‘Jeopardy!’: Liam Starnes Speaks Out After Dramatic Exit From Show

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Liam Starnes‘ impressive six-game winning streak came to an end on Monday’s (April 28) Jeopardy!, and he’s now opening up about his time on the show, including his self-doubts heading into the recording.

The 20-year-old undergraduate student from Barrington, Illinois, developed quite a fanbase over his seven appearances because of his incredible trivia knowledge and uncanny resemblance to Sheldon Cooper (Jim Parsons). However, all good things must come to an end.

Despite dominating the first half of Monday’s game, Starnes lost the episode in Final Jeopardy after answering incorrectly. Meanwhile, his opponent, Erin Morin, a digital pre-press specialist from Aldie, Virginia, responded correctly and wagered everything to double up and swipe the win.

Taking to the Jeopardy! Reddit forum after Monday’s episode, Starnes said, “Now that my run (and midterm season) is over, I wanted to tell the entire story of my time on Jeopardy.”

He went on to reveal he’s loved watching Jeopardy! since he was in middle school, and when he got the call to be on the show, he initially “thought it was a scam.”

“Once it sank in that this was really happening, I knew I needed to find the right balance: should I study as much as I could, filling in my weaknesses but also adding a lot of extra pressure?  Or do I ignore all thoughts about winning and losing and pretend like I’m just flying out to LA and playing a game on the Jeopardy stage for fun?” Starnes added.

“I probably would have studied a bit more if I could do it over again, but overall I think I handled the pre-taping process well,” he continued.

However, Starnes took a knock to his confidence before the taping began, explaining, “just three days before my first taping, I played horribly at a major college quizbowl tournament, and I couldn’t help feeling like that was a bad omen of what was to come.”

Things went from bad to worse when he got to Los Angeles; as Starnes shared, “When tape day finally came, I got absolutely destroyed in the rehearsal games. My dreams of becoming the next great Jeopardy! star and making the TOC went out the window, and the thought of winning one game seemed like a near-impossible feat. ”

Starnes got a lucky break when he wasn’t picked for the morning rounds, meaning he had a chance to “get his head in Jeopardy mode” while watching the other contestants’ games.

“Before I knew it, it was my turn, and I very nervously stumbled out of the green room onto the stage,” he continued, noting how he “got off to a rough start” but “slowly but surely, just like in a big-time quizbowl match, it started to feel like I was part of the game, not just someone playing it.”

After nailing a big wager on a Daily Double, Starnes got one of his “best categories” in Final Jeopardy with Presidential Elections, giving him his first win. “I was actually a Jeopardy champion!” he wrote.

He returned to LA a week later and “did much better in the rehearsal game.” His success continued, though there were some close calls along the way, but “all of a sudden, the Tournament of Champions was once again a goal within reach.”

“I’m still in disbelief at how I was able to beat Abigail in game 4 (after telling myself multiple times during the game that I had already lost and should just accept it), but somehow I made it to the all-important lunch break as the reigning champion,” Starnes added.

Starnes eventually won his fifth game, guaranteeing himself a spot in the next TOC. “Whenever I eventually lost, my time on America’s greatest game show would no longer end right then and there,” he said, speaking of his newfound confidence.

However, this confidence would eventually become his undoing. He explained, “Despite fighting fatigue, I won game 6 in a runaway and returned to the hotel with my winning streak still intact. That night, I had my best night of sleep in who knows how long, and came to the studio in by far the best shape of my three taping days.  My spot in the TOC was sealed, the nerves had gone away, and I could just go out there and have fun.”

Starnes said he received a “frostier reception” from his fellow contestants when they found out how many games he’d won. Yet, he stated, “I felt as confident as I ever had, and I started the day with what had to have been my best game out of the seven I had played.  Hearing the crowd gasp after you make a big True Daily Double wager is an incredible feeling.”

Unfortunately for Starnes, his impressive run came to an end when he couldn’t figure out the Final Jeopardy clue. “I guess that’s the irony of Jeopardy: you can be completely outplayed and still pull out a win, but you can also play amazingly and lose,” he shared.

He said that he wasn’t sure “whether to feel happy about my six-game run or sad that it didn’t go on longer” until watching it back on TV.

“I realized there was hardly any reason to feel disappointed about a six-day winning streak,” Starnes stated. “It’s been amazing seeing all the support over the past ten days from family, friends, and fellow Jeopardy fans. I’m being recognized more and more around Hyde Park, which still feels a bit odd but makes my heart warm every time someone congratulates me on my success.”

He went on to shout out his fellow contestants as well as the Jeopardy crew, “especially to Mitch, the audio technician who was able to calm me down before each game.”

Starnes also shared his secret pre-meal prep, shouting out “El Torito in Marina Del Rey