BSJGD: Embrace the Chaos

Following up on the previous post, "BSJG: It's Complicated" here is another Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined - declined, I suppose, because the defender wanted a less complicated game than his opponent had planned for. However, things do not turn out that way.

NN - NN

3 2 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Bc4 Nc6 3.Nf3 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Ke7 

Declined.

Recently discussed in the game Raynier29 - Floppy-Bischer, 3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022 (1-0, 9), the line leads to an advantage for White that Stockfish 14.1 assesses as more than a Rook. 

5.Nxe5 Kd6 

The difference between "brave" and "foolish" differs according to the time control. Black decides to throw caution to the wind. 

The more sedate 5...d6 was more likely to help him survive.

6.Bxg8 Kxe5 7.c3 Qg5 

Pieces are hanging as Black plays the thematic move in the Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

As it turns out, this is not a safe place for the Queen.

8.cxd4+ Kxd4 9.Qa4+ 

Rather than worry about his Bishop on g8, White looks toward checkmating the advanced enemy King.

9...Ke5 

10.Qb5+ 

This will do.

White overlooks the thematic move 10.f4+, which will show up in the notes again, as well as 10.d4+. Both moves are designed to win the Black Queen.

10...c5 11.O-O 

Preparing 12.f4+, a move which could actually be played right away: 11.f4+ Kd6 (11...Qxf4 12.d4+) 12.fxg5.  

11...Rxg8 

Reminder, this is a 3 minute blitz game, where the rule often is If you can't quickly think of anything else, grab material.

12.Qc4 

Sneaking around the c-pawn and attacking the enemy Rook. White is still winning. (Of course, 12.f4+ and 12.d4+ were also playable.) 

12...Rh8 13.Nc3 

Solid.

(13.f4+ and 13.d4+, also come to mind.) 

13...d6 14.d4+ Black resigned

(Yes, the fork 14.f4+ was also still on, and some Readers will no doubt see that the strongest - but, from a practical point of view, unnecessary - move was 14.Qf7, threatening a checkmate in 6 moves)

BSJGD: It's Complicated

The following Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined game becomes so complicated that I eventually turn the comments over to Stockfish 14.1.

Basically -

Black declines the gambit so White immediately gets a better game

Black starts an attack against White's King which should not work

White is better up until the point where Black crushes White

Typical Jerome-ish game, right?

moimoibubu - Tolcho0812

10 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Ke7 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined.

Recently discussed in the game Raynier29 - Floppy-Bischer, 3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022 (1-0, 9), the line leads to an advantage for White that Stockfish 14.1 assesses as more than a Rook. 

Instead, Black should take the Bishop.

5.Nxd4 exd4 6.Bb3 

White retracts his offer of a Bishop. He is a pawn ahead, and Black's King is poorly placed - in the center, blocking the action of his Bishop and Queen.

6...d5 7.Bxd5 Nf6 8.Qf3 

Reinforcing the Bishop, and developing the Queen to a square where it could help with the attack on the enemy King.

Still, retreating the busy Bishop with 8.Bc4 was probably better. Then 8...Nxe4 would be met by 9.Qe2.

8...Bg4 9.Qb3 

This looks natural, and pairing the Queen and Bishop on the a2-g8 diagonal is an idea that shows up in a number of openings, for example the Evans Gambit. However, a closer look reveals that White has already achieved most of what that battery hopes to do, anyhow - capturing the f-pawn and displacing the enemy King.

Stockfish 14.1 thinks the Queen should stay on the Kingside with 9.Qg3. 

9...c6 

Feeling the pressure on the Queenside. Still, he should snap off the Bishop with 9...Nxd5.

10.Bc4

This is fine, although the computer suggests that White could go in for complications with 10.Qxb7+ Bd7 11.Bxc6 Rc8 12.Bxd7 Qxd7 13.Qb3 Nxe4 14.O-O Nc5 15.Qf3 d3 16.Nc3 Kd8 17.cxd3 Be7 18.d4 Rf8 19. Qe2 Ne6 20. d3 Nxd4 21. Qe4 Re8 22. Qxh7 Bf6 23. Be3 Nc2 24. Rab1 Nxe3 25. fxe3 Rxe3 

analysis diagram

Not the kind of thing that everyone wants to persue in a blitz game.

