Jerome Gambit: Breathless

Sometimes, playing over 1-minute games by angelcamina leaves me breathless...

I don't know how he does it: winning consistently with the Jerome Gambit, at bullet speed.

angelcamina - badpcplayer

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nf6 3.Nc3 Bc5 4.Bc4 Nc6 5.Bxf7+ 

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit

The database has 195 games, with this position. White scores 59%. 

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Neg4 8.dxc5 

8...Qe7 

White has faced other moves:

8...Re8 9.O-O d5 (9...d6 10.h3 Ne5 11.f4 Nc4 12.e5 Nd7 13.Qd5+ Re6 14.Qxc4 Nxc5 15.f5 d5 16.Nxd5 c6 17.fxe6+ Kxe6 18.Nc7+ Kd7 19.Rd1+ Kxc7 20.Rxd8 Kxd8 21.Qxc5 Be6 22.Bg5+ White won on time, angelcamina - bigbang7, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org 2019) 10.exd5 Kg8 11.h3 Ne5 12.Bg5 h6 13.Bf4 Ng6 14.Bg3 Bf5 15.Qd2 Nxd5 16.Nxd5 c6 17.Nb6 Qxd2 18.Nxa8 Rxa8 19.Rad1 Qxc2 20.Rc1 Qxb2 21.Rb1 Bxb1 22.Rxb1 Qxb1+ 23.Kh2 Qxa2 24.h4 Re8 25.h5 Ne7 26.Bd6 Nd5 27.Bg3 a6 Black won on time, angelcamina - zapipa, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2018;

Or 8...d5 9.exd5 c6 10.d6 Qd7 11.O-O Qf5 12.f3 Ne5 13.Ne4 Nxe4?14.fxe4 Qxf1+ 15.Qxf1+ Ke6 16.Be3 Bd7 17.Qe2 Raf8 18.Bd4 Nf7 19.Rf1 Ng5 20.h4 Rxf1+ 21.Kxf1 Nf7 22.Qc4 checkmate, angelcamina - Hamidi1986, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019; 

Or 8...c6 9.O-O Re8 10.Bg5 Ne5?11.f4 Ng6 12.e5 Nxe5 13.fxe5 Rxe5 14.Bxf6 gxf6 15.Qd3 Qg8 16.Rae1 Rxe1 17.Rxe1 b6 18.Qd6 bxc5 19.Re7+ Kg6 20.Qg3+ Kh6 21.Qxg8 Bb7 22.Rxh7 checkmate, angelcamina - marcldk, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020;

 Or 8...Rf8 9.O-O Kg8 10.h3 Ne5 11.f4 Nf7 12.e5 Ne8 13.Ne4 c6 14.Nd6 Nexd6 15.cxd6 Qb6+ 16.Kh2 Qb4 17.c3 Qc4 18.b3 Qxc3 19.Be3 Qxe3 White resigned, angelcamina - hfsdev, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020.

9.O-O d6  

Not the strongest continuation. Neither was 9...Re8 10.f3 Ne5 11.Bg5 Qxc5+ 12.Kh1 Nxf3 13.Bxf6 gxf6 14.Qxf3 Re6 15.Qh5+ Ke7 16.Qxh7+ Ke8 17.Qh8+ Qf8 18.Qxf8+ Kxf8 19.Rae1 d6 20.Nd5 Rb8 21.Nxf6 Ke7 22.Nd5+ Kd7 23.Rf7+ Kc6 24.Rxc7+ Kb5 25.Nc3+ Kb6 26.Nd5+ Kb5 27.Re3 White won on time, angelcamina - aryopg, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019.

Best is 9...Qe5 10.g3 Qh5 11.h4 Qxc5 and Black is better.

Of course, in 1-minute games, that can change in an eye blink.

10.cxd6 cxd6 11.f3 Ne5 

12.f4 

The pawn advance is thematic, but so is 12.Bg5, which is a bit stronger. At the speed that this game was played, it probably did not matter.

12...Neg4 13.h3 Nh6 14.e5 

14...dxe5 15.fxe5 Qxe5 16.Bxh6 gxh6 

17.Rxf6+ 

Continuing the aggression.

It turns out that the strongest move was - to exchange Queens?!: 17.Qd5+ Qxd5 18.Nxd5 Kg7 19.Nxf6 and White is winning.

