Optical Illusion (I)

I've think there must be some kind of optical illusion in one variation of the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) – either that, or maybe people sometimes play blitz chess a little bit too fast for their own observational abilities.

How else to explain the following game?


perrypawnpusher - Estebang
blitz game 2 12, 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 Qf6
Black follows one of the Jerome Gambit refutations first set out in Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's analysis published in the Dubuque Chess Journal in April 1874. (Of course AWJ didn't see it as a refutation.)
9.fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 11.d3


Black's Queen exerts pressure along the a1-h8 diagonal: if the dark-squared White Bishop should move, there can come ...Qxb2 and then ...Qxa1.

In this position against me, Rossgil (forthcoming) played 11...Bd4, focusing on that diagonal; BronxBoyII played 11...Rf8, drawing bead on my Queen; and ViennaMike played 11...Bb4+, to exploit a second diagonal, a4-e1.

11...Re8 12.Bf4


Awkward.

12...Qxf4 13.Qxf4+ Ke7

Black's game never quite recovers.

14.Qe5+ Kf8 15.Qxc5+ Kg8 16.Nc3 c6 17.e5 Ng4 18.d4 b6 19.Qc4+ Kf8 20.0-0+ Ke7 21.Qf7+ Kd8 22.Qxg7 Ne3 23.Qg5+ Kc7 24.Qxe3 d6 25.exd6+ Kd7 26.Rf7+ Kd8 27.Qg5+ Re7 28.Qxe7 checkmate

Wild Horses

There seemed to be some "wild horses" in this Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game that kept trying to "drag me away." Or drag the game away from me.

Sorry, Podnah, good try, but not this time, either...

You can check out "Relax... Don't work so hard" for my first encounter with the creative TJPOT.

perrypawnpusher - TJPOT
blitz 3 12, FICS, 2009

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5

As old as Jerome - Brownson, USA, 1975, and as recent as perrypawnpusher - steelrfan44, Gameknot.com, 2009

8...Nf4



An idea similar to Fritz 8's seen in "Jerome Gambit: Drilling Down (13)". It seems to beg for 9.Qe5+ Ne6, but I thought I'd let the horse run wild and instead focus on my development.

9.0-0 Nf6 10.d3 d6 11.Qe3 Ne6 12.f4 Ng4

The first horse having returned, the other one now gets loose.

13.Qg3 Nc5

Can all this horsing around be good for Black? Neigh!

14.f5 h5 15.h3 Nf6 Already White now has a pawn breakthrough that would allow him to rustle one of the Knights: 16.e5 dxe5 17.Qxe5+ Qe7 18.Re1 Qxe5 19.Rxe5+ Kd8 20.Rxc5.

The move that I chose instead targets Black's King.

16.Qxg7 Rg8 17.Qh6 d5

Breaking in the center, attacking the pawn chain – but letting the e-pawn advance. Correct seems to be 17...Qe7 with defensive prospects.

18.e5 Nfd7
Black's position is suddenly so dire that Rybka 3, analyzing after the game was over, suggested that he should offer the return of a piece with 18...Ncd7 – but that White's attack was so strong that the first player could continue to develop without capturing immediately: 19.Bf4 c6 20.Nd2 Qb6+ 21.Kh1 c5 22.Rae1 Kd8 23.Nf3.

19.Qxh5+ Ke7 20.Bg5+

Winning the exchange, while 20.Qh7+ led to the win of a Rook. Regardless, the Black King is in serious trouble.

20...Rxg5 21.Qxg5+ Ke8 22.Qg6+ Kf8 23.f6 Nxe5 24.Qg7+ Ke8 25.f7+ Nxf7 26.Qxf7 checkmate

An International Master Refutes the Jerome Gambit

International Master Gary Lane's latest book, The Greatest Ever Chess Tricks and Traps (Everyman Chess, 2008) is a very entertaining and educational collection addressing the notion that "There is no easier way to win a game of chess than by luring your opponent into a devious trap."

Lane covers the Jerome Gambit of course, and annotates the game Banks - Karmark, internet, 2007, (although he mistakenly labels it a blitz game).

His main analysis of the Jerome:

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 d6!

I think this is the best way to defend: allowing one of the extra pieces to be taken, and in return obtaining a solid position with extra material.

8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Nc3
This is the right time for White to offer a draw, but if the offer is declined you should remember that it is frowned upon to cry at the board.

9...Nf6 10.Qh4 Rf8 11.d3 Kf7 12.Bg5 Kg8
Black has artificially castled and now has a big advantage, thanks to his extra piece for just one pawn.

I was pleased to see that 9.Nc3 was not in my Jerome Gambit database – but if that is the move IM Lane sees as best for White, I will add it to my repertoire!

graphic by Jeff Bucchino, the Wizard of Draws

Whistling by the graveyard...

The following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game against tmarkst brought to mind the lament expressed earlier in "Jerome Gambit for Dummies (3)". Against such refutations as Whistler's Defense, What's a Jerome Gambit Gemeinde to do??

perrypawnpusher - tmarkst
blitz , FICS, 2009

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

This was my 70th Jerome or Jerome-ized game. That I've scored 88% with the lines is a tribute to the general level of chaos in the chess world. Or sheer luck.

