Jerome Gambit: Mixed Feelings (Part 1)

I have mixed feelings regarding the following game, recently completed. I won. My attack finished things. But I was so focused on particular lines that I foolishly overlooked others - including checkmates, even a mate in one.

So, there is the answer to the question, Why did my opponent continue to play on? : because, at the end, I was missing so much, there was always room for hope...

perrypawnpusher - Bossferreira

"Piano Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qd5+ Kf8 

According to The Database, this move is about half as popular as 7...Ke8 - the computer rates the two moves about 1/5 of a pawn different from each other - but the lines transpose once the King moves to f7.

8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.O-O Kf7 

Black prepares to castle-by-hand, but never quite gets there. Give some credit to the "Jerome pawns".

11.f4 Re8 12.f5

I have mentioned the alternative 12.Qb3+, recommended by Stockfish 11, before. See "Jerome Gambit: Say 'Hello' to My Little Friends (Part 1)". The move wasn't part of my preparations for this tournament, but perhaps it should have been.

12...Ne7

The Database claims to not have seen this move before. The Knight is headed toward c6 - its usual path is via e4. 

13.d4 Nc6 

14.Nc3 Bd7 

For once Stockfish 11 showed a bit of a feel for the Jerome Gambit. After the game it showed off a bit, with 14...a5 (Huh? Why not 14...Kg8) it recommends 15.g4!? Nxg4 16.Qh3 Nf6 17.Bg5 Kg8 18.Nd5 Rf8 when it preferred that Black give up the exchange to keep his small advantage: 19.Bxf6 Rxf6 20.Nxf6+ Qxf6 21.c3 Bd7.

14...a6 instead of the text move, would have led to perrypawnpusher - apurv83, "Giuoco Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2015 (1/2-1/2, 29).

I have also seen 14...Kg8 15.Qd3 Kh8 16.Bg5 Qd7 17.Bxf6 in  perrypawnpusher - Heler, Giuoco Piano tournament, Chess.com, 2015 (1-0, 33) and the alternative, 17.Rae1, in perrypawnpusher - Hywel2, Italian Game tournament, Chess.com, 2015 (0-1, 44). Stockfish now 11 recommends the interesting 17.a3 or 17.Rf4.

15.Qd3 Kf8 16.Bg5 a6 

It can be risky to spend a tempo to play such a "safety" move (keeping a piece off of b5).

After the game, Stockfish 11 recommended a full tussle, ending with White sacrificing to achieve a draw by repetition: 16...Qe7 17.Bxf6 gxf6 18.Rf3 Nb4 19.Qd2 Kg7 20.a3 Nc6 21.Nd5 Qxe4 22.Rg3+ Kh8 23.Qh6 Qxd4+ 24.Kh1 Rg8 25.Nxf6 Bxf5 26.c3 Qe5 27.Re3 Qc5 28.Nxg8 Kxg8 29.Rg3+ Bg6 30.Rxg6+ hxg6 31.Qxg6+ Kh8 32.Qh6+  etc. I have to admit, there are a lot of Jerome-ish ideas in that line.

I was now full ready to push the attack against the enemy King.  

[to be continued]

Jerome Gambit: Deadly Breakthrough

The following game from the "Piano Piano" tournament at Chess.com is an example of giving "Jerome Gambit odds" to a lower rated player. My commitment was to play the Jerome in every game that I was able to - 9 times in the first round - and that meant all challengers, strong and not as strong. 

perrypawnpusher - frogonatwig

"Piano Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 6. Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qd5+ Ke7 

"Infrequently played but not bad" as I noted in the game Philidor1792 - jenskun, Russia Central Federal District vs Phil, Chess.com, 2015 (1-0, 27). The most recent example is CasualGames4ever - lankesh1941, 10 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2020 (1-0, 51).

8.Qxc5+ d6 9.Qe3 Be6 

After the routine alternative 9...Nf6, Stockfish 11 has recommended the novelty 10.h4!?, which I have previously expressed a distaste for.

10.O-O 

The placement of Black's King makes a small difference. Stockfish 11's move choice is the novelty (not so if the King is on e8) 10.f4 after which 10...Kd7 11.O-O transposes to perrypawnpusher - magza, blitz, FICS, 2011  (0-1, 40).

10...Nf6 11.f4 Kf7 

This looks like a mouse slip for 11...Bf7, but the time control for the game was not blitz, it was 3 days per move. On the other hand, at least once I have gone Click! Click! Enter! Ooops! and sent off the wrong move, so, who knows?

