On Thursday’s Jeopardy!, the game was filled with twists and turns that put the reigning champ in a position he hadn’t faced before. In an episode marked by lively banter, spontaneous poetry, and surprising upsets, the competition took on a whole new level of unpredictability, keeping viewers guessing until the very end.
Challengers for Thursday’s episode include Jolynda Chenicek, a teacher from Tallahassee, Florida, and Austin Hobbs, a library specialist from San Angelo, Texas. Both are hoping to dethrone the current reigning champ, Scott Riccardi, an engineer from Somerville, New Jersey, whose five-day cash winnings total a jaw-dropping $144,902.
On Wednesday, Riccardi nabbed his fifth win, and in doing so, he became one of the eight official qualifiers in the Tournament of Champions.
After a strong start that began with a back-and-forth between Riccardi and Chenicek, the Jeopardy! champ landed the Daily Double in the category of “Montana” for $800. Riccardi, whose pot at that point totaled $6,200, was hesitant about the category, admitting he had “never been to Montana,” so he opted to wager only $3,000 instead of his usual all-in bet.
The clue: “The Native American people of Montana were named for the color of their moccasins.” Riccardi likely wished he had visited the Treasure State, as he incorrectly responded with “What is Crow?,” dropping his total to $3,200. The correct answer was “Who are the Blackfeet?”
By the time it got the first break, Riccardi had only a $2,000 lead over Chenicek, who had $1,200, while Hobbs was in the red with -$800.
During the chit-chat segment of the show, after Chenicek shared a story about practicing with her family using the home version of the game, Hobbs revealed that he was an amateur poet, and even recited one of his works, a poem he wrote in honor of Jeopardy! titled “I Always Wanted to Say This.”
Let’s jeopardize everything to learn,
How much we didn’t know we knew,
By hollering a question at a deep blue screen,
After Ken Jennings has read the clue.
And having made it a true Daily Double,
Against better judgment and against all odds,
Let’s jeopardize the whole enchilada.
Kiss it goodbye and irregardless applaud.
“Very nice,” said Jennings. “And if given the chance to make it a true Daily Double, will you recite your poem?”
“I would in fact like to make let’s jeopardize everything my new catchphrase,” said Hobbs.
Finishing the round, the trio worked their way from the bottom up, saving the $400 and $200 clues for last, but still missed a few of those much easier questions, proving that even the low-dollar clues can trip up the best.
Among the stumpers was in the category “Little Friend” for $400. “In a Grimm Brothers tale, this lad’s dad, a tailor, gives him a darning needle to use as a sword on his travels.” After no one buzzed in, Jennings said, “You can’t use a darning needle as a sword unless you are the size of…Tom Thumb.”
Another question everyone missed was in the “Let’s Get Loud” category for $400: “Loud mating cries are characteristic of this feline with many names, including catamount and painter.” After the three-note jingle, Jennings revealed the answer was “mountain lion or cougar or puma.”
By the time it got to the break, Riccardi was in the lead with $6,000 while Chenicek was in second place with $2,600 and Hobbs was in third with $1,600.
During Double Jeopardy!, Riccardi uncovered the first Daily Double hidden under “The Human Body” for $1,600. Host Ken Jennings quipped, “You said you’ve never been to Montana earlier, but what do you think about the human body?” Riccardi responded in kind: “I’ve never been on a Fantastic Voyage where I shrink down to a submarine, so let’s do $4,000.”
With the clue, “The ball of the ball-and-socket shoulder joint is the head of this arm bone,” Riccardi’s answer, “What is the ulna?” was incorrect, bringing his total down from $10,600 to $6,600, still $3,600 ahead of both Chenicek and Hobbs. The correct answer was the humerus.
Minutes later, Riccardi uncovered the second Daily Double under “Words of Wisdom” for $1,600, his third Daily Double of the game, though he had yet to answer one correctly. Playing it safe, he wagered $3,000 against his $8,200.
“Latin for ‘rude’ or ‘rough’ gives us this adjective that means scholarly.” Riccardi’s answer, “What is professorial?” was incorrect, dropping his total to $5,200. He missed all three Daily Doubles in the game. The correct response was “erudite.”In the final moments of Double Jeopardy!, Riccardi lost his lead to Chenicek, who began to pull ahead after correctly answering the “U.S. Army Cadences” clue for $1,600: “Show this tank so you and they see if it weighs more than singer Gracie.” With the response “What is Abrams,” Chenicek overtook Riccardi with $6,600 to his $6,000.
A few more correct responses widened the gap, and by the time they entered Final Jeopardy!, Chenicek was in first place with $7,800, Riccardi in second with $6,400, and Hobbs in third with $2,200.
The Final Jeopardy! category of “Chart Toppers” offered the clue, “His mother named him after her dream car, but he topped the charts in 2019 under this moniker.” Hobbs have the response, “Who is Bruno Mar?” (spelled incorrectly). “It wouldn’t have been right even with the ‘S’,” said Jennings. He wagered $1,200, leaving him with $1,000.
Riccardi, in second place for the first time during his streak, responded with “Who is Jelly Roll?”—which was incorrect. He wagered $1,401, leaving him with $4,999.
Chenicek answered, “Who is The Weeknd?” which was also incorrect. The correct response was Montero Lamar Hill — named after the Mitsubishi Montero — better known as Lil Nas X. She wagered $5,001, dropping her to $2,799 and second place, allowing Riccardi to hold on to his title as champ.
Riccardi survived to compete another day, as he is now a six-day champion with $149,901.
This story originally appeared on TV Insider
