TODAY’S Jeopardy! episode has left fans ‘astonished’ by a rare triple stumper that cost all three players a hefty amount of money during an ‘incredibly difficult’ game.
Contestant Mark Fitzpatrick returned to continue his winning streak after beating out promising season 41 star, Ryan Manton, in a cutthroat trivia battle last Friday.
The content manager from Connecticut garnered $30,401 on his dominant Jeopardy! debut last week.
In tonight’s game, Mark went up against Daniel Gately, a teacher from Tucson, Arizona and Amanda Prusila, a communications advisor from Ottawa, Ontario.
Amanda was off to a strong start after finding, and correctly guessing, the first Daily Double on the board under the Opera category.
However, it was Mark who maintained the lead at the first break with $6,000.
Amanda was in second place, securing $2,400 at the first quarter while Daniel was in the red at -$1,200.
Under the category Spy Novels, Mark found the second Daily Double and made a risky wager as he had a nearly $10,000 lead.
“Goldfinger tells James Bond he calls his chauffeur this “because that describes his functions on my staff,” host Ken Jennings read out.
Mark correctly wrote “Who was Oddjob?” and added an additional $5,000 to his prize pot.
Daniel found the third Daily Double under the Law category however, he missed it and dropped his total by another $800.
Going into the last round, Mark had $23,400 while Daniel’s score was $4,200 and Amanda’s dropped to $600.
Host Ken revealed that the Final Jeopardy! category would be Brand Names as the three players made their wagers.
“In 1886 this brand’s bookkeeper came up with its name and flowing script logo, saying, ‘the two C’s would look well in advertising,’” Ken read.
“What is Coca-Cola?” was correct but despite being one of the most recognizable names in the world, all three players were wrong.
Amanda bet everything, leaving her with $0 to end the game while Daniel bet $0, leaving his final score at $4,200.
Mark dropped $3,400 after the wrong guess to win his second game with an additional $20,000.
Fans expressed they were “astonished” that the Final Jeopardy! stumped all three players.
‘DUDE IS A POWERHOUSE!’
“Bit of a stunning triple miss on FJ – the only thing I can think of is eliminating Coca-Cola because it has 3 C’s, but that doesn’t hold up with the Coco Chanel guess. Either way, pretty dominant win for Mark,” one viewer wrote.
“I found this board incredibly difficult. Super niche categories. I am loving Mark! The dude is a powerhouse with a great personality,” another criticized.
“I initially thought Coca-Cola but the clue threw me off because i thought the correct answer could only have 2 ‘C’s,’” a third said of the final round.
Last week, fans were shocked when rising star Ryan’s winning streak came to an abrupt halt due to Mark’s victorious debut.
Jeopardy! Set Secrets
Jeopardy! fans don’t see everything behind the scenes from watching on TV. These hidden set features make the show run smoothly:
- Each podium has a hidden riser so that all contestants appear to be the same height.
- After each clue is read, signal lights go off around the game board, indicating players can buzz in and respond.
- Buzz in too early, and you’re locked out for .25 seconds.
- The podiums have a small white light in the lower left corner, which tells Ken Jennings who goes next.
- Contrary to popular belief, the player with control doesn’t have a buzzer advantage on the next clue.
- To the game board’s left is a scoreboard so the players can see their opponents’ scores.
- All contestants must bring three outfits to the studio, but only the host and returning champion change for the next episode.
- There are wardrobe rules, including restrictions on busy patterns, solid white, purple (like the background), and logos.
- Five episodes are taped in a single day, and sometimes more.
- The categories, players (aside from the returning champion), and Final Jeopardy! for a tape day are all drawn randomly to ensure fairness.
- Female contestants are asked not to wear makeup, which is applied backstage, and don’t wear mascara because of sweat.
- Contestants fill out a questionnaire, and producers select five Q&A topics for the host.
- Host Ken isn’t allowed to interact with the contestants until after the game.
- Players can request to sit in a chair while competing without question.
Viewers thought Ryan could pull off the rare move of winning five consecutive games on a single day of taping however, he fell just short after losing Friday’s episode by a significant margin.
Ryan’s advantage at the beginning was strong as Mark lost $2,400 on a true Daily Double where he went all-in with his bet.
Mark turned his luck around when he found the second Daily Double under the category U.S. Museums – this time getting it right and adding $3,000 to his prize pot.
With the help of his Daily Double bonuses, as well as making aggressive wagers throughout the game, Mark was in the lead heading into Final Jeopardy! with a score of $23,400.
Only Mark got the last question correct and ended the game with a one-day total of $30,401.
Shocking many fans, Ryan was far behind with $9,999 and ended his Jeopardy! run with four impressive games.
