Shillings: One Found, Two Lost (Part 2)

Applying the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) treatment to the Blackburne Shilling Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4) has become a standard plan when my favorite opening meets someone's favorite defense. So far I have scored 13 wins against 2 losses and 1 draw, so I'm not likely to change my play any time soon.

perrypawnpusher - xenoglot

blitz 2 12, FICS, 2010

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

4.Bxf7+

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8

Checking the New Year's Database (which I have been updating regularly) I note that the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit has scored 56% (based on 2,292 games),  but that the per centage jumps to 61% (based on 1,076 games) in the 5...Ke6 line. (All cautions about statistics, of course, apply.) 

6.Qh5+ g6 7.Nxg6 Nf6

A good look at this line can be found in "Please, don't do that..." and "It's a good thing I read this blog".

Rybka says that developing the King's Knight gives White a small advantage, and instead recommends: 7...hxg6 8.Qxg6+ Ke7 9.Qg5+ Nf6 (for 9...Ke8 see perrypawnpusher - adamzzzz, blitz FICS, 2009)10.Qc5+ Kf7 11.Qxd4 d5 when Black has an edge.

8.Qe5+ Ne6

At this point in one game, my opponent resigned: perrypawnpusher - fintrade, blitz FICS, 2009.


9.Nxh8 Bg7 10.d4

10...c6 11.Bg5 Bxh8

Black has two pieces for a Rook and three pawns – but these are "Jerome pawns"!

12.Bxf6

After the game Rybka preferred straight development with 12.Nc3. I think that is because it did not see going into an endgame as strong as staying in the middle game.

12...Bxf6

Better, according to the computer, was 12...Qxf6 13.Qxf6 Bxf6
when White has only an edge. I would have been happy to follow that line, though.

13.Qh5+

On revient toujours à ses premières amours...

13...Ke7 14.Qxh7+ Ke8 15.e5 Be7

With three connected passed pawns and a Rook for Black's two Bishops, White is better – but how to convert the advantage?

16.Qh5+ Kf8 17.Qf5+ Ke8 18.Qg6+ Kf8 19.Qf5+ Kg7

I was checking the King and even repeating the position in order to pick up some time to think a bit deeper. My opponent apparently took this as indecision or confusion on my part. This kind of thought process can lead to over-confidence, which is not good. 

Xenoglot should have returned his King to e8 and seen if I really wanted a draw – which would have been a favorable outcome for him at this point.

20.0-0 Nxd4

See what I mean? Over-confidence can allow one to fall into the shallowest of traps.

21.Qg4+ Kf8 22.Qxd4 Ke8

From here, Black's position slowly disintegrates.

23.Nc3 d6 24.exd6 Bxd6 25.Rfe1+ Kd7 26.Rad1

Even stronger was 26.Qg7+.

26...Qf8 27.Ne4 c5 28.Qxd6+ Qxd6 29.Nxd6 

29...Kc6 30.Nxc8 Rxc8 31.h4 b5

32.h5 a5 33.Re6+ Kb7 34.Rd7+ Ka8 35.Ree7 Rc6 36.Re8+ Rc8 37.Rxc8 checkmate

My opponent immediately challenged me to a rematch...

Shillings: One Found, Two Lost (Part 1)

Sometime back I contacted Edward Winter, of "Chess Notes" and Chess History fame, with some questions about the origin and naming of the Blackburne Shilling Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4). He posted my query, and recently presented some relevant information. 

3786. Blackburne Shilling Gambit

From Rick Kennedy (Columbus, OH, USA):

‘The opening 1 e4 e5 2 Nf3 Nc6 3 Bc4 Nd4 has been called the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, in recognition, apparently, of J.H. Blackburne’s use of it to win small stakes from players. However, I have yet to find a single game with it played by Blackburne. In fact, the earliest game uncovered was played in New Zealand in 1911. How did Blackburne’s name become attached to the variation? Indeed, when did it become attached?

Steinitz’s Modern Chess Instructor has a note on the line, but does not refer to Blackburne. Mr Blackburne’s Games at Chess makes no mention of it. Nor does Freeborough and Ranken’s Chess Openings Ancient and Modern attribute the line (given in a footnote) to anyone. E.E. Cunnington’s books (one on traps, one on openings for beginners), which were published in London shortly after the turn of the century, give the moves but do not name Blackburne.

One clue may be that the first edition of Hooper and Whyld’s Oxford Companion to Chess (1984) does not call the line by name, but the second edition (1992) calls it the Blackburne Shilling Gambit. Did the co-authors discover some historical information during that eight-year period?’

6470. Blackburne Shilling Gambit (C.N. 3786)

From page 429 of the December 1897 American Chess Magazine:

"All chess life seems to be with America," writes an esteemed and particularly well-posted English correspondent. "A great change has come over English chess. The 'old masters' are dying out. The new-born strength of amateurs has slaughtered them. They have no prestige. Names once of weight are now spoken of with contempt. No new professionals are coming in – no new Blackburnes or Birds. The 'nimble shilling,' for which the old professionals played at the Divan, is now too hardly earned. The country joskins know the openings and the principles, and instead of Bird's giving a Queen and winning twenty games in an hours, as I have seen ('hoc egomet oculis mei vidi'), he plays on even terms, and of five games wins only the odd one and a shilling. The ancient 'Shilling Gambit' is no longer a thing of dread. Young men from Birmingham walk into the Divan without awe and speak of giving odds. And the late H. Macaulay of this city (now Birmingham) actually conceded the Knight to a master who played and won a prize in the Manchester International, and Macaulay, giving the odds, won a majority of the games." - New Orleans Times-Democrat.