In any event, White goes up a pawn, with the much safer King.

12.f5 Bc4 

Perhaps Black figured that he had time to move the Bishop with a threat, then the Knight and save them both, but my capture comes with check.

13.fxg6+ hxg6 14.d3 Bb5 

15.c4 Bc6 16.Nc3

I think I have only played this setup  - pawns at c4, d3 and e4, Knight at c3 - once before in the Jerome -  perrypawnpusher - avgur, blitz, FICS, 2009 (1-0, 43) - but I know that the computer has recommended it several times in past annotations. Here I just wanted to prevent ...d6-d5 and provide an outpost for my Knight.

16...Re8 17.Qf3 

Target f6.

17...Qd7 18.Bg5 Qe6 19.Nd5 

19...Bxd5 20.cxd5 

Years ago, in his "Chess to Enjoy" column in Chess Life, Grandmaster Andy Soltis humorously wrote about the art of annotation. One suggestion was that if there were a position where one player could choose one Rook or the other Rook to move to a square, whichever move he makes should bear the comment "Wrong Rook".

That was my feeling about my choice, capture with the c-pawn or capture with the e-pawn? Komodo 11 doesn't see much of a difference, but I chose to capture with the c-pawn so that I retained the option of d3-d4 and e4-e5, developing a passed pawn, if it became plausible.

20...Qe5 21.h4 Qxb2 

I was not troubled by the loss of the pawn.

22.Rab1 Qd4+ 23.Rf2 Re5 

Allowing a deadly breakthrough and the game is lost.

24.Bxf6 gxf6 25.Qxf6+ Ke8 26.Qh8+ Kd7 27.Qxa8 

27...Qxd3 28.Qxb7 Rxe4 29.Qc6+ Kc8 30.Rf8+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Say "Hello" to My Little Friends (Part 2)

 

[continued from previous post]

perrypawnpusher - sincondrosis

3 d/move "Piano Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2020

Play becomes tactical, and illustrates my need to work on that part of my game.

19.e5 dxe5 20.dxe5 Nd5 

This looks like an ordinary move, but it is a mistake, starting with the fact that it overlooks the pin on White's e-pawn. After the game Stockfish 11 had this to suggest: 20...Kh8 21.Rf2 (If Black's Queen comes to d4, it won't be with check) 21...Bb7 22.Re1 Re7 23.Qxh6 (Time to take the pawn ) Qf8 (Offering to exchange and relieve the attack) 24.Qh4 Bd5 (To aid in the blockade?) 25.c4 Bb7 26.g4 Nd7 27.Qg3 h6 28.f6 (At last) Re6 29.Rf5 Qc5+ 30.Kh2 Rg8 31.Qf4 Rg6 32.Kg3 Qf8 33.Re3 Qf7 34.b4 Kh7 35.Nf3 Bxf3 36.Rxf3 

analysis diagram

Here the computer sees White as less than a pawn and a half ahead. I can not imagine ever reaching this position, and I share it only because it illustrates how a complications can become even more complicated.

Back to the game.

21.f6+ Kg6 

Brave, but 21...Kg8 was not much better, as the attack would continue.

22.Qd3+ Kf7 23.Qxh7+ Ke6 

24.Rae1 

Solid. Readers with an eye for the attack will not doubt find 24.Qf5+ Kf7 25.e6+ Rxe6 26.Qh7+ Kf8 27.Qh8+ and White will win the Queen. I had quickly abandoned the line during the game, because of 25...Bxe6, but that was silly, as then 26.Qh7+ Kf8 27.Qg7#.

24...c5 25.Qf5+ Kf7 26.Qh7+ 

Missing e5-e6+ again, but it does not matter.

26...Ke6 

27.c4 

Upon reflection, a bit strange. The idea was to help build a checkmating net - 24.Rae1 was the same. Of couse, 27.Qf5+ was the way to end things.

27...Nb4 28.f7 

Trying to mix the threat of pawn promotion with the checkmate threats. Guess which move was better? 

28...Rf8 

Instead, 28...Qd4+ would have allowed him to last a little bit longer.

29.Qf5+ 

At last.

29...Ke7 30.Qf6+ Kd7 31.Qd6 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Say "Hello" to My Little Friends (Part 1)

The following Jerome Gambit was my first complete game finished in the ongoing "Piano Piano" tournament at Chess.com. With the help of my "Jerome pawns" I was able to construct an attack which led to checkmate - not without a good bit of stumbling along the way.

