Wasn't me!

When I was more active in over-the-board play, I played in a few tournaments sponsored by the Bishops Chess Club at Ohio Wesleyan University, Delaware, Ohio (you can check out some of Tom Green's Bishops Chess Club News). Somehow I managed to be absent when the following game was played:

Keusal - Freihofner

Trick or Treat Mini Swiss, C,

Bishops Chess Club, 2006

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nxe4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+ Ke7 7.Ng6+ Black resigned

White bypasses the Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit which he could have had with 4.Nc3, and instead goes Jerome-ish with 4.Bxf7+. Black was knocked out of his socks.

Although... It only seems fair to present a game that continued past the point where Black resigned: in this second game, Black outplays his opponent and achieves checkmate.

fsilverman - eforry

net-chess.com, 2002

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Nxe4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+ Ke7 7.Ng6+ hxg6 8.Qxh8 d6 9.Qh4+ Nf6 10.0-0 c5 11.Nc3 Be6 12.Re1 Kd7 13.d3 a6 14.Bg5 Be7 15.Bxf6 Bxf6 16.Qa4+ Nc6 17.Ne4 b5 18.Nxf6+ gxf6 19.Qh4 Bf7 20.Qg4+ f5 21.Qf4 Qf6 22.c3 a5 23.f3 a4 24.Re3 Rh8 25.g3 Ne5 26.h4 Bd5 27.g4 Qxh4 28.Rxe5 dxe5 29.Qxe5 Qh1+ 30.Kf2 Qxf3+ 31.Ke1 Rh1+ 32.Kd2 Rxa1 33.Qg7+ Kd6 34.Qxg6+ Ke5 35.Qe8+ Kf4 36.Qb8+ Kxg4 37.Qxb5 Qf2 Checkmate

Which isn't the full story... as White's "killer move" in game one, forcing resignation, could have been replaced with the stronger 7.Qf7+, when White's advantage is clear after the quirky line 7...Kd6 8.d4 Qf6 (look familiar?) 9.f3 Nc5 10.Nc3 c6 11.dxc5 Kxe5 12.f4+ Kf5 13.Qh5+ Ke6 14.f5+ Qxf5 15.Qe8+ Be7 16.Qxh8.

All of which only means... that Black should have answered 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nxe4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+ with 6...g6 (instead of 6...Ke7). After 7.Nxg6 hxg6 8.Qxh8 Qf6 9.Qxf6 Nxf6 the game is about equal.

Which hardly seems fair - and it's not. Black should answer 1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nf6 3.Nf3 Nxe4 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ with 5...Kg8 and win!

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, the Wizard of Draws

Please, don't do that...

I have said this before, nicely (see "Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit" and "Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit (2)): please don't play the Blackburne Shilling Gambit against me... I tend to go Jerome all over it.

I was finishing up a nice evening of blitz at the Free Internet Chess Server (FICS), having played some fun games with several pleasant, creative opponents. The only disappointment was that I hadn't been able to either play or defend against a Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+). I had one last chance...

perrypawnpusher - tampajake

blitz 10 7, FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4

Time to insert some relevant discussion from a forum at ChessGames from 6 years ago:

Aulero: 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 After 3...Nd4 4.Bxf7+, Simply 4.Bxf7+, I cannot resist to this shot, especially in a rapid game!

