How to Play

A FreeCell-family single-deck patience designed by David Parlett. Seven tableau columns, seven flippers (free cells), and foundations that start at the rank of the first card dealt (the beak). Win rate around 90 percent.

Penguin is a single-deck patience invented by the British card-game historian David Parlett and published in 'The Penguin Book of Patience' (1979). It belongs to the FreeCell family but has two defining twists. First, the foundation rank is not fixed at Ace: the very first card dealt (called the beak) becomes the base rank, and its three matching-rank cards (the other base cards) are automatically placed on the remaining three foundations once they surface, so foundations can begin with any rank from Ace to King and wrap around. Second, the tableau is built downward in suit (not by alternating colour as in FreeCell), which means any sequence you assemble is directly transferable to its matching foundation. With 7 tableau columns, 7 free cells (the flippers), and a single specific rank allowed to fill empty columns, Penguin is widely considered one of the most elegantly balanced solitaires ever designed; its estimated win rate of around 90 percent is high enough to reward planning and low enough that careless play still loses.

Players

Single-player patience. Two or more players can race the same deal on separate tables or in a digital app for comparative scoring. Typical solo game length is 5 to 15 minutes once the player is familiar with the layout.

Card Deck

One standard 52-card French-suited pack with jokers removed. Suit identity matters (tableau builds by suit, foundations build by suit). Rank sequence loops: K wraps to A on foundations, and the tableau itself wraps similarly when building down from A to K. Cards can be distinguished by suit colour but colour alternation is never used as a build rule.

Objective

Assemble all 52 cards onto the 4 foundations. Each foundation builds upward from the base rank (the rank of the very first card dealt), wrapping past King to Ace if needed, until every foundation contains all 13 cards of its suit in unbroken order.

Setup

1. Shuffle the 52-card deck thoroughly.
2. Deal the first card face up to the top-left of the play area. This card is the beak; its rank is the base rank for all four foundations, and the card itself is already on its foundation.
3. Deal the next 48 cards face up into 7 columns of 7 cards each. (Classic Parlett 7x7 layout.) Cards in each column are overlapped so all are visible but only the bottom card is playable.
4. The remaining 3 cards of the base rank are still in the columns; as they surface (become the bottom card of their column) during play, they move automatically to their respective foundations and start those foundations off.
5. Set aside space above or beside the tableau for 7 empty free cells called flippers (in keeping with the penguin theme). Each flipper holds a single card at a time.
6. No stock or waste pile: all 52 cards are visible on the tableau at the start.

Gameplay

1. Tableau build direction: Build downward in suit. A card may be placed at the bottom of a column only if its rank is one lower and its suit identical to the current bottom card. Example: the 8 of Clubs on the 9 of Clubs is legal; the 8 of Spades on the 9 of Clubs is not.8♣9♣8♠
2. Tableau wrap: The Ace wraps to the King when building down. So on a 2 of Hearts you may play the Ace of Hearts; on the Ace of Hearts you may play the King of Hearts (provided the base rank is not the King, in which case the wrap behaviour is restricted).2♥A♥K♥
3. Group move: A consecutive in-suit run (e.g. 10-9-8-7 of Diamonds) may be moved as a unit to another column, provided there are enough free flippers and empty columns to cover the move. The formula (n+1) x (2^k) gives the maximum movable run length, where n is empty flippers and k is empty tableau columns.7♦
4. Foundation: Move a card to its foundation only if its rank is exactly one higher than the current top (wrapping K to A). Aces do not reset foundations; the base rank is fixed at game start.
5. Flippers (free cells): At any time, move one card from the bottom of a column (or from another flipper) into any empty flipper. A flipper holds a single card. Return cards from flippers to the tableau or foundations when legal. Flippers do not refill automatically; you must place cards back into play.
6. Empty columns (restricted): When a column is fully emptied, it can only be filled by a card (or legal in-suit run) whose starting rank is exactly one below the base rank (e.g. if the base is 7, empty columns accept 6s; if the base is Ace, empty columns accept Kings, since the rank below Ace wraps to King).
7. End of game: The game is won when all 52 cards are on the foundations. It is lost when no legal move exists and at least one card remains in the tableau or flippers.

Scoring

• Win: All 52 cards on foundations. Counts as 1 win.
• Loss: Stuck with cards still in the tableau or flippers. In scored play, count cards on foundations for partial credit (out of 52).
• Approximate win rate: Around 90 percent with careful play; near 95 percent with optimal planning on digital versions that allow unlimited undo.
• Speed variant: Digital scoring adds time and move count; fewer moves and shorter time earn higher scores.

Winning

Penguin is a patience; there is no opponent. Winning is clearing all 52 cards to the foundations. Its signature feature is the high win rate combined with the fact that losing is still possible when the base rank dictates an awkward empty-column fill (e.g. base Ace means only Kings can fill empty columns, which is often the hardest rank to free).

Common Variations

• Relaxed Penguin: Any card may fill an empty column, not just the rank below the base. Raises the win rate further and is the common beginner form.
• Reduced flippers: Use 5 or 6 flippers rather than 7 for a harder challenge. 3 flippers approaches the difficulty of a strict FreeCell variant.
• No-flipper Penguin: Play with zero flippers; only tableau and foundation moves. Win rate drops below 40 percent.
• FreeCell: The parent game Penguin references: 8 columns, 4 free cells, foundations always built up from Ace by suit, tableau built down by alternating colour. Penguin differs in layout, base-rank mechanic, and build-in-suit rule.
• Eight Off: A close FreeCell cousin with 8 columns, 8 free cells, and build-in-suit on the tableau; very similar feel to Penguin but no variable base rank.

Tips and Strategy

• Prioritise surfacing the three remaining base-rank cards early. The sooner all four foundations are seeded, the sooner every other card has somewhere to go.
• Keep flippers empty. Each flipper you occupy reduces your maximum group-move length; an occupied flipper you cannot unload quickly becomes a permanent drag on flexibility.
• Plan empty columns before you create them. The 'rank below base' fill rule means an empty column is useless unless you have a copy of that specific rank ready to place.
• Build in suit on the tableau even when a longer wrong-suit build would be easier. The in-suit requirement means an off-suit build is useless for group movement and can only be unwound one card at a time.
• Use flippers for short-term manoeuvres only, like flipping the bottom two cards of a column to access a blocked base-rank card beneath. Do not treat them as long-term storage.
• When the base rank is high (J, Q, K), empty-column fills are easy because lower ranks surface frequently. When the base rank is low (A, 2, 3), expect trouble since the empty-column fill rank is near the King.

Glossary

• Beak: The very first card dealt, which becomes the base rank for all four foundations.
• Base rank: The rank of the beak; all foundations build upward from this rank and wrap K to A.
• Other base cards: The three other cards of the base rank. They move to the remaining foundations as they surface during play.
• Flipper: A free cell, named in keeping with the penguin theme. Holds a single card; there are 7 at game start.
• Tableau column: One of the 7 vertical piles of cards dealt at setup.
• Group move: Moving a consecutive in-suit run as a single unit; limited by (empty flippers + 1) x 2^(empty columns).
• Wrap: The A-to-K (tableau) or K-to-A (foundation) transition that Penguin allows because foundations do not restart at Ace.
• Empty column fill: The specific rank (one below the base) that is the only legal starter for an emptied tableau column.