 [1-0, 28]) 11...Kf6 Black forfeited by disconnection, kocanda - ETERHERE, standard, FICS, 2014
10.0-0
White could also whip up an attack with 10.d4+ Kf6 11.Qf3+.
10...Nf6 11.d4+ Ke6 12.Qb3+
The Queen goes to b3 and then captures the Bishop, after all. (See the note to White's 9th move.)
12...d5 13.Qxb4 Kf7
White's center pawns help him take command.
14.e5 Ne4 15.Nxe4 dxe4 16.f3 a5 17.fxe4+ Ke8 18.Qc4 Rf8 19.Rxf8+ Kxf8 20.Be3 c6 21.Rf1+ Ke7 22.Qf7 checkmate
The previous blog post mentioned that a large percentage of the games in The Database is from the online website the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS). This is because that is the site where I am a member, have played most of my Jerome Gambit games, and have the greatest access to their games database.
I am always open to game contributions from Readers, and I would like nothing better than to be able to add 50,000 - or 5,000 - or 500 - or 50 - or 5 - Jerome Gambit (or related) games played on the Internet Chess Club (ICC) site, or GameKnot.com, or Chess.com , or wherever - or even (especially) over-the-board games played at your favorite chess club.
By the way, I have already received requests for a copy of The Database. I can send you a compressed (.zip) PGN file via email, at no cost - just ask.
The other day I wandered back through early posts to see when I started collecting Jerome Gambit (and related) games in a database for this blog. My first mention of a special base came in the June 20, 2008 post.
In a post about a week later I noted that the database contined 950 games. The post included the following information
In all about 7% are over-the-board games, 12% involve computers (person vs computer or computer vs computer), 2% are traditional (snail mail) correspondence games and 79% are games played on the internet (various time controls).
Some time later I reported on the "Evolution of The Database", which I would like to reprise
It is fun to look back and see that in the early days of this Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) blog, I bragged of having a database of whopping 950 Jerome Gambit Games. Of course, today, the modern version of that database (aka "The Database") has over 1,000 games played by DragonTail alone.
In the beginning, in order to expand the number of Jerome Gambit games that I had access to, I offered a PGN file of 210 of the games mentioned on this blog, (not all Jeromes) in exchange for any games sent to me. The offer quickly expanded to almost 500 games, and on June 10, 2009, the first "birthday" of this blog (celebrating a year of posting every day) I offered a "present" of over 1,100 games.
I continued digging for gold, sometimes with great success.
Instead of "games posted on this blog" I switched to developing a PGN database of Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+), and Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.0-0/4.Nc3/4.d3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+) games.
By the time I offered the "New Year's Database" it contained over 17,000 games.This year's version, renamed "The Database" and offered on January 1, 2011, contained over 22,500 games, and included the above-mentioned variations, plus the nameless 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5 4.Bxf7+.
Today, The Database contains about 25,000 games. (It is still available to interested Readers at no cost).
I have not given information about The Database since February, 2015, so I thought I would bring Readers up-to-date.
I have updated The Database with games from FICS (Free Internet Chess Server) through November 2015. It now contains 53,740 games.
The basic Jerome Gambit position, after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+, appears in about 12,112 games. White scores 45%
The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+, appears 2,368 times. White scores 38%.
Interestingly, the Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 h6 5.0-0 Bc5 6.Bxf7+, appears only 124 times, but White scores 67%. Note the "power" (or lack of) ...h6.
This is reflected in the Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.0-0 Bc5 5.Bxf7+, appearing in 170 games, where White scores 65%. Interestingly, with 4.Nc3, in about 130 games, White scores only 54%.
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+, appears in about 5,170 games, with White scoring 56%.
A large number of recent examples of the Abrahams Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Bxf7+, have been added. There are 17,137 examples, and White scores 51%.
Because the line continues to show up, and is worth knowing, the nameless 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5 4.Bxf7+ appears in The Database 2,197 times, with White scoring 72%.
There is also a large selection of Jerome-ish lines, featuring, for example, an early Bxf7+ by White. Some Reversed Jerome Gambit games have been included, as well.
Of course, all statistics need to be taken with a grain of salt (see "Caveat" for some fun, though) but it is relevant to note that about 95% of The Database is drawn from 15 years of FICS games, making much of it representative of online club play. Some reasonable conclusions can be drawn.
I can email The Database at no charge to anyone who requests it.
Recently, I received an email from Vlastimil Fejfar, of the Czech Republic, who shared three of his Jerome Gambit correspondence games.
