Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament - Game 1

Instead of grabbing the second sacrificed piece, Black plays a defensive system - but he plays it too defensively. Hanging on to material, instead of returning it at the right moment, can spell disaster, even (especially) against the Jerome Gambit.

jankrb (2055) - musirpha (1874)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf8 

6.Nxc6 

Experimental are 6.Nd3, from Wall,B - Tim93612, Chess.com 2010 (1-0, 36) and 6.0-0 from billwall - DeDrijver, Chess.com, 2012 (1-0, 20).

Instead, 6.Qh5 is the rowdy Banks Variation, from Banks,P - Rees,M, Halesowen v Lucas BS, 2003 (1-0, 45). It is interesting to compare this line with the Paulsen Variation, where Black has placed his King on e7, instead of f8, e.g. the recently-discussed jankrb - Red House, Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013.

6...bxc6 

As noted as recently as in the game jankrb - Red House, Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013, the preferred capture is 6...dxc6, preventing 7.d4. The Database has many examples.

7.d4 Be7

A bit better was 7...Bb6 as in perrypawnpusher - hdig, blitz, FICS, 2007 (1-0, 17) and perrypawnpusher - mika76, GameKnot.com, 2008 (1-0, 17). 

8.Qf3+ 

Certainly an improvment over 8.f4 of perrypawnpusher - badhorsey, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 26). 

8...Ke8 9.0-0 d6 10.c4 Nf6 11.e5 dxe5 12.dxe5 Ng8

This retreat spells trouble.

13.Rd1 Bd7 14.e6 Nf6 15.exd7+ Kf7 16.Qxc6 Bd6 17.c5 Be5 18.f4 Black resigned

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament (Round 3)

Here is the third round of the second Jerome Gambit thematic tournament that I encountered at RedHotPawn.com from 2013 (won by jankrb), starting from the Jerome Gambit position:

jankrb (2055) - musirapha (1874)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2014

(1-0) This game will be covered in a subsequent post.


musirapha (1874) - jankrb (2055)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2014

(0-1) This game will be covered in a subsequent post.

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament - Game 2

If you are playing an opening that is "off the beaten path" and your opponent takes you off of that path, is it a good thing or a bad thing? In the following game Black's opening creativity serves him much less well than following the stodgy main line of the Jerome Gambit.

jankrb (2055) - Red House (1588)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke7

Of the almost 4,600 games in The Database which reach the position after White's 5th move, only 9 show Black's 5th move response, with the simple Knight recapture being the most popular alternative. See "An Odd Line In An Odd Line" and "Jerome Gambit, Paulsen Variation".

6.Nxc6+

Best play now appears to be 6.Qh5! which appeared in 3 games: guest1200 - satmonger, Internet Chess Club, 2001 (1-0, 26); stivb_99 - spymaster, GameKnot.com, 2008 (1-0, 7);  and UNPREDICTABLE - aladu, FICS, 2009 (0-1, 70).

Each time, Black missed the best defense, pointed out by Rybka, 6...Bxf2+!? 7.Kxf2 Qf8+ 8.Nf3 Nf6, although White would still have an edge.

6...bxc6

Stronger was 6...dxc6, preventing the White d-pawn from advancing 2 squares, as in perrypawnpusher - salla, blitz, FICS, 2010 (1-0, 31).

7.d4 Bb6

There is no need to repeat the offbeat 7...Bb4+, from CoachCrupp - zzzozzzo, FICS, 2008: 8.c3 Bd6 9.Bg5+ Nf6 10.e5 Bxe5 11.dxe5 Kf8 12.0-0 h6 13.exf6 gxf6 14.Be3 d5 15.Bc5+ Kg8 16.Nd2 h5 17.Nf3 Bg4 18.Qd3 Bxf3 19.Qg6 checkmate.

8.Bg5+ Nf6 9.e5 Ba6 

10.exf6+

An interesting try, according to Houdini, is 10.Qf3!? Kf7 (not 10...Bxd4 11.Bxf6+ gxf6 12.Qxf6+ Ke8 13.Qxh8+ Ke7 14.Qxh7+) 11.Nd2 h6 (a bit better than 11...Bxd4 12.exf6 Re8+ 13.Ne4 Rxe4+ 14.Qxe4 Bxb2 15.Rb1 Bxf6 16.Qf3 Qe7+ 17.Kd1 Re8 18.Bxf6 gxf6±) 12.Be3 Re8 13.0-0-0 and White has an advantage as he will recover his sacrificed piece.

10...gxf6 11.Be3 Qg8 12.Rg1 Re8 13.a4 c5 14.a5 cxd4 15.axb6 dxe3 16.Rxa6 axb6 17.fxe3 Qg5

Both Kings remain uneasy, but White has an extra piece which he can make use of as soon as he consolidates his position.

