‘Jeopardy!’ Champ Andrew Hayes Competes in Fierce Battle as He Goes for 5th Win

[The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Tuesday, April 15, episode of Jeopardy!]

Andrew Hayes tried to win his fifth game of Jeopardy! after qualifying for the Tournament of Champions the night prior. The game show contestant competed in a fierce battle, where his win was up in the air up until Final Jeopardy. If he won, Hayes would become the 284th contestant in the post-1984 era of Jeopardy! to win at least five games.

Hayes, from Tupelo, Mississippi, had a four-day total of $98,603. He faced off against Thomas Wilson, from Taylors, South Carolina, and Dondi DeMarco, from New York, New York.

The beginning of the game was a tough battle as all three men pulled their weight answering questions. Hayes, a law student, had six correct, while Wilson and DeMarco both answered four right and one wrong. Ultimately, before the first commercial break, Hayes led with $4,200, Wilson, a teacher, had $2,800, and DeMarco, an operations executive, trailed with $1,400.

When Jeopardy! came back from commercial, Hayes found the Daily Double, but it cost him $1,000 as he got it wrong. The clue read, “Sept. is the natl. month to get this item; Octavia Butler & David McCullough were among those to reminisce about their first, as kids.” He answered with, “What are ballet shoes?” The correct answer was a library card.

The wrong answer cost him the lead by the end of the round. DeMarco led by $800 with a total of $4,400. Hayes had $3,600. Wilson moved to third with $2,400.

In Double Jeopardy, the first question was a DD. Wilson found this one, which read, “This IRS job from the Latin for ‘hearing’ is more formally a revenue agent or tax compliance officer.” “What is an auditor?” Wilson replied, which was correct, adding $2,400 to his total.

“Yeah, look at the smile. He knew he just moved into the lead,” host Ken Jennings said.

DeMarco found the second DD and had a successful run in Double Jeopardy. The clue read, “2 moons around Saturn’s F ring are called these, for  the way they tend to the ring’s flock of particles.” “What are shepherd moons?” which was correct. He added $2,000 to his total and quickly took the lead.

Both DeMarco and Hayes answered 17 questions correctly, but DeMarco only answered two wrong compared to Hayes’ three. Also, his DD wager helped him maintain the lead. DeMarco ended the round in the lead with $18,400. Hayes was in second with $11,600. Wilson still trailed with $9,600. This was anybody’s game. It all depended on Final Jeopardy answers and wagers.

The category for Final Jeopardy was “City Nicknames.” The question read, “The poet Albius Tibullus called a city this in the late 1st century B.C., some 700 years after its traditional founding.” Wilson answered incorrectly with “What is Troy?” He wagered $9,000 and ended with $600. DeMarco did not give an answer and wrote, “What is….?” He wagered $5,001, ending with $13,399. DeMarco was still currently in the lead. If Hayes was correct and wagered more than $2,000, he would win.

Hayes answered, “What is the Eternal City? It’s been fun!” which was correct. He added $7,601, making his final total $19,201, and was the night’s winner, giving him a five-day total of $117,804. He joined the elite club of five-day winners. Hayes also passed Joey Beachum, who was the winningest player in Mississippi, according to Jeopardy Fan. Hayes will compete against two new contestants on Wednesday.