Color permits a placement; suit permits a group move.
All 28 opening tableau cards are face-up. A card can build down on the same color, but a multi-card group moves together only when it is a descending run in the same suit. The 24-card draw-one stock remains hidden until dealt. Plan visible access without assuming you know the stock order.
Last updated: September 2026
Keep movable runs in view
A 9 of hearts can land on either red 10, hearts or diamonds. If it lands on the 10 of diamonds, the placement is legal, but the mixed-suit pair cannot move together as a group. A 9 of hearts on a 10 of hearts forms an in-suit run that may be moved later, if its lead card has a legal destination. Choose between the landing spots by what each one uncovers and how much mobility you retain.
A column ends with 9 of hearts, blocking the 8 of clubs below. Other columns end with 10 of hearts and 10 of diamonds. Moving the 9 onto either 10 exposes the 8. The heart 10 also makes a same-suit 10–9 run that could travel together later. The diamond 10 keeps the heart 10 open for the 9 of diamonds, if it becomes available. The future value depends on the remaining visible cards.
Use empty columns as working space
An empty Whitehead column accepts any card or legal run; it does not require a King. Moving a top card there can expose a card buried in an otherwise open pile. Check where the moved card can go next so the free column remains useful rather than becoming another blocked pile.
Distinguish open tableau from hidden stock
The tableau is fully face-up at the start, but the stock is not. It draws one card at a time to the waste and can be recycled when empty. Use the visible tableau to identify suit runs and foundation dependencies; draw stock cards when they may supply a needed parent or foundation rank.
Klondike’s family guidecovers stock, foundations, and working space. Whitehead replaces hidden-tableau excavation with visible-card access and separates same-color placement from same-suit group movement.