All in a Row Solitaire

What is All in a Row Solitaire?

All in a Row Solitaire, sometimes called Open Golf, is a single-player card game that strips the luck element from Golf Solitaire. Instead of hiding cards in a stock pile, every card is dealt face-up across the table. You choose any exposed card to begin the waste pile, then chain removals by playing exposed cards that are exactly one rank higher or lower. With no hidden cards, no stock, and no redeals, every loss is a puzzle you could analyze from the start.

The game is well suited for players who enjoy logic puzzles and open-information strategy. Because you can see every card before your first pick, the challenge shifts from reactive play to deep forward planning. Even so, roughly 90% of random deals have no solution at all, making each victory genuinely rewarding.

All in a Row Solitaire history

All in a Row emerged as a natural extension of the Golf Solitaire family, which first appeared in card game compendiums during the early twentieth century. While standard Golf kept 16 cards hidden in a stock pile, puzzle enthusiasts experimented with dealing the entire deck face-up to create a deterministic challenge. The "Open Golf" label reflects this transparency. Digital solitaire collections popularized the variant in the 2000s, where solvers could verify that certain deals were mathematically unsolvable. The game remains a favorite among players who prefer skill-based solitaire over luck-heavy variants.

How to play All in a Row Solitaire

Strategies to win All in a Row Solitaire

• Study the full layout before making your first move. Your starting card choice shapes every subsequent option and determines whether the deal is solvable for you.
• Count rank frequencies among exposed cards. If three 7s sit on column tops and one 8 is also exposed, that 8 can branch into three separate continuation paths.
• Look for "bridge" cards that connect clusters in different columns. A single card linking two otherwise separate chains can double your removal count.
• Avoid starting with a card that leaves a column isolated early. Spread your chain across as many columns as possible to keep options open.
• Plan backward from dead ends. Identify ranks that appear only once among exposed cards; those are chokepoints your chain must pass through at the right moment.
• When a column is reduced to one card, that card becomes permanently exposed. Prioritize clearing columns that free up useful ranks buried underneath.

All in a Row Solitaire rules and objective

The objective is to remove all 52 cards from the tableau into the waste pile using a continuous chain of rank-adjacent plays. Suits are irrelevant. Only exposed cards (the top card of each column) can be played. The chain must never break: if no exposed card is one rank higher or lower than the waste top, the game is lost.

• Your first move may be any exposed card from any column. This card becomes the first waste pile card.
• Each subsequent play must be an exposed card that is exactly one rank above or below the current waste top.
• Aces connect only to 2s. Kings connect only to Queens. There is no wrapping between Ace and King.
• There is no stock pile and no redeal. You get one continuous attempt to clear the board.
• The game is won when all 52 cards have been moved to the waste pile.

Game setup

1. Shuffle a standard 52-card deck.
2. Deal all 52 cards face-up into 13 columns of four cards each.
3. The waste pile begins empty. There is no stock pile.
4. Choose any exposed column-top card to start your chain.

All in a Row Solitaire variants

All in a Row belongs to the Golf Solitaire family. Several related games share its chain-building mechanic but differ in layout, stock rules, or wrapping behavior.

How difficult is All in a Row Solitaire?

All in a Row Solitaire is one of the most difficult games in the Golf family. The combination of no stock pile, no redeals, and no Ace-King wrapping creates extremely tight constraints. Most random deals are mathematically unsolvable regardless of how well you play. The game rewards deep analysis and careful chain planning, making it ideal for experienced solitaire players who want a serious challenge.

What is All in a Row Solitaire win percentage?

The win percentage for All in a Row Solitaire is approximately 10%. This figure assumes careful analysis of the full layout before each move. Because every card is visible from the start, skilled players can identify solvable deals and plan optimal chains. However, the majority of shuffled deals simply cannot be completed, which keeps the overall win rate low compared to other Golf variants like Putt Putt Solitaire (around 55%) or standard Golf Solitaire (around 40%).

What is the difference between All in a Row Solitaire and Golf Solitaire?

The core chain-building mechanic is identical in both games: remove exposed cards that are one rank higher or lower than the waste pile top. The key differences lie in layout, information, and difficulty.

• Layout: Golf uses 7 columns of 5 cards (35 tableau cards) with a 16-card stock pile. All in a Row uses 13 columns of 4 cards (all 52 cards on the table) with no stock at all.
• Information: In Golf, the 16 stock cards are hidden and dealt one at a time as lifelines. In All in a Row, every card is visible from the start, creating a fully deterministic puzzle.
• First move: Golf requires you to play from the stock to start the waste pile. All in a Row lets you choose any exposed card as your opening move.
• Difficulty: Golf has a win rate of about 40% thanks to the stock pile safety net. All in a Row sits at roughly 10% because one broken chain ends the game immediately.
• Skill factor: Both games involve planning, but All in a Row is purely skill-based once the deal is set. Golf retains a luck element through the hidden stock order.

All in a Row Solitaire FAQ

Other solitaire games I recommend

• Golf Solitaire
• Putt Putt Solitaire
• TriPeaks Solitaire
• Black Hole Solitaire
• Pyramid Solitaire
• Queens on Kings Solitaire