17...Qxf6 18.Qd5+ Be6 19.Qxb7+ Kg6 20.Rf1 

A Rook down, White has to keep the pressure on.

20...Qd4+ 21.Kh1 Qd6  

What piece to move? What square to protect? The clock is ticking! Moving a Rook to f8, or the Queen to e5, was the way to continue.

22.Ne4 

White has his next move planned, but this one only leads to an even position. The Queen should go to e4.

23...Qd5 

If only there was time to exchange Queens...

There isn't.

Black's Queen would do double defensive duty at d7, allowing his King to retreat to g7 after the upcoming check. Then the second player would have the advantage.

23.Rf6+ Kh5 24.Ng3+  Kh4 25.Qg7 Rhg8 26. Rf4+ Bg4 27.Rxg4 checkmate

Whew!

Jerome Gambit: Think Fast!

To succeed at chess at bullet speed - 1-minute chess - it is helpful to have a good eye for tactics.

The following game, from regular contributor angelcamina, is a good example.

angelcamina - Farbic

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Nf6 4.Nc3 Nxe4 5.Bxf7+ 

The Noa Gambit, the Monck Gambit, or the Open Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit. If Black had been expecting 5.Nxe4 d5 6.Bd3 dxe4 7.Bxe4 Bd6 with a quiet position (although he would have to look out for Yury V. Bukayev's recommendation, 8.Bxc6+) this may have come as a surprise.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe4 d5 

7.Neg5+ 

Or 7.Nc3 e4 8.Ng1 Bc5 9.d4 Bxd4 10.Nge2 Bb6 11.O-O Rf8 12.Nxd5 Kg8 13.Nxb6 axb6 14.Qe1 Ne5 15.Qc3 Qf6 16.Bf4 Ng4 17.Qxf6 Nxf6 18.Bxc7 Bg4 19.Ng3 Rac8 20.Bxb6 Rxc2 21.Bd4 Rd8 22.Bc3 b5 23.a3 Rd3 24.h3 Be6 25.Rad1 Bb3 26.Rxd3 exd3 27.Rd1 Bc4 28.Ne4 Nd5 29.Nd2 Nxc3 30.Nxc4 Rxb2 31.Rxd3 Nd1 32.Kh2 Rc2 33.Rd8+ Kf7 34.Ne3 Nxe3 35.fxe3 Rf2 36.Rd7+ Kg6 37.Ra7 White won on time, angelcamina - florianschreib, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019. 

7...Ke8 

Or 7...Kf6 8.d4 Bg4 9.dxe5+ Nxe5 10.Qd4 Bxf3 11.Nxf3 Qe7 12.Bg5+ Black resigned, angelcamina - GrainBowl, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023; or

7...Kg8 8.d4 e4 9.Ne5 Nxe5 10.dxe5 h6 11.Nxe4 Bb4+ 12.c3 Be7 13.Ng3 c6 14.O-O Be6 15.f4 Kh7 16.f5 Black resigned, angelcamina - Otschin_Karascho, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024.

8.d4 h6 9.Nh3 e4 10.Ne5 

The light-square Kingside weaknesses make Black's monarch a bit uneasy.

10...Nxe5 11.Qh5+ 

It is not clear if White overlooked Black's next move, or if he decided to mix things up, hoping to find advantage down the line.

11...Nf7 12.Nf4 Qf6 13.Nxd5 Qd6 14.Bf4 Qc6 

A slip. It can happen at such time controls.

15.Nxc7+ Ke7 16.Nd5+ Ke8 17.Nc7+ Ke7 

Repetition saves time for both players and gives a few more seconds for reflection. angelcamina does not want a draw.

18.Nxa8 Qxc2 

Black's Queen will not do as good a job harassing the White King as White's pieces will in harassing the Black King.

19.O-O Be6 20.Rac1 Qxb2 21.Rc7+ Ke8 22.Rxf7 Bxf7 23.Qe5+ Be7 Nc7+ Kf8 

25.d5 

This move gives Black the opportunity to exchange Queens, which he should have taken. The Queens come off the board shortly, but it costs more.

25...Qb6 26.d6 Qxd6 27.Qxd6 Bxd6 28.Bxd6+ Kg8 

White's extra piece and better placed Rook now create tactics to finish the game.