10...b5 11.Bd3 Ke8 

12.O-O 

This reasonable move turns out to be quite risky.

12...Be7 

Stockfish 14.1 recomments, instead, 12...Nd7 13.Bxb5 (huh?) cxb5 14.h3 Bh5 15.d3 a6 16.Qd5 Bf7 17.Qxd4 (White has 4 pawns for his sacrificed piece) Rc8 18.Qe3 Rxc2 19.Nd2 Bc5 20.d4 Bb6 21.e5 Bg6 22.Ne4 Nxe5 23.Nc5 Bxc5 24.Qxe5+ Be7 25.Re1 Kf7 26.Qe6+ Kf8 27.Qxa6 Qd7 and assesses Black as slightly better. Messy.

13.h3 h5 

Black plans to "develop" his Rook at h8 by sacrificing the Bishop. The computer is skeptical, but in human vs human blitz play, the idea has its benefits.

14.e5 

How long do you think it took for White to decide not to capture the piece?

14...Nd5 15.Bg6+ Kd7 16.hxg4 

White judges that the capture is safe now, and "objectively" it is - but the storm clouds gathering over his Kingside are more concerning when you tae into account his undeveloped pieces.

16...hxg4 17.Bf5+ 

Instead, Stockfish recommends 17.g3 Rh3 18.Be4 Qh8 19.a4 b4 20.Nc3 (did not see that coming) dxc3 21.Qc4 Rf8 22.dxc3 Rf3 (White's Bishop protects h1) 23.Bxf3 gxf3 24.Qg4+ Kc7 25.Qxf3 (Black's exchange sacrifice does not look so good now) g5 26.Bd2 bxc3 27.Bxc3 g4 28.Qg2 Bc5 29.Rae1 Kb7 30.Bd2 Qh7 White has buttoned up his King's position and is better. 

17...Kc7 18.Bxg4 Rh4 

19.Bh3 

As will quickly be seen, the Bishop belonged on f3. With an eventual g2-g3, it would protect h1.

19...Qh8 20.Qg3

How else to defend? 

The computer offers the pathetic 20.Na3 (development of a sort) Nf4 21.Nxb5 (sad, but necessary to activate the Queen) cxb5 22.Qxb5 only to be met by 22...Rxh3 23.gxh3 Nxh3+ when 24.Kg2 Nf4+ 25.Kf3 Qh3+ 26.Ke4 (26.Kxf4 Rf8+ leads to mate) Ne6 leads to a position where lack of King safety is the issue, despite White's advantage in material.

analysis diagram

20...Nf4 

The attack will finish the game.

21.e6 Bd6 22.Re1 Nxh3+ 23.Qxh3 Rxh3 24.gxh3 Qxh3 25.d3 Rh8 White resigned

Checkmate is forced.

Jerome Gambit: Don't Slip, Defender

The Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+) does not win by force - it requires help from the defender. 

Sometimes that help comes in the form of a "slip" - something always possible in a blitz game.  

gentasolli - Abbas3197

5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 7.f4 Qf6 

8.Rf1 g6 9.Qh3+ Ke7 10.fxe5 Qxe5 11.d3 d5 

Black's defense is turning into a counterattack. He has an extra piece for a pawn, and his two Bishops are powerful.

12.Qh4+ Kd6 

Ooops.

13.Bf4 Black resigned

Black can console himself that he had "won" the analysis - objectively, he was better - while all White has is a win.

A Short Quick Win Worth Remembering

 

With a flurry of new games from Dan Middlemiss, I could not miss the fact that blitz and bullet players have been applying the Jerome Gambit treatment to the Two Knights Defense a lot lately.

One example is

GirelliGiovanni - OnlyYellowKnight, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Ng6 7.e5 Nd5 8.Qf3+ Kg8 9.Qxd5 checkmate

The Database has 20 game examples with this win, 8 by PedrosF1 at lichess.org.

