Jerome Gambit Chess Trap 10

I just ran into a video that silently presents the game Amateur - Blackburne, London, 1885. I know, I know, that kind of smashing play by The Black Death always leaves me speechless, too...

5-Minute Chess is Sometimes Daffy

5-minute chess means that each side has 300 seconds to win the game, or lose on time. In a 30-move game, that means about 10 seconds of thought a move. Under such conditions, the chess can become rather daffy. 

Wall,B - Guest2591977
playchess.com, 2012

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 Bd6 

Playable, although more defenders prefer the simpler 7...d6 as it allows for easier development of the light-squared Bishop. 

8.Qa5

A new move Bill introduced a while back.

8...Ne7

Or 8...Qf6 as in billwall - firewine, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 53)

9.d4 Nc6 10.Qf5+ Ke8

An indication that Black might be unfamiliar with the Jerome Gambit, as 10...Qf6 would seem to be the safest idea here.

11.d5 Nd4 12.Qh5+ g6 13.Qd1

Half of White's moves have been with his Queen, yet the game is about equal.

13...Qh4

Not a good time to follow the leader.

14.Qxd4 Rf8 15.Nc3 c5 16.dxc6 dxc6 17.Be3 Bc7 18.0-0-0 Bg4 19.f3 Rd8 20.Nd5 

The tactics heat up.

20...Bb6 

Taking the Knight leads to exchanges: 20...cxd5 21.exd5 Kf7 22.Qxg4 Qxg4 23.fxg4. 

21.Qe5+ Kf7 22.Bg5 Black resigned

A Jerome Look At The Semi-Italian Opening (Part 3)

In taking my "A Jerome Look At The Semi-Italian Opening" I realized that the line 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc3 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ was something that I had never played before. Luckily, The Database had a whole collection of games by Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member DragonTail to fill in. Just a few to give a few general ideas:


DragonTail - Moldus
blitz, FICS, 2008
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.e5 Bb4+ 7.c3 dxc3 8.bxc3 Bc5 9.Qd5+ Black resigned


DragonTail - FtAll
blitz, FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.c3 Qf6 7.0-0 Bc5 8.e5 Qf5 9.cxd4 Bb6 10.Qb3+ Kg6 11.Nh4+ Black resigned


DragonTail - Daoda
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.e5 Ke6 7.Nxd4+ Nxd4 8.Qxd4 c5 9.Qg4+ Kxe5 10.0-0 Nf6 11.Re1+ Kd5 12.Qf3+ Kd6 13.Bf4 checkmate


DragonTail  - bsouljah
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.e5 Bc5 7.0-0 Nge7 8.Nh4 Nxe5 9.Qh5+ N5g6 10.Nxg6 Nxg6 11.Qxc5 Rf8 12.Qd5+ Ke7 13.Re1+ Black resigned


DragonTail - xsnrgtwo
blitz, FICS, 2009
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.e5 Nxe5 7.Nxe5+ Ke8 8.Qh5+ Ke7 9.Qf7+ Kd6 10.Nc4+ Kc6 11.0-0 d5 12.Nca3 Bxa3 13.Nxa3 Qf6 14.Qe8+ Kb6 Black resigned


DragonTail - lorenzoaadler
blitz, FICS, 2007
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 4.d4 exd4 5.Bxf7+ Kxf7 6.e5 Bb4+ 7.c3 dxc3 8.Qd5+ Kg6 9.bxc3 Nge7 10.Nh4+ Kh7 11.Qe4+ g6 12.cxb4 Re8 13.0-0 d6 14.e6 d5 15.Qe3 Nf5 16.Nxf5 Rxe6 17.Qxh6+ Kg8 18.Qg7 checkmate

A Jerome Look At The Semi-Italian Opening (Part 2)

Here is a game that almost speaks for itself on the topic we are discussing.


LaughingHyena - eclipze
standard, FICS, 2007


1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 

The Semi-Italian Opening.


4.d4 


Per Euwe and Meiden.


4...Nxd4 


Ill-advised, and punishable immediately. Even the conservative player should be thinking "Jerrrrrrroooooommmmmme!"


