James Holzhauer found himself in unfamiliar territory on Thursday’s episode of Jeopardy!, but sparked an epic comeback with a bold Daily Double wager. Holzhauer put his streak on the line by betting everything he had, but successfully doubled his money and went on to put the game away in Final Jeopardy!
Holzhauer began his 27th Jeopardy! episode just a few thousand dollars away from crossing the $2 million mark – and he managed to put the game out of reach before the second commercial break.
During a flawless opening Jeopardy! round, Holzhauer coolly bet his entire total on a daily double and provided the correct response to double up to $22k, more than $20,000 ahead of competitors Sam and Susan.
Holzhauer’s two challengers dropped into the negative during Double Jeopardy, while he missed two clues but steadily climbed above the $39,000 mark. He entered Final Jeopardy with a lead of $37,600,
Holzhauer wagered $35,000 on Final Jeopardy, with a category of “Around the USA.”
FINAL JEOPARDY!:
Clue: Astronomy buffs visit Idaho for the USA’s first dark sky reserve; oddly, part of it is this resort area with a bright name
Holzhauer crossed out his response of “The Las Vegas Strip,” joking that he didn’t think it was in Idaho, and wrote down the correct response, “Sun Valley,” to increase his winning total to $74,400.
The win extended his streak to 27 days, and gave him a new cash total of $2,065,535. He is now $455,165 behind Ken Jennings’ total.
At Holzhauer’s current pace of $76,501 per show, he should surpass Jennings if he can win another six shows.
