Jerome Gambit: Off-Setting Errors

Bullet chess is a major arena for the maxim The winner is the player who makes the next-to-last mistake. The Jerome Gambit can be very effective in helping your club opponent to find mistakes, even if you manage a few, yourself. The following example by angelcamina illustrates.

angelcamina - MysteryMate
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Kf8

The Jerome Defense to the Jerome Gambit.

7.Qxe5 Qe7 8.Qf4+ Nf6 9.Nc3 

A small improvement over 9.d3, seen in angelcamina - plutonia, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019 (1-0, 14).

9...Bd6 10.Qe3 Kf7 11.O-O Rf8 12.f4 Kg8 

Black has castled-by-hand; because of the unfortunate placement of his Bishop and Knight, his opponent has tactical chances. Also note: the Bishop blocks the pawn which blocks the other Bishop which locks in the Rook. This often spells trouble for Black.

13.e5 Bc5 14.d4 Ng4 15.Qg3 

A slip (remember: this is a 1-minute game). White attacks the unprotected Knight, but leaves his pawn on d4 at risk.

15...Bxd4+ 16.Kh1 Nh6 17.Nd5 Qd8 18.Nf6+ 

White attacks. It is scary, Black can defend - but that will take thinking time.

18...Rxf6 19.exf6 Bxf6 20.f5 d6 

Returning the favor, slip-wise.

21.Bxh6 c5 22.Rae1 Bd7 23.Re2 Qa5 24.Bxg7 Bxg7 25.Re7 
White won on time (he was also threatening mate in 2).

Jerome Gambit: It Ain't Over 'til It's Over

Baseball player Yogi Berra once said "It ain't over 'til it's over." He could have been talking about the following game, or any bullet game with a time control of one minute, no increment. White makes an uncharacteristic tactical oversight, but he keeps playing, and Black returns the favor, and his position crashes just before his time runs out. 

angelcamina - PUIG-98
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.Qh5+ Ng6 

7.Qd5+ Kf8 8.Qxc5+ Qe7 9.Qe3 Nf6 10.Nc3 d6 

10...d5 was seen in angelcamina - mustapha1996, 1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019 (1-0, 32).

11.O-O Bg4

Black's Bishop kind of floats here; if it is provoking White's next move, then it is successful.

Stockfish 10's suggestion now is a bit odd: 12.f4 (thematic) Re8 13.d3 c5 14.Bd2 Bd7 15.Rae1 Kg8 (castling-by-hand) and now 16.Qg3 Nh5 17.Qf3 Nf6, with a repetition of position and a draw to follow. I guess the irrational Jerome Gambit can sometimes be a challenge for the rational computer.

12.f3 Bd7 13.d4 Kf7 14.f4 Rhe8 15.e5 dxe5 16.fxe5 Kg8

17.exf6 

A slip. White is not winning a piece, just exchanging.

17...Qxe3+ 18.Bxe3 Rxe3 19.fxg7 Kxg7 

20.Nd5 Re2 21.Nf6 Bc6 22.d5 Bb5 23.Rac1 Ne5 24.b3 c6 25.c4 Ba6 26.dxc6 Nxc6 

27.Nh5+ Kg6

Probably a clock error: he had 7 seconds left. The clock continued to punish.

28.Nf4+ Kg7 29.Nxe2 Nd4 30.Nxd4 Rd8 31.Ne6+ Black resigned

At the end, White had a whole 21 seconds left.

Jerome Gambit: Rooked

There are many parts to the Jerome Gambit attack. An important one is the power of a White Rook along the f-file, where Black's King often resides. In the following bullet game - one minute, no increment - Black forgets this, to his demise. White has his choice of checkmates, soon after that.

angelcamina - Hamidi1986
1 0 bullet, lichess.org, 2019

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

The Italian Four Knights Jerome Gambit.

5...Kxf7 6.Nxe5+ Nxe5 7.d4 Neg4 

Saving the Knight. In the regular Jerome Gambit line, a Black response (to d2-d4) of ...Bd6 would be suspect, but with the addition of his Knight on f6, as in this game, he is protected from a White Queen check on d5, so 7...Bd6, saving the Bishop, was probably best.  

8.dxc5 d5

Opening things up.

9.exd5

Stockfish 10 prefers 9.cxd6 e.p. Qxd6 10.Qxd6 cxd6, with the position better for Black. Even worse, it would lead to a tedious game, not idea for 1-minute chess.

9...c6 10.d6 Qd7 11.O-O Qf5 

12.f3 

A slip, but Black, in turn, misses 12...Qxc5+. He should have at least asked himself, why did White choose the text over 12.h3.

12...Ne5 13.Ne4 Nxe4 14.fxe4 

Oops.