I have included a number of links to other games, with more analysis.

perrypawnpusher - sincondrosis

3 d/move "Piano Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 

I was comfortable facing this line. The Database shows 132 of my games, with me scoring 80%. For the record, I have 48 games against 6...g6, scoring 89%; 84 games against 6...Ke6, scoring 86%; and 38 games against 6...Kf8, scoring 80%.

As they say, Your mileage may vary.

7.Qd5+ Ke8 8.Qxc5 d6 9.Qe3 Nf6 

I know that Bill Wall has experimented with placing his Queen at c3 and other locations, but I am most comfortable keeping Her Majesty in touch with my Kingside. That said, I am aware of the dangers that may develop along an e-file which has both a Queen and a King on it, so I am careful to castle quickly.

10.O-O 

After the game, Stockfish 11 suggested the novelty 10.h4!? As far as I am concerned, the move will remain an unplayed novelty until one of our Readers tries it out - the idea is one more example of how the computer doesn't "get" the Jerome Gambit.

10...Kf7 11.f4 Re8 12.f5 

A while back I posted a couple of games with 12.Qb3+ instead, disrupting Black's plans to castle-by-hand - see "Jerome Gambit: Enthusiast". Given how my game goes, I probably should have paid closer attention.

12...Ne5 13.d4 

Joining in the fun, after the game Stockfish 11 suggested 13.Qb3+. I was interested in kicking Black's Knight, instead. I especially wanted to encourage the steed to harass my Queen.

13...Neg4 14.Qb3+ 

Truth be told, I have played this historical move several times before: 

perrypawnpusher - whitepandora, blitz, FICS, 2011 (1-0, 64);

perrypawnpusher - BunnyWarrior, "Giuoco Piano" thematic tournament, Chess.com, 2016 (1-0, 20);

perrypawnpusher - TobiasBrunner "Let's Play the Italian Game" tournaent, Chess.com, 2018 (1-0, 32 ); and

perrypawnpusher- warwar, "The Italian Battleground" tournament, Chess.com, 2018 (1-0, 39)

14...Kf8 15.h3 Nh6 

Instead, 15...Rxe4 was seen in the game Vazquez - Carrington, 2nd match, Mexico, 1876. Although the U.S. player was outplayed in both of his matches against the Mexican champion, his move here was probably a bit better than the Knight retreat.

16.Bxh6 gxh6 17.Nd2 

17...b6 

This is an interesting alternative to 17...Nxe4, which I faced previously in the three Chess.com games mentioned above.

18.Qe3

On revient toujours a son premier amour. 

18...Kg7 

The game is in balance. White has two pawns for his sacrificed piece. Black is building pressure with his pieces on the pawn center. White has hopes for a Kingside attack before things get out of hand.

[to be continued]

Jerome Gambit: Addition and Subtraction, Not Calculus

The following game is a good example of how a player's analysis is compressed in blitz, and how Jerome-like play can often succeed when it is too difficult to find the error of its ways.

NapthaGas - tritter88

3 0 blitz, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 

The Two Knights Defense.

4.Bxf7+ 

Casually referred to as an "impatient Jerome Gambit", as White does not wait for ...Bc5 in order to sacrifice his Bishop.

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 

Also seen recently, with another kind of Jerome-ish pawn push: 6.f4 Neg4 7.e5 Nd5 8.Qxg4 d6 9.Qf3 dxe5 10.fxe5+ Kg8 11.O-O h6 12.d4 c5 13.c4 Ne7 14.d5 Nf5 15.e6 Qe7 16.Qxf5 b5 17.Nc3 bxc4 18.Ne4 Bb7 19.d6 Bxe4 20.dxe7 Bxf5 21.exf8=Q+ Rxf8 22.e7 Re8 23.Rxf5 Rxe7 24.Bf4 Kh7 25.Rxc5 Re2 26.Rxc4 Rxb2 27.Rc7 Rhb8 28.Rxa7 Re2 29.Bxb8 Black resigned, antoniopowa - anhsyssajsyhjs, 3 0 blitz, Chess.com 2020. 

6...Ng6 7.e5 Ng8 8.Qf3+ Ke8 

Black looks like he is back on his heels, but, remember, he has an extra couple of pieces. Still, this is a 3-minute blitz game, so there is time for addition and subtraction, not calculus...

