It can be eduational to turn over a recently-played game to Rybka or Fritz to see what they have to say about the game.
Sometimes, as in this one, when the silicon monster fusses over move after move after move, it can be grating, like singing with an off-key piano.
Of course, that only seems fair, considering that the strategy and tactics critiqued come from the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) – as off-key a Giuoco Piano as you are likely to find.
Black's Knight on g4 has done a lot of travelling and is not finished yet. It will eventually move 8 times, exchanging itself at last for a piece that has moved once.
14.Qg3 h5 15.h3 Nf6 16.e5
Here is where the computer's post mortem became critical.
It does make sense to develop my Queenside first, as in 16.Nc3 Kf7 16.Bg5 Kg8 17.Rae1, with an even game.
analysis diagram
Rybka's primary suggestion was to crash through and blow things up right away: 16.Qxg7 Nxe4 17.f6 Rf7 18.Qh8+ Kd7 19.Qxd8+ Kxd8 20.fxe7+ Rxe7 with the edge to White.
analysis diagram
16...Ne4
apinheiro did not want to cooperate with the formation of my pawn center, but the computer suggested that this Knight jump would be more powerful after exchanging pawns.
17.Qe3
17... d5 18. f6 gxf6 19. exf6
The computer continued its moaning and groaning, but it made a good point: Black's Knight on e7 should now go to f5, not c6.
19... Nc620.Qh6Rf721.Bg5 Nxd4
Black's Knights are strong and centralized. White's center pawns have been stopped or eliminated.
It is surprising that Rybka (blunder check, 5 minutes a move) rates White to have an edge in this position.
22. Nc3 Nxg5 23. Qxg5 Ne6
Rybka disliked Black's last move, rating the position now 3 1/2 pawns better for White. It certainly didn't feel that way to me!
24.Qg8+ Rf8 25.f7+
25... Ke7 26. Qg6 Qd7
According to Rybka, this move makes the d-file fatally dangerous, and 26...c6 was better.
27. Rae1
This was a blitz game, but even at longer time controls I probably would not have found 27.Rad1 c6 28.Rf5 when sacrificing the Knight for Black's two center pawns lets the White Rooks in with deadly effect.
27...c6 28. Qf6+ Kd6 29. Qe5+ Ke7 30. Qf6+ Kd6
It's a good thing that computers can't laugh. (Actually, my Fritz8 has a CD that adds "voice".)
I was repeating positions to gain a little thinking time from the increment, totally missing the idea of sacrificing my Knight on d5 at move 29 or move 31, followed in a few moves by sacrificing my Rook on e6, winning easily...
Right.
31. Qe5+Ke7 32. Qxh5
Grabbing a pawn and avoiding a draw. It is clear from my opponent's next move that he doesn't think that I have more than a half point coming. He was mistaken: 33.Qg5+ Kd6 34.Rf5 would have won a piece plus a Queen for two Rooks. (Of course, I missed that, too.)
32...a633.Qg5+ Kd6 34.Qe5+ Ke7 35.Qg7
35...Kd8
Finally, a move that I could comprehend!
36.Rxe6 Qxe637.Qxf8+
38...Kc7 38. Qe8 Bd7
39.Qxe6
I was aware that taking the Rook was stronger, but I wanted to quickly transition into a safe and won endgame.
39... Bxe6 40.f8=Q Rxf8 41. Rxf8
41...b5 42.g4 Kd7 43.Kg2 Ke7 44.Ra8 d4 45.Ne2 b4
46.Rxa6
Accidentally giving up the Knight for Black's pawns.
46...Bc4 47.Rxc6
Thoughtlessly offering the Rook, instead, for the pawns.
47...Bxe2
Even after 47...Bd5+ 48.Kg3 Bxc6 49.Nxd4 White is winning.
Readers who have not fallen asleep by now will notice that while my move wins, 56.Rd6 is stronger, as it allows 57.h4 mate.
56... Bh1 57. h4+Kf6 58. a7 Ke559. Rd8 Black resigned
I hope that you didn't mind that I cut off the computer's criticisms for the last 20 moves or so. It was getting rather tiresome, if not downright rude...
I was playing my way through some of Bill Wall's chess games when I suddenly felt like Alice must have felt, after moving through the Looking Glass. What I found on the other side was not quite a Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and I wasn't sure quite what to call it.
Wall,B - Danyum Chess.com, 2010
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6
So far, we have a Petroff Defense.
3.Bc4 Bc5
Okay, maybe this is a symmetrical Bishop's Opening.
4.Nc3
A Vienna Game? A Russian Three Knights Game headed toward an Italian Four Knights Game?
4...Ng4
And what is that? A Jabberwocky?
5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.Qh5+
This looks remarkably like a Jerome Gambit, only Black has a Knight at b8, not g8; and White has a Knight already on c3.
