Why an empty column is so powerful
An empty column is not just a vacant space. It is a temporary workbench. You can move a card or an entire descending run into it, uncover what was underneath, rearrange another stack, then move the temporary cards again.
That extra destination often turns a position with no useful move into several possible rearrangements.
How to create your first empty column
Look for the shortest column whose face-up cards can be moved onto other legal destinations. Work downward until you reveal and move the final card. If a face-down card appears, continue opening the column when the new card allows it.
Do not choose a target solely because it has few cards. A slightly longer column with cooperative ranks may be easier to clear than a short column whose top card has nowhere useful to go.
Use empty space temporarily
The ideal use of an empty column has a beginning and an end: park a run, make the rearrangement you wanted, then move the parked run back out. If the column stays occupied by one awkward card for the rest of the game, you have converted your most flexible resource into an ordinary pile.
Be careful with Kings
A King is the hardest card to move away from an empty column because there is no higher rank for it to sit on. Put a King into empty space when you are deliberately establishing a King-led run, not simply because the move is legal.
Empty columns before a deal
Use every useful rearrangement while the column is empty. In Solitaire Superstars you cannot deal the next stock row while any tableau column is empty, so you will eventually need to refill it. The key is to refill it after you have taken advantage of the workspace, not immediately.
A simple planning habit
Before moving into an empty column, name the next two moves in your head. For example: “move the 7-run into the gap, move the 6 onto the 7, then move the combined run out.” If you cannot see an exit for the temporary cards, look for a different use of the space.
This small habit is one of the easiest ways to turn an empty column from storage into an active solving tool.