The initial layout for a sample hand appears in Figure 2-8 (the top card in each trio appears on the right).
FIGURE 2-8: Starting a game of La Belle Lucie.
The figure layout has some encouraging features: All the kings are reasonably placed (they either appear at the bottoms of their piles or at least don’t trap too many cards), and three of the aces are immediately accessible — a very fortunate combination of events. The bad news is that the ♥J and ♥9 are on top of one another, ensuring that the ♥10 (which traps the fourth ace) won’t move this cycle.
Start by making the automatic moves:
1 Take off the ♠A and start a foundation pile for spades.
2 Put the ♦9 on the ♦10 (because the ♥10 can’t move, and the ♦J can’t come free, so you may as well build on the ♦10).
3 Take off the ♣A, the ♣2, and the ♦A.
4 The next card to go for is the ♠2; you can get it easily by putting the ♠J on the ♠Q.But before you do that, can you put the ♠Q on the ♠K? To make that move, you need to put the ♥3 on the ♥4, and to do that, you need to move the ♦4 onto the ♦5. That last move is impossible, because the ♦5 is trapped below the ♥A, so put the ♠J on the ♠Q and take up the ♠2, ♠3, and ♠4.
Figure 2-9 shows an interesting combination of piles.
FIGURE 2-9: Your game begins to take shape after you make the automatic moves.
You want to clear the ♣4 away to get the ♠5 out, and you want to clear the ♠7 away to get the ♣3 out. Should you put the ♣4 on the ♣5, or should you put the ♣5 on the ♣6 and then put the ♣4 on the ♣5? The answer is that you need to keep the ♠8 (below the ♣6) free. Here’s how to progress:
1 Put the ♣4 on the ♣5 and free the ♠5 for the foundation.
2 Now put the ♣6 on the ♣7, the ♠7 on the ♠8, and the ♦6 on the ♦7. (Because the ♦8 is under a king, it’s stuck for the duration, so you can’t move the ♦7.)
3 The ♦3 is now free, which allows you to move it through the ♣8 onto the foundation.
The preceding example shows a relatively simple problem, but the degree of interaction can get considerably more convoluted. This element of trading off one move against another is what makes La Belle Lucie such good fun.
The ♣9 is stuck (you can’t move the ♦4), the ♠6 is stuck, and the ♥A is stuck, which leaves only diamonds. The ♦2 comes out easily enough by putting the ♣J on the queen. However, the ♦3 is under the ♠Q and the ♠J, so you take the ♦2 out, which ends the first cycle.
Starting the next cycle and ending the game
You keep your foundations, but now you pick up the cards left in the tableau, shuffle them well (they were in sequence, so an imperfect shuffle can restrict your mobility), and deal them out in threes again. If you have two cards left over, make one pair; if one card is left over after you put the cards out in threes, as at the start, make two pairs out of the last four cards.
You have three cycles to get out, and if you fail at the last turn, you’re allowed one cheat, or merci, by moving a single card in the tableau; whether you want to pull one card up or push one card down is up to you.
Practicing Poker Patience
Poker Patience is, in theory, an undemanding Solitaire. It takes only a minute or two to play, and you can approach the game frivolously or seriously. I do both in this section.
To start, you need to know the ranks of Poker hands (in other words, what beats what). In ascending order, the ranks are as follows:
One pair: Two of a kind
Two pair: Such as two 5s and two 10s
Three of a kind: Also known as trips
Straight: Five cards in consecutive order; for example, ace through 5 or 7 to jack
Flush: Five cards of the same suit
Full house: Combination of three of a kind and a pair
Four of a kind: Also known as quads
Straight flush: A straight with all the cards in the same suit
The objective of the game is to lay out 25 cards to form a square, five cards by five cards. In the process, you want to make ten poker hands (five across and five down) and score as many points as possible.
Scoring 200 points (using my scoring system) counts as a win. Various scoring systems are shown in Table 2-1.
The U.S. scoring system has a major flaw (which has been corrected in the U.K. scoring method), based on the fact that although flushes are rarer in Poker, they’re considerably easier to play for in Poker Patience than straights. To fix this problem, you can reverse the scoring table, as in the version that I recommend.
TABLE 2-1 Scoring Systems for Poker Patience
| Poker Hand | U.S. Scoring | U.K. Scoring | Barry’s Scoring |
|---|---|---|---|
| A pair | 2 | 1 | 2 |
| Two pair | 5 | 3 | 5 |
| Three of a kind | 10 | 6 | 10 |
| Straight | 15 | 12 | 25 |
| Flush | 20 | 5 | 15 |
| Full house | 50 | 10 | 50 |
| Four of a kind | 70 | 16 | 70 |
| Straight flush | 100 | 30 | 100 |
To start, turn over one card face-up and then go on to the next, building your grid