Jerome Gambit: Silicon Clash (Part 1)

A while ago, Sebastian Pereira sent me the following Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) game between Stockfish 14 and Stockfsh 14. He went to the chess.com website and chose the computer at engine level 25 (rated 3200). In a separate tab, he set up the Stockfish 14 engine to play against it.

Who won the game? Well, Stockfish 14, of course.

Along the way, it had some interesting things to show about our favorite opening. 

Stockfish 14 - Stockfish 14

Chess.com, 2021

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

I find it interesting that Stockfish 14 prefers this move to 6...g6. I know that in its evaluations it is skeptical of Blackburne's defense, 7.Qxe5 d6, but it rates Whistler's defense, 7.Qxe5 Qe7 highly. Perhaps the computer is still in "book", and the move choice reflects the choices in place there. 

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qh4+ 9.g3 Qf6 

Again, Stockfish avoids a wild move - this time, 9...Nf3+!? leading to a Queen sacrifice - and plays a move that is solid and reliable for Black.

10.Qxe5+ Qxe5 11.fxe5+ Kxe5 12.b4

The Database has 4 previous examples of this move, all intenet games, all wins for White. One of them is a game that I played, and one was played by GM Hikaru Nakamura. I would happily give the name of the earliest player to use 12.b4, but it is given as NN in a 2004 game. At about the time of the current game, detonacasano won a rapid game at lichess.org.

It is also very relevant to read up on the Jerome-Mills variations, as analyzed by Yury V. Bukayev.

12...Bd4 

Of course, taking the pawn with 12...Bxb4 leads to instant trouble because of 13.Bb2+, as in detonacasano - yokucht, 15 10 rapid, lichess.org, 2021: 13.Bb2+ Ke6 14.Bxg7 Nf6 15.Bxh8 Nxe4 16.a3 Bc5 17.d3 Nf2 18.0–0? (18...Rf1) 18...Nxd3+ 19.Kg2 b6 20.cxd3 Bb7+ 21.Kh3 Rxh8 22.Nc3 Ke7 23.g4 Ba6 24.Rad1 Bd4 25.Ne4 Rg8 26.Ng3 Bc5 27.a4 Rg6 28.Kh4 Rh6+ 29.Nh5 Re6?! 30.g5 Re2 31.h3 Bf2+ 32.Kg4 Ra2 33.Nf4 Kd6 34.Ra1 Rd2 35.h4 Bd4 36.Rae1 Ra2 37.h5 Rxa4 38.h6 Ra3 39.Re4 Bc3?! 40.g6 hxg6 41.d4 Bb7 42.h7 Bxe4 43.h8Q Bf5+ 44.Kg5 White won on time

Simply backing up the Bishop with 12...Bb6 was reasonable, and was seen in NN - Gain,K, internet, 2004, (1-0, 55). 

Then there is the interesting 12...Bf8, protecting against the coming threat along the a1-h8 diagonal, as in perrypawnpusher - Kevin the fruitbat, Jerome Gambit thematic, ChessWorld.net, 2008 (1-0, 38).

13.c3 Bb6 14.Bb2 

About equally strong is 14.d4+ as seen in the grandmaster vs grandmaster blitz game, SanitationEngineer - GM_dmitrij, 3 0 blitz, Chess.com 2020, (1-0, 28). 

14...Kxe4 

This is the kind of risky move that a human would make. I am not sure what Stockfish 14 saw, or didn't see - and Black is still better after this move; but moves like 14...Nf6, 14...d6 or 14...c6 seem more reasonable.

15.Rf1 Nf6 16.Na3 Ke5 

Stockfish 14.1, given enough thinking time, recommends 16...Re8 17.O-O-O Kd3 which can lead to some wild play. Despite silicon calculations, I think it is a good idea to move the Black King closer to home.

[to be continued]

Jerome Gambit: One of the Attractions

One of the attractions of the wild Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) is that an unprepared defender can get into trouble very quickly. The following game is a good example: After 5 moves, the computer would give Black a winning advantage, but after 8 moves it would be much more in favor of White.

