Attorney and theater producer Adam Remsen was on a roll as he returned to the Jeopardy! podium for a fifth game. With a four-day total of $72,601, the Memphis native looked to extend his winning streak and add to his growing bankroll as he faced off against two new challengers: Nora Inman, a policy analyst from Louisville, Kentucky, and Tyler Stevenson, a special education teacher from Broken Arrow, Oklahoma.
“It was a convincing runaway victory yesterday for our champion, Adam Remsen, who is back today looking to clinch his fifth win and a guaranteed spot in the Tournament of Champions,” said host Ken Jennings. “When I asked Adam how he felt about potentially qualifying for the TOC, he said he hadn’t even thought about it until I brought it up. Well, Adam, we’re thinking about it now.”
Did he win a fifth time? Warning: Spoilers for the June 18 episode of Jeopardy! ahead!
The champ started the game with “Meanings of Geographic Names” for $600: “Not always calm, it was named after a ship that passed through a peaceful section of it in 1520.” With the correct response of the Pacific Ocean, Remsen was off to a great start.
Stevenson found the first Daily Double on the eighth clue of the game in the category “Cozy Words” for $600. Stevenson wagered $1,600, making it a true Daily Double, on the clue: “With an acute accent on its last letter, it’s a co. making chocolate, coffee, etc.; without the accent, a verb meaning snuggle up.” Stevenson guessed “cuddle,” but the correct response was Nestlé, and he lost it all.
Luckily, Stevenson was able to regain his footing, and by the first commercial break, he was back up to $1,600. However, Remsen was already on his way to another runaway game with $4,600. Inman held third place with $600.
During the chat portion of the show, Stevenson admitted he was an amateur Jeopardy! writer by the name Tiger Songbird who wrote two Tournament of Champions games for the Jeopardy! Discord. Inman revealed she was 16 weeks pregnant with her first child and therefore had the advantage of “two brains and one body.” Meanwhile, champ Remsen shared his plans for his winnings, saying he hoped to take his wife to Japan, a country he hadn’t visited since 1988.
By the end of the first round, all three contestants were off to a strong start, but Remsen was well ahead of the pack. He led with $6,000, while Inman had $2,600 and Stevenson was close behind with $2,400.
In Double Jeopardy!, Stevenson began the round with “World History” for $1,600: “In 1955, this dictator made the mistake of freeing Fidel Castro from the Presidio Modelo prison.” With the correct response of Fulgencio Batista, Stevenson gained control of the board.
The first Daily Double of the round was found on the fourth clue under “It’s Silent” for $1,600 by Remsen. With $8,400 in his pot (and a bad history with Daily Doubles), he wagered $3,000 on the clue: “It means a model example or a perfect archetype; when a ‘shift’ of one occurs, there’s a major change of thinking.” With the response, “What is a paradigm?” Remsen broke his unlucky streak and brought his total up to $11,000.
Remsen then found the final Daily Double of the game under “All Kinds of Lit” for $1,600. Betting $2,000, he got the clue: “‘The Goat, or Who Is Sylvia?’ is by this playwright who was never afraid of using a question as a play title.” With the correct response of “Who is [Edward] Albee?” Remsen defeated his bad luck when it came to Daily Doubles and brought his total to $13,400.
By the end of Double Jeopardy!, Remsen led another runaway game with $26,200, while Stevenson was second with $12,000 and Inman was third with $7,400.
In the Final Jeopardy category of “Around the World,” the trio got the clue: “The only places in mainland Africa where the euro is official currency are in territories of this nation.”
Did Remsen win and get into the Tournament of Champions?
Inman answered, “What is England? We did it, baby!” and that incorrect response cost her $4,600 and brought her total to $2,800. Stevenson answered, “What is Morocco? (Love you, Mom! Hope I made y…),” which was sweet but wrong. With a wager of $2,801, his final tally was $9,199.
Remsen correctly answered, “What is Spain?” and bet a safe $800, bringing his total to $27,000. With a five-day total of $99,601, he also nabbed a spot in the Tournament of Champions.
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This story originally appeared on TV Insider