29.Rc1 Bxa2 30.Nb5 a6 31.Nd4 Kh7 32.Rc7 Rd8 33.Be5 b5 34.Rxg7+ Kh8 35.Rd7+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament (Part 2)

                                                

[continued from the previous post]

The following wild game deserves attention.

KevinOSh - LemonOtter42

Jerome Gambit PracticeTournament, Chess.com, 2023.

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Ke6  

Mentioned in the early days of this blog (see "You, too can add to Jerome Gambit theory!"), this move was suggested in the Cheltenham Examiner Wednesday February 21, 1906 page 6 (see "Jerome Gambit: Analysis or Game?")

...Ke6 should win also, though it often loses when Black is a weak player. That is, often in proportion to the number of games played at this opening, which number is small.

I have had a lot of fun looking at this line, where Black, again, declines the second piece, as I indicated in"Jerome Gambit: This Is How It's Done"

In fact, I have posted a disproportionate number of times on the line - although, in fairness, they were all interesting posts, going back to "You, too, can add to Jerome Gambit theory" and including "A Strange, But Intriguing Path, Parts 1, 2, & 3" and "Still Strange, Still Intriguing Parts 1, 2, 3 & 4." The most recent post on the line is "We Know What We're Doing (Sort of)". 

 6.Qg4+ 

As I wrote about a year and a half ago, in "Jerome Gambit: Roller Skating on Ice"

Best is the forcing 6.Qg4+, which has scored 81% in 8 games [Currently this is 70% in 25 games; but 94% in 9 games if White finds 6...Kxe5 7.d4! - Rick]. The line is discussed in Wall, Bill - Skandervitch, Internet, 2021 (1-0, 11); Wall, Bill - Guest4105968, PlayChess.com, 2018 (1/2 - 1/2, 50); and Wall, Bill - Guest13762608, PlayChess.com, 2019 (1-0 8).

6...Kxe5 

Black must take the piece, or forfeit his Queen: 6...Kd6 7.Nxf7+, or 6...Ke7 7.Qxg7+ Kd6 8.Nf7+. Of course, if 6...Kf6 then 7.Qf5+ Ke7 8.Qf7+ Kd6 9.Nc4 checkmate.

7.d4+ 

The one good move in a tense position.

7...Kxd4

This way lies destruction.

Black had to capture the d-pawn with either his Bishop or his Knight, but in either case White would continue 8.Bf4+ when 8...Kf6 9.Bg5+ would win Black's Queen.

If the second player wants to continue, then he should capture with the Bishop, as after 7...Bxd4 8.Bf4+ Kf6 9.Bg5+ Kf7 10.Bxd8 he would have 10...Nxd8.  A good assessment of the position after 10 moves (the computer favors White) was given in "Jerome Gambit: Over the Rainbow (Part 1 and Part 2)".

8.c3+

The next time that KevinOSh reaches this position, he will confidently play 8.Be3+ Kc4 9.Qe2+ Kb4 10.Bd2+ Ka4 11.b3 checkmate.

8...Kc4

Wishing to avoid, again, 8...Ke5 9.Bf4+ Kf6 10.Bg5+ etc.

9.b3+

Considering the full point already his, White misses both 9.Qe2 checkmate and 9.Nd2+ Kb5 10.Qe2+ Ka4 11.b3+ Ka5 12.Nc4+ Ka6 13.Nd6+ b5 14.Qxb5 checkmate.

This is not mere nit-picking on my part, as we shall see.

9...Kb5 

It seems ridiculous to point out that Black is now not only better here, he is probably winning - at least as far as Stockfish 15.1 is concerned.

A couple of tries should suffice: 10.a4+ Kb6 11.b4 a5 12.bxc5 13.Ka7 and Black's King is on his way to safety at b8; or 10.b5 

Nxb4 11.cxb4 Bxb4+ 12.Nc2 a5. There are benefits to being two pieces ahead.

Fortunately, this is not a computer game. A quick peek at The Database shows that in the 1,865games where Black's King can be found hanging around at b5, White scores 68%.

Ahem.

A lead in development is one goal of a gambit. It is what saves the game for White.