Record another Jerome Gambit miniature.

yigitcetintas - AlchemistD

10 0 blitz, Chess.com, 2021

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 

Black might enjoy "kicking" the enemy Queen with this pawn, but he has commited himself - knowingly or unknowingly - to sacrificing his Rook.

7.Qxe5 Bd6 

Here is the first mistake. It follows the first bit of advice in a blitz game: Make threats. However, it misses the caution, above.

8.Qxh8 Qe7 

Whistler's defense relies upon this threat to White's e-pawn - but played a move earlier.

Now White can both extract his Queen and dissolve Black's Kingside in a few moves. 

9.Qxh7+ Kf8 10.Qxe7+ Bxe7 

White is up the exchange and three pawns. He still has to play this Queenless middlegame and be careful about Black's two Bishops, but his position is much easier to play - and that counts for something in a blitz game.

11.O-O Nf6 12.d3 b6 13.Nc3 Bb7 14.Bg5 Ng4 15.Bxe7+ Kxe7 

White is not in a hurry. He develops his pieces. Pawn moves will follow.

16.h3 Nf6 17.Rfe1 Kf7 18.Nb5 c6 

This looks like a time error.

19.Nd6+ 

Winning a piece.

Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Updating An Old Line

The following game is a Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) miniature with a brutal ending.

It touches upon a blog post from 13 years ago, based upon a game from 145 years ago. 

sith_nich - thombolo

3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2021.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Nf3+ 

9.gxf3 

Instead, 9.Kf1 was seen in  Jerome,A - Norton,D, Correspondence, 1876 the first example of the Knight sacrifice.

9...Qh4+ 10.Kd1 Nf6 

In an early blog post, "Jerome Gambit Tournament: Chapter III", I mentioned that 

The American Chess Journal editor William Hallock [September 1876 ] assessed Black as better after [10...Qf2]. Not so.

I faced 10...Qf2 and showed that the best Black had was a draw, although when he pushed for more, he had a loss, in perrypawnpusher - Sir Osis of the Liver, Jerome Gambit thematic, ChessWorld.net, 2008 (1-0, 19) 

I also noted that

[A]fter 10...Ne7 11.Qe5+ Kc6, although 12.b4!? would keep things interesting.

This was borne out in the recent game Littleplayerparis - Bepis, blitz, lichess.org, 2021: 10...Ne7 11.Qe5+ Kc6 12.b4 d6 13.Qc3 Qf2 14.bxc5 dxc5 15.Qe3 Qg2 16.Rg1 Qxh2 17.Rxg7 Qh1+ 18.Rg1 Qh5 19.Nc3 Be6 20.f5 Bc4 21.d3 Ba6 22.Nd5 Nxd5 23.exd5+ Kd7 24.Rg7+ Kc8 25.Qe6+ Kb8 26.Rg8+ Black resigned

White has only one piece developed, and his King cannot castle, but his opponent must still be careful, as the rest of the game demonstrates.

11.e5+ Ke7 

It is unfortunate that trying to sneak out of the center does not help Black's King.  Instead, 11...Kc6 12.exf6 Qxf6 13.Qd3 Qd4 14.Qxd4 Bxd4 would give the defender a slight edge, with his two Bishops vs White's broken Kingside pawn structure. 

12.exf6+ Kd6 

Possibly clock, possibly shock. In either event, things end quickly.

13.Nc3 Qf2 14.Qd5 checkmate

Excellent!

Jerome Gambit: Adding to the Bullet

Yury V. Bukayev adds some more to the report on two online bullet games between top GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ("LyonBeast") and top GM Hikaru Nakamura (" Hikaru ") - see "Jerome Gambit: Modern Top GM Interest's Origins (Parts 1 & 2)".

There is coverage of the second game, from 2020, in the YouTube video "Nakamura vs MVL | Speed Chess Championship Final | Peter Leko & Tania Sachdev" (time mark 3:44:00 untill 3:46:20).

Commenting on the Hamppe-Muzio variation of the Vienna Gambit as it was played, GM Leko says "It's not going to work, and anyway even if by a miracle it would work, it would not bring anything..." He is reflecting upon the fact that GM Nakamura was too far ahead in the match at that point for a win to matter.

