Posted on 06/04/2019 7:13:04 AM PDT by EdnaMode
For weeks, the Jeopardy! phenomenon James Holzhauer had been unstoppable.
He set the record for the most money won in one episode, holds the second spot on the list, and the next 14. Eleven times during his winning streak, he went a whole game without buzzing in incorrectly. For fans, the question was not whether he would surpass the $2.52 million Ken Jennings won during his record 74-game winning streak in 2004, but when.
The correct response:
What is never?
In the prerecorded episode that aired on Monday, Holzhauers Jeopardy! reign came to an end with his 33rd game, a tantalizing $58,484 shy of Jenningss mark. The number of the day turned out to be $22,002, the amount that separated him from the winner, a librarian from Chicago named Emma Boettcher.
The surprising end caused even the famously dispassionate host to practically lose his composure.
What a game! Alex Trebek exclaimed after Boettchers final score popped up. Oh my gosh!
Holzhauer walked over to give Boettcher a high-five.
Nobody likes to lose, Holzhauer said in an interview. But Im very proud of how I did, and I really exceeded my own expectations for the show. So I dont feel bad about it.
(Excerpt) Read more at nytimes.com ...
And the NFL 2019 draft was in the last week of April. So the timing fits.
Q knows!
“Jeopardy and Wheel of Fortune might be the only clean, non-political shows on evening TV”
They had this psycho on for celebrity Jeopardy some time ago. No thanks.
https://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/msnbc-host-sports-tampon-earrings-article-1.1405626
https://www.jeopardy.com/jbuzz/contestant-jeffect/melissa-harris-perry-why-i-went-jeopardy
Yeah he did. He tweeted something nasty about Barron too.
My guess is he threw it... if he broke the record, they would never ask him back to a regular game. Since he didn’t, they’ll get him back for another try maybe? Where else can you make $2.5 million in 34 days?
“A lot of speculation that he threw it with detailed reasons why.”
His seemingly low bet in Final Jeopardy seems to have triggered stupid conspiracy loons who don’t understand Jeopardy wagering.
The winner gets to keep his/her total. Second place gets $2,000, third place $1,000. Pretty chincy over all.
I don’t buy that.
James didn’t hit any of the Double Jeopardy’s in the 2nd half.
Even if James had bet his entire wad in Final Jeopardy, he would have come up $1 short.
Sorry, but that is just factually wrong. The contestants DO NOT KNOW which clues will have the Daily Doubles before they buzz in.
The computer knows... and, although I'm sure the show's producers deny it, they COULD control who gets the DD's. James hit one on his very first pick, when he had NO money... so, he was limited to a $1000 wager. The Librarian got all the others, later.. when she was able to wager a total of $10k, and got easy questions.
Clearly, the show did NOT want James to break Ken's record. This was the first show where he really was in range to do it. They brought in two of the BEST contestants ever... all together, they only got ONE incorrect answer on the entire show. The guy that came in third stole a lot of money in the Double Jeopardy round.
I saw every show James was in. I don't buy any theory that he was intentionally losing. The show just rigged it against him. He was still answering questions up to the very end. His last wager was smaller than usual, yes... but, that was a good strategy. He knew he couldn't catch the leader, if she got the answer correct and bet enough. (She did, on both counts). So, he wagered an amount that would keep him ahead of the third place guy, no matter what. That's what a professional gamble does: Analyze the situation, put yourself in the HIGHEST PROBABLY place for winning.
The Final Jeopardy question was a layup for Emma. It was her field of study in college. Hell, even I knew the answer, and English Lit is NOT my specialty.
Oh... for the record, James is, hands down, the BEST Jeopardy player ever. His average winning was more than DOUBLE that of Ken Jennings. James changed the show.
I think they film 5 shows a day. If so, he made his $2.25 million in 7 or 8 days.
They do have those periodically. Last one was a about 3 or 4 months ago.
She has a way to go to prove James’ equal.
This guy took home over 100k many days.
Nobody was claiming she is.
He had discovered that Jeopardy was a palatable way to make a living.
My wife is a whiz on Wheel. She came close to being on it.
Emma bet the minimum amount on final jeopardy so that she would still win if both she and James got the final answer correct and he bet his entire amount. If he had bet his entire amount, she would still have won by exactly one dollar. She needed to beat the third player as well. She was a terrific player.
They get a minimum of 1 or 2 thousand. Just nothing on the board.
That’s the best conspiracy theory I’ve ever heard.
I’ll join your team.
Same exact story with us.
IIRC, his own strategy worked against him in the first round. He hit a $1000 Double Jeopardy when he didn't have any money already to use for a big wager. Bad luck for the Daily Doubles was partly to blame for the loss. Having both opponents know a lot and able to buzz in fast was another part.
I enjoyed watching Jeopardy the past few weeks after not watching for decades. I'll probably watch a few more times to see how Emma does going forward.
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