‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant Wows With Impressive Dominant Win

[Warning: The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Thursday, December 4, episode of Jeopardy!]

Ron LaLonde returned for his second Jeopardy! game after defeating Libby Jones on Wednesday. The winner of the December 4 episode had a dominant, runaway win. Will the twin brother of former Jeopardy! champ Ray LaLonde continue his streak, or will he be a one-game champion? Read on to find out.

LaLonde, from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, played against Marie D’Avignon, from Durham, North Carolina, and Andy Luo, from Johns Creek, Georgia, for game two. LaLonde, a medical physicist, racked up a one-day total of $15,201.

The reigning champion found his footing a few clues into the first round. Although the contestants were neck and neck, LaLonde kept the lead when Luo, a student success coach, found the Daily Double on clue 15.

He made it a true Daily Double with $2,000 in his bank. In “On the Maine Land,” the clue read, “John D. Rockefeller Jr. donated land & money to create this park, the first national park established east of the Mississippi.” Luo answered correctly with “What is Acadia?” He doubled to $4,000 and took the lead.

Due to a few wrong answers from Lou and multiple correct ones from LaLonde, LaLonde retook the lead at the end of the round with $5,600. Lou had $5,000. D’Avignon, a VP of operations, was in third place with $4,400.

In Double Jeopardy, LaLonde made his lead wider when he correctly responded to multiple clues and flew threw the round until Lou found the first DD on clue 15 again. With $9,800, he wagered $4,000 in “The Thread of the Story.” The clue was “Her favorite of her own stories was The Tailor of Gloucester, about some mice with mad needle skills.”

Lou didn’t answer right away, but when he did, he was wrong? “Who is Eliot?” The correct response was Beatrix Potter, so Lou dropped down to $5,800.

LaLonde had a wide lead of $18,800 when he found the second DD. He wagered $4,000 in “Starts With a Greek Letter.” The clue read, “A fire-breather from Greek myth, it’s now a word for any mish-mosh of a creation.” He was correct with a last-minute response of “What is chimera?” giving him $22,800.

By the end of the round, LaLonde’s total was $24,400. Lou was in second place with $5,400. D’Avignon had $5,200.

“The Supreme Court in the 19th Century” was the category for Final Jeopardy. “Citing the ‘language of the people, whether sellers or consumers,’ in 1893, the S.C. ruled on the botanical designation of this” was the clue. It was a triple stumper for the game show contestants, with the correct response being “What is a tomato? ”

The Jeopardy! contestants all gave the same incorrect response — “What is tobacco?” D’Avignon wagered $4,999, ending with $201. Lou wagered $5,001, giving him a final total of $399. Unless LaLonde made a huge wager, he was almost guaranteed the win. He wagered $4,000, making his final total $20,400.

With a two-day total of $35,601. LaLonde will return on Friday for his third game.