18.Qf3 Kf7 19.Kd2 Re7 20.Nc3 Rhe8 21.Nd5 Re4 22.Nf4 Qc5 23.Ra3 Qe5 24.Rd3 Qa5+ 25.c3 Qb5 26.Qh5+ Qxh5 27.Rxd7+ Black resigned

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament - Game 1

The following game, from a Jerome Gambit thematic tournament at RedHotPawn.com played last year, shows that complicated postions can arise that can challenge both players. In turn, the Queens, then the Kings, face grave danger.

musirapha (1874) - ZorroTheFox (1447)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qxc5 d6 8.Qc3 

More frequently played is 8.Qe3.

8...Be6 9.d4 Bd7 10.Qb3+ Kf8 11.f4

11.0-0 was safer. If White was looking for trouble, he could always have played 11.Qxb7!? but he would have risked having his Queen offside for a while.

11...Qh4+ 12.g3 Qh3 13.Qxb7 Rc8

The Rook is probably better placed on the e-file, after which Black should continue his infiltration of the Kingside, as Houdini suggests, 13...Re8 14.Nc3 Qg2 15.Rf1 Bh3 16.Qb5 Qxh2 17.Qe2 Qxe2+ 18.Kxe2 Bxf1+ 19.Kxf1. 

14.e5 N8e7 15.Qf3 h6 

With 5 pieces developed to White's 1, Black does not need to play such a timid move, especially when he had available the useful 15...Bc6. Sometimes the Jerome Gambit can intimidate, however.

16.Nc3 d5 17.Be3 Nf5 18.Kf2

An alternative to consider was 18.0-0-0. 

18...c6 19.Na4 Nxe3 20.Kxe3 Bg4 21.Qf2 Ke7

22.Nc5 Rhe8

Here both players overlook that 22...Nxf4 23.Qxf4 Rhf8 would trap the White Queen. 

23.Raf1 Kf8 24.f5 Ne7

25.f6

This move is okay but, instead, 25.Ne6+ Kg8 26.Nf4 would trap the Black Queen. 

25...Nf5+ 26.Kd2 gxf6 27.Qf4 Qg2+ 

Black is thinking about the wrong King, as his own monarch requires attention (protection).

28.Kc3

This escape works in the game, but Houdini points out that the strongest idea was to sacrifice the exchange with 28.Rf2 Qxh1 29.Qxg4 when White's attack will be the one to crash through, e.g. 29...Ng7 30.Nd7+ Kf7 31.Nxf6. A Rook up, Black is helpless. 

28...Qe2 29.b3 Ne3

It is hard to believe at first (or second) glance, but the computer suggests that Black can survive with the cheeky 29...fxe5, giving the following hearty battle: 30.Qxh6+ Kg8 31.Qg6+ Ng7 32.Rf7 exd4+ 33.Kb2 Qe5 34.Re1 Bh5 35.Qh6 Bxf7 36.Rxe5 Rxe5 when it assesses that White's pawns help his Queen balance out play against Black's Rook, Bishop and Knight, e.g. 37.Nd7 Re2 38.Nf6+ Kf8 39.Qh8+ Ke7 40.Qxc8 Kxf6 41.Qxc6+ Ne6 42.Qxd5 Rxh2 43.g4 Rf2 44.b4. 

Now White can defend his King (with an exchange sacrifice) and get back to his attack.

30.Rf2 Nd1+ 31.Rxd1 Qxd1 32.Qxf6+ Kg8 33.Qg6+ Kh8 34.Rf7 Qa1+ 35.Kb4 Qxd4+ 36.c4 Qd2+ 37.Ka3 Qa5+ 38.Na4 Black resigned

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament (Round 2)

Here is the second round of the second Jerome Gambit thematic tournament that I encountered at RedHotPawn.com from 2013 (won by jankrb), starting from the Jerome Gambit position:

musirapha (1874) - ZorroTheFox (1447)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

(1-0) This game will be covered in a subsequent post.


ZorroTheFox (1447) - musirapha (1874)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

1...Kxf7 2.0-0 Nf6 3.d3 h6 4.c3 d6 5.Be3 Bb6 6.Bxb6 axb6 7.Nbd2 Bd7 8.a4 Qe7 9.b4 Rhf8 10.Nc4 Kg8 11.Qb3 Kh8 12.Nh4 Qf7 13.Nd2 Qxb3 14.Nxb3 Rf7 15.Rfe1 g5 16.Nf3 Kg7 17.Ra2 Nh5 18.Rd1 Bg4 19.Nbd2 Nf4 20.d4 Ne2+ 21.Kh1 Nxc3 22.Raa1 Nxd1 23.Rxd1 Nxd4 24.Ra1 Bxf3 25.gxf3 Nxf3 26.Nc4 Nd4 27.Kg2 Raf8 28.Ra2 Rf4 29.a5 b5 30.Na3 Rxe4 31.Rb2 c6 32.Nb1 Re2 White resigned


jankrb (2055) - Red House (1588)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

(1-0) This game will be covered in a subsequent post.