Like a Wall Falling on You

Bill Wall's adventures with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and other Jerome-ish openings continue with two short games that probably left his opponents stunned.

Hi Rick,

Got the file [New Year's Database] and unzipped it. Looks great. Here is what I played this evening

Wall - Surr
Chess.com, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6

The Semi-Italian Opening.

I like to castle here, but Bill preferred developing another piece.

4.Nc3 Nd4

Uh-oh... Playing the Blackburne Shilling Gambit a move down? That's just asking for the Improved Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit!

5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Ke8

In all fairness, Rybka suggests that the game is equal after 6...Ke6 7.f4 Nf6 8.Ne2 Nxe2 9.Qxe2 Rg8 10.0-0 Ke7 11.d4 Qe8 12.Qc4 Kd8 13.f5 – but would you want to play Black?

analysis diagram





After the text move, Black doesn't have to either.

7.Qh5+ Ke7 8.Qf7+ Kd6 9.Nc4+ Kc5 10.b4+ Kxb4 11.Ba3 checkmate

A couple of days later Bill played this one.

Wall,B - GuestDLNJ
blitz 15 0, FICS, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 a6

4.Bxf7+

An earlier game saw Bill be a bit more patient – until he was provoked past his limit: 4.Nc3 b5 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+ g6 8.Qxe5 Bg7 9.Qd5+ Ke8 10.Qxa8 Black resigned, Wall,B -Dinghy, Internet, 1998

4...Kxf7 5.0-0 h6

6.Nc3 Nd4

Again, I cannot see the attraction of this kind of move. Certainly simple development will keep Black's advantage. (For 6...Nf6 see perrypawnpusher - EAB, blitz FICS, 2010.)

7.Nxe5+ Ke8

If instead 7...Kf6 then 8.Qh5 and if 8...Nxc2 then 9.Qf5+ Ke7 10.Ng6+ Ke8 11.Qxf8 checkmate; or 7...Ke6 8.Ng6.

The text allows mate.

8.Qh5+ Ke7 9.Qf7+ Kd6 10.Nc4+ Kc6

Or 10...Kc5 11.Qd5+ Kb4 12.a3 checkmate

analysis diagram





11.Qd5 checkmate

Counter-counter-attack

When facing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) Black has a number of strategies that he can follow. Often "counter-attack" is a very good plan. However, as in the following game, such aggression must come only when it cannot be ignored or counter-manded.

perrypawnpusher - andrecoenen

blitz 10 0, FICS, 2010

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

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

7.Qxe5 Nf6

This should probably be called the Carrington variation, after William Carrington who played the move in his second match against Mexican champion Andres Clemente Vazquez in 1876. Vazquez won both matches handily (and all three of his Jerome Gambits).

8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Re8

Black could simply have played 9...Nxe4, regaining a pawn, as 10.Qxe4 loses directly to 10...Re8.

10.d3 d5 11.f3

Two pawns are worth a little inconvenience.

11...dxe4 12.fxe4 Ng4

This is playing with fire, although I am sure that it was tempting to harass White's only developed piece. Safer was 12...Kg8. 

13.Qf3+

It took me a while to understand Fritz8's suggestion of 13.Qg3, made after the game. It anticipates a Black ...Qd8-d6, allowing the Queens to be exchanged on d6 rather than on g3 (the latter would give White doubled isolated pawns). It also prevents ...Qd6-h4.

13...Kg7 14.0-0 Qh4

Black is quick to counter-attack, although I agree with Fritz8's suggestion of 14...Qd4+ 15.Kh1 Be6 16.Bd2 Kg8 17.Bc3 Qd6  when White plays 18.Qg3 Qxg3 19.hxg3. 

analysis diagram






The first player still has his two pawns plus, but his advantage is not as great as with the text.

15.Qf7+ Black resigned

Black will loose a Rook and then be checkmated.

Swat the fly, but use common sense

Lately I have been given some help in my pledge (see "I am pond scum" and "Haunted by the Jerome Gambit") to stay away from the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) – at least until I can play it without embarassing myself (too much). One recent opponent avoided 3...Bc5 by playing 3...Qf6. (I mated him in 21 moves, but I really appreciated the thought.)

It hasn't been easy.

For example, there is the following game, where my opponent's avoidance of anything Jerome was matched by my unrepressed impatience to make everything Jerome-ish...

perrypawnpusher - tiyiti
Chess.com, 2010

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 d6

Good: no Jerome Gambit today.

3.Bc4 h6

Don't tease me.

4. O-O f6

5.Nxe5

No, no, no, no, no...

It seems that I can resist anything but temptation.

5...dxe5 6.Qh5+ Kd7

Actually, the Knight sac is playable, as Rybka pointed out after the game: 7.d4 exd4 8.Rd1 Bd6 9.Qg4+ Kc6 10.Qxg7 Ne7 11.Qxf6 Qf8 12.Qxd4 Bc5 and White has a slight edge.

Analysis diagram





7.Qf7+

This is a slip. I had looked at 7...Be7 as a response, when White is clearly better after 8.Qxg7.

What I had missed was 7...Qe7. This move locks up Black's Bishop and Knight, but it does chase away White's Queen, and after 8.Qh5 it is not clear how White is to continue.

It is true that Black's King is stuck in the center, and this will give White chances against it; but if the first player doesn't find something sharp, his trade of a pawn for a piece will turn out poorly.

7...Ne7

Fine. Enough silliness for the day.

8. Qe6+ Ke8 9. Qf7+ Kd7 drawn