Nov. 22--The North Shore's irrepressible "Jeopardy!" champ Julia Collins says despite placing third, she was "still happy to be there" in Friday's final game of the Tournament of Champions.
On Friday's show, the last game in the two-day finals round, Collins, 32, finished third in the elite tournament, winning $50,000.
The Wilmette resident and Kenilworth native was defeated by contestants Arthur Chu of Ohio, who finished second with $100,000, and tournament winner Ben Ingram of South Carolina, who captured first place, winning the grand prize of $250,000.
Soldiering through her final two games with a fever and a sore throat, the typically healthy Collins said coming down with a nasty bug during last month's taping of the tournament in Los Angeles was indeed bad timing.
"I knew I had to play more aggressively to stay in the game, but I could feel my energy and mental clarity diminishing," Collins said. "During the breaks, they let me lie down in the back, on a cot, which was nice. But it was really just adrenaline that propelled me through."
Nonetheless, Collins said that she has no regrets about her experiences as the second-winningest overall and the top female competitor in the show's history, rallying in 20 games straight earlier this year.
"All the 'Jeopardy!' contestants stay in the same hotel, so we were together, hanging out all the time, and everyone was really friendly and excited to be there," said Collins, a former New Trier High School student and Wellesley College and Massachusetts Institute of Technology alumna.
"It felt so comfortable, and playing the game is just so much fun in a collegial atmosphere," she said. "I think I'll be keeping in touch with quite a few of my fellow contestants."
"'Jeopardy!' attracts a particular type of nerd, like me, so all the contestants have a lot of shared interests," she added. "You're the type of person who cares about the world around you ... whether you're a scientist, a professor or a doctor, we all have a common love of learning."
A former management consultant, Collins said she has not made any decision about her "next step," although she hopes to work some day for an advocacy organization for women and children.
While her "Jeopardy!" winnings have added up to $478,100, Collins said she has not made any dramatic changes to her lifestyle, nor has she splurged on any luxuries.
Other than enjoying a trip to Paris earlier this year, Collins said Friday that she has no plans to trade in her trusty Ford Focus.
"What would be sillier than buying a fancy car?" Collins said, with a laugh, adding: "I'm not working, so I don't want to make any bold moves financially. I see my 'Jeopardy!' winnings as more of a safety net and nest egg."
Collins said she planned to watch her final "Jeopardy!" appearance on Friday afternoon with her mother and grandmother, explaining that she already celebrated with family and friends at a Los Angles restaurant, after taping her final two episodes last month.
Among the highlights of her swan song "Jeopardy!" episode Friday was a rather playful exchange with host Alex Trebek, who teased Collins after she correctly responded to a Channing Tatum-related "answer" with the question, "What is 'Magic Mike'?"
"Now that brought a big smile to your face," quipped Trebek, to which Collins smiled and blushed, replying: "One more awkward thing I've said on the show."
kcullotta@tribpub.com
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