Another example is

RookieWarchief - sdine, 5 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Nc6 7.e5 Nd5 8.Qf3+ Kg8 9.Qxd5 checkmate

The Database has 17 game examples with this win, 8 by PedrosF1 at lichess.org.

Whether Black retires his Knight to g6 or c6, it is worth remembering this line. 

Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit Crush

Computer chess programs tend to cringe when assessing most things related to the Jerome Gambit.

However, as the following game demonstrates, the defender has a limited time - especially in a blitz game - to think like a computer, before experiencing a very dangerous attack on his King. 

Guest8331223623 - Guest6049581065

10 0 blitz, Chess.com

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 h6 

The Semi-Italian Opening.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Semi-Italian Jerome Gambit. White does not wait for his opponent to develop a Bishop to c5 before attacking.

The Database has 2,634 games with this line. White scores 42%. 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Nc6 7.d5 Ne5 

The play has a Halloween Gambit feel.

8.O-O Nf6 9.Be3 Bd6 

White would meet 9...Nxe4 with 10.Qd4.

10.f4 Neg4 11.Bd4 Nxe4 12.Qxg4 Rf8 

Black's defense has been holding, but there are tell tale problems, such as his Bishop blocking the d-pawn which blocks the other Bishop which hems in the Rook...

With the text move Black prepares to castle-by-hand, but he overlooks the danger of the White Bishop at d4. Instead, 12...Nf6 would have been solid.

White's attack is now brutal.

13.Qxg7+ Ke8 14.Qg6+ Rf7 15.Re1 Qe7 

A little bit better would have been 15...Be7, but it hardly matters.

16.Rxe4 Qxe4 17.Qxe4+ Re7 

See the previous note.

18.Qg6+ Rf7 19.Nc3 c6 20.Re1+ Kf8 21.Qxh6+ Kg8 22.Qh8 checkmate

Recall the note to Black's 12th move.

Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit Declined

I think it was Steinitz who said that the best way to refute a gambit is to accept it. Certainly the strongest "refutations" of the Jerome Gambit are in the accepted lines. 

The same can be said of the Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

Raynier29 - Floppy-Bischer

3 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2022

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nd4 

The Blackburne Shilling Gambit.

4.Bxf7+ 

The Blackburne Shilling Jerome Gambit.

4...Ke7 

I was surprised to find that The Database has over 800 games with this move. White scores 70%, which is pretty significant given that the average rating of White vs Black is almost even (12 points difference).

Posted some time ago

I have met this move before (see "Jedi Mind Tricks", "Jedi Mind Tricks / Rematch", "Sith Still and Don't Move", "Never Mind" and "Platinum Mind Tricks". ), and whatever advantages it has are slight and purely psychological.

Like with the Jerome Gambit Declined, White can now go for complications with 5.Nxe5, withdraw his Bishop with 5.Bc4 or 5.Bb3, or he can settle for a solid game with a clear advantage by exchanging the piece off.

5.Bxg8 Nxf3+ 

This temporarily saves the e-pawn, i.e. 5...Rxg8 6.Nxe5 Qe8 7.d3 Kd8 8.Nc4.

Capturing the Bishop was seen in "Just Look Ahead and Move"

6.Qxf3 Rxg8 

7.d4 d6 

This kind of thing happens in blitz games. Black had to move his King, or play 7...h6. After either move White can play 8.dxe5, with two extra pawns and a safer King (after 0-0).

8.Bg5+ Kd7 9.Bxd8 Black resigned

The Delayed Jerome Gambit Video

 

A recent YouTube video short from Offbeat Gambits titled "The Delayed Jerome Gambit" features a quick crush by Canadian Grandmaster Aman Hambleton in a line of the Two Knights Defenst that is also called the Jerome-Knight Gambit or the Impatient Jerome Gambit.

The game appears to be ChessBrah - kevvvvvvv, 5 0 blitz, Chess.com, 2020 (1-0, 9), which was also touched on here in "Jerome Gambit: Quick Finishes".

I have mentioned before that Pedrosf1 at lichess.org, has reached this checkmate 8 times - but the ChessBrah got there first.

GM Hambleton's enthusiasm - For Jerome! - is infectious.

Check it out.