5.Bxf7+ 

This is so much fun, I hate to point out that 5.Nxe5  is probably even stronger, e.g. 5...d5 (5...Nc6 6.Bxf7+ Ke7 7.Ng6+ Kxf7 8.Nxh8+ Ke7 9.Qd5; 5...Ne6 6.Bxe6 dxe6 7.Qxd8+ Kxd8 8.Nxf7+) 6.Qxd4 and White's centralized lead in development is overwhelming.


5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Ke8 


Ending things, but 6...Kf6 7.Qxd4 and 6...Ke6 7.Qxd4 are clearly better for White.


7.Qh5+ Black resigned

It is not hard to work out: 7...g6 (7...Ke7 8.Qf7+ Kd6 9.Nc4+ Kc5 10.Qd5+ Kb4 11.c3+ Ka4 12.Qa5#) 8.Qxg6+ Ke7 9.Qf7+ Kd6 10.Nc4+ Kc5 11.Qd5+ Kb4 12.Bd2+ Ka4 13.Qa5 checkmate

A Jerome Look At The Semi-Italian Opening (Part 1)

On this blog I refer to 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 as the Semi-Italian Opening, a name given to it in Chess Master Vs Chess Amateur(1963), by Max Euwe and Walter Meiden. Here is what the authors say about Black's third move (I have changed the notation from English descriptive to algebraic.)

This is a favorite move of the weaker amateur. He fears some future attack by the White QB (Bg5, for instance) or by the White KN (Ng5), and, before the White QB is even able to move, he plays the precautionary 3...h6. In certain positions, such a precautionary move is occasionally necessary, but in this position, not only is it not necessary, but it consumes valuable time. This puts Black one move behind White in the type of opening where tempi are of greatest importance. Instead of meeting the enemy's rapidly mobilizing forces with armed soldiers (i.e., by bringing out his pieces), Black only loses time and force, and, without realizing it, even weakens his defensive wall...

After 4.d4 exd4 they write

Black must take, as we shall see by an analysis of the most plausible alternate reply 4...d6: 5.dxe5 dxe5 6.Qxd8+ and (a) 6...Kxd8 7.Bxf7, etc., or (b) 6...Nxd8 7.Nxe5. White could act even more energetically by playing 6.Bxf7+ Kxf7 7.Nxe5+, and Black is in great trouble, for (a) 7...Nxe5? 8.Qxd8 or (b) 7...Ke7 8.Ng6+, or (c) 7...Ke8 8.Qh5+ Ke7 9.Ng6+. After (d) 7...Kf6, the continuation is less clear. This does not mean that the sacrifice would be incorrect, since after 8.Nd3, White has two Pawns for a piece and the Black King is badly placed. On the other hand, a safe win of a Pawn as in the other variations, might be preferable.

The authors then look at 5.c3 and 5.Nxd4, and there I shall leave them.

I went back to Chess Master vs Chess Amateur after I began thinking about how to transform the game to the Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit. I usually play 4.0-0 (then, after 4...Bc5, I play 5.Bxf7+), but I keep wanting to look at 4.Nc3 and other possible moves. 

Hmmmm.... What about the normal 4.d4 that Euwe and Meiden recommend? How does that fit in for the Jerome Gambiteer? 

Well, there are 300 games in The Database with the line 4...exd4 5.Bxf7+, but before we go there, let's take a look at the mistaken 4...Nxd4? (perhaps Black plays the Blackburne Shilling Gambit and gets carried away here).

Even someone who does not play the Jerome Gambit should start reaching toward his King's Bishop...

Another Idea

Black's seventh move in the following game appears almost 50 times in The Database, with the outcome overwhelmingly in White's favor. Still, after eleven moves, it is hard to see the game as an "easy" win for the first player; after all, Black can come up with some counter-play, can't he? 

Tadayoshi - SkyMeadow
blitz, FICS, 2012


1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Nc3 Nf6 5.Bxf7+

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.


5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Bb4 

Not best, but it doesn't lose.


8.dxe5 Nxe4 9.Qd5+ Ke8 10.Qxe4 Bxc3+ 11.bxc3 Qe7 

White is a pawn ahead, but it is an isolated, doubled pawn. Certainly Black can think up an idea to work against White's shattered Queenside.


