Jeopardy! had fans and former contestants losing their minds on Tuesday night (January 21) after the second Champions Wildcard semi-finals ended in one of the boldest wagers in the game show’s history.
Tuesday’s game saw a three-way showdown between Will Yancey, a lecturer of history from Banquete, Texas, Jay Fisher, a government relations manager from Lisle, Illinois, and Evan Dorey, a data analytics director from Toronto, Ontario, Canada.
The match-up started off pretty evenly matched between Yancey and Dorey, with the latter taking a slight lead with $7,800 by the end of the first round, while the former followed closely behind with $5,200. Fisher trailed in a deficit, with minus $400.
Things heated up massively in the Double Jeopardy round as Yancey and Dorey went back and forth. Firstly, Yancey took control of “The Bible” category, nailing each clue and finding a Daily Double, wagering big and doubling his score to take the lead.
Not to be outdone, Dorey fired back by running the “‘B’ On The Sea” category, where he landed on a Daily Double of his own and wagered his entire pot. This put him back into the lead heading into Final Jeopardy with a huge $32,400. Meanwhile, Yancey had $26,000, giving him a chance to win if Dorey flopped on the final clue.
Fisher ended up getting out of the red and went into Final Jeopardy with $2,800.
Host Ken Jennings then revealed the final category as “Mythology” and read the final clue: “Some myths say the treasure of the Nibelung was hidden under a promontory called this, on the Rhine near St. Goarshausen.”
Yancey was the only one who gave the correct answer (“What is Lorelei?”), but it was his wager that had viewers reeling. Adopting a “go big or go home” attitude, Yancey bet his entire $26,000, giving him a final score of a whopping $52,000. He secured his spot in the Champions Wildcards final, where he’ll face off against Drew Goins and a third player yet to be determined.
Fans and former contestants took to social media to react to the jaw-dropping game, with some calling it the greatest episode ever.
Fellow Champions Wildcard contestant Joey DeSena shared his thoughts on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum, writing, “This. Game. Literally one of the best games of Jeopardy I’ve ever seen in my life, and it was a privilege to watch from the audience. Will Weiss and I were sitting together and losing our minds at the high level of play involved here. Hearty congrats to Evan, Jay, and Will – great guys, all. Enjoy!”
Former player Alison Betts agreed, stating, “I love love love when I watch a game of Jeopardy and I’m so in it I forget I’ve ever played it and I revert to just totally being a fan. All three players were just 🔥.”
One fan added, “This was an insane game. I can only imagine how fantastic the CWC finals are gonna be especially with those DD wagers.”
“Holy s*** what an insane game. Congrats to Will. Hoping tomorrow’s game is just as good, and based on who’s in it I’m confident it will be,” said another.
“Wow, What a game! Gutsy move by both betting it all in Double Jeopardy!” another added.
“Look, I’m just a fan who has watched a lot of jeopardy over the years. I’m going to take the any time test at some point but that’s beside the point,” one fan wrote. “That was one of if not the most fun game I have seen in a long time.”
“Wow. Best game of the season? I can’t think of a better one off the top of my head,” said another.
“That was one of the best episodes ever. So enjoyable to watch!” added one commenter.
Another added, “When I think of the phrase “Peak Jeopardy!”, today’s game is definitely gonna come to mind now.”
What did you think of Tuesday’s episode? Let us know your thoughts in the comments section below.
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This story originally appeared on TV Insider
