First I will give what seems to be the most widely played version of the game.
There are quite a few different versions of Spite and Malice around. This is not a physical race (as in Spit or Racing Demon where play is simultaneous) - in Spite and Malice the players take turns. Both players try to be the first to get rid of a pile of 'pay-off cards' by playing them to centre stacks which are begun with an ace and continue in upward sequence to a king. This is a kind of competitive patience (solitaire) game for two players.