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

Now: Blackburne or Whistler?

7.Qxe5 Qe7
Whistler, it is – my favorite anti-Jerome Gambit. I once used it myself to win a nice game against one of the top players in the Jerome Gambit Gemeinde (see "Jerome Gambit Tournament: Chapter VIII").

Well, there was not much to do here but to take some inspiration from my buddy abhailey, who faced down the Whistler and wondered what all the fuss was about (see "Beware: Mad Dog!")...

8.Qf4+

This move looks like it took my opponent by surprise. C'mon, Mr. Pawnpusher, you're a piece down and I was offering you a Rook...

8...Kg7 9.d3 d6 10.Nc3 Bd4

Black has an idea on how to proceed, but I'm guessing that 10...Nf6 followed by ...Rf8 would have taken him further.

11.0-0 Qf6 12.Qd2
Cowering. A much better idea was 12.Nd5 Qd8 13.c3 Be5 14.Qg5 which should lead to a relatively even position.

12...Be6 13.Kh1 Rf8 14.f3
Adopting the "come and get me" approach. At this point Black's only problem is over-confidence.

14...c6 15.Ne2 Be5
Black now has a massive preponderance of pieces on the Kingside, so it was hard for him to see that the text move was an error.

16.d4 Bxh2
Forced, but still scary-looking.

17.Kxh2 Qh4+ 18.Kg1 h5



19.Qg5 Qxg5 20.Bxg5 h4 21.Nf4 Re8 22.Nxe6+ Rxe6

Exchanging pieces has calmed things down a bit.

23.Kf2 h3 24.gxh3 Rxh3 25.Ke3

The storm is over, and I was looking to see what I could make out of my pawn advantage.

25...Ne7 26.Bxe7 Rxe7 27.Rh1 Rg3 28.Rag1 Rxg1 29.Rxg1 d5

I can work with this. In the meantime, I think my opponent's disappointment (Where did my attack go??) hobbled his play.

30.e5 Kf7 31.f4 Re8 32.Rh1 Ke6 33.Rh6 Kf5 34.Rh7 Rb8



35.Rf7+ Ke6 36.Rf6+ Ke7 37.Rxg6



37...Kf7 38.f5 Rf8 39.Rf6+ Ke7 40.Rxf8 Kxf8 41.Kf4 Kf7 42.Kg5 b5 43.e6+ Black resigned


Looks like I won't have to give up the Jerome Gambit - at least for another week!

Psychology... and the Jerome Gambit?

The title of a very interesting article at Chessville is "Do Not Overestimate the Role of Psychology in Chess" by FM Amatzia Avni.

While I don't agree with everything the author says, he certainly has the background to say it (check out "Inside Avni's Mind" and my reviews of his books Practical Chess Psychology, The Grandmaster's Mind, and Devious Chess; as well as Chessville editor David Surratt's review of Chess Tips for the Improving Player ) and he doesn't mince words, for example

Yet a new psychological jargon appears to delude people to think that they act cleverly, while this is not the case.

By the way, many players have made comments about playing against my Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) but none have actually suggested that they thought I was being clever...

Alonzo Wheeler Jerome, Inventor

Always New

Introducing others to the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), either over-the-board, online, or via this blog, always seems to bring out players' creativity; so that an old, hackneyed opening is constantly experiencing new and interesting re-creations.

perrypawnpusher - nicholasjanssen blitz 10 0, FICS, 2009 

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 From here Black can defend with either Blackburne's or Whistler's defense.

7.Qxe5 d6 

Blackburne it is. (7...Qe7 is Whistler) 

8.Qxh8 Qf6 

This innovation (8...Qh4 is "book") is new to me. Black threatens havoc at f2.

9.Qxf6+ 

Or 9...Qxh7+ before exchanging Queens. 

9...Nxf6 10.d3 Be6 11.Nc3 Re8 12.0-0 d5 This all seems pretty natural to me, but I'm not sure that my opponent was happy with the amount of counter-attack that his Rook purchased. White is the exchange and a couple of pawns to the better. 

13.exd5 Nxd5 14.Bd2 Bb4 15.a3 Bd6 16.Nxd5 Bxd5 17.Rae1 White doesn't need excitment; he only needs to exchange pieces.

17...b6 18.Rxe8 Kxe8 19.Re1+ Kf7 20.Bc3 a5 21.Be5 Mindlessness masquerading as technique. 

21...Ba2 

Not a safe place to hide. 

22.Bxd6 cxd6 23.b3 a4 24.bxa4 d5 Having freed the Bishop, Black slams the door on it again. It took me a move to notice. 

25.f3 h5 26.Ra1 b5 27.Rxa2 Faster is 27.axb5, but it doesn't matter. 

27...bxa4 28.Rb2 Ke6 29.Kf2 Ke5 30.Ke3 d4+ 31.Kf2 Kf4 32.Rb4 Ke5 33.Rxa4 h4 34.Rb4 g5 35.a4 g4 36.fxg4 h3 Black resigned