Fejfar, Vlastimil - Vins
corr Czech Republic, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 Qf6
A line seen as early as in a note in G.H.D. Gossip's 1891 The Chess Player's Vade Mecum and Pocket Guide to the Openings with all the latest theoretical discoveries and traps in the openings revealed, and more recently supported by FM Eric Schiller in his books on unorthodox openings. (It is fun to read MrJoker's comments about some of Schiller's analysis - see "Joker's Wild" 1, 2 and Conclusion.)
8.Rf1 Nc6
This move is cold-blooded, but playable. Black simply returns a piece.
9.Qxc5 d6 10.Qh5 Bd7 11.Nc3 Be8 12.Qh3+ Kf7 13.d3 Nge7 14.Be3 h6 15.O-O-O Rf8 16.g4 Kg8
Black castles-by-hand just in time.
White's attack (and two extra pawns) is good compensation for his sacrificed piece.
17.g5 hxg5
Stronger for the defense was 17...Qf7.
18.fxg5 Qg6 19.Rxf8+ Kxf8 20.Qh8+ Ng8 21.Rf1+ Bf7 22.Nd5 Nce7
Black covers up as much as possible, but he overlooks something. His best chance was 22...Qe6.
23.Nf4 Black resigned
It is Black's Queen, not his King, who is checkmated!
Recently, I received an email from Vlastimil Fejfar, of the Czech Republic, who shared three of his Jerome Gambit correspondence games - a pleasant return to the days of when Alonzo Wheeler Jerome would defend "his" game the same way.
Fejfar,V - Kyzlink
corr Czech Republic, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 d6
As in the game in the previous blog post, Black plays what I have called "the annoying defense". He gives back a piece and plans to stay out of trouble. It can be difficult for White to put together an attack.
8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Qh3+ Kd6 10.Qd3+ Ke7 11.Qg3 Ke8
Instead, 11...Ke6 was played in Fejfar,V - Pressl,
corr Czech Republic, 2015.
12.Nc3 Bd4 13.Rf1 Qd7 14.Nd5 c6 15.Ne3 Nf6
Black has managed to develop his Knight, but his Queenside has a familiar difficulty.
16.d3 Qc7 17.c3 Bxe3 18.Bxe3 Qe7 19.0-0-0 Rf8 20.Rf3 Bd7 21.Rdf1 c5 22.Bxc5 Black resigned
Black did not like the look of things after 23...Qxc5 24.Qxg7 with threats against the Knight at f6, as suddenly his King looks very vulnerable.
Alonzo Wheeler Jerome developed and defended his gambit in both across-the-board and correspondence games in the late 1800s and early 1900s. He even arranged to play the Jerome Gambit against readers of the Literary Digest.
In modern times, however, the Jerome is most likely to show up in internet games, often blitz; although the occasional face-to-face contest still can be found.
Recently, I received an email from Vlastimil Fejfar, of the Czech Republic, who shared three of his Jerome Gambit correspondence games - a pleasant return to the days of AWJ.
Fejfar,V - Pressl
corr Czech Republic, 2015
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 d6
White faces what I have called "the annoying defense", where Black calmly gives back a piece and avoids any risky misadventures, remaining up a piece for a pawn.
The idea is at least as old as D'Aumiller, A.D. - A.P., Livorno, 1878 (1-0, 19). It is the choice of many computer programs in games in The Database, including Fritz, Hiarcs, Junior, Rybka, Shredder and Spike; so I have also referred to it as "the silicon defense".
Also, 7...d6 is the move recommended by many authorities, including IM Gary Lane in his The Greatest Ever Chess Tricks and Traps.
Vlasta proceeds calmly against it.
8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Qh3+ Kd6 10.Qd3+ Ke7 11.Qg3 Ke6 12.Qb3+ Ke7 13.Qg3 Ke6 14.Qb3+ Ke7 15.Qg3
Drawn
It is not clear who came out "ahead" in this encounter, Black, who was able to split the point, or White, who was able to play a "refuted" opening and not lose.
I am sympathetic. The second round of the Chess.com Italian Game Tournament has concluded for me, again (like in the first round) without being able to contest a single Jerome Gambit, which my opponents dodged. With White I scored two wins (one on time), four draws and no losses. Did more than half of my opponents "succeed" in "winning half a point" against me, or did they miss out on strolling to victory?
[This is blog post number 2,150, for those who might wonder. - Rick]
