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Canfield variant

Canfield Solitaire

The casino classic - play against the bank with one redeal.

Canfield was originally a casino game: players bought a 52-card deck for $52 and tried to send cards back at $5 a piece. Today it's a brisk, luck-leaning solitaire built around a 13-card reserve and a foundation starting rank set by the deal.

Canfield solitaire opening layout
Opening deal of Canfield - Canfield family

How to play Canfield

Goal - Move all the cards to the Foundation

Decks

  • A standard deck (52 cards)

Redeals

  • No

Foundation

  • A card will be the starter card of the foundation. The three other cards of the same rank are placed next to it during play as they become available.
  • An Ace can be placed on the King
  • The top card of each pile is available for move

Tableau

  • Build tableau piles down by the alternating color
  • A King can be placed on an Ace
  • The top card or a complete pile can be moved
  • An empty pile is automatically filled with a card from the Reserve
  • An empty pile can be filled with any card

Stock

  • Press to turn over 3 cards from the Stock to the Waste
  • When empty, press to redeal all cards from Waste to Stock

Waste

  • The top card is available for move

Reserve

  • The top card of each pile is available for move

Strategy & tips

  • Play reserve cards aggressively - they're a bottleneck.
  • Track the deck on the second pass; you'll know what's still hiding.
  • Play reserve cards aggressively - they're a bottleneck.

Origin & history

Created by casino owner Richard A. Canfield in Saratoga Springs, New York around 1890. Players had to clear the deck onto the foundations to break even - most lost, which is exactly how Canfield wanted it.

Other Canfield variants

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