10.Ba3 Ne5 11.Qe2+ Kc6 12.Bxc5 Kxc5 13.b4+ Kc6 

14.b5+ Kd6 15.Na3 Qg5 16.h4 Qxg2 17.O-O-O+ 

Castling long, with check. You gotta love it.

White is still losing, but he has to be pleased at his opponent's four pieces that are still at home.

17...Ke6 18.Rhg1 Qh3 19.Rg3 Qxh4 20.Nc4 Qh6+ 21.Kc2 

21...d5

Black strikes in the center with a pawn, prepares to activate his Bishop, and then a Rook - and turns the game over to his opponent.

22.exd5+ Ke7 23.Qxe5+ Kd8 

Sadly, the only move for Black to avoid checkmate, for the time being, anyhow, was 23...Kf8.

24.Re1

This will do. A bit faster was 24.d6, to open more attacking lines.

 24...Bd7 25.Rxg7 c6 26.Rxd7+ Kxd7 

27.Qxh8 

White sees his win and goes for it. 

If you saw 27.dxc6+ bxc6 28.Rd1+ Qd6 29.Rxd6+ Kc7 30.Rd5+ Kc8 31.Qe8+ Kb7 32.Rd7 checkmate, good for you.

27...Qg6+ 28.Kb3 cxd5 

White now wins Black's Queen and finishes with checkmate.

29.Ne5+ Kd6 30.Nxg6 a5 31.Qe5+ Kd7 32.Qxd5+ Kc7 33.Qf7+ Kb6 34.Re6+ Kxb5 35.a4+ Kc5 36.Qf5 checkmate

Quite a battle.

Jerome Gambit: Practice Tournament (Part 1)

I recently came across Tournament '23 Jerome Gambit, the "Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament" for the Bookworms club at Chess.com that was a double round robin for three players: Duckfest, KevinOSh, and LemonOtter42.

Top honors was taken by Duckfest, who won all of his games.

Bookworms Club 

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament  2023

                                                  1          2          3                 total

1. Duckfest              1610        **         11        11               4.0/4

2. KevinOSh            1634        00         **        11               2.0/4

3. LemonOtter42     1027        00         00        **               0.0/4

The games are given below, with light, or not-so-light, notes.

Duckfest - LemonOtter42

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament, Chess.com, 2023

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ g6 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qxh8 Qf6 This exchanges off the Queens, leaving White simply the exchange and 2 pawns better. In 88 games in The Database, White scores 76%. 9.Qxf6+ Nxf6 10.d3 Ng4 11.O-O d5 12.Nc3 d4 13.Nd5 Bd6 14.Bf4 Be5 15.Bxe5 Nxe5 16.Nxc7 Rb8 17.Nb5 Ke7 18.Nxd4 a5 19.f4 Ng4 20.Rae1 h5 21.h3 Nf6 22.f5 gxf5 23.Nxf5+ Kd7 24.e5 Nd5 25.Ng7 b5 26.Nxh5 Bb7 27.Nf6+ Nxf6 28.exf6 Kc6 29.f7 Rf8 30.Re8 Rxf7 31.Rxf7 Kc5 32.Rxb7 Kc6 33.Rh7 b4 34.Re5 Kd6 35.Rxa5 Kc6 36.Rh6+ Kb7 37.Rg5 Kc7 38.Rg7+ Kc8 39.Rh8 checkmate

LemonOtter42 - Duckfest

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament, 2023

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.d3 I was surprised to see that in the 1,002 games in The Database with this move, White scored only 35%. The question is if White gets enough action or chances with the sacrifice of only one piece, instead of two. Stockfish 15.1 at 38 ply sees 5.Nxe5 as a bit more than a pawn better than 5.d3. 5...d6 6.Ng5+ Hoping that this piece can be joined by the Queen, and a checkmate fashioned 6...Kf8 7.Qf3+ Qf6 The right defensive idea. 8.Bf4 Difficult to understand; preventing the exchange of Queens but dropping a piece. 8...Nd4 9.Qd1 exf4 10.h4 Nh6 11.Nc3 Bb4 12.a3 Bxc3+ 13.bxc3 Ne6 14.Nxe6+ Bxe6 15.Rb1 Qxc3+ 16.Kf1 Ng4 17.Rxb7 Rc8 18.Rb3 Bxb3 19.Qxg4 Ke7 20.Qxf4 Rhf8 21.Qg5+ Kd7 22.cxb3 Qa1+ 23.Ke2 Qb2+ 24.Kd1 Qxb3+ 25.Ke2 Qc2+ 26.Kf1 Qxf2 checkmate