As Yury pointed out earlier, the opening line did work the first time the two players contested it, in 2016, and GM Vachier-Lagrave won. In the 2020 game covered in the video, GM Nakamura improved upon his play and took the full point.

Jerome Gambit: New Idea, Unsuccessful

Not every new defensive idea in an opening is successful. The following game is a good example - but the game is played at a blitz time control, and Black has another great chance. Apparently time pressure settles things down, though, and White goes on to win.  

Tiny25 - Akatian

3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2021

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6

It is tempting to play this pawn move in response to the check by the Queen, but Black must be ready to surrender the Rook.

7.Qxe5 d6 

Blackburne's defense. It leads to complicated play, as Black attacks the enemy King and works to trap the enemy Queen. White captures a Rook, and has different ways for his Queen to escape.

This is a 3-minute game, which also has an impact.

8.Qxh8 Bd7 

A novel and interesting idea - there is only one other game with it in The Database - but it doesn't do the job. The consistent idea is 8...Qh4. 

9.Qxh7+ Kf8 10.Qxg6 Be8 

The idea, but White's four extra pawns (three connected and passed) added to the advantage of the exchange give him a clear advantage.

11.Qf5+ Bf7 

Or 11...Nf6 12.d3 Bd7 13.Bh6+ Kf7 14.Qf4 Qe7 15.Nc3 Rg8 16.Bg5 Bd4 17.Nd5 Qe6 18.Nxc7 Qe7 19.O-O-O Be5 20.Qf3 Rxg5 21.Nd5 Qe6 22.Nxf6 Bxf6 23.Kb1 Qe5 24.c3 Bg4 25.Qe3 Bxd1 26.Rxd1 Rxg2 27.Qxa7 Rxf2 28.Qxb7+ Ke6 29.Qc8+ Kf7 30.Qd7+ Be7 31.Rg1 Qxh2 32.Rg7+ Kxg7 33.Qxe7+ Rf7 34.Qg5+ Kf8 35.Qd8+ Kg7 36.Qg5+ Kf8 37.Qd8+ Kg7 38.Qg5+ draw Star10sj- CheesE220, lichess.org, 2021

12.Nc3 Nh6 13.Qh7 Qf6 

14.d3 

Oh, no. With 14.d4 Ng4 15.Bh6+ Ke8 16.O-O-O White's uneasy King would find safety.

14...Bh5 

Bad luck - blame it on the clock.

Instead, Black had 14...Qxf2+ 15.Kd1 Bh5+ 16.g4 Bxg4+ 17.Ne2 Qxe2 checkmate 

15.Qxh6+ Qxh6 16.Bxh6+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Declining the Second Piece

One way for a defender to deal with sacrifices is to decline them. This goes against the old adage that The best way to refute a gambit is to accept it but it does have the psychological advantage of possibly frustrating the attacker.

The following game shows White attacking steadily, and Black struggling to keep up.

Littleplayerparis - CHR-ONO

3 2 blitz, lichess.org, 2021

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke8 

Black figures that accepting the gift of one piece is enough. It is an interesting decision. Komodo 12 assesses White as being about 1/2 of a pawn better, but The Database shows White scoring 75% in 132 games.

6.Qh5+ Ke7 

The way to combat White's Queen incursion (the alternate 6.Nxc6 was best) was 6...g6 7.Nxg6 Bxf2+ (the Bishop is lost, might as well get a pawn for it and displace White's King) 8.Kxf2 Nf6 9.Qh4 Rg8 10.Rf1 Rxg6 11.Kg1 Qe7 when the battle around f6 will continue, with Black a little bit better.

7.Qf7+ Kd6 8.Nc4 checkmate

Jerome Gambit: Modern Top GM Interest's Origins (Part 2)

 

[continued from the previous post]

The Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) started out as a club player's opening. 

