How to Play Klondike Turn 3
The Goal
Same as standard Klondike: move all 52 cards to the four foundation piles, building each from Ace to King by suit.
What's Different from Standard Klondike
Two things change. First, you draw 3 cards at a time from the stock instead of 1. Only the top card of each group is playable, so you need to work through the waste pile strategically to reach buried cards. Second, you only get 3 passes through the stock. Once you've cycled through three times, the stock is gone for good.
These two rules together make Turn 3 significantly harder than the standard draw-1 game. You see fewer cards per pass, and you have fewer passes to work with.
Setup
- Deal 28 cards into 7 tableau columns. Column 1 gets 1 card, column 2 gets 2, and so on up to 7.
- Turn the top card of each column face-up. All other cards stay face-down.
- Place the remaining 24 cards in the stock pile face-down.
- Leave space for four foundation piles, one per suit.
Gameplay
Tableau: Build descending sequences of alternating colors. Place a black 6 on a red 7, and so on. You can move groups of correctly sequenced cards together. When a face-down card is exposed, flip it over. Only Kings can fill empty columns.
Foundation: Build ascending sequences by suit, starting with Ace and ending with King.
Stock & Waste: Draw 3 cards at a time from the stock to the waste pile. Only the top card is available for play. When the stock runs out, flip the waste to form a new stock. You can do this up to 3 times total.
Scoring
Points are awarded for moving cards to foundations and for flipping face-down tableau cards. Faster wins score higher.
About Klondike Turn 3
Turn 3 is the harder variant of Klondike Solitaire. Drawing three cards at a time was actually the traditional way to play with a real deck of cards. When computer solitaire came along, most versions defaulted to draw-1, which is easier and faster. So what most people think of as "normal" Klondike is actually the easy mode.
The limited stock passes add another layer. In draw-1, you can usually cycle through the stock as many times as you want. Turn 3 cuts you off after three passes, so every draw matters more.
Every deal on SolitairePlace is verified solvable. If you get stuck, a different move sequence will get you through.
Tips & Strategies
- Track your stock passes. You only get three. Knowing how many you have left changes how aggressively you should play cards to foundations versus keeping them in the tableau.
- Play Aces and Twos to foundations immediately. They can't help you in the tableau, and getting them out of the waste pile frees up cards behind them.
- Uncover face-down tableau cards early. More visible cards means more options. Prioritize moves that flip hidden cards over moves that just rearrange face-up ones.
- Waste pile order matters. With draw-3, you see cards in groups of three. The order you play cards from the waste affects which buried cards become accessible on future passes.
- Don't empty a column without a King ready. Only Kings can go in empty spaces. An empty column with no King to fill it is a dead slot.
- Use undo to test different draw sequences. Try playing a card from the waste, see what it exposes, and undo if the result isn't helpful.
- Every deal is solvable. Getting stuck means there's a different sequence of moves that works. Try a different approach rather than starting over.
Why Play Klondike Turn 3?
If standard Klondike feels too easy, Turn 3 is the next step. The draw-3 mechanic and limited stock passes force you to think further ahead and plan your waste pile usage carefully.
Every deal is winnable. That means when you lose, there was a path you missed. That feedback loop makes it more satisfying than games where luck decides the outcome.
Same rules you already know from regular Klondike. No new mechanics to learn — just tighter constraints that make each decision count more.