12.0-0 Qa3 13.Bxa3 Black resigned


Okay, maybe another idea.

Rocket Surgery

perrypawnpusher - MrMef
blitz, FICS, 2012

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Bc5 5.Bxf7+

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Re8

Recently seen in HauntedKnight - sfanel, FICS, 2011, (0-1, 13).

8.dxc5 Kg8

This is an improvement over both 8..Nc6 from perrypawnpusher - hudders, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 13) and 8...Nc4 from perrypawnpusher - TrentonTheSecond, blitz, FICS, 2010 (0-1, 9).

Curiously, the strongest move, 8...Qe7, appears in The Database in two losses for Black, natarajanm - jmarchetti, blitz, FICS, 2008 (1-0, 25) and ARUJ - cippolippo, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 19).

The Jerome Gambit: it's not rocket surgery.

9.0-0 b6 10.cxb6

Not actually necessary, as 10.f4 followed by 11.e5 will win a piece. The text should, too, but not the way it does.

10...axb6 11.f4 Neg4

12.e5

It is more complicated than this, as Black's advanced Knight covers the f2 square, so first it needs to be kicked with 12.h3.

12...Ba6 13.Re1

Since 13.Rf2 is not possible.

13...Nd5

Missing 13...Qe7, pinning the White e-pawn.

14.Nxd5 Qh4

Suddenly, it did not feel like I had won a piece, but, rather that my opponent had sacrificed one.

15.h3 Qf2+ 16.Kh1 Qh4 17.Kg1

I was ready to accept a repetition of position and a draw. Instead, 17.Qd2 would organize a defense for White, and his threats against the Knight at g4 as well as the pawn at c7 would show an advantage.

17...Qf2+ 18.Kh1 Bb7

MrMef does not want the draw.

19.hxg4

Time was running short (shorter for my opponent) so I grabbed the piece. Later, Rybka suggested protecting the advanced Knight with 19.c4 or challenging the enemy Queen with 19.Re2. 

19...Bxd5

An oversight. Black would do best to continue his attack with 19...Re6, although 20.f5 is an effective answer, as long as White answers the further 20...Bxd5 with 21.Qe2.

20.Qe2

Totally missing that 20.Qxd5 would come with check. 

20...Qh4+

Despite White's extra pawns, Black's active pieces give an equal game.

Time was growing shorter.

21.Kg1 Ra4 22.Qf2 Qxg4 23.b3 Raa8 24.c4 Bb7

25.Re3 d6 26.Rg3 Qf5

Not best.

27.Rg5

The same. White could copy Black's attack with 27.exd6 cxd6 28.Bb2

27...Qe4 28.Qg3

Counter-attacking, and offering a Rook, which, if taken, would allow White to force a draw.

28...g6 29.Bb2

29...dxe5 30.Bxe5

This capture gives Black a chance for a swindle. 

30...Rxe5 31.Rxe5

After the better 31.fxe5, Black can win the Rook with 31...Qd4+ 32.Kh2 Qxa1, but 33.Rxg6+ will allow White to force a draw by repetition.

Neither of us had much thinking time left.

31...Qd4+ 32.Qe3

Losing. After the game Rybka suggested 32.Kh2 Qxa1 33.Qh3 Rf8 34.Re7 Rf5 35.Qxh7+ Kf8 36.Qxg6 Kxe7 37.Qxf5 when things are almost balanced, White's extra pawns vs Black's extra piece. 

32...Qxa1+ 33.Kh2 Bc6

Protecting e8. Was 33...Kf8 better?

34.f5

After the game I could laugh at Rybka's suggestion that 34.Re6 still held a draw by picking on the defending Bishop: 34...Bd7 35.Re7 Bf5 36.Re8+ Rxe8 37.Qxe8+ Kg7 38.Qe7+ Kh6 39.Qh4+.

Maybe the Jerome Gambit is rocket surgery.

34...Qxa2 35.Qg3 Qb2 36.fxg6 Bxg2 37.gxh7+

One last, frantic try.

With more than mere seconds available, Black would find 37...Kh8, winning.

37...Kxh7 38.Rh5 checkmate

Egads...