9.h4 d5 10.Bg5 Be7 11.h5 Bxg5 12.hxg6 Qd7 

Stopping the checkmate threat at f7. Still, stronger was 12...Ne7, giving the Rook some breathing room.

13.Rxh7 Black resigned

It looks like Black is going to lose a Rook, and 13...Rxh7 would allow White's pawn to move to the h-file and then promote.

But what about 13...Qf5 ? Then 14.Rxh8 Qxf3 15.gxf3 Be6 might very well hold. White could try 14.Qxf5 Bxf5 15.Rxh8, but 15...Kd7 16.Rh5 Bc1 17.Nd2 Bxg6 18.Rg5 Bxd2+ 19.Kxd2 Ne7 would leave Black with two pieces against a Rook and a couple of extra pawns - a slight disadvantage, but anything can happen in a blitz game...

Jerome Gambit: Defending Against Creativity

The starting position in the "Piano Piano" tournament at Chess.com comes after 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5. That gave me 9 opportunities to play the Jerome Gambit (4.Bxf7+) in the first round, and I took advantage of each. I was a bit surprised to find myself facing the Jerome, coming out of an unusual transposition to a "modern" variation of the opening. 

Roland_Bollinger - perrypawnpusher

3d/move, "Piano Piano" tournament, Chess.com, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.d4

The Italian Gambit, explored by Jude Acers and George S. Laven in their book The Italian Gambit System and A Guiding Repertoire for White - 1.e4 (2006).

4...Bxd4 

According to Komodo 10, this is a bit stronger than 4...exd4. The earliest example I have of that move is  Wright - Hunn, Arkansas 1874, which was published in the November 1874 Dubuque Chess Journal.

Related blog posts are "Jerome Gambit: The Improved Face Palm Variation?!" and "The Macbeth Attack".

5.Bxf7+ 

Wow. Suddenly we are in Jerome Gambit territory - and I am defending. This is dangerous stuff for both players.

The Database surprised me with 269 games with this position, although White scored only 22%. 

5...Kxf7 

Interestingly, The Database now has 1,143 games with this position, with White scoring 28%. The increase comes because of the included games with the current move order, and also those arising from a "modern" version (not 5.Nxe5+) of the Jerome Gambit, 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.d4 Bxd4.

Relevant are the posts "Jerome Gambit: Seemed Like A Good Idea at the Time" and "A Whole Lot of Information". 

6.Nxe5+ 

This doesn't work out. A bit better was 6.Nxd4 exd4 and maybe 7.c3.

6...Bxe5 7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.f4

 According to The Database, this is a new move. The attacking idea is clear.

I wanted to develop my extra pieces as quickly as I could.

8...Nge7 9.Qc5 d6 10.Qb5 Bd4 

Escaping the "Jerome pawns" and preventing my opponent from castling.

11.Qc4 d5 12.Qb5 dxe4 

Here, his experiment having gone awry, White allowed his clock to run down and lose on time.

Now, it's my turn to play the Jerome Gambit against him.

(It did not turn out that way after all. The game went 1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Black lost on time. Sigh.)

Jerome Gambit: One Minute Ninja

White's play in the following game reminds me of a ninja attack. He quickly gains the better position, then takes advantage of his opponent's mistake, delivering checkmate. All with only a minute to play.

angelcamina - x2ornot2b

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6

The Semi-Italian Opening.

4.Nc3 Nf6 5.O-O Bc5 6.Bxf7+

The Semi-Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit. The Database has 151 games with this position, where White scores 65%.

Angelcamina, however, is 3 - 0.

6...Kxf7 7.Nxe5+ Nxe5 8.d4 Bxd4 9.Qxd4 Nc6 10.Qc4+ Ke8 

Komodo 10 sees the position as equal, although we need to remember the maxim: When White has equalized in the Jerome Gambit, he has the advantage.

11.f4 d6 12.b3 Kf8 13.Ba3 Qe7 14.Rae1 

White's pieces quickly move into position.

14...Be6 15.Qb5 Rb8 16.e5 dxe5 

A slip. This is bullet. It happens.

White finishes quickly.

17.Bxe7+ Nxe7 18.fxe5 Kf7 19.exf6 gxf6 20.Ne4 Nd5 21.Nxf6 Nxf6 22.Rxf6+ Kxf6 23.Qe5+ Ke7 24.Qxe6+ Kd8 25.Rd1 checkmate