Spit Strategy: How to Win More Rounds

Spit looks like a game of pure speed, and at a kitchen table quick hands certainly help. But two players of the same speed rarely finish together, and the difference is usually in the choices: which card goes first, which pile it goes on, and what you are watching while you wait. The good news is that these choices matter even more when the pace is gentle, as it is in our Spit game, because you have the time to make them.

If you are new to the game, read the rules first. Then try these ideas one at a time.

1. Look at the Middle First

Beginners tend to stare at their own cards. Turn that round: glance at the two centre cards and say to yourself what they need. If the piles show a 6 and a Jack, you are looking for 5 or 7 and 10 or Queen. Then scan your five stock tops for those ranks only. It is much quicker to look for four ranks than to check five cards against two piles one by one.

Our game prints exactly this under each pile ("needs 5 or 7"), so you never have to work it out under pressure. Over time you will find you know it before you read it.

2. Turn Up Hidden Cards Early

A stock pile with cards under its top is a pile of possibilities: each time you play from it, a new card turns up that might fit somewhere. A stock pile of one card gives you nothing more once it is played.

So when two of your cards fit, prefer the one sitting on the tallest pile. Your five-card pile in particular should be worked on from the start; if you leave it to the end, you will be digging through four hidden cards while your opponent finishes.

3. Make Use of Empty Spaces

Once one of your piles is empty, you can move a card into the space. This is not just tidying up: moving the top card of a tall pile into the space turns up the hidden card beneath it. Do it whenever you are stuck and a tall pile has a card you can't play, because it gives you one more card to look at for nothing.

4. Look for Runs

The best plays come in chains. If the centre shows an 8 and you hold a 7 and a 6, play the 7 on the 8 and the 6 straight on top of it. Before you play a card, take a quick look for a second card that could follow it. If one card leads to another and a second card leads nowhere, play the one that starts the chain.

Remember that runs can turn round. On a 7 you can play an 8 and then another 7, so two cards of the same rank can both go if you have a card in between.

5. Keep the Smaller Pile Small

This is the idea most casual players miss. When you finish a round first, you take the smaller centre pile and your opponent takes the bigger one. So when a card fits both piles, put it on the bigger pile. Every card you add to the small pile is a card you may have to pick up yourself.

It matters most near the end of a round. If you are down to two or three stock cards and you can see the finish, play onto the big pile and let the small one stay small for your slap.

6. Don't Hand Your Opponent a Play

You can see your opponent's face-up stock cards too. If they are showing a 4 and a 9 and you can choose between putting a 5 or a Queen on the middle, the 5 gives them a play and the Queen doesn't. You won't always have the choice, but when you do, take the one that leaves them stuck.

The opposite is just as useful: if the centre pile shows a card your opponent is about to play on, covering it with one of yours takes that play away from them.

7. When You're Stuck, Watch

When nothing of yours fits, don't look away. Every card your opponent plays changes what the piles need, and one of their plays will often open a door for you. Keep your eyes on the middle and be ready.

8. Pick a Pace That Lets You Think

In our game the computer's speed is your choice. There is no prize for playing on Brisk and making hurried choices; on Relaxed you have the time to use every tip on this page, and you'll win more rounds that way. When you can beat the computer comfortably on Relaxed, step up to Steady, or try a harder computer instead, which chooses better without playing faster.

If you just want to think, choose Take turns. With no clock at all, Spit becomes a quiet puzzle about the best card to play, and every idea above still applies.

9. Pause Is Not Cheating

The phone rings, the kettle boils, a grandchild needs a hand. Press Pause and everything stops, and the game also pauses by itself when you switch to another tab. Take a breath, look at the table, and resume when you are ready.

Using the Hint and Why? Buttons

Hint outlines one of your cards that fits and tells you where it goes, choosing it the way our Normal computer would: hidden cards first, runs next, the bigger pile when there's a choice. Under the table, the move list shows every play, and a Why? button next to the computer's plays explains its thinking. Reading a few of those is a quick way to pick up the habits above.

A Simple Checklist

Enjoy matching cards one up or one down? TriPeaks Solitaire and Pyramid Solitaire are calm games for one player that train the same eye.