How Long?

I think I have shared before that one chessfriend of mine said he enjoys playing chess at a local bar and he has found that the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is a perfect opening to play there, as, win or lose, the game is usually over quickly...

The other day I was wondering about the other end of the time spectrum: how long can a Jerome Gambit game last, especially a blitz game? I consulted The Database, and found some interesting answers.

MAILMANUK - Buckeyeski, blitz, FICS, 2002

After149 moves, this game was drawn by the "50 move rule" (although it could have been drawn, for the same reason, over 35 moves earlier)



HIARCS 11.1 UCI - Rybka 2.3.1 32-bit, 2008

Here, the two silicon monsters battled for 147 moves. 





DOCTOERDETROIT - jpiza, blitz, FICS, 2009

Here, consistent with our topic, on move 145, Black lost on time.



Good Fortune

The diagram below preserves a lucky moment for White, who, many moves earlier, had started a Jerome Gambit with 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.h4, which is not a line you see every day...

MATCHAPULANE - Rachipa, blitz, FICS, 2011

Draw: Black ran out of time and White has no material to mate



A Saving Swindle

The following position is from a Blackburne Schilling Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4) treated in Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) fashion (i.e. 4.Bxf7+).

White has done very well, and is, in fact, a Rook and two pawns ahead. Black is attacking – because that is all that is left for him to do.

When the defender relaxes, if only for a moment, a saving swindle allows the split of the point. 

Coxybleue - Toquino, blitz, FICS, 2011

17.h3 Nxe3 18.fxe3 Bxh3

A sign of desperation, White may have thought.

19.gxh3

White had about 30 moves, starting with 19.Qf3, to keep his sizeable advantage. The text is not one of them.

19...Qg3+ 20.Kh1 Qxh3+ 21.Kg1 Qg3+ 22.Kh1 Qh3+ 23.Kg1 Qg3+ 24.Kh1 Qh3+ 25.Kg1 Drawn

The Cure

White starts off the following game in typical Giuoco Piano fashion, and he seems to be looking for a quiet game – until Black gives him the opportunity to become very loud.




shepherd - garouss
blitz, FICS, 2011

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d3 h6

This position is at least as old as Home - Puller, Cambridge, 1860, where White continued in cautious fashion with 5.Be3 d6 6.h3 Qf6 7.a3 (1-0, 25).

5.Nc3 Na5

No doubt looking for more piano after 6.Bb3 Nxb3, but this move allows White to deliver some magna instead. 

6.Bxf7+

Another example of the "Jerome cure."

Sadly, for Black, Fritz suggests that the best now is to not take the piece, but continue with 6...Kf8 7.Nxe5 Bxf2+ 8.Kf1 (a bizarre example of what Yury V. Bukayev might call "the Jerome-Jerome exchange" declined) when 8...Bb6 9.Ng6+ Kxf7 10.Nxh8+ Kf8 gives White a pawn and the exchange advantage. 

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Ke8

"Best" for Black was 7...Ke6, when White has a strong attack after 8.Qg4+ Kxe5 9.Bf4+ although he lost his way, and, eventually, the game, in chumbo - KvanHouten, FICS, 2011 (0-1, 32).

8.Qh5+ Ke7 9.Ng6+ Kd6 10.Qd5 checkmate

Finishing It Off Smartly

In the following game, when jfhumphrey applies the "Jerome cure" to the Blackburne Shilling Gambit, the two players head into a sharp variation where jordibc's thematic BSG Queen sally looks scary, but proves to be his undoing.



jfhumphrey - jordibc
blitz, FICS, 2011

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

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6 6.c3 Qg5

The main line of this variation is the Knight "exchange" 6...Kxe5 7.cxd4+. Instead, Black brings out an idea that is often very dangerous in the Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

As we will see, though, White is quite ready.

7.cxd4 Qxg2 8.Qb3+

The much less effective 8.Qg4+ was seen in perrypawnpusher-TheProducer, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 66).

8...Ke7

Black is simply being mated. Alternatives:

8...Kf6 9.Qf7+ Kg5 10.d3+ Kh4 11.Nf3+ Kh3 12.Qh5 checkmate, GOH - boggus, FICS, 2011;


8...Kd6 9.Qd5+ Ke7 10.Qf7+ Kd6 11.Nc4+ Kc6 12.Qd5 checkmate, XprezzChezz - borodin, FICS, 2009;


8...d5 when 9.Qxd5+ Kf6 10.Qf7+ Kg5 11.h4+ Kh6 12.d3+ Qg5 13.hxg5 would have been checkmate; instead, White played 9.exd5+, achieved an advantage, but lost on time in 37 moves in ReallyBadPlayer - skipi, FICS, 2006.

9.Qf7+ Kd6 10.Nc4+ Kc6 11.Qd5 checkmate

Barely Got His Coffee Sipped

The following game reminds me, in a small way, of the story about the game between Frank Marshall and Amos Burn, where the former attacked early and forced resignation almost before the latter even had gotten his pipe lit.

jsfromynr - Vittore
blitz, FICS, 2011

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Na5

This blog has had coverage of this unnamed line, from early on (see "Offside!") to more recently (see "A Snack" and "Betcha Can't Eat Just One"). White's simplest response, giving him the advantage, is 4.Nxe5.

White prefers, however, to Jerome-ize the opening.

4.Bxf7+ Ke7

I do not recall posting on this "decline" before.

The Database has over a dozen games with Vittore playing 3...Na5, so presumably he knew what he was doing – especially since in nine of those games Black played 4...Ke7.

The second player must maintain attention, though, if he wants to continue the game much longer.

5.Bxg8 Rxg8 6.d4 d6 7.Bg5+ Black resigned

The game is over, almost before Black (should he have wished) had gotten his coffee sipped...

Sunday Tournament Update

As the ChessWorld Jerome Gambit Thematic Tournament continues to wind down, with no further resolution of the top finishers (beyond AsceticKingK9 in first place, followed by mckenna215) since last report, I thought I'd flash back to the recent Chess.com  "Kentucky Opening" (also known as the Jerome Gambit 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) tournament and present the players, their scores, and their order of finish.

GazzaT (2468)          7-0-1
Topper76 (1474)       5-2-1
tapirus (2089)           3-3-2
Yigor (1665)             3-5-0
mrdenetop (1983)     0-8-0


graphic by Jeff Bucchino, The Wizard of Draws