Dear Readers,
The latest email from Cliff Hardy is a doozie.
Can you imagine playing the Jerome Gambit in a "crazyhouse" game of chess?
Mr. Hardy did.
The following game comes with a warning - "crazyhouse" chess, is kind of "crazy"!
Hi Rick
I'm sorry, so sorry, please accept my apology.
In saying that, I don't mean to offend Brenda Lee, but it's just that I should not be sending you this game under any circumstances (especially as, for one thing, it is heading on a tangent away from what your blog is about) and I apologise profusely for any anxiety or vexation caused by it.
But I couldn't help it and, besides, you would have figured out sooner or later (if you haven't already) that I belong in the crazy house.
Anyway, speaking of crazyhouse, this is a game I played in a Lichess crazyhouse tournament (crazyhouse is the chess variant where, once you capture a piece, you are able to put that piece back on the board on any empty square at any particular time, though placing it counts as a move).
Lichess actually annotates crazyhouse games using Stockfish.
Lol, I understand if you want to reply to me with something like, "Thanks for the game but please never, ever, ever, ever, ever send me a crazyhouse game again!!" 😉
Cliff Hardy (1884) - NN (1686), Lichess Crazyhouse Tournament, 3 + 2, 2018
1. e4 e5
2. Nf3 Nc6
3. Bc4 Bc5
This is a common crazyhouse opening variation.
4. Bxf7+ Kxf7 [1xP 1xB]
My note on the right there in square brackets means that since White has captured one pawn (i.e 1xP), he now has that pawn "in hand" and can place it on the board when he wishes. The "1xB" in bold is saying that, likewise, as Black has captured one bishop he can place that bishop on the board when he wishes.
5. Nxe5+ [2xP 1xB]
Stockfish doesn't like the Jerome Gambit at all and actually likes it a lot less in crazyhouse than it does it normal chess! It rates the position as around -9.7, but what's a queen advantage between friends?
5. ... Nxe5 [2xP 1xB; 1xN]
6. Qh5+ N@g6? [2xP 1xB]
Stockfish much prefers 6...Kf8, similarly to how it does when White plays the Jerome Gambit in normal chess, but nevertheless still rates this crazyhouse position as -6.6, in Black's favour.
["N@g6" means that Black places the knight that he had "in hand" on the board for his move. Naturally, that means he now only has a bishop "in hand" left (i.e. 1xB)].
7. @f5 Qf6 [1xP 1xB]
[@f5 means to place one of white's pawns that he had "in hand" on the board at f5].
8. d4? [1xP 1xB]
White sacrifices a pawn to speed up development but attacking the queen with @g5 was better, with Black still holding a -4.3 pawn advantage, though with my low standard of crazyhouse play, a piece here or there is not that significant. Cashing in too early with 8. fxg6+?? is even worse than the move I played in the game, since White would then needlessly take the pressure off Black and may allow Black a big counter-attack e.g. 8...hxg6 9. Qxh8?? Qxf2+ 10. Kd1 B@e2 mate.
8. .... Bxd4 [1xP 1xP; 1xB]
9. @g5 Qb6 [ 1xP; 1xB]
10. fxg6+ hxg6! [1xN 2xP; 1xB]
During the game, I thought this was a mistake as it left the rook on h8 unguarded, but Stockfish likes the rook sacrifice for Black as he now has a strong attack on the vulnerable white king.
11. Qxh8 Bxf2+ [1xN; 1xR 3xP; 1xB]
12. Kd1?
Black's advantage blows out from -11.1 to -25.9 after this move. I had been afraid of playing 12. Kf1 because I thought that black could then have gotten a big attack with 12...@e2+? 13. Kxe2 B@g4? but after blocking the check with 14. @f3 (I think I forgot that
White would have had a pawn available to put on f3 as it is the pawn White took with 13. Kxe2), White would then have had a +13.7 advantage, with his and knight and rook "in hand" and safe king .
12. ... Qd4+? [1xN; 1xR 3xP; 1xB]
The position is fairly even after this move but 12...B@g4+ (-25.9) was much stronger since if White then blocks the check with 13. N@f3, Black can take the knight on f3 with check when he wishes and place it on the board with check, to keep the attack going (the initiative, by way of continuous checks, is often of supreme importance in crazyhouse, in order to obtain a forced checkmate).
13. Bd2 Qxe4?? [1xN; 1xR 4xP; 1xB]
13...@d3 is much better and is a typical attacking move in crazyhouse; placing a pawn menacingly on any empty square near the opponent's king.
14. N@d8+ [1xR 4xP; 1xB]
Very strong but the simple fork of king and queen with 14. R@f4!+ (+14.2) was even better, but I had missed that it was a possibility.
14. ... Ke7
15. Nc3
I didn't notice 15. Qxg7+, which is a bit stronger and more forcing.
15. ... @e2+ [1xR 3xP; 1xB]
Black tries in vain to wrest the initiative from White but it is hard work as the white king is actually the much safer of the two kings.
16. Nxe2 @d3 [1xP; 1xR 2xP; 1xB]
17. Qxg7+ Kd6 [2xP; 1xR 2xP; 1xB]
17...B@f7 was an alternative, though after 18. @f6+, White would still have had a huge initiative.
18. Qf8+ Kd5?? [2xP; 1xR 2xP; 1xB]
18...B@e7! would have slowed White's initiative down and made things very unclear.
19. Nc3+
Stockfish finds a mate in 4 here with 19. R@b5+ c5 20. Nc3+ Kc4 21. b3+ Kd4 22. Qxc5 mate.
19. ... Kd4
Black is forced to bring his king even further down the board into an extremely precarious position.
20. Qxf2+ [2xP; 1xB; 1xR 2xP; 1xB]
Stockfish finds another mate in 4 here with 20. Nb5+ Kd5 21. Nxc7+ Kd4 22. c3+ Kc4 23. b3 mate.
20. ... @e3 [2xP; 1xB; 1xR 1xP; 1xB]
21. Bxe3+ Qxe3 [3xP; 1xB; 1xR 2xP; 1xB]
Or 21...Kc4 22. R@c5+ Kb4 23. a3 mate.
22. Qxe3+ Kxe3 [3xP; 1xB; 1xR; 1xQ 2xP; 1xB; 1xQ]
23. Nd5+
There were several mates in 2 here e.g. 23. R@e4+ Kf2 24. Q@f1 mate.
23. ... Kd4
24. B@e3+ Kxd5 [3xP; 1xR; 1xQ 2xP; 1xB; 1xQ]
24...Ke4 25. Q@d4+ Kf5 26. Qf4 mate would not have been much better.
25. Q@d4 mate
Sorry again!
Bye,
Me ☺
