Did ‘Jeopardy!’ Champ David Erb Qualify for Tournament of Champions?

Kelli Boyle September 26, 2024, 8:32 pm

[Warning: The following contains MAJOR spoilers for the Thursday, September 26, 2024 episode of Jeopardy!]

Jeopardy! fans quickly theorized that David Erb could have what it takes for a long winning streak that would lead him to the Tournament of Champions. The player, who’s married to Lessons in Chemistry author Bonnie Garmus, couldn’t pull out another win in the September 26 game, but his Tournament of Champions hopes may not be dashed.

Erb is a puzzle designer from Seattle, Washington and a three-day champ who started today’s game with $90,754 in winnings. His competitors in his fourth game were Maddie Carwile, a healthcare program coordinator from New York City, and Alex Michev, an attorney from Richmond, Virginia. While Erb continued his habit of bold Daily Double bets, the one bonus clue he won wasn’t enough to bring him into the lead.

Erb was in last place for most of the game and ended in second place, bringing his winning streak to an end. The final scores were Carwile with $11,700, Erb with $4,277, and Michev with $4,000. Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions rules state that players are eligible to compete if they win five games or come close to winning five games in a row. With his three consecutive wins, Erb has a chance of being considered for the special tournament; he could be directly invited by the producers or make it in through the Champions Wildcard Tournament. Fans are hoping to see him compete in TOC.

“David had an impressive run. We hope to see him again later this season in the TOC,” one fan wrote on the show’s Reddit discussion board.

Another user pointed out that past TOC contestants were admitted into the special competition with just three previous wins.

“Emma Boettcher and Yogesh Raut were 3 game champions & won over $90,000 but they performed very well at their respective TOC and made it to the finals which Yogesh won 2024 TOC,” the user said. “Will David Erb get the same results at the upcoming 2025 TOC if the producers will directly invite him just like Yogesh last year?”

'Jeopardy!' Champion David Erb's Hollywood Wife, Family Life & More

Erb’s three-game streak helped another viewer understand why the Champions Wildcard Tournament exists. Participants in that tournament are selected from players who have won one to three games in a row. Champions Wildcard is used to determine more contestants for Tournament of Champions.

“I think I’m starting to see why the CWC has the format it does,” the Reddit user commented. “At this rate, there’s gonna be a lot of three game winner entrants if none of them are seeded to the ToC directly. Congrats to Maddie for the win!”

One fan wants to see third-place player Michev come back in the Second Chance Tournament (comprised of players who didn’t win their regular games). They wrote: “Alex should also be considered for Second Chance! He seemed almost as strong as Drew yesterday and was up against two champions.”

Erb could still qualify for Tournament of Champions even with the newly announced eligibility changes.

Jeopardy! producers Michael Davies and Sarah Whitcomb Foss revealed changes to Tournament of Champions, Champions Wildcard, and the Second Chance Tournament on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast this week. They said there will be a “much shorter post-season” of “just 10 to 11 weeks” for Season 41 following fan critiques over “too many tournaments” in Season 40.

The qualification period for the upcoming Tournament of Champions will be shortened to 28 weeks of regular programming. October 2 will be the cutoff date, which includes Erb’s games. The Second Chance and Champions Wildcard Tournaments will each last two weeks.

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