‘Jeopardy!’ Drama as Shocking Triple Stumper Ends Longest Reigning Champ’s Streak
Lucas Partridge might have been hoping to extend his record-breaking* stint as Jeopardy!‘s reigning champion, but alas, his first night back after the onslaught of tournaments ended in a loss for him.
(*Though he won just three prior games, Partridge ended as the champion of Season 39, which last taped on May 19, 2023 and aired in July 2023, thus making his tenure at the top nearly 10 months long.)
Wednesday’s episode of Jeopardy!, which was the first regular show after the Invitational Tournament ended on Tuesday, saw Partridge, a school counselor from Las Vegas, joined by newcomers Daniel Rosenberg, a lawyer from New York, and Lee Wilkins, a regulatory affairs coordinator from Alabama.
The first round went well enough for Partridge. He got 12 answers correct, versus five incorrect. and netted $3,600. Rosenberg was forging right ahead of him, though, with nine correct answers and just one incorrect, earning $4,600. Wilkins, who got just three correct and two incorrect, ended the first half with $0.
Double Jeopardy! changed the game a good bit, as Partridge got 17 correct and six incorrect, ending the round with a slight lead at $7,600. Still, Rosenberg was hot on his trail with $7,200 earned from 16 correct answers and six incorrect. Wilkins was still very much in it, though, coming into Final Jeopardy! with $5,200 to wager due to seven correct answers and three incorrect.
Where it all really went upside-down was in the Final Jeopardy! round. In the category of “Animated Film Characters,” the clue was pop culture-inspired: “In this 2017 film Dante is a hairless breed known as Xolo dog.”
Apparently, none of the contestants decided to check out Disney-Pixar’s Coco because they all managed to get it wrong… making their wagers all the more strategically important.
Both Partridge (who guessed, “What is Luca?”) and Rosenberg (who guessed, “What is Zootopia Superpets?”) wagered everything, bringing them to $0. Smartly, though, Wilkins (who guessed, “What is a Chinese crested?”) only risked $3,000 of her pot, bringing her final cash winnings to $2,200.
It was an inexpensive night for producers, of course, but a win’s a win. And thus, Lee Wilkins is the newest champion!
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