14...Qxf1+ 15.Qxf1+ Ke6 16.Be3 

White already sees his checkmate; and, in doing so, bypasses 16.Qf5#.

16...Bd7 17.Qe2 

As above.

17...Raf8 18.Bd4 Nf7 19.Rf1 

Or 19.Qc4# or 19.Qg4#, but the game was already over in White's plans.

19...Ng5 20.h4 

Almost there.

20...Rxf1+ 21.Kxf1 Nf7 22.Qc4 checkmate

Gotcha.

Jerome Gambit: Careless and Inefficient Defense

How many times have you read the caution that an advantageous chess position "won't win itself"? The same holds for a disadvantagous position - say, one that White has at the beginning of the Jerome Gambit. White's game "won't lose itself", either; Black has to make it so. In the following game, the defender slips into carelessness, becoming inefficient - and his game suffers. 

Wall, Bill - NN
Florida, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Nxe5 6.d4 Bb6 

Black's move maintains his advantage. It is not as complicated as 6...Qh4, nor as simple as 6...Bxd4. There are 153 games with 6...Bb6 in The Database; interestingly enough, White scores 57%.

More importantly, Bill is 19-0 against the move.

7.dxe5 Ne7 8.Qf3+ Kg8

Bill has also faced 8...Ke8 9.O-O (9.Qg3 Ng6 10.Bg5 Ne7 11.Nc3 h6 12.Bd2 Rf8 13.O-O-O Rf7 14.e6 Rf6 15.Qxg7 Rxf2 16.Bxh6 d6 17.Qh8+ Black resigned, Wall,B - Guest2896104, PlayChess.com, 2019) 9...Rf8 10.Qh5+ g6 11.Qxh7 d6 (11...g5 12.Qh5+ Rf7 13.Bxg5 c6 14.Nd2 Qc7 15.Nc4 a5 16.Nd6+ Black resigned, Wall,B - WGMS, FICS, 2017) 12.Bh6 Rg8 13.Bg5 Be6 14.Nc3 Qd7 15.exd6 cxd6 16.Rfd1 Kd8 17.e5 Bc5 18.exd6 Bxd6 19.Ne4 Kc8 20.Rxd6 Qe8 21.Rxe6 Black resigned, Wall,B - Guest11863268, PlayChess.com, 2018. 

9.Qb3+ Kf8 10.O-O Ng6 

This is an improvement over 10...d5 seen in Wall,B - Guest6791785, PlayChess.com, 2018 (1-0, 17). 

11.Qf3+ Ke8

The better retreat. Black should not be hypnotized by the g8 square, as he is better in the game: 11...Kg8 12.Qb3+ Kf8 13.Qf3+ Kg8 will only draw.

12.Nc3 d6

Or 12...Rf8 as in Wall,B - Guest5463336, PlayChess.com, 2018 (1-0, 15). 

13.Nd5 Nxe5 14.Qg3 Ng6 

15.Bg5 Qd7 16.a4

White can afford to be patient: from a practical point of view, Black is hampered by his Queen blocking in his Bishop, which, in turn, restrains his Rook - a classic Jerome Gamit defender illness.

16...Rf8 17.a5 Bc5 

You've got nothing, Black likely thinks, and, as a result, he becomes careless and inefficient. The Bishop needed to go to d4, and then f6, directly.

18.b4 Bd4 19.Rad1 Be5

Giving away another free tempo.

20.f4 Bf6 21.Bxf6 gxf6 

22.Qc3

Double attacks on both c7 and f6.

My guess is that Bill passed on 22.e5 because after 22...fxe5 23.fxe5 dxe5 24.Nf6+ Black can take the annoying Knight with 24...Rxf6, when 25.Rxd7 Rxf1+ 26.Kxf1 Bxd7 would give Black a Bishop, a Knight and a Rook for his Queen. The position might well be "dynamically equal", but there was no need to find out, when the text was available.

22...c6 

The King had to go to d8 to protect the c-pawn.

23.Nxf6+ Rxf6 24.Qxf6 Qe7 25.Rxd6 Qxf6 26.Rxf6 Ke7 27.e5 Bd7

White has a Rook and 3 pawns for a couple of pieces. Those dangerous "Jerome pawns" give him the advantage.

28.Rd1 Be6 

A slip tht hastens the end.

29.f5 Nxe5 30.Rxe6+ Black resigned

Jerome Gambit: Success At Last (Sort of)

For some players, a draw is equivalent to losing a half point. To others, it is the same as winning a half point. In the following game, Bill was probably slightly disappointed, but his opponent had every reason to be glad - unless, of course, you think that drawing against a "refuted" opening is underperforming.