LemonOtter42 - KevinOSh

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament, Chess.com, 2023

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.d3 d6 6.Ng5+ Kf8 As above 7.Nc3 This is better than 7.Qf3+ which he played against Duckfest 7...h6 8.Nf3 Bg4 9.Nd5 Nd4 Not as strong as it first appears 10.b4 Instead, White could play 10.Nxd4, as 10...Bxd1 would be met by 11.Ne6+. Better for Black would be 10...Qh4, when 11.Ne2 Qxf2+ looks scary, but 12.Kd2 Qxg2 13.Qf1+ Bf3 14.Qxg2 Bxg2 15.Nxc7 Bxh1 16.Nxa8 leaves Black only a pawn and 1/2 better, not as much as the text. 10...c6 11.bxc5 cxd5 A slip. First 11...Bxf3 12.gxf3 then 12...cxd5 12.exd5 Too automatic. White had 12.Nxe4, again, as on move 10. 12...dxc5 13.h3 Again, 13.Nxd4 13...Bxf3 14.gxf3 Qxd5 White remains a piece down and does not recover. 15.c3 Qxf3 16.cxd4 Qxh1+ 17.Kd2 Qxd1+ 18.Kxd1 exd4 19.Ba3 b6 20.f4 g5 21.fxg5 hxg5 22.Kc2 Rxh3 23.Rf1+ Kg7 24.Rf5 Kg6 25.Re5 Nf6 26.Re6 Re8 27.Rd6 Re2+ 28.Kb3 Rxd3+ 29.Ka4 Rxa2 30.Rc6 Rdxa3+ 31.Kb5 Rb2+ 32.Kc4 Rc3 checkmate

KevinOSh - Duckfest

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament, Chess.com, 2023

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 d5 

Duckfest certainly knows something about the Jerome Gambit. This move is best, but rarely played. The database has 9 games with this move, and Black has 7 wins. 8.d4 Bb6 9.c3 Nf6 10.Bg5 Instead 10.f3 would be consistant 10...Kf7 11.O-O Re8 12.Bxf6 Qxf6 13.Qxd5+ Be6 14.Qxb7 Qg5 15.f4 Qb5 16.a4 Bxd4+ White resigned

Duckfest - KevinOSh

Jerome Gambit Practice Tournament, Chess.com, 2023

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7 Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8 7.Qxe5 d6 8.Qg3 Qf6 9.Nc3 Ne7 10.O-O  Or 10.d3, with thoughts of Bg5 10...h5 11.h4 Bg4 12.d3 c6 A bit better was 12...Kg8 13.Be3 Instead, 14.Na4 and then exchanging the Knight for the Bishop, followed by f3 looked like the way to equality 13...Bd4 14.Bf4 Rd8 15.Nd1 Ng6 A slip. 16.Bg5 Black resigned White's Bishop skewers Black's Queen, to the Rook.

[to be continued]

Classic Jerome Gambit Difficulty (for Black)

Sometimes a small problem in a position, if unattended to, becomes larger and larger, placing the whole game in danger.

The following game is a good example of how something small in the defender's position grew and grew.

Wall, Bill - NumberSix

internet, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 6. Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ 

Bill has experimented with 8.Qf5+ in Wall,B - Guest198654, PlayChess.com, 2013 (1-0, 21). 

8...d6 

Or 8...Qe7 as in Wall,B - Quack, Chess.com 2010 (1-0, 22).

9.Qc3 

Or 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.0–0 h6 11.f3 Kg8 12.d4 Kh7 13.c4 Re8 14.Nc3 Kg8 15.Qd3 Nf4 16.Bxf4 c5 17.Nb5 cxd4 18.Qxd4 Qb6 19.Qxb6 axb6 20.Nc7 Black resigned, as in Wall,B - LC, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 20)

9...Nf6 

Bill has also faced 9...Be6 10.d3 c6 11.O-O Qf6 12.Qa3 Qe7 13.f4 Bd7 14.e5 dxe5 15.fxe5+ Ke8 16.Qc3 Be6 17.Nd2 Bd5 18.d4 Nf4 19.Rxf4 Qg5 20.Rf2 Qg4 21.Qb4 Ne7 22.Qxb7 Qd1+ 23.Rf1 Qg4 24.Qxa8+ Kd7 25.Qxa7+ Ke6 26.Nf3 Black resigned, Wall,B-Petrosianic, PlayChess.com 2015.

