risk! Fans have been left complaining about a female-focused category that “hurts viewing” after it left contestants blindsided today.
Wednesday's match also saw the end of the winning streak of popular newcomer, Joey DeSena, and the two-day champion responded to his tough loss.
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Joey, a development engineer from Raleigh, North Carolina, won back-to-back stunts and pocketed a staggering $44,698.
He faced off against Evan Dorey, a data analytics manager from Toronto, Ontario, and Louis Dioro, a real estate broker from West Haven, Connecticut.
At the top of the episode, host Ken Jennings, 50, introduced the categories – with one in particular worrying fans.
In first danger! In the first round, one of the categories listed on the new high-tech scoreboard was “Great Women in Sports.”
While the goal of this category is to honor outstanding female athletes, it wasn't all smooth sailing during the show as almost every question was answered with silence – resulting in most of the clues being strangely missing.
Evan was the first to choose from “Great Women in Sports” as he was told the $600 clue in a pre-recorded video message from tennis legend Billie Jean King.
“This woman became a star on four WNBA championship teams in Seattle, and she became the winningest player in the league,” the 39-time Grand Slam champion said.
Joey and Louis both made incorrect guesses while Evan didn't try to respond.
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All three failed to accurately respond with the question “Who is Sue Bird?”
Evan then searched for the $800 clue, which Billie, now 80, read over: “She was a great all-around athlete, she excelled in many sports but later in life, golf was her “I played it and co-founded the LPGA.”
Lois ended up correcting this question with “Who is Babe Didrikson?”
Looking to continue her streak, Lewis picked up the same denomination for $1,000.
“Before I turned to tennis, one of the sports I played was softball. One of the most decorated college players in the game is a UCLA graduate and two-time Olympic gold medalist,” Bailey reads.
The three players remained silent as no one could guess, “Who is Dot Richardson?”
The $400 clue was then picked up, with Ken reading: “I have been named the 2013-2018 USA Swimmer of the Year and the 2021 and 2022 Swimming World Magazine Awards.”
Louis got Diana Nyad wrong, while Evan managed to pounce on the correct question, “Who is Katie Ledecky?”
The final $200 clue was selected, with Kane reading: “In 2022, she puts down her tennis racket and walks away from the sport with 23 Grand Slam singles titles to her name.”
Girl, please
Joey made another incorrect guess, and once again Evan pounced with the correct question “Who is Serena Williams?”
Fans were disappointed that players did not perform better in this category, with one saying bluntly: “The women in sport category is painful to watch.”
“Sad they didn't know more great women in sports. Do better people!!!” another shouted.
A third tried to defend the group, adding: “Well at least they got a few?”
After an impressive first two matches, Joey's winning streak came to an end as he finished with just $199.
risk! Contestant rules
Passing the Anytime test for Jeopardy! Online is hard enough, but there are also several rules that players must follow once they reach the stage:
- The returning champion is always on the podium on the far left and continues playing until he loses.
- Contestants do not have to say “who's who” or “what's who” in the first round but must do so in Double Jeopardy! And the ultimate danger.
- Contestants can change their responses as long as Ken Jennings or the judges do not make a judgement.
- The minimum bet on Daily Double is $5. The minimum bet for Final Jeopardy! It is $0.
- Written responses in Final Jeopardy! It does not have to be spelled correctly, but it must be phonetically correct (the judges decide this).
- If there is a tie after Final Jeopardy, the tied players go into an additional shootout, and whoever gets the first correct shot wins.
- If all three contestants bet everything on Final Jeopardy! If they are incorrect, leaving them with $0, there will be no returning champion (it's happened before — six times).
Evan took his first win with $29,200 while Louis came in second with an impressive $12,000.
After his loss, Joey went online and broke his silence with his debut titled “Dream Come True.”
“Well, the improbable little series has come to an end. All credit for this game goes to Ivan and Louis, who were great competitors who came to play.
“I felt like a fan during the final, and I was excited to see how it would end! I know it's probably been said many times before, but I have the utmost respect for players who can get 5 wins in one day. It's draining!”
“But again, just being on the show was a dream come true, let alone winning anything,” he wrote.
“Everyone on the Jeopardy crew and in the contestant pool made tape day an incredibly fun experience, and I can't thank them enough for their kindness and good sense of humor,” Joey continued.
“If anyone is on the fence – take the Jeopardy Anytime quiz! You never know what might come out of it. So, again, thank you all, and I hope the matches are entertaining!”
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