Wall, Bill - NN
Florida, 2019

1.e4 e5 2.Nf3 Nc6 3.Bc4 Bc5 4.Bxf7+ 

4...Kxf7 5.Nxe5+ Kf8

Black is either happy with accepting only one sacrificed piece, or he is trying to throw White off of his game, by playing something "different". This latter strategy needs to be examined, as the main lines of the offbeat Jerome Gambit are often stronger for Black than the backroads.

The Database has 269 games with 5...Kf8; White scores 55%. More importantly, before the current game Bill was 15-0 against the move.

6.O-O

Bill has also played 6.Nxc6 in Wall,B - WMXW, FICS, 2012 (1-0, 31), and Wall,B - Guest709079, PlayChess.com, 2017 (1-0, 30).

He has tried the interesting 6.d4 in Wall,B - Tim93612, Chess.com, 2010 (1-0, 36), Wall, B. - Guest757851, PlayChess.com, 2014, (1-0, 42), and Wall,B - Guest6399506, PlayChess.com, 2015 (1-0, 24).

6...Nf6

Or 6...Nxe5 Wall,B - Mazanbaku, lichess.org, 2017, (1-0, 15); Wall,B - Guest1442, chesstempo.com, 2017, (1-0, 21); billwall - DeDrijver, Chess.com, 2012, (1-0, 20); Wall,B - Guest423598, PlayChess.com, 2017, (1-0, 19); and Wall,B - Guest5244307, PlayChess.com, 2019 (1-0, 16).

Or 6...Qf6 as in Wall,B - NN, lichess.org, 2016, (1-0, 13); Wall,B - Computer-level 6, chess.com 2017 (by transposition), (1-0, 47);  and Wall,B -Guest4658155, PlayChess.com, 2019, (1-0, 29).

Or 6... d6 as in Wall,B - Anonymous, lichess, 2016, (1-0, 26) and Wall,B - Guest399227, PlayChess.com, 2016,(1-0, 17).

7.Nd3 

This is a novelty, according to The Database.

7...Bb6 8.e5 Ne8 

It is not immediately clear, but 8...Ng8 was stronger. The text move gives White chances that he is not particularly interested in.

9.Qf3+ Kg8 10.Nc3 

Bill refrains from repeated checks that would leade to a draw, i.e. 10.Qd5+ Kf8 11.Qf3+ Kg8 12.Qd5+, etc. Black could respond, of course, by interposing the Knight - 11...Nf6 - but after 12.exf6 Qxf6 13.Qxf6+ gxf6 he would simply be a pawn down, with no compensation.

10...a6 

This move gave me a chuckle. "Objectively", it is an error, as it allows White to pursue the draw, mentioned above, when clearly Black is still better. On the other hand, perhaps Black was okay with a draw, or sensed that his opponent would not be interested in splitting the point so early in the game.

11.Qd5+ Kf8

Just checking.

12.Na4 

Avoiding the draw.

12...Ba7

See the earlier comments. He could have taken the draw off of the table with 12...Qe7

13.b3

ibid.

13...d6 

op. cit.

14.Ba3 Qe7

There you have it: no draw. (For now.)

White is happy to continue his focus on the enemy King.

Black is happy to continue to do "a whole lot of nothing". Note the impact of his dark square Bishop.

15.exd6 cxd6 16.Rae1 Nf6 17.Qf3 Qd8 18.Nc3 h6

19.Nf4

An interesting, if complicated, alternative was 19.Ne4!? Kg8 20.Nxd6, although both 20...Bg4 and 20...Nd4 would keep the game in flux.

Instead, Bill goes with the concrete threat, and his opponent misses the idea that giving up the exchange might well be an effective sacrifice.  

19...Kg8 20.Ng6 Rh7 

Saving the Rook by burying it. There was something to be said for 20...Kh7!? 21.Nxh8 Kxh8, when White would have a Rook and two pawns for a couple of pieces - and Black might still have an edge.

21.Nd5

A move with poison. Of course, not now 21...Nxd5, as 22.Qxd5+ Be6 23.Qxd6 checkmate. Ouch. In the meantime, e7 seems to beckon to the Knights.

21...Bc5 

22.Bxc5 

Could be time pressure, otherwise Bill might have settled for simply stoking his attack with 22.Bb2. Stockfish 10 recommends 22.b4, which seems to over-complicate things. Instead, the attack seems to lag. 

22...dxc5 23.c4 Qd6 24.Qd3 Nd4 

Black's Rooks are still parked in their respective garages, but the advantage in material threatens to become a factor.

25.Nxf6+ 

Another way was 25.Nge7+ Kh8 26.Ng6+ Kg8 27.Nge7+, etc.

25...gxf6 26.Re8+ Kf7 27.Re7+ Kg8 28.Re8+ Kf7 29.Re7+ Kg8 Draw