Cyphelium: 4. Bxf7+, as suggested above, doesn't convince me

Cyphelium: But ok, I admit that 4. Bxf7+ might be good after all. Though to play this, white has to agree to _defend_ his position, which hardly was your idea with the f7 sac. ;-)
Aulero: 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 My concern is about 5...Ke6 and White should prove that the attack is winning.
Honza Cervenka: 5...Ke7 is also possible.
Cyphelium: might indeed be the best move. No forced lines that I see. I guess white has to continue Cochrane gambit-style, develop his pieces and push forward his central pawns, hoping that black's king position will give him compensation. 6.c3 Might be a good start.
Aulero: 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Nxg6 Nf6 8.Qh3 [ I play 8.Qe5+ (not Qh3) and 8...Ne6 (8...Be7 9.Nxe7) 9.Nxh8 and I don't think White is worse.]
Cyphelium: 9...d5. Ok, of course 8.Qe5+ is more natural than 8.Qh3 and better too. It's not so simple though. 8. Qe5+ Ne6 9. Nxh8 and I think we should analyse further: and now white has to thread carefully. Or maybe I need more coffee and don't understand this at all?
Cyphelium: Possible, but look at this: A/ Few would play 10.exd5 I think: ( B/ 10.0-0 Bd6 11.Qf5 ( 11.Qc3 seems worse) 11...Nf4 12.Qg5 dxe4 and it's not so clear, but white might easily run into things like 13. Nc3 Nf4 14. Qg5 Bh3! Then a very nice (but not forced) variation is 15. Nxe4 Nxe4 16. Qg8+ Kd7 17. Qxd8+ (17.Qf7+!?)17.- Rxd8 18. gxh3 Rg8+! 19. Kh1 Nxh3 with mate on f2 to follow.
Cyphelium: Bd6 and now 11.Qf5 just loses to a) instead 11.Qc3 Nxd5 and black has active play and compensation. But perhaps not enough? (Though I would hate to be white.) b)There is the brilliant resource 11.Nf7 and - after 11...Bxe5 ( b)Why not 11...Kxf7 instead of 11.- Bxe5? 12.dxe6+ Bxe6 and it seems to me that white is lagging _somewhat_ in development and that black has compensation and plenty of it too.For a start, which square will you put your queen on? Rooks and queens and stuff are soon coming to e-files and g-files....
Aulero: Ok, White's development is late and it must be very carefully. I should admit one point to Black's favour, White started with a sacrifice in order to mate and now is up in material but it must defend! I don't know which is the best square for Queen: impulsively I would play Qe2 trying to follow with d3, Be3, Nc3, 0-0-0 ... yes, I know, Black will not watch passively, but it is hard to foresight all possibledevelopments.

Cyphelium: On 13.Qe2 I thought 13...Qg8 would be a good answer. (pawn g2 hanging, Re8 coming etc) But as you say, it's very complicated. In a rapid game, I might well go for your 4.Bxf7+. In a long game I'd prefer 4. Nxd4

Aulero: 12.Nxd8 Nxd8 - White is not worse.
Cyphelium: 11...Nf4 12.Qg5 Qe7+
Cyphelium: 8...hxg6 9.Qxh8 Nxc2+ and black will end up with a piece for two pawns.

Admit it, readers: you skipped a bit of that discussion to get here, didn't you? Me, too, as it turns out...

4.Bxf7+ 4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 6.Qh5+ g6

The alternative leads to mate: 6...Ke7 7.Qf7+ Kd6 8.Nc4+ Kc5 9.Qd5+ Kb4 10.a3+ Ka4 11.Qa5 checkmate

7.Nxg6 hxg6 8.Qxh8

Here's another good reason not to play the Blackburne Shilling Gambit against me: I don't know enough about my favorite lines to stay out of trouble. Instead of grabbing the Rook White should play 8.Qxg6+ and then capture the Black Knight: 8...Ke7 9.Qg5+ Nf6 10.Qc5+ Kf7 11.Qxd4 with a slight disadvantage (four pawns for a piece) that should be comfortable for any Jerome Gambiteer.

8...Nh6


Phew! Good luck is better than a license to steal...

After 8...Nxc2+ the position is a mess, especially following 9.Kd1 Nxa1 10.Qxg8 Qg5. Even if White captures the Knight at a1, it will cost him a couple of pawns and Black is liable to maintain an edge.

9.Qxd4 Qg5 10.0-0 Bc5 11.Qh8+ Ke7 12.d4 Black resigns




graphic by Jeff Bucchino, the Wizard of Draws

Dii minorum gentium

Chessfriend Anders Thulin, some good time back, mentioned that page 155 of The Chess Monthly, Volume 8 (1886-1887) contained "a long diatribe against the naming of Gambits and Openings, which ends..."

