‘Wheel of Fortune’: Postal Worker Loses Car as Fans Call Prize ‘Disappointing’

A Wheel of Fortune contestant has gone haywire after losing the prize of a lifetime. Ricky Lowery, from Fresno, Texas, didn’t win the car during the Bonus Round, but fans deemed the prize “disappointing” anyway.

On Tuesday’s (March 4) episode, Lowery, a postal service worker and retired military veteran, played against Pierce Goodbread, from Atlanta, Georgia, and Kimberly Malesky, from Santa Barbara, California. Goodbread is an avid gamer and former boxer. Malesky caught a rumor that the wheel was heavy, so she prepared her weight regiment.

Goodbread solved the first two toss-ups, giving him the lead with $3,000. He went on to guess a few letters in the new puzzle, but when he guessed wrong, it moved to Malensky. She solved most of the puzzle until she also guessed a wrong letter. It was finally Lowery’s turn, and he landed on Bankrupt. Goodbread then solved the puzzle, “Gnarly wipeout, dude,” gaining another $1,000.

Lowery earned $1,400 on the second puzzle, “Odd job promotion.” Goodbread was still in first with $4,000, and Malesky did not have any money. However, Lowery’s luck ran out on the next puzzle when he landed on a Bankrupt, but Goodbread did not maintain the lead as he also landed on the dreaded wedge. However, the postal service worker won the round and a trip to Aruba. This brought his total to $13,882.

Everyone guessed one puzzle toss-up at the end of the game, all earning $2,000. Goodbread solved the final puzzle, “Fake it til you make it,” making his final total $14,250. Malesky ended with $2,000. Lowery was the big winner with $15,882, giving him a trip to the Bonus Round.

He picked “Phrase” for his puzzle. Host Ryan Seacrest let him know that a car, $75,000, and $100,000 were options available on the wheel.

After Wheel gave him “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” Lowery picked “G,H,D, and A,” to round out his letters. His puzzle then looked like “G_NE  HA_ _ _ RE.” The puzzle was revealed to be “Gone Haywire.” Lowery said “Gone,” but couldn’t quite guess the last word.

Seacrest opened the envelope and revealed that Lowery missed out on a Mini Cooper. The game show contestant threw his head back and shook it in disbelief. He still went home with nearly $16,000.

However, some Wheel fans don’t think that a car is a good prize and think the show should just give the contestants money instead.

“Car for a final prize? That seems like a much worse option, right?” a Reddit user asked. “Most spins are ~$40k these days, so a Mini Cooper convertible worth $41k seems like a terrible alternative.”

“Also, you have to pay the tax on it. It’s the same thing if you win a trip. I’d rather have all cash,” a fan commented.

“If you buy the car at a dealership, you pay under 41k. That’s the highest price. Yup, rather have the cash. The trips are also listed at the highest price as well. Airfare and hotels can always be found cheaper. Cash is king,” replied a watcher.

“If I were on the show, I’d be pretty disappointed if I won the car. I’d much, much rather just have the cash,” said another.

“They should at least award a car with a higher retail value of $50-60k. I believe the taxes on a $40k car would be similar to $40k in cash,” a Reddit user said.