10.d3 

This move opens the diagonal for his Bishop, but he needs to be mindful that his Queen not be blocked off from the action.

10...Qd7 

Also 10...c6 as in Wall,B - Boris, Sparkchess.com, 2012; or

10...Qe7 as in Wall,B - Guest4149739, PlayChess.com, 2013 (1-0, 30); or 

10...Kf7 as in Wall,B - Guest428245, PlayChess, 2014 (1-0, 20). 

11.O-O Kf7 

Hoping to castle-by-hand.

12.f4 Re8 13.Qb3+ Kf8 14.Nc3 a6 

Black has castled (sort of) and leads in development, but he has that classic Jerome Gambit difficulty sometimes seen in defenders: his Queen blocks his Bishop, which impedes his Rook. It will cost tempos to remedy this.

White's "Jerome pawns" are ready to roll.

15.f5 Ne5 16. Bg5 Qf7 17.Bxf6 Qxf6 

Black's capture with the Queen helps preserve his Kingside pawn structure, but the Queen's placement gives White a tempo move. 

By the way, exchanging Queens first with 17...Qxb3 18.axb3 gxf6 would allow 19.Nd5 with and edge for White.

18.Nd5 Qf7 19.Qc3 c6 20.f6 

The position calls out for this move, taking advantage of the alignment of Black's King and Queen on the same file as White's Rook.

20...Kg8 21.fxg7 Qxg7 

Getting the Queen out of the line of fire, but Stockfish 15.1's move was 21...cxd5, after which the play would continue 22.Rxf7 Nxf7 23.exd5 Bf5 24.Re1 Rxe1+ 25.Qxe1 Kxg7 and the computer assesses White's Queen plus three pawns as better than Black's Rook, Bishop and Knight. 

Analysis Diagram

It is hard to see how White would make much progress, though. For one idea, the computer likes 12.Qf2 Kg6 13.h3 h5 14.b4 b5 15.Qe1 Kf6 16.c4.

The text, however, allows a winning fork.

22.Nf6+ Kh8 23.Nxe8 Qg6 24.Rf8+ Black resigned

The Queen will be lost, and checkmate will follow.

Jerome Gambit: Bamboozled

There is an old saying, "If you can't baffle them with brilliance, bamboozle them with BS".

That is pretty good advice when playing the Jerome Gambit (1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+): you don't have to win each game by checkmate, you can make things complicated enough that your opponent will either make an error, or suffer from time pressure - or even lose on time, as happens in the next game. 

angelcamina - Haribol1 

1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2024

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ke6 

7.Qf5+ Kd6 8.f4 Qf6

This position is seen in 393 games in The Database. White scores 56%.

9 fxe5+ Qxe5 10.Qf3 Nf6 

The Knight can also go to e7, although that produces an even game, still difficult at bullet speed: 10...Ne7 11.Nc3 (11.c3 Nc6 12.d4 Bxd4 13.cxd4 Nxd4 14.Qd3 Ke7 15.O-O d6 16.Nc3 c5 17.Nd5+ Kd8 18.Bf4 Qe6 19.Bg5+ Kd7 20.Be3 Nc6 21.Rad1 b6 22.Nf4 Qe5 23.Nd5 Bb7 24.Rf7+ Kc8 25.Rc7+ Kb8 26.Bf4 Qe6 27.Bxd6 Qxd6 28.Rxg7 Nd4 29.Rxb7+ Kxb7 Black won on time, angelcamina - acemi_Kral, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023) 11...Rf8 12.Qd3+ Ke6 13.Qc4+ d5 14.Qb3 Bf2+ 15.Kd1 Kd6 16.Qa3+ c5 17.Nb5+ Kc6 18.Qa4 Bg4 checkmate, angelcamina - alkonearfa, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022. 

