Solitaire

Introduction

One of the questions I encounter most often is related to the odds of winning in solitaire and whether it's feasible to gain an edge using the standard game rules. Surprisingly, I often find myself saying 'I don't know' in the context of gambling because it appears that no one truly has the answer. This page aims to provide commentary on the aspects of solitaire that are primarily relevant for gambling purposes. Klondike version I will presume that the reader has a basic understanding of the standard rules of solitaire.

The winnings cited in this article are derived from the 'Mini Games' section of the online casino known as 5Dimes.

Vegas Variant

In the Vegas variation of solitaire, players flip over three cards from the Stock simultaneously. One of the adjustable rules is how many times players are permitted to cycle through the Stock. There are two gambling versions that I'm aware of:

• Three Passes — In this version, players can go through the Stock three times. The cost of playing amounts to 11.4 times the return rate for each card. For instance, if a player bets $57, they will receive $5 for every card successfully placed in the Foundations. In an 'all or nothing' format, players win 7 to 1 for placing all 52 cards in the Foundations, or nothing at all.
• Unlimited Passes — This version allows players to go through the Stock as many times as they'd like, until no legal moves remain. The cost of playing in this case is 30 times the return rate for each card. For example, a $30 bet would yield $1 for each card placed in the Foundations.

Strict Variant

In the Strict version, only one card is turned over at a time, and players may go through the Stock a single time. The cost for this version is 10.8 times the return rate per card placed in the Foundations. In an 'all or nothing' scenario, the payout is 10 to 1 for successfully placing all 52 cards into the Foundations, or nothing.

Written by: Michael Shackleford