Recently, Bill Wall, who has had many of his Jerome Gambit games appear on this site, introduced his brother, Steve, to our wacky gambit. It was not long before defenders had another wall to run into.
Wall,S - Guest648596
PlayChess.com, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 d6
How ironic: if this is Steve's first Jerome Gambit, here he gets immediately hit with the "annoying defense". The only thing "funnier" would be if he were to face the Blackburne Defense.
8.fxe5 dxe5 9.Nc3
I was surprised, upon consulting The Database, to see that this is a TN. When you play an opening which is almost entirely "wilderness" it is not surprising to find that, quite early, you are on your own.
9...g6
Denying f5 to White's Queen.
10.Qe2 Bb6
Safeguarding the Bishop.
11.Qc4+ Ke7 12.Nd5+ Ke8 13.d3 Be6 14.Nxc7+ Bxc7 15.Qxe6+ Qe7 16.Qb3 Bb6
White's two pawns for his sacrificed piece, plus the uneasy placement of Black's King, minimizes Black's advantage.
17.Rf1 h6 18.Bd2 Nf6 19.0-0-0 Qf7
Of course, exchanging Queens would relieve Black of any worries of attack on his King. Now White starts putting pressure on f6.
20.Qb5+ Kf8 21.Qxe5 Kg7 22.Bc3 Bd8 23.Rf2 Re8 24.Qd4 Qe6 25.Rdf1 Rf8 26.Qb4 b6 27.e5 Nd7 28.Rxf8 Bg5+ 29.R8f4 Rf8 30.Kb1 Bxf4 31.Rxf4 Rxf4 32.Qxf4 g5
After the skirmishing, White is up 3 pawns, and that is too much for Black to deal with.
33.Qe4 Nc5 34.Qa8 a5 35.Qa7+ Kg6 36.Qc7 Qg4 37.Qxb6+ Ne6 38.b3 a4 39.bxa4 Kh5 40.h3 Qd1+ 41.Kb2 Nf4 42.g4+ Kh4 43.Qxh6+ Kg3 44.Qxg5 Qf3 45.e6 Qb7+ 46.Ka3 Qc6 47.Be1+ Kf3 48.e7 Qxc2 49.e8Q Qc1+ 50.Kb3 Qd1+ 51.Kb2 Nxd3+ 52.Ka3 Nxe1 53.Qf6+ Kg2 54.Qe4+ Nf3 55.Qfxf3+ Qxf3+ 56.Qxf3+ Kxf3 57.g5 Black resigned
Ever hear of the light-hearted saying "everything goes better with bacon?" In the game below we learn that Philidor 1792 might well be of the opinion that "everything goes better with Bxf2/7+!" - at least in 3-minute blitz games. The ghost of the Jerome Gambit visits, and mayhem ensues...
guest343 - Philidor 1792
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013
1.c4 e5 2.Nc3 Bc5 3.Nf3 Nf6 4.Nxe5 Bxf2+
5.Kxf2 d6 6.Nf3 Be6 7.e4 g5
8.d4 g4 9.Ng5 g3+ 10.hxg3 Ng4+ 11.Kg1 Qf6
12.Qf3 Qxd4+ 13.Be3 Nxe3 14.Nxe6 fxe6
15.Qh5+ Kd7 16.Qf7+ Kc6 17.Nb5 Qb6 18.Kh2
Despite the risk of a discovered check, Houdini suggests that White's King stay put, and that he progress to a winning endgame with 18.c5 Kxc5 19.Qf2 Kc6 20.Rc1+ Nc4 21.Rxc4+ Kd7 22.Rxc7+ Kd8 23.Rhxh7 Rxh7 24.Rxh7 Qxf2+ 25.Kxf2 I suppose that's easy to see if you're a computer.
18...Ng4+ 19.Kh3 Nd7 20.Be2 Raf8 21.Qxe6 Nf2+ 22.Kh2 Ne5 23.Rhf1 Rf6 24.Qd5+ Kd7 25.Rad1
White collapses, without knowing it.
25...Rh6+ 26.Kg1 Rh1 checkmate
Here we have another game from Philidor 1792 which appears to have been inspired by the Jerome Gambit. After a balanced opening, things suddenly shift - against White. Only by complicating - by attacking - is the first player able to turn things around and in his favor. Violent 3-minute chess.