11.Nc3 

Or 11.d3 Kc6 12.Nc3 Bb4 13.Bf4 Bxc3+ 14.bxc3 Qxc3+ 15.Ke2 d6 16.e5+ Nd5 17.exd6 Bg4 18.Qxg4 Qxc2+ 19.Kf3 Qxd3+ 20.Kf2 Raf8 21.Rac1+ Kb6 22.Rb1+ Ka6 23.Qe2 Rxf4+ 24.Ke1 Re4 Black won on time, angelcamina - karimov1, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022.

11...Rf8 

The Rook threatens the enemy Queen along the f-file. angelcamina has faced stronger moves, however:

11...Bb4 12.Qd3+ Ke7 13.O-O Bxc3 14.Qxc3 Rf8 15.Qxe5+ Black resigned, angelcamina - ChileanBullet, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2020;

11...Ke7 12.d3 d5 (12...Bd4 13.Bf4 Bxc3+ 14.bxc3 Qxc3+ 15.Ke2 Kd8 16.e5 Ne8 17.Bg5+ Nf6 18.exf6 gxf6 19.Bxf6+ Ke8 20.Qe4+ Kf7 21.Bxc3 Re8 22.Be5 d6 23.Rhf1+ Kg8 24.Qc4+ d5 25.Qxd5+ Be6 26.Qxb7 Rab8 27.Qa6 Rb6 28.Qa4 c6 29.Qf4 Rf8 30.Qg5 chckmate, angelcamina - Roter_Baron, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2023) 13.Bf4 Qd4 14.O-O-O Bg4 15.Qg3 Rhg8 16.Rde1 Kf7 17.e5 Nh5 18.Qxg4 Qxf4+ 19.Qxf4+ Nxf4 $11 20.Rhf1 g5 21.g3 Kg6 $2 22.gxf4 gxf4 23.Rxf4 Raf8 24.Rxf8 Rxf8 25.Nxd5 c6 26.Nc3 Rf3 27.e6 Rf8 28.Ne4 Be7 29.Ng3 Kg7 30.c3 Kh8 31.d4 h5 32.h3 h4 33.Ne4 Re8 34.Rf1 Kg7 Black won on time, angelcamina - toshi8, 1 0 blitz, lichess.org, 2021; and

11...Re8 12.d3 Bd4 13.Bf4 Bxc3+ 14.bxc3 Black resigned, angelcamina - stefan9822, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2022. 

12.Qd3+ 

A novelty, and attractive in a bullet game, although the one move to give White the advantage was 12.d4, with an attack on the Bishop and a promised attack on the Queen (with Bf4). 

12...Ke7 13.Rf1 d6 

14.b4 

Sacrificing a pawn to creat threats along the a1-h8 diagonal.

14...Bxb4 15.Bb2 Bc5 

It can be hard to find the right move, or even the right plan, when you are playing at a speed that only sometimes allows you one second of thought per move. Black moves the Bishop to an attacking diagonal.

Instead, 15...Bxc3 16.Bxc3 Qxe4+ 17.Qxe4+ Nxe4 simplifies things, leaving Black a piece ahead.

16.O-O-O 

Possibly the clock. White had just prepared 16.Nd5+, winning the Queen.

16...a5 

Giving White a second chance, which he does not miss.

17.Nd5+ Nxd5 18.Bxe5 dxe5 19.Qxd5 

White has a Queen for two Bishops, and his King is much safer.

What about the clock? The following play suggests that things were winding down, especially for Black.

19...Be6 20.Qxc5+ Kd7 21.Rxf8 Ra6 22.Rh8 Rc6 23.Qf8 Bxa2 24.Qd8+ White won on time

Jerome Gambit: A Decade Ago... (Part 2)

 

[continued from the previous post]

perrypawnpusher - CorH

3 12 blitz, FICS, 2014

How to respond to the Knight?

15.Qe2 

The text is good, although a bit better is the tempo-grab 15.Qg3 h5 16.d5 also with advantage. 

15...Kd8 16.h3 Nh6 17.d5 Nd4 18.Qe4 Nhf5 

19.Kh2 

Avoiding the tempting 19.g4 with the idea of finally distressing the enemy Knights. Black's counter would be 19...Qh4, and after 20.Qg2 Qg3 21.Rf2  Qxg2+ 22.Rxg2 Nh4 23.Rg3 dxe5 24.fxe5 Nhf3+ 25.Kg2 Nxe5 and the Knights would still rule.

