Sir Tommy, also called Old Patience, is a

patience or forbearance, is the ability to endure difficult or undesired long-term circumstances. Patience involves perseverance or tolerance in the face of delay, provocation, or stress without responding negatively, such as reacting with disrespect ...

solitaire Solitaire may refer to: Film and television *'' Le Solitaire'', a 1987 French film * ''Solitaire'' (1991 film), a Canadian drama film * ''Solitaire'' (2008 film), a drama film *''Solitaire'', 2016 Lebanese comedy film with Bassam Kousa *"Solit ...

card game A card game is any game that uses playing cards as the primary device with which the game is played, whether the cards are of a traditional design or specifically created for the game (proprietary). Countless card games exist, including famil ...

using a single pack of 52

playing card A playing card is a piece of specially prepared card stock, heavy paper, thin cardboard, plastic-coated paper, cotton-paper blend, or thin plastic that is marked with distinguishing motifs. Often the front (face) and back of each card has a f ...

s. It is said to be the ancestor of all patiences, hence its alternative title.Parlett (1979), p. 214. It is a half-open, planner type of patience game in the same family of card-building games as

Calculation A calculation is a deliberate mathematical process that transforms a plurality of inputs into a singular or plurality of outputs, known also as a result or results. The term is used in a variety of senses, from the very definite arithmetical ...

and

Strategy Strategy (from Greek στρατηγία ''stratēgia'', "troop leadership; office of general, command, generalship") is a general plan to achieve one or more long-term or overall goals under conditions of uncertainty. In the sense of the " a ...

. It is also known as Try Again and Numerica.

Ednah Cheney Ednah Dow Littlehale Cheney (June 27, 1824 – November 19, 1904) was an American writer, reformer, and philanthropist. She was born on Beacon Hill, Boston, June 27, 1824; and was educated in private schools in Boston. Cheney served as secretary ...

(1869) calls it Solitaire and says "it is the simplest form of patience".

Rules

Cards are dealt one at a time. When an ace turns up, it forms a foundation which builds up to King regardless of suit. Four such foundations should be built. A card that cannot yet be placed on the foundation is placed onto one of four wastepiles; once placed, it cannot be moved, but the top card of each wastepile remains available to be placed on a foundation. The game is won if all cards are emptied from the wastepiles and built on the foundations.

Strategy

To achieve a win, skilled players typically reserve one wastepile for Kings and for other high cards, and trying to avoid trapping a lower-ranked card under all four cards of some higher rank. With good play, it's possible to win 1 in 5 games.

Variants

Many variants exist, including one where four cards are turned up at a time rather than one, and must all be placed before making other moves. Puss in the Corner has a slightly different layout, and is a very similar game except that building happens by colour rather than suit. Closely related to Sir Tommy are Auld Lang Syne and Tam O'Shanter, both of which are considered nearly impossible to win; Old Fashioned and Acquaintance are both slightly easier versions of Auld Lang Syne. In the less flexible Alternate, the foundations are built in alternate colors, building one upwards, and the other downwards. Building happens by colour in the variant

Colours Color (or colour in Commonwealth English; see spelling differences) is the visual perception based on the electromagnetic spectrum. Though color is not an inherent property of matter, color perception is related to an object's light absorpt ...

, with six waste-piles making the game easier. Strategy is a Sir Tommy variant invented by

Albert H. Morehead Albert Hodges Morehead, Jr. (August 7, 1909 – October 5, 1966) was a writer for ''The New York Times'', a bridge player, a lexicographer, and an author and editor of reference works. Early years Morehead was born in Flintstone, Taylor County, ...

and

Geoffrey Mott-Smith The Mott-Smith Trophy, named for writer and cryptographer Geoffrey Mott-Smith, is awarded to the player with the best overall individual performance in the Spring Nationals, the spring event of the American Contract Bridge League (ACBL) North Ame ...

, and uses eight tableau piles to make the game much easier. Last Chance is also easier courtesy of seven tableau piles and a reserve pile.Morehead & Mott-Smith (2001), pp. 99–100. The popular patience game

is also derivative from Sir Tommy, and changes the goal to place cards on the foundations by increasing ranks of 1, 2, 3 and 4 respectively, and is a game of great skill.

References

Literature

* Cheney, Mrs. E. D. (1869). ''Patience: A Series of Games with Cards.'' 2nd edn, with additions. Boston: Lee & Shepard. NY: Lee, Shepard & Dillingham. *

Parlett, David Sidney David Parlett (born 18 May 1939 in London) is a games scholar, historian, and translator from South London, who has studied both card games and board games. He is the president of the British Skat Association. Life David Sidney Parlett was bor ...

(1979)
''The Penguin Book of Patience''
London: A. Lane * Pole, W. (1875). "Games at Cards for One Player" in ''

Macmillan’s Magazine ''Macmillan's Magazine'' was a monthly British magazine published 1859 to 1907 by Alexander Macmillan. The magazine was a literary periodical that published fiction and non-fiction works primarily by British authors. Thomas Hughes convinced Mac ...

''. January 1875, Toronto: Robarts. pp. 242 ff. Account of "The Old Patience". * Morehead, Albert H. and

(2001
''The Complete Book of Solitaire and Patience''
Slough: Foulsham *

Whitmore Jones, Mary Mary Elizabeth Whitmore Jones ( 1823 – 1915) was an English author and the first female heir of Chastleton House. She was unmarried and did not have any children.