Philidor 1792 - guest4211
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013
1.e4 Nf6 2.Bc4 Nxe4 3.Bxf7+
The Krejcik Gambit against Alekhine's Defense. Here's a bit of information about it at the Hanging Pawn blog site. It's been touched on a couple of times earlier in this blog - see "I want my Jerome Gambit!" and "Another Krejcik".
3...Kxf7 4.Qh5+ g6 5.Qd5+ e6 6.Qxe4 Bg7
7.Qf4+ Kg8 8.Nf3 Nc6 9.d4 d6 10.Nc3 Qf6 11.Qe4 Nxd4 12.Be3 Nxf3+ 13.gxf3 d5
14.Qa4 Qxf3 15.Kd2 c6 16.Rag1 Bd7 17.h4 e5 18.Qb3 b5 19.h5 Qf7
20.Bc5 a5 21.h6 Bf6 22.Rg3 Qe6 23.Rhg1 Kf7 24.Rf3 e4
Here, White now has a crazy, equalizing attack with 25.Nxe4 dxe4 26.Rxf6!?, but such things are easier to find in the calmness after the game.
25.Rf4 Qe5 26.Ne2 Bf5 27.Bd4 Qe7 28.Qc3 Rac8
Black feels sufficiently defended (he is mistaken), and begins to attack again.
29.Rxf5 gxf5 30.Bxf6 Qxf6 31.Rg7+ Ke6 32.Nf4+ Black resigned
Black is losing his Queen and will soon be checkmated.
Jerome Gambit Gemeinde member Philidor 1792 is back with a whole passle of attacking 3-minute chess games, with tactical themes inspired by the Jerome Gambit. Of course, at such a time limit, the first rule almost always has to be: Attack! Attack! Attack!
guest34 - Philidor 1792
3 0 blitz, www.bereg.ru, 2013
1.d4 e5
The Englund Gambit, sometimes referred to as the Charlick Gambit, the latter being an Australian player with a connection to the Jerome Gambit.
2.c4 exd4 3.Nf3 Nf6
The game has transposed into a Budapest Gambit.
4.Nxd4 Bb4+ 5.Bd2 Bc5 6.Nb3 Bxf2+
Just when the game was becoming a bit "normal", Black stirs it up again, Jerome Gambit-style.
7.Kxf2 Ne4+ 8.Kg1 Qf6 9.Be3 Qxb2
A bit of a bluff, which 10.Bd4 would call - but, remember this is a 3-minute game, and one of the best ways to stifle an attack is to swap Queens...
10.Qd4 Qxd4 11.Bxd4 0-0 12.Nc3 Re8 13.e3
What a difference a move-order change makes: best was 13.Nxe4 Rxe4 and then 14.e3
13...Nxc3 14.Bxc3 Rxe3 15.Bd4 Re6 16.Bd3 Nc6 17.Kf2 a5
In blitz, whenever you can, make a threat.
18.Bc3 d6 19.Nd4 Rf6+ 20.Kg3 Ne5 21.Rhd1 Nxd3 22.Rxd3 b6
23.Nc6 Rg6+ 24.Kf2 Kf8 25.g3 Bb7 26.Nd4 Re8 27.Nb5 Rg5
28.Nd4 Rc5 29.Re1 Rxe1 30.Bxe1 Rxc4 31.Nf5 Rc2+ 32.Rd2 Rc5 and here White's time expired.
Black's four extra pawns are probably better than White's extra Knight.
If, occasionally, both my opponent and I get lost in the maze of the Jerome Gambit, I feel reassured that it is my maze, and that I will still be able to find my way out, safely.
perrypawnpusher - tjaksi
blitz, FICS, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6
7.Qd5+ Kf6
Alert! Possible trouble on the d8-h4 diagonal!
8.d4
Interestingly enough, Houdini shows about a half-pawn preference for 8.Qxc5 over the text. That is not immediately obvious, although both MrJoker and I have generally had success with that move - perrypawnpusher - zsilber, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 9); perrypawnpusher - useche, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 22); perrypawnpusher - wbrandl, blitz, FICS, 2011 (0-1, 28); MrJoker - ipon, Internet Chess Club, 2011 (1-0, 33); and MrJoker -vicwill, Internet Chess Club, 2011 (1-0, 12).
8...h6
My opponent responds to the perceived threat. The computer prefers 8...Bb4+ 9.c3 and then 9...Ke7, allowing for the Black Knight to intervene at f6, e.g. 10.Bg5+ Nf6 when White will recover one of his two sacrificed pieces, but Black will still have the advantage.
