AFTER an impressive five-game winning streak, Mark Fitzpatrick’s Jeopardy! run has come to an end after he admitted to being ‘over-confident’ with his bets.
The season 41 fan-favorite even called himself a “hot mess” after coming in third on Friday’s episode – but maintained good sportsmanship as he congratulated his impressive opponents.
The content manager from Connecticut played against Dot White, a clinical psychologist from Bethesda, Maryland and Eamonn Campbell, a lawyer originally from Manchester, Vermont.
Mark found the first Daily Double under the 18th Century History category however, he missed it and reduced his score by $1,000.
While Mark has been used to getting the lead early in his previous five games, he was far behind going into the first break of tonight’s game.
Eamonn was out ahead with $2,000, while Mark and Dot were tied for second with $800 each.
Attempting to gain back some momentum, Mark risked it all on the second Daily Double, wagering all of his $5,800.
He missed it, dropping his score to $0 but made a quick comeback when he also found the third Daily Double.
Mark doubled his score to $5,600 and was now in second while Eamonn maintained his lead with $9,400.
Heading into Final Jeopardy!, Mark had a big hill to climb up as he was in third place with just $4,800.
Eamonn led the way with $12,200 while Dot was in second after accumulating $4,800.
While Eamonn made a small bet for the last round, he forced Dot to make a big wager – and have to be correct about it – for any chance of winning.
The category was World Political History, with host Ken Jennings reading the clue: “William Whitelaw & John Peyton were also-rans in a 1975 leadership vote with this victor.”
“Who was Margaret Thatcher?” was the correct answer which only Eamonn wrote down.
Eamonn’s impressive moves made him come out on top, winning his first game with $13,700.
Dot came in second with a final score of $9,801 while Mark’s score was $4,800.
After the game, Mark went online and expressed his frustration with himself all while keeping a good attitude and praising the other players.
“It took 6 games but I finally reverted to my true trivia identity: an overconfident, overthinking, hot mess.
“Congrats to Eamonn on the win and also to Dot for a strong second,” he wrote.
Despite the loss, Mark still entertained fans who showed signs of support for his five-day run – which added $107,201 to his bank account.
Jeopardy! 2025 Tournament of Champions
Jeopardy!’s next Tournament of Champions will take place this winter, midway through Season 41 (exact airdate TBA) and it’s shaping up to be another showstopper. Here’s who is officially eligible so far:
- Adriana Harmeyer (15 wins and $349,600 total)
- Isaac Hirsch (nine wins and $215,390)
- Survivor alum Drew Basile (seven wins and $129,601)
- Alison Betts (5 wins and $121,500)
- Dr. Amy Hummel (5 wins and $100,994)
- Lisa Ann Walter (winner of Celebrity Jeopardy! 2024)
- Grant DeYoung (four wins and $81,203)
- Amar Kakirde (four wins and $55,899)
The prize for winning the ToC is $250,000 and a coveted slot in Jeopardy! Masters.
Jeopardy.com notes: “All 4-time and over winning players starting from 04/10/24 will be eligible for a future Tournament of Champions.”
“Presence on this list does NOT guarantee an invitation to compete. Other eligibility rules apply and final selection is up to the producers’ sole discretion.”
“Congrats to Mark on his very impressive run, and welcome to the ToC! Those fifth games in a single tape day are brutal, so nothing but respect and empathy from me,” one viewer wrote.
“Aww bye Mark. Excited he’ll return for ToC,” a second wrote.
Another pointed out the difficulty of a question Mark got wrong: “The Waiting to Exhale 1200 question for Women Authors was super hard.
“Do people agree that should have been a 2000 question? Sometimes I turn my sideways on these point allocations for different questions.”
“I’ll miss Mark. He was very easy to look at,” an admirer quipped.
Mark is the first contestant from season 41 who officially qualifies for the highly-anticipated Tournament of Champions.
