‘Jeopardy!’ Fans React to ‘Weird’ Final Bets — How Winner Could’ve Been Affected

Meredith Jacobs June 26, 2023, 7:30 pm

Donna, Ryan, and Caroline on 'Jeopardy!' — Jeopardy!, Inc.

[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the June 26 episode of Jeopardy!]

What a contestant wagers for a Daily Double or Final Jeopardy! can mean the difference between winning or losing the game. And so viewers tend to pay close attention — and call out — odd bets, as is the case with the June 26 episode of Jeopardy!

Heading into Final Jeopardy, the returning champion, librarian Donna Matturri was leading with $18,800 against new contestants cheesemonger Ryan Clary with $11,600 and realtor Caroline Gulick with $7,400. Then, with the category 20th Century Events — the clue read “It was immediately reported ‘the flames are still leaping maybe 30, 40 feet from the ground the entire 811 feet length of’ this” — both Donna and Ryan were correct (What is the Hindenburg?). Donna ended up winning with $22,800 (making for a two-day total of $40,200) while Ryan ended the game in second with $21,822. (Caroline was in third with $0.)

However, as fans noted on Reddit, Donna and Ryan’s wagers were “weird.” In fact, he could have won due to what some think was a “math error” on her part.

One person wrote that Donna might have thought wagering $4000 would be enough to keep Ryan from taking the lead. Another suggested, “I would be willing to bet money that she forgot to carry the 1 from the hundreds place (6+6) when doubling 11,600. She probably got 22,200 for Ryan’s potential maximum.” And someone else thought she was keeping an eye on Caroline’s score, noting that if she had bet $1 less, she would have kept her “locked out.”

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One fan was more focused on Ryan’s wager and even noted how if he had changed his, it would have completely affected the outcome of the game: “Because of Donna’s (likely) math error, Ryan would’ve won with an all-in wager.”

In general, this Final Jeopardy seems like one that fans hope can serve as a lesson going forward. “To the future contestants: Don’t forget to learn how to bet properly in Final Jeopardy,” one wrote.

One person has noticed a pattern in recent weeks, suggesting that “nobody seems to understand how to properly wager” and people are “just getting lucky half the time” but also pondering if it’s why there hasn’t been a contestant dominating in a while.

What have you thought of Final Jeopardy (and Daily Double) bets recently?

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