Instead, 8...Bb4+ 9.c3 c6 was seen in perrypawnpusher - whitepandora, blitz, FICS, 2008 (1-0, 41); while 8...d6 9.Bg5 checkmate, from mrjoker - Taj, Internet Chess Club, 2009 also has to be mentioned.
9.Qxc5 N8e7 10.e5+ Kf7 11.Qc4+ Kf8 12.0-0 b6
Black is preparing to take advantage of White's pieces on the a6-f1 diagonal. It was probably better to play the straight-forward 12...d5.
13.f4 a5 14.f5 Ba6
Much to my opponent's delight, I have fallen into his trap: the Black Bishop skewers my Queen. However, I've suggested in "BSJG: Don't Try To Out-Think Me", and here is another case of that. Instead, after the game Houdini recommended the related 14...Nxe5 15.dxe5 Ba6 when 16.Qe4 Bxf1 17.Kxf1 d5 18.exd6 cxd6 19.Nc3 d5 would be about equal, White having a pawn for the exchange.
While Black was planning his maneuver, I used my moves to allow a discovered check.
15.fxg6+ Ke8 16.Qf7 checkmate
After the previously posted game, my opponent challenged me to a game with White, and, after I introduced him to "the cheapo defense to the Scotch Opening", we went back at it again with the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
There are some howlers in the following game, but there are some points of interest, as well.
perrypawnpusher - michon
blitz, FICS, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4
The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.
4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7 6.c3
Again, Black's King ends up on e7 - but that is okay for this variation.
My move is more accurate than the 6.Qh5 in perrypawnpusher - vlas, blitz, FICS, 2009 (0-1, 26).
6...d6
In turn, this is an improvment over 6...Ne6 seen in perrypawnpusher - Macgregr, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 56).
7.cxd4 dxe5 8.dxe5
Here, the computers now like 8...Qd3 9.Qe2 Qxe2+ 10.Kxe2 c5 with and edge for Black. White has three "Jerome pawns" for his sacrificed piece.
8... Bg4 9.f3
Okay, okay, let's just move along here...
I think my opponent just overlooked the fact that his Bishop was unprotected. I've noticed that I have a tendency to respond to "impossible" moves (impossible in my deliberations) with knee-jerk, stereotypical moves (Bishop attack; block Bishop).
9...Bh5 10.d4 c5 11.Bg5+
The same kind of problem on the same diagonal as last game.
11...Nf6 12.exf6+ gxf6 13.Be3 Kf7
Black's two Bishops don't make up for his two (soon three) lost pawns.
14.Nc3 Bg7 15.dxc5 f5 16.0-0 Bxc3 17.bxc3 Qf6
Played too quickly. Now the a1-h8 dark diagonal joins the d8-h4 diagonal as a source of pain.
18.Bd4 Qb6 Black resigned
A mouse-slip on the final, fatal dark diagonal, a7-f2, is enough to turn over his King.
Instead of trying to find something "new" in the Jerome Gambit variations (in this case, the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit) it is far simpler - and far more important - for Black to simply play the established lines and go for the win.
My opponent in the following game tries to get ahead of me in terms of thinking - this was wasted effort.
perrypawnpusher - michon
blitz, FICS, 2013
1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 4.Bxf7+
The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.
4...Ke7
Black was hoping for 4.Nxe5?!, so that he could play the thematic 4...Qg5!?.
White White has a number of 4th moves that give him an advantage (e.g. 4.Nxd4, 4.0-0, 4.c3) I have always been partial to 4.Bxf7+, which, objectively leads to an even game, but which, subjectively, leads to a lot of fun play for White.
I have referred to Black's refusal of the piece on move 4 as some kind of "Jedi mind trick" but The Force is not strong in this one...
Black should try to out-play me, not try to out-think me.
5.Bxg8 d6
This not an improvement on the more reasonable 5...Rxg8, which was played by my opponent against me a month ago in perrypawnpusher - michon, blitz, FICS, 2013 (1-0, 41). Obviously, my 4.Bxf7+ at that time did not make an impression upon him.
6.d3 Be6
Way too casual. One problem is that there isn't even time to capture the Bishop with 6...Rxg8.
7.Bg5+ Kd7 8.Bxd8 Black resigned
