‘Wheel of Fortune’ Player Misses $50,000 Win in Agonizing Minnie Mouse Moment
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Wheel of Fortune fans had been treated — not to another round of sausage — but to a hot streak regarding the coveted bonus round, with three players emerging victorious within the span of a week. However, all good things must come to an end. On Tuesday, December 10’s episode, a contestant drew a total blank on a bonus puzzle that fans pointed out seemed wheel familiar.
The contestant who missed out was Lisa, who proceeded to Disney Giveaway Week’s latest bonus round with $12,928 in cash, a prize trip to Hawaii, and the off-side support of her beaming mom (alongside Minnie Mouse, who speaks!). She selected “Person” as her category and faced a two-word puzzle.
Lisa seemed aware she needed to go with unique additional letters, opting for a “P, C, H, O.” She had the right idea but picked the wrong letters, as the iconic Vanna White added a mere “O.” The puzzle read as, “_O_ _LE’ ‘_ _ ENT.'”
The 10-second timer began, and Lisa looked flustered. “Oh my gosh what is it?” she uttered as the clock ticked away. The timer ran out, and Lisa could not come up with a single guess. The puzzle filled in: “DOUBLE AGENT.”
Host Ryan Seacrest admitted the odds were not in her favor, “Yeah, you needed more to work with. I don’t know how you would have gotten there with that.”
The broadcast cut to Lisa standing alongside the host, who unveiled the golden envelope revealing she missed out on a whopping $50,000. Lisa tossed up her head in disappointment and clasped her hands together, “Ugh!” she exclaimed. It seems that even Minnie Mouse couldn’t help her!
The game show shared the big miss on YouTube, where many fans reacted to the big miss, and how the same bonus puzzle was used by the producers previously (and it’s not the first time there’s been a repeat puzzle this season).
“Funfact: This Used For December 29, 2008 During America’s Game 2,” the top comment read.
“The same bonus round puzzle, ‘Double Agent,’ from Season 26,” wrote another.
“I Remember this puzzle back in either 2008 or 2009 and that puzzle lost someone $100,000,” recognized a third. To which a fourth replied, “It Was 2008.”
A fifth fan wrote, “I was stumped on this one too….not enough letters! So sorry Lisa for not winning the Bonus Round….but Congratulations on your winnings & your fabulous trip to Hawaii!!”
“We got 66 shows with still no million dollars or $75,000 winners in Season 42,” lamented a sixth.
“Minnie actually spoke omg,” remarked one more.
Meanwhile, fans are warming up to Seacrest who replaced the legendary Pat Sajak after four decades this season. His debut month was the strongest ratings month for WoF in the past three years, and he’s endeared fans with his contestant interviews, which he does without cue cards. That said, there have been some questionable hosting moments according to fans.
In September, Seacrest suffered what fans dubbed his “first blooper”, involving a prolonged reaction to rewarding a bonus round. Fans also called out the host for ruling against another player before the timer was up. Last month, fans called out the host for not reminding a player to pick a letter, leading to him losing the game in a misunderstanding and by a mere $147. Last week, controversy ensued when the host denied a player’s correct puzzle solve because she didn’t ring in first, despite being the only player left allowed to answer it (something Sajak ruled more leniently on).
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