One of the fun things about an offbeat opening like the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is that a game can move along like nothing is going on, lulling one or both players into a sense of calm – and then something unexpected happens.
MAILMANUK - IFDThor
blitz, FICS, 2002
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.d4 exd4 6.Ng5+ Kg6 7.h4
Black is rated about 350 points above his opponent. He is not particularly alarmed at defending against the Jerome Gambit. He is not distressed by the slightly unusual 5.d4, or the more unusual 6.Ng5+, or the innovative 7.h4. He simply whips out a "Swiss army knife" style defensive move, and ends the game.
7...Qf6 8.h5+ Kh6 9.Nf7 checkmate
Sometimes you do not need to attack maniacally with the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc3 Bc5 4.Bxf7+), you need only press ahead steadily, leaving the window open to allow an opponent's error in...
billwall (2488) - DeDrijver (1438)
Play The Jerome Gambit Quad
Chess.com, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf8
An interesting line, as old as Alonzo Wheeler Jerome's earliest published analysis of his gambit, which showed up not much later in Jerome - Brownson, Iowa, 1875 (1/2-1/2, 29) and Vazquez - Carrington, 2nd match, Mexico, 1876 (1-0, 43).
The move 6.Qh5!?, looking to transpose into more main lines, is known as the Banks Attack (Banks - Rees, Wolverhampton, 2003) although 6...Qe7! (splott - Mika76, GameKnot, 2008) is a dangerous response.
Bill tries something different – again. A couple of year ago he tried the interesting 6.Nd3 in Wall,B - Tim93612, Chess.com 2010, (1-0, 36).
6.0-0 Nxe5 7.d4 Bd6
Stronger and simpler is 7...Bxd4.
8.dxe5 Bxe5 9.f4 Bd4+
This move is difficult to understand, and might be mistaken for a "mouse slip" were not the game's time control 3 days per move.
10.Qxd4 Qf6 11.e5 Qb6 12.Qxb6 axb6
Happy to be a pawn up, with easier development, a safer King, and potential for his "Jerome pawns", White has plenty of patient hope for his game.
13.Nc3 Ne7 14.Nb5 c6 15.Nd6 g6
Waving a red cape in front of a bull.
16.f5
As I watched this game develop at Chess.com, I thought that it might be time now for 16.g4, followed by 17.f5, which, after an exchange of pawns, would have the "Jerome pawns" looking advanced and mighty good. Bill shows that the f-pawn does not have to wait.
16...gxf5
Although the position looks quiet, this move allows mate. Sadly, something like 16...g5 followed by 17...h6 was necessary to keep the White Bishop off of h6.
17.Bh6+ Kg8 18.Nxf5 Nxf5 19.Rxf5 d5 20.Rf8 checkmate
At the end of last month I posted the famous Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4Bxf7+) game Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1885, which had been published in The Newcastle Courant of Saturday, December 3, 1898, with the admonition that Students would do well to commit it to memory, as strong players have a peculiarity of springing the opening upon the unwary.
"Students" who have not chosen to "commit it to memory" but who have, instead, relied on retaining a general idea of Blackburne's plan, have repeatedly learned, however, that often "half a defense is worse than no defense at all."
The newest example is from the ongoing "Play The Jerome Gambit Quad" at Chess.com.
ubluk (1864) - bfcace (1572)
Play The Jerome Gambit Quad
Chess.com, 2012
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6
Black's "generous" counter-offer of material.
8.Qxh8 Qh4 9.0-0 Qxe4
A key move in Blackburne's Defense is 9...Nf6, working on trapping White's Queen. If she escapes, as in this game, Black will regret his counter-sacrifice of a Rook.
10.Qxh7+
Or 10.d3 Qe5 11.Qxh7+ as in AlgozBR - khuizen, FICS, 2009 (1-0,17)
10...Kf8 11.d3
A bit better than 11.Nc3 as in perrypawnpusher - LtPoultry, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 12) and DREWBEAR 63 - blackburne, Jerome Gambit Thematic, ChessWorld, 2009 (1-0, 16).
11...Qe6
Previously seen was 11...Qf5 in obviously - dmyze, GameKnot.com, 2004 (1-0, 20).
12.Qxc7 Bb6 13.Qc3 Nf6
Black is down three pawns and the exchange (plus an unsafe King). This should tell as soon as White completes his development.
14.Bh6+ Kf7 15.Nd2 Bd7 16.Rae1 Qf5 17.Ne4 Rh8 18.Nxd6+
A final slip. Black resigned
Continuing my search through The Database's 8-move games, chasing clues to the "essence" of the Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+, (or at least an insight into how it "works"), I came across a lesson (again) for White, written in a handful of games.
