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Useful Junk: The Jerome Gambit

Below is another interesting game where I played the Jerome Gambit against my student, Iddo Zohar. The Jerome Gambit is an unsound specialty of mine which I like to categorize as “useful junk.” Iddo Zohar is a very talented junior chess player who you will definitely here more about in future posts.

 

1. e4 e5 2. Nf3 Nc6 3. Bc4 Bc5 4. Bxf7+ {This is the Jerome Gambit.}

 

The Jerome Gambit
The Jerome Gambit

4…Kxf7

5. Nxe5+ Nxe5 {White is two pieces down but can get one back for sure.} 6.

Qh5+ Ng6 7. Qd5+ {Its better to delay the capture of the bishop for one

move.} Kf8 8. Qxc5+ d6 9. Qe3 Nf6 10. Nc3 Kf7 {Black wants to get his rook

on e8.} 11. d4 Re8 12. O-O {White is down material but controls the center

and has better king safety.} d5 13. f3 {This maintains a pawn grip on the

center and hurts the influence of the knight on f6.} c6 14. e5 Nd7

 

Position after 14...Nd7.
Position after 14…Nd7.

15. Ne4!? {15. f4 would have given white plenty of compensation for his

material disadvantage.} dxe4 16. Qb3+ Kf8 17. fxe4+ Nf6 {This was black’s

best move but it allows white to regain a piece when he chooses.} 18. Be3

Be6 19. Qxb7 Rb8 20. Qxc6 Rxb2 {I definately prefer white here. However,

the position is roughly even.} 21. exf6 gxf6? {Black needed to play Qc8.}

22. d5! {White’s superior pawn center provides the winning advantage.}

22. d5!
22. d5!

22…Bd7 23. Rxf6+ {It’s all about tactics now.} Kg7 24. Rxg6+! hxg6 25. Qc3+ Kh7

26. Qxb2 Rxe4 27. Bf2 Bf5 28. Qb3 Qh8 29. Rd1 Rg4 30. Qh3+ {White has a

winning endgame so it is time to end black’s attack and trade.} Kg8 31.

Qxh8+ Kxh8 32. d6 Rb4 33. Bxa7 Rb2? 34. Bd4+ {After this fork, black

resigns.} 1-0

To learn more on the Jerome Gambit you should visit my friend’s Jerome Gambit blog.

Published by chessmusings

Chris Torres is a nationally renowned scholastic chess coach working in the San Francisco Bay Area. His classes have attracted players of strengths ranging from rank beginners to world champions. A chess professional since 1998, Chris is widely recognized as one of the main driving forces behind the explosion in popularity and sudden rise in quality of scholastic chess in California. Chris Torres served as the President of the Torres Chess and Music Academy from 2005-2020 and currently is recognized as a correspondence chess master with the United States Chess Federation. Since 1998 Chris Torres has taught 6 individual national champions as well as led multiple school teams to win national championship titles. In addition, Chris Torres has directed and taught at 10 different schools which have been California State Champions at chess. In 2011 and 2012, several former and current students of Chris Torres have been selected to represent the United States at the World Youth Chess Championships. Mr. Torres’ hobbies include playing classical guitar and getting his students to appear on the national top 100 chess rating lists.

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