...The new mania among Chess-players to affix their names to some sub-sub-sub variation makes it anyhow a small honor indeed to be an inventor of an Opening, and when Labourdonnais, Anderssen, Morphy, Kolisch, Blackburne, and other good names are among the not decorated, we at least would prefer to belong to the same section and not aspire to those honours which seem to be the pride of the Dii minorum gentium [of the inferior orders]. No offense to anybody, but it is difficult enough already to know what is meant when every new year is marked with new Gambits, like Jerome, Blackmar, Pierce, Rosentreter, Qaade, &c...

History Mystery

From the Brooklyn Daily Eagle, March 1, 1900, page 14:

...Theodore M. Avery of Poly Prep encountered a team of the Manual Training School players in a simultaneous exhitition and won every game but one, which he drew. He defeated Caffall in a Scotch Gambit, Saunders in a Ruy Lopez; Baker and Fuchs, consulting, in a Max Lange; Lehman and Stillman, consulting, in a Two Knights Defense, and Steiner and Dennett, consulting, in a Jerome Gambit.

The Poly Prep Country Day School continues to this day in Brooklyn, New York, and I emailed Mr, Malcolm Farley, Director of Communications, to see if he could direct me to other sources of information about Avery's simultaneous exhibition.

Oh, and although the name "Steiner" leaps out to the eye as one of the players defending against the Jerome Gambit, the game took place several years before either Herman or Lajos Steiner were born...

Mr. Farley's response came quickly:

Dear Mr. Kennedy:

Many thanks for your interest in Poly Prep and its history.

As you know our school—which prepares students from nursery through 12th grade for college and for life—was founded in 1854. So, we have a long and storied past in Brooklyn.

Alas, our archivist has searched Poly’s extant records for 1900 and can find no information about Mr. Avery’s chess activities. Should we come across any such information in the future, we will forward it to you.

Once again, thank you.

Cordially yours,

Malcolm G. Farley

Boden-Kieseritzky-Jerome Gambit??

My fascination with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) sometimes gets me into adventures that I really shouldn't be able to get out of...

perrypawnpusher - jayshanker
blitz game 12 0, FICS 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6

Not everybody wants to play the Giuoco Piano with 3...Bc5. Lately I've been answering 2...Nf3 (the Petroff Defense) with 3.Bc4 and if 3...Nxe4 then 4.Nc3, the Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit (4...Nxc3 5.dxc3). So I figured in this game to transpose from the Two Knights Defense into the B-KG as well.

4.0-0 Nxe4 5.Nc3 f5

So far, so good, although Black's last move is quite unusual. Since a main defence against the Boden-Kieseritzky Gambit involves ...f6, protecting the black e5 pawn, White should be able to count on decent play after the text with 6.Re1.

Of course, that was not what I was thinking, as I had a case of Jerome-Gambit-on-the-brain...

6.Nxe4 fxe4 7.Nxe5 Nxe5 8.Qh5+


Not precisely Jerome-ish, as White retains his King Bishop, but the thematic foolish sacrifice of material for a dubious attack is recognizable.

8...g6

Tic tac toe! Once again, the "shock and awe" of responding to the sacrifice makes up for much of its theoretical un-soundness.

There should be more to a gambit idea than just crossing my fingers and hoping, as the following defense should have resolved the game quickly in my opponent's favor: 8...Ng6 9.Re1 Qh4! (I don't think I'll test my luck twice with this line.)

9.Qxe5+ Be7

10.Qxh8+ Bf8 11.d3 d6 12.Bh6 Kd7 13.Qxf8 Qxf8 14.Bxf8 Ke8

The rest is silence.

15.Bg7 Bd7 16.Rae1 Kd8 17.Rxe4 c6 18.Be6 Kc7 19.Bxd7 Kxd7 20.Rfe1 Kc7

21.Re7+ Kb6 22.Bd4+ c5 23.Bc3 a5 24.Rd7 Rc8 25.Ree7 Rc6 26.Rxb7+ Ka6 27.Ra7+ Kb6 28.Reb7 checkmate

More of The Next Best Thing...