7...Ke6
Or, as in the only other example that I have been able to find of this line: 7...g6 8.Qxe5 d6 9.Qf4+ Ke8 10.0-0 Rf8 11.Qh6 Bxf2+ 12.Rxf2 Rxf2 13.Kxf2 Qf6+ 14.Kg1 Nd7 15.Qxh7 Nf8 16.Qxc7 Ne6 17.Qxd6 Qg5 18.d4 Qg4 19.Bd2 Ng5 20.Qe5+ Kf7 21.Bxg5 Qh5 22.Qf6+ Ke8 23.Qe7 checkmate Jeng, - Hatcher, San Jose, 1994.
8.d4 Bxd4
9.Nb5 Nbc6
A reasonable move, but one that loses. Rybka recommends: 9...Bxf2+ (the Bishop is lost, anyhow) 10.Kxf2 d6 (so that Black will have a counter to White's Bishop's attack on his Queen) 11.Bg5 g6 12.Qh3+ Kf7 13.Qb3+ Be6 14.Bxd8 Bxb3 15.axb3 Rxd8 16.Nxc7 Nbd7 17.Nxa8 Rxa8 when Black will have two Knights against a Rook and a pawn; and probably an edge.
When I play the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) I stay with the main lines and let my opponent do the innovating. Often he'll play a "Theoretical Lemon" (TL) rather than a "Theoretical Novelty" (TN).
The times when my opponent improves on past theory and play? Well, as they say, tomorrow is another day...
The move appeared first in Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's 1874 analysis of the Jerome Gambit in the Dubuque Chess Journal. The article contained an interesting caveat:
It should be understood that Mr. Jerome claims in this New Opening "only a pleasant variation of the Giuoco Piano, which may win or lose according to the skill of the players, but which is capable of affording many new positions and opportunities for heavy blows unexpectedly."
7.Qxe5 Qe7
A strong choice. An earlier game with the same opponent continued: 7...d6 8.Qg3 Qe7 9.d3 d5 10.0-0 dxe4 11.Re1 Qd6 12.Bf4 Qd4 13.Be5 Qd7 14.Rxe4 Qf5 15.Qxg7+ Ke8 16.Bg3+ Qxe4 17.dxe4 Black resigned,perrypawnpusher - frencheng, blitz FICS, 2010.
8.Qf4+
A similar idea (with a different response) was seen in blackburne - JFRAY, ChessWorld, 2004: 8.Qf5+ Ke8 9.0-0 d6 10.Qf3 Be6 11.Nc3 c6 12.d3 h6 13.Be3 Bxe3 14.fxe3 Nf6 15.d4 Rf8 16.e5 Nd5 17.exd6 Rxf3 18.dxe7 Rxf1+ 19.Rxf1 Kxe7 20.Nxd5+ Bxd5 21.b3 Rf8 22.c4 Rxf1+ 23.Kxf1 Be4 24.Kf2 Bb1 25.a3 Ba2 26.c5 Bxb3 27.e4 Ke6 28.Kf3 b6 29.Kf4 bxc5 30.dxc5 g5+ 31.Ke3 Ke5 32.Kd3 a5 33.g3 h5 34.h3 h4 35.g4 a4 36.Kc3 Bd1 37.Kb4 Kxe4 38.Ka5 Kd5 39.Kb4 Bxg4 40.Kxa4 Bxh3 41.Kb4 Bf1 42.a4 h3 43.a5 h2 White resigned
A fundamental alternative at this point is for White to exchange Queens, something that Louis Morin ("mrjoker") has explored in a number of games.
An early experiment did not go well: 8.d4 Qxe5 9.dxe5 Ne7 10.Nd2 Ng6 11.Nf3 b6 12.0-0 Bb7 13.Re1 Re8 14.b3 Nxe5 15.Nd2 Ng4 16.Re2 Ke7 17.h3 Nxf2 18.Rxf2 Rhf8 19.Nf3 Bxe4 20.Bb2 Bxf3 21.gxf3 Rxf3 22.Re1+ Kd8 23.Ref1 Rxf2 24.Rxf2 Re2, White resigned, guest393 - guest664, ICC, 2001.
Stronger was 13.Be3, although Black would still have the advantage.
13...Kg8
Black has castled-by-hand, has the two Bishops, and plans to swap off White's advanced Knight, leaving doubled pawns.
White needs to stir up some trouble before the game simply settles down to being bad for him.
14.Qg3 Nxd5 15.exd5 Qf6 16.Bc3
16...Bd4 17.Rae1 Bxc3 18.bxc3 b6
19.c4 Bb7
Black's Bishop will "bite on granite" here, but the move connects his Rooks.
20.Re6 Qc3 21.Re7 Rac8
The first good news that I've had in a while: my opponent is uneasy with my Rook on the seventh. How uneasy?
22.Rfe1 Qf6
That's uneasy enough for me.
It clearly was time to go for the draw by offering to repeat the position, before my opponent thought otherwise.
23.R1e6 Qd4 24.Re4 Qf6 25.R4e6 Qd4 26.Re4 Qf6 27.R4e6 Qd4 28.Re4 Qf6 29.R4e6 Qd4 30.Re4 Qf6 31.R4e6 Qd4 Game drawn by repetition I was happy to split the point here – tomorrow, after all, is another day.
