Klondike Draw 3· CardHearth
How to play, tips & FAQ
Klondike Solitaire, the hard way
This is classic Klondike with the three-card draw: tapping the stock turns over three cards at once, and only the top one is playable. Everything else is the solitaire you know — build the four foundations from Ace to King by suit, stack the tableau in descending alternating colors, Kings to empty columns.
Strategy for the three-card draw
Draw 3 is won and lost in the stock. The order of the waste never changes on its own — it only shifts when you play a card from it, which moves every later card one position and changes which cards surface next pass. So before grabbing a playable waste card, ask what it does to the cards behind it: sometimes deliberately skipping a play brings a more important card to the surface on the next cycle. Early on, prioritize flipping face-down tableau cards and keep your first pass through the stock exploratory — knowing what's buried is worth more than a quick foundation point.
Frequently asked questions
How is Draw 3 different from regular solitaire?
The rules on the board are identical — the difference is the stock. Draw 3 (also called "turn three") flips three cards at a time and only the top of the three is playable, so on any one pass just a third of the stock is reachable. Playing or holding waste cards shifts which cards surface on the next pass, which adds a planning layer Draw 1 does not have.
How much harder is Draw 3 to win?
Considerably. Skilled players win perhaps 10–15% of Draw 3 games versus 35–45% in Draw 1, because key cards can cycle out of phase and never surface. Unlimited passes through the stock (as played here) keep it fair; unlimited undo lets you experiment with stock timing.
Does scoring change in Draw 3?
Card scoring is the same; the recycle penalty differs. Draw 1 docks 100 points each time the waste is recycled, while Draw 3 allows three free passes and then docks 20 points per recycle after that.
Easier pace? Play Klondike Draw 1. Want a different challenge? Try Spider Solitaire orFreeCell.
📖 Draw 1 vs Draw 3 — which to play