In his comment to "London Calling... Seven Months of Blog" and "The Next Best Thing..." Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) Gemeinde member Pete Banks ("blackburne") called readers attention to the opening 1.h4.

Would giving a couple of games by some top past masters give a different picture of the possibilities of that opening?

Janowski,D - Allies

Paris, 1901

1.h4 e5 2.h5 d5 3.e3 f5 4.b3 Be6 5.Bb2 Nd7 6.Nf3 Bd6 7.Nc3 a6 8.Bd3 Qe7 9.Nxd5 Bxd5 10.Bxf5 Nh6 11.Bxd7+ Kxd7 12.c4 Be4 13.d3 Bb4+ 14.Ke2 Bxf3+ 15.gxf3 c6 16.d4 e4 17.fxe4 Qxe4 18.Rg1 Nf5 19.Qd3 Qxd3+ 20.Kxd3 Rhg8 21.e4 Nh4 22.f4 Raf8 23.Raf1 g6 24.hxg6 Rxg6 25.f5 Rg2 26.Rxg2 Nxg2 27.Rh1 Rf7 28.d5 cxd5 29.cxd5 h5 30.Rh2 Nf4+ 31.Kc4 Be1 32.Be5 Bg3 33.Bxf4 Bxf4 34.Rxh5 Be5 35.Rh6 Bf6 36.Kc5 Bg5 37.Rd6+ Kc7 38.Re6 Be3+ 39.Kc4 Kd7 40.f6 Bf2 41.e5 Bg3 42.Kd4 Rh7 43.Ke4 Be1 44.Kf5 Bb4 45.Kg6 Rh4 46.Rb6 Kc7 47.Rxb4 Rxb4 48.f7 Rf4 49.Kg7 1-0

Bogoljubow,E - Schuppler

Haslach, 1949

1.h4 d5 2.d4 c6 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nbd2 Bf5 5.c3 Nbd7 6.Ne5 Nxe5 7.dxe5 Nd7 8.Qa4 h5 9.Nf3 Qc7 10.Bf4 e6 11.Bh2 g6 12.Nd4 Bg7 13.Nxf5 gxf5 14.f4 Nc5 15.Qc2 Ne4 16.g3 Bh6 17.Bg2 0-0-0 18.Rd1 Rdg8 19.Bxe4 dxe4 20.0-0 Rg4 21.Kh1 Rhg8 22.b4 Bf8 23.a4 Be7 24.Rd2 Rd8 25.Rxd8+ Qxd8 26.Rd1 Qc7 27.a5 Rg8 28.Bg1 Rxg3 29.Bxa7 c5 30.Qa4 Qc6 31.b5 Qe8 32.Rg1 Qg8 33.Rxg3 Qxg3 34.Qc4 Qh3+ 35.Kg1 Qg4+ 36.Kh1 Qh3+ 37.Kg1 Qe3+ 38.Kh1 Qh3+ 39.Kg1 Qg3+ 40.Kh1 Qxh4+ 41.Kg2 Qg4+ 42.Kh1 Qh3+ 43.Kg1 Qg3+ 44.Kh1 h4 45.a6 Qh3+ 46.Kg1 Qg3+ 47.Kf1 e3 0-1

Nerves of Tin

I still play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) in online blitz games and I still sometimes get a case of "nerves" when I do.

Good thing I still win...

perrypawnpusher - GabrielChime
blitz 12 0, FICS 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Ng6
An unusual move – I have less than a half-dozen game examples in my database. That's the fun of defending against the Jerome Gambit, however: there are so many ways to give back a piece or two.

9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qxc5+ d6 11.Qe3
An alternative was 11.Qc3.

We have a typical Jerome Gambit position, where White has two pawns to make use of against Black's extra piece.
11...Bd7 12.0-0
Also equal (according to Fritz 8) is 12.f5 Ne5 13.d4 Nc6 14.0-0 Kf8 15.e5 dxe5 16.dxe5 Qe7 17.e6 Be8. I'm never quite sure when to play with the pawns and when to develop.
12...Qf8 13.e5 Kd8
An interesting position! Black's King is temporarily lodged in the middle of his back rank, and his two Rooks are very much parked in the garage. Yet White's lag in development does not (yet) make that situation dangerous. My next move – preferring to open the center instead of reinforcing it with 14.d4 – is a strategic error.

