Klondike (draw 1), deal #8

Deal #8 is one of the harder deals in this series. Our solver won it in a line of 126 moves, so it can certainly be won.

Notes on this deal

• 1 Ace lies uncovered at the end of a column, ready to go home with your first move.
• 2 of the Aces are in the stock, so an early pass through it pays off.
• 2 Kings already sit at the head of their columns, so those columns never need emptying.
• 2 Kings are face down. Buried Kings can only leave for an empty column; plan for the space they will need.
• This deal punishes autopilot. A test play of the obvious moves gets just 4 of 52 cards home before it is stuck.
• Only 2 useful moves are open at the start, so the first decision matters.

Stuck? The solver's first moves

These are the first moves of the solver's winning line, with automatic moves to the foundations switched on.

#	Card	From	To
1	10♥	column 3	J♠, column 7
2	10♠	column 2	J♦, column 6
3	3♣	column 3	4♥, column 1
4	Turn the stock
5	Q♦	waste	K♣, column 2
6	J♠ +1	column 7	Q♦, column 2

Klondike in a nutshell

Build four foundations by suit from Ace to King. In the seven columns build down in alternating colours, move ordered runs together and fill empty columns only with Kings. Turn the stock as often as you like.

How to play Klondike → · Play a random Klondike deal →