On occasion, however, stronger players have given the Jerome Gambit a try at different time controls. As I wrote in the previous post

Recently, Yury V. Bukayev sent me a couple of bullet games played betwen top GM Maxime Vachier-Lagrave ("LyonBeast") and top GM Hikaru Nakamura (" Hikaru "), with the intriguing theory that they might explain Nakamura's interest in the Jerome.

As we have seen ("Jerome Gambit: Origins (Part 1)"), the first game was played in 2016, and was a 1 1 bullet game featuring the Vienna opening, particularly the Hamppe-Muzio variation. Play was highlighted by a Jerome-like Bishop sacrifice at f7 on move 7 - and Black resigned 5 moves later.

Time passed. Four years later, GM Nakamura's interest in the Jerome Gambit, albeit casual and lighthearted, was clear. When he ranked chess openings for his viewers (see "Jerome Gambit: Which Tier? Unbreakable?"), he gave it some serious thought. He played the opening on Twitch (see "Jerome Gambit: GMHikaruOnTwitch") and in various "speedruns" (see "Jerome Gambit: Speedrunning Tricks").

GM Nakamura seemed to have concluded that, with the right time control, at the right time, a Bxf7+ sacrifice could deliver some serious pain to an unsuspecting opponent - especially if that opponent were a club player, and even if the opening in question was the questionable Jerome Gambit.

All of which brings us to the second grandmaster vs grandmaster game, played in 2020. Again, it was a bullet game, 1 minute with a 1 second increment. Again it was a Vienna game, Hamppe-Muzio variation

LyonBeast - Hikaru

1 1 bullet, SCC_Final, Chess.com, 2020

1. e4 e5 2. Nc3 Nc6 3. f4 exf4 4. Nf3 g5 5. Bc4 g4 6. O-O gxf3 

The players repeat the first game. 

7.Bxf7+ Kxf7 8.Qxf3 

This time, however, GM Nakamura was ready.  

8...Qh4

Four years ago, 8...Bh6 was played, and much of Black's advantage slipped away.

It is interesting that GM Nakamura's move this time - strong and winning - is, nonetheless, the 5th best response, according to Stockfish 14. Clearly, the American grandmaster was not taken by surprise. His response will be familiar to anyone who has played a number of Jerome Gambits, however... 

9.d4 Nxd4 

This works, this time.

10.Qd3 Ne6 11.Bxf4 Nxf4 12.Nd5 Bd6 13. Nxf4 Bxf4 14.g3 Qg5 15.Rxf4+ Ke7 

The battle of f4 is over. White has a pawn for two pieces - reminiscent of the Jerome Gambit, by the way.

Things are not simple, however. The computer sees the game as about even.

16.Qd4 Nf6 17.Rf5 Qxf5

Giving back some material to ease the position.

18.exf5 d5 19.Qe5+ Kf7 20.Re1 Re8 

21.Qxc7+ Bd7 22.Rxe8 Rxe8 23.Qxb7 Re2 

Active pieces: Black should not let his 3 pieces be tied down by White's Queen. He might want even more: to attack the enemy King.  

24.Qxa7 Rxc2 25.Qd4 

Probably GM Vachier-Lagrave should have considered the consolidating 25.g4. 

25...Bxf5 26.a4 Be4 27.h3 Nh5

28.Qe5

At this point Stockfish 14 recommends 28.g4 Nf4 when White goes for a draw by repetition with 29.Qa7+ Ke6 30.Qb6+ Ke7 31.Qa7+ Kf6, etc.

28...Rg2+ 29.Kf1 Nxg3+ 30.Ke1 Re2+ White resigned

After his King moves, White will lose his Queen to a discovered check.

So, there you have it. The first bullet game, with the Bishop sacrifice and a brutal attack. Then, the grandmaster who lost starts playing with the Jerome Gambit in fun blitz matches. Finally, the opening is repeated in another bullet game, and a Jerome-ish novelty leads the defense toward triumph.

Interesting conjecture.

As Rod Serling once put it

You unlock this door with the key of imagination. Beyond it is another dimension—a dimension of sound, a dimension of sight, a dimension of mind. You're moving into a land of both shadow and substance, of things and ideas. You've just crossed over into the Twilight Zone.