14.exd6
Ask Rybka a simple question and sometimes it will give you a complicated answer. Set this position on "blundercheck" at 5 minutes a move, and Rybka comes up with a line leading to a draw by repetition: 14.d4 Qf5 15.c4 Nh6 16.Nc3 Re8 17.h3 Kc8 18.Bd2 Kb8 19.Rac1 Qh5 20.Qd3 Bf5 21.Qe3 Bd7 22.Qd3 Bf5 23.Qe3 Bd7 24.Qd3 Bf5 25.Qe3 Bd7 26.Qd3 Bf5 27.Qe3 Bd7 28.Qd3 Bf5 29.Qe3...
14...Qxd6 15.Nc3 Nf6 16.d3 Re8 17.Qf2
Sitting here, White's Queen is liable to be harassed by a future ...Ng4. The usual "imbalance" of adventurous connected pawns has disappeared. Black is clearly better.

17...Rf8
Black could have brought some serious heat with 17...Ng4 18.Qd2 Qd4+ 19.Kh1 Bc6. The text move is okay – it's just not best.
18.Be3 b6
Again, 18...Ng4 instead seems the way to go. I was glad to see GabrielChime open up the possible future home of his King.

19.Rae1 Nd5 20.Nxd5 Qxd5 21.Bd2
Trying to get something going.
21...Qxa2
Black feels comfortable enough to grab a pawn, and I was actually glad that he did, as it decentralized his strongest piece. Unfortunately, my response is not best: I should have played 22.Qd4.

22.Bc3 Qd5
Here or on the next move, Black wins the day with ...Rxf4.
23.Bxg7 Re8
I have been handed an even game by my generous opponent. Such is blitz – such is the Jerome Gambit.
24.Rxe8+ Kxe8 25.f5 Ne7
The position is more complicated than it seems at first glance, and Rybka's post mortem analysis leads the game into an oddly balanced endgame where White has a Rook and a pawn for a Knight and a Bishop: 26.c4 Qxd3 27.Re1 Kf7 28.Qh4 Nxf5 29.Qxh7 Rg8 30.Bh6+ Kf6 31.Qxg8 Nxh6 32.Qd8+ Kg6 33.Qxc7 Qd4+ 34.Kh1 Ng4 35.h3 Nf2+ 36.Kh2 Nxh3 37.Qe5 Qxe5+ 38.Rxe5 Nf2 39.Re7 Ng4+ 40.Kg3 Nf6. Needless to say, none of this occurred to me.
26.f6
Play 'em like you got 'em is often good advice for the Jerome Gambiteer, although in this case the advancing f-pawn is nothing special. Unless Black believes it is...
The computer suggests that it is time for the second player to return the extra piece and transition into an even ending: 26...Nf5 27.c4 Qxd3 28.g4 Kf7 29.gxf5 Re8 30.Qh4 Bxf5 31.Qh5+ Bg6 32.Qd5+ Qxd5 33.cxd5 Re2. Perhaps this is chess how it should be played, rather than how I play it.
26...Ng6
Now Black gives his extra piece back (a time-honored defensive move) – only to discover that the resulting position has another piece soon-to-hang.
27.f7+ Kd8 28.f8Q+ Nxf8 29.Qxf8+ Black resigns

After 29...Be8 White will play 30.Rf5 planning to attack the pinned Bishop a second time with 31.Re5. Black can counter this with 30...Qd6 (threatening to exchange Queens) but then White can sidestep with 31.Qg8 with plans to put his Rook on f8, again winning the Bishop. The problem for Black after 29...Be8 30.Rf5 Qd6 31.Qg8 is that there is no way for his Queen to protect the Bishop without coming to grief: 31...Qd7 32.Rd6; 31...Qe7 32.Bf6; or 31...Qe6 32.Qxe6.