JEOPARDY! contestant Will Wallace has left Ken Jennings stunned after he made a slew of ‘dangerous’ wagers that ultimately led to a landslide win.
The video game designer from Austin, Texas has already pocketed $55,598 from his three-day total and pulled out all the stops to add another victory to his resume.
On Friday’s game, Will went up against Olaf Talbert, a retired U.S. Navy officer & research assistant from Pensacola, Florida and Carol Lowe, a photographer from Conway, North Carolina.
Right from the jump, Will gained a lead by adding $1,000 to his score when he correctly guessed the first Daily Double.
By the first break, Will had already secured $4,400 while Carol was in second with $600 and Olaf in third with $400.
Heading into the Double Jeopardy! round, Will increased his lead to $6,000 – but Olaf was catching up to him after some correct responses earned him $4,000.
Carol found the second Daily Double under the Quick! category- but got it wrong and dropped $1,000.
With just a slight lead over Olaf, Will had to be strategic with his next moves to secure his win heading into the final round.
He did just that – completely dominating the entire “Rocktober” category that consisted of various clues about rock music.
It was under this category he found the third Daily Double and used it to his advantage, betting a risky $3,000 that made host Ken, 50, raise his eyebrows.
Will was successfully able to answer the clue and increased his total to $7,600.
Ken appeared visibly impressed with the contestant sweeping the whole category which led to a massive lead going into Final Jeopardy!
“U.S. History” was the last category, and after placing their wagers, Ken read off the clue.
“The largest land deal in U.S. history was formalized in a building at this spot, now named for a military hero & President,” the contestant-turned-host read.
Both Will and Olaf correctly wrote down “What is Jackson Square?”
Will ended the game with an impressive $24,400 while Olaf was in a distant second with $2,400. Carol remained in third with $1,600.
Ken wasn’t the only person impressed with Will’s risky wagers and impressive gameplay.
“That could have been a dangerous bet for Will on that third DD. Glad it worked out for him, could’ve been a game changer,” one viewer wrote.
Another admirer said: “Super stoked to see Will power through the taping day and make it to four wins!
“It’s also cool to see him get a category sweep after two opponents from previous games had gotten sweeps of their own (Sophia on Wednesday and Kiki on Thursday).”
While a third said: “Will is crushing it, can easily see him becoming a 10 day champ.”
Jeopardy! Contestant Rules
Passing Jeopardy!’s online Anytime Test is hard enough, but there are also many rules players must follow once they make it to the stage:
- The returning champion is always at the leftmost podium and keeps playing until they lose.
- Contestants don’t have to say “who is” or “what is” in the first round but must do so in Double Jeopardy! and Final Jeopardy.
- Contestants can change their responses as long as Ken Jennings or the judges haven’t made a ruling.
- The minimum wager for a Daily Double is $5. The minimum wager for Final Jeopardy! is $0.
- Written responses in Final Jeopardy! do not have to be spelled correctly, but they must be phonetically correct (the judges decide this).
- If there’s a tie after Final Jeopardy, the tied players enter a bonus clue shootout, and whoever buzzes in first correctly wins.
- If all three contestants wager everything in Final Jeopardy! and are incorrect, leaving them with $0, there will be no returning champion (it’s happened before—six times).
Fans of the game show were shocked to learn Will has worked on a number of famous projects – most notably several in the Star Wars franchise.
Will currently works as the Design Director for PeopleFun – a company that creates mobile games.
According to the Austin, Texas native’s LinkedIn profile, his current role includes: “Product owner/design director for Wordscapes: Solitaire, a new word/puzzle game in the Wordscapes franchise”
Previously, Will worked on a number of famous video games from a galaxy far, far away.
OUT OF THIS WORLD
Star Wars: Hunters (2024), Astrobreaker, Dungeon Boss (2015) Star Wars: The Old Republic: Rise of the Hutt Cartel (2013), Star Wars: The Old Republic (2011), Star Wars: Galaxies Trials of Obi-Wan (2005) and Star Wars: Galaxies (2003) were among some of the projects he worked on.
He began his career as a game designer for Sony Online Entertainment back in 2001.
On his bio, he boasts he’s a: “Game designer and creative leader with over 20 years of experience on MMOs, F2P, action RPGs, and mobile games.
“Proven builder and manager of large design teams, creator of engaging gameplay, systems, and content, and creative liaison and partner for major IP holders.”
When a fan wondered why Will didn’t discuss his illustrious career on the show, he said: “I’m off the clock!”
