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Frequently Asked Questions About Golf Solitaire
Answers to the most common questions about Golf solitaire rules, scoring, strategy, and gameplay. Whether you are learning the game for the first time or looking to shave strokes off your course score, you will find the answer here.
What is Golf solitaire?
Golf solitaire is a single-player card game where 35 cards are dealt face-up in seven columns of five. You remove cards from the bottom of each column that are one rank higher or lower than the top waste pile card, regardless of suit. The remaining 17 cards form a stock pile. Your score is the number of tableau cards left when no more moves are available — fewer is better, just like strokes in golf.
Why are Kings dead ends in Golf solitaire?
In standard Golf solitaire, Kings are the highest rank and nothing wraps above them. When a King lands on the waste pile, no tableau card can be played on it because there is no card one rank higher than a King. You must draw from the stock to continue. Some variants introduce Ace-King wrapping to eliminate this dead end, but the classic rules do not allow it.
Can I play an Ace on a 2 and a 2 on an Ace?
Yes. Aces and 2s are adjacent ranks, so you can play a 2 on an Ace and an Ace on a 2. The dead-end restriction applies only to Kings in the standard game. Aces behave as the lowest rank and connect downward from 2, but do not wrap upward to King.
How is scoring calculated in Golf solitaire?
When the round ends, count the number of cards still remaining in the tableau. Each card counts as one stroke. Zero strokes means you cleared the entire tableau — a perfect round. For multi-round play, add your strokes across nine or eighteen rounds to produce a cumulative course score. The player with the lowest total wins.
What percentage of Golf solitaire deals are winnable?
Roughly 10 to 15 percent of standard Golf solitaire deals can be completely cleared with perfect play. The low win rate is primarily due to Kings acting as dead ends and the limited stock pile of only 17 cards. Variants that allow Ace-King wrapping push the clearance rate significantly higher, to around 30 percent or more.
What is the difference between Golf solitaire and Tri-Peaks?
Both games share the core mechanic of removing cards one rank higher or lower than the waste pile card. The key differences are layout and scoring. Golf uses seven flat columns of five face-up cards (35 total) with 17 in stock, while Tri-Peaks uses 28 cards in three overlapping pyramids with 24 in stock. Tri-Peaks uses streak-based scoring; Golf counts remaining tableau cards as strokes. Tri-Peaks also allows Ace-King wrapping by default, whereas standard Golf does not.
Should I always remove a card when I can?
Not always. Because you can see every card in the tableau, look ahead before committing. Sometimes removing a card exposes a King that will block future chains, or choosing one branch locks you out of a longer sequence on another column. Evaluate which removal opens the most follow-up options before acting.
How many rounds make a full course in Golf solitaire?
A traditional Golf solitaire course consists of nine rounds, mirroring the front nine in golf. Some players prefer eighteen rounds for a full course. In either format, you add your strokes from every round together. Par for nine rounds is roughly 36 to 45 strokes depending on the variant and difficulty of the deals.
Can I undo moves in Golf solitaire?
Rules for undo depend on the implementation. On SuitedGames you can undo your last move to try a different card. In casual paper play there is no formal undo rule — once a card is moved it stays. Competitive or timed modes typically disable undo. Regardless, thinking through your options before committing consistently produces lower scores.
What happens when a column is completely cleared?
When all five cards in a column have been removed, that column is simply empty for the rest of the round. Empty columns do not refill and have no special effect. Clearing columns early is generally beneficial because it reduces the number of potential dead ends and focuses your remaining options into fewer, more manageable columns.
Ready to hit the course? Start a round and see how few strokes you can score.
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