The computer prefers the more positional 19.Rd1, meeting 19...Qh4 with 20.e6 when 20...Qf6 would allow the pawn advance, i.e. 21.g4 Nh4 22.Rf1 Ndf5 (nowhere else to go) 23.gxf5 Qxf5 24. Kh2 when things are settling down, in White's favor.

So much to consider!

19...Qh4 20.Qd3 Re8 

21.g4 

White's Kingside is too fragile after this move.

Better was 21.Ne4 when 21...c6 22.dxc6 d5 (or simply 22...Nxc6) 23.cxb7 Bxb7 24.Nc5 Bc6 25.a4 (keeping the Bishop off of b5) g6 26.g4 Nh6 27.Qxd4 Nxg4+ 28.Kg2 Nh6 29.Bd2 shows that the fireworks can be handled, with White still better.

21...dxe5 

Stockfish 16 begins to evaluate all lines here as "0.00" which means it has found a draw. One example is 21...b6 22.gxf5 Bxf5 23.Qxd4 Qxh3+ 24.Kg1 Qg3+ 25.Kh1 Qh4+ 26.Kg1 Qg3+ etc. with a draw by repetition. 

Likewise 21...h5 22.gxf5 Bxf5 23.Qxd4 Qxh3+ 24.Kg1 Qg3+ etc.; or  21...Nh6 22.e6 Nxg4+ 23.Kg2 Nxe6 24.dxe6 Bxe6 25.hxg4 Bc4 26.Qxc4 Qxg4+, etc..

Opening the center when your King is still in the middle of your back rank looks dangerous, but this was a 3-minute blitz game, and almost anything is possible.

22.gxf5 

Yielding to temptation, believing that In blitz, when in doubt, grab material. Instead, additional development for White was in order: 22.Ne4 Qe7 23.Bd2 exf4 24.Rxf4 Qe5 25.Raf1 h6 26.gxf5 Bxf5 27.Bc3 Bxe4 28.Qxd4 Qxd4 29.Bxd4 Bxd5 30.Bxg7 Kd7 31.Bxh6 Re2+ 32.R1f2 Rxf2+ 33.Rxf2 Bxa2 and the endgame will likely be drawn, despite White's h-pawn.

22...Bxf5 23.Qg3 Qxg3+ 24.Kxg3 

24...exf4+ 

Instead, 24...e4 would have led to Black's advantage, but the position was complicated for him, too, and the clock was ticking just as fast, as well.

25.Bxf4 

This looks natural, but tactics argue in favor of 25.Rxf4, i.e. 25...Nxc2 26.Rxf5 Nxa1 27.Bg5+ Kd7 28.Rf7+ Kd6 29.Nb5+ Kc5 30.Nxc7 h6 31.Bc1 b5 32.Nxa8 Rxa8 33.Rxg7 Kxd5 34.Bxh6 and this time White's h-pawn does look strong.

25...Bxc2 26.Rae1 

With my Bishop aimed at the c-pawn, I should have tried 26.Rac1.  

26...Nf5+ 27.Kg4 g6 28.Rxe8+ Kxe8 

29.Bxc7 

29.Nb5 Rc8 30.Re1+ Kd7 31.Nxa7 was enough to keep things even. 

The text overlooks the coming fork, winning a Rook, but my opponent did not overlook.

29...Ne3+ 30.Kf3 Nxf1 

For all practical purposes, the game was over here. I should have been a good sport and resigned. Instead, I played on and rooted for the clock.

31.Kf2 Nd2 32.Ke2 Nc4 33.b3 Nb6 34.Kd2 Bf5 35.h4 Rc8 36.d6 Kd7 37.Nb5 a6 38.Na7

38...Rxc7 

A practical decision, eliminating White's one last "hope", his passer. With an extra Bishop and a pawn, his win is straightforward.

39.dxc7 Kxc7 40.a4 Kb8 41.a5 Nd5 White resigned

I can't blame the Jerome Gambit for this loss. It gave me plenty of complicated positions with chance. My opponent outplayed me. Hats off to him, belatedly.