After all, 7...Qf6 could simply be an example of Black placing a strong piece on a strong square. Or – he could be planning something...
ainafets - Papaflesas
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bxd4 7.Qxd4 Qf6 8.f4 Nf3+ White resigned
stemplarv - KIAUA
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Bc5 3.Nf3 Nc6 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bxd4 7.Qxd4 Qf6 8.f4 Nf3+ White resigned
stretto - terma
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bxd4 7.Qxd4 Qf6 8.0-0 Nf3+ White resigned
stretto - haquitraveis
blitz, FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bxd4 7.Qxd4 Qf6 8.0-0 Nf3+ White resigned
It is very common for a chessplayer to look at White's first few moves in the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) and ask himself, "What is White thinking??" Sometimes the first player has a head full of fever dreams like the following games, which I turned up while looking through The Database for 8-move contests containing the "essence" of the Jerome Gambit, or at least an insight into how it "works".
decent - fulldecent
lightning, FICS, 2003
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4 exd4 6.Ng5+ Kf8 7.Qf3+ Ke8 8.Qf7#
soulman - tobinskov
standard, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4 exd4 6.Ng5+ Ke8 7.Qf3 h6 8.Qf7#
drumme - jherman
blitz, FICS, 2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4 exd4 6.Ng5+ Ke8 7.Qf3 h6 8.Qf7#
Odizzel - narciso
blitz, FICS, 2005
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d3 d6 6.Ng5+ Kf8 7.Qh5 Nf6 8.Qf7#
braken - klonka59
2011
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kf8 5.Bd5 Nf6 6.Ng5 Nxe4 7.Nxe4 Ne7 8.Qf3+ Black resigned
Yes, indeed, things frequently go differently, if Black defends properly; but these games reinforce the lesson Tartakower liked to pronounce about some opening ideas, that is "dubious, therefore playable". Black relaxed and told himself that he would get around to defending, any time now – to his misfortune.
Referring to 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ as "The Jerome Gamble", Gary K. Gifford put his finger on the uncertainty and the risk of loss vs risk of gain in this particular opening.
Quite possibly Gifford would refer to the subsequent line 4...Kxf7 5.d4 as the "Jerome Gamble Gamble".
Once again looking for the "essence" of the Jerome Gambit, or at least an insight into how it "works" (as I have been doing in the "Return" series), I ran into an 8-move game that utilized that gambling center pawn sacrifice.
EstonianBear - Lesic
blitz, FICS, 2002
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4
White's second "gamble" in the classical "Jerome Gamble" line comes when he plays 5.Nxe5+. In this modern "Jerome Gamble" line, White's second "gamble", instead, is 5.d4.
This move has several points (starting with not sacrificing a second piece), not the least of which is making the move Nf3-g5 possible without risking the Knight's capture – see "The Return of Jerome Gambit for Dummies (Part 2)".
This position shows up about 1,540 times in The Database (scoring 38%), the most recent time being in the game Bill Wall - Guest1366999, Playchess.com, 2011 (1-0).
5...Nxd4
Of Black's 3 possible captures of the d-pawn, taking with the Knight seems least strong. Currently, The Database shows White scoring 27% against 5...Bxd4, 36% against 5...exd4, and 45% against 5...Nxd4.
6.Nxe5+ Kf8 7.Qh5
Continuing to go for the jugular. Robots might recommend the pedestrian 7.Be3, instead.
7...g6 8.Nxg6+ Black resigned
For some reason this got me thinking about the old song Little Ole' Man, sung by Bill Cosby, which I heard about 45 years ago.
A little ole' man was sittin' on a step
And a tear trickled own his cheek.
I said "What's the matter?"
He said "A train just ran over me."
I said "Hmm. How often does this happen?"
He said "Everyday about this time."
I said "Well, why do you just sit out here then?"
He said "Cause I cannot believe that this happened."
I said "Reach out, take my hand, you'll understand."
Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight. Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight.
Little ole' man was sittin' on the step, same ole' man.
And a tear trickled down his cheek.
I said "What's the matter?"
He said "A herd of elephants just stampeded over me."
I said "Hmm" same "Hmm."
I said "How often does this happen?"
He said "Everyday, a half hour after the train runs over me."
I said "Reach out, take my hand, you'll understand."
Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight. Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight.
Little ole' man sittin' on a step, same ole' man.
A tear trickled down his cheek.
I said "Hey, how ya doin' after that train ran over ya?"
He said "WHAT train?"
I said "The train that ran over ya a half hour before the elephants stampeded over ya."
He said "What elephants?"
I said "Hmm" same "Hmm."
He says "You're a young boy."
Says "Ya got a lot to learn."
He says "Reach out, take my hand, you'll understand."
Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight. Baby, everything is alright, uptight, outta sight
Erik Knutson (USCF 2080) has recently posted a couple of videos at YouTube, introducing the Jerome Gambit. They are well-produced and give a good introduction to 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+.
Video 1, (3 minutes), March 15, 2012
Video 2, (9 minutes 30 seconds), March 20, 2012
Erik promises a third video soon, with a couple of illustrative games. Watch for it!