Red House (1588) - jankrb (2055)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2013

1...Kxf7 2.0-0 Nf6 3.Nc3 Rf8 4.d3 h6 5.h3 Kg8 6.Kh1 Nd4 7.Be3 d6 8.Na4 Nxf3 9.Nxc5 Nh5 10.Nb3 Qh4 11.gxf3 Qxh3+ 12.Kg1 Rf6 White resigned

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament - Game 3

The following game is in some ways the opposite of the previous one. The game slides down the slippery slope from move 4, toward a Black win. White misses a chance to complicate the game, and perhaps take the advantage, at move 21. The game then continues to slide slowly toward the "inevitable" "0-1".

deriver69 (1401) - musirapha (1874)

Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, RedHotPawn, 2014

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

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 7.Qxc5 d6 8.Qe3 Nf6

Over 300 games in The Database reach this position, with White scoring 46%.

9.O-O Re8 10.d3 Kg8 11.Nc3 c6 12.f4 Qb6 13.Qxb6 axb6

The game has gone its own way, with Black wisely castling-by-hand and White delaying the advance of his "Jerome pawns" until after the Queens have been exchanged.

14.Be3 Bd7 15.f5 Ne5 16.Bxb6 Ra6 17.Bf2 c5 18.Be3 Neg4 19.Bf4 b5 20.Ne2 Bxf5

The position is a bit more complicated than either player appreciates.

White realizes that 21.exf5 Rxe2 would be clearly to Black's advantage, so he moves his Knight to a safer square; but in doing so he misses a chance to mix it up.

Challenging is 21.h3!? as now Black's Bishop is in an uncomfortable position, e.g. 21...Ne5 22.Bxe5 or 21... Nh6 22. Bxh6 in each case followed (if Black recaptures) by 23.Rxf5 with an edge for White.

It looks like after 21. h3!? White has an edge after 21...d5 (or 21...Bxe4 22. dxe4 Ne5) 22.hxg4 Bxg4. 

21.Ng3 Bg6 22.h3 Ne5 

23.Bg5 Nh5 24.Nxh5 Bxh5 25.Rf5 Rf8 26.Rxf8+ Kxf8 27.Rf1+ Ke8 28.a3 Ra7 29.g4 Bg6 30.Kg2 Rf7 31.Ra1 h5 32.gxh5 Bxh5 33.a4 b4 

34.a5 Ra7 35.a6 Nc6 36.h4 Nb8 37.Bf4 Kd7 38.e5 Rxa6 39.Rxa6 Nxa6 40.exd6 Nb8 41.Kf2 Nc6 42.Ke3 Bg6 43.Kf3 Nd4+ White resigned

Another RHP Jerome Gambit Tournament - Game 2

When should you actually win a won game? If your opponent blunders in the opening - and, dear Readers, that is an objective assessment of the Jerome Gambit, after all - should you redouble your efforts and finish him off quickly? Or should you wait and use your extra piece in middle-game tactics? Maybe you should wait for the piece vs pawns endgame?

Whatever your choice, you should not shilly-shally, but get about the business of using your advantage in some way - instead of frittering it away. In the following game White is objectively lost after four moves - but Black is objectively almost as  bad off after four more moves. The game is effectively over after another four moves.

musirapha (1874) - deriver69 (1410)
Giuoco Piano Jerome Gambit tournament, 2013

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.d4 Nxd4 

Black would do better with either of the other two available captures, with 5...Bxd4 for choice. 

6.Nxe5+ Ke8 

One attraction of playing unusual openings is that your opponent can be lulled into playing "just any old move." The right retreat  was 6...Ke7. 

7.Qh5+ g6 8.Nxg6 Nf6 

Black does well not to get involved in an excursion into foreign lands such as 8...Nxc2+ 9.Kd1 Nxa1? since what follows is sharp retribution: 10.Ne5+ Ke7 11.Qf7+ Kd6 12.Nc3 Qg5 13.Nc4+ Kc6 14.Qd5+ Qxd5+ 15.exd5 checkmate.

9.Qe5+

For a moment, White slips. This is the right kind of move when playing similar positions in the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit, but in the current position the prosaic capture 9.Qxc5 is better.

9...Kf7

Too cooperative. With 9...Ne6 Black would rescue two pieces.

10.Nxh8+ Qxh8 11.Qxc5

Now everything is fine for White, and his opponent's next move makes it "finer."

11...Nxe4 12.Qd5+ Kf8 13.Qxe4 

A Rook is a Rook is a Rook.

13...d6 14.Bh6+ Kf7 15.0-0 Bf5 16.Qd5+ Be6 17.Qh5+ Ke7 18.Qh4+ Kd7 19.Nc3 Rg8 20.Kh1 Nf5 21.Qh5 Nxh6 22.Qxh6 Bd5 23.Nxd5 Rg6 24.Qh3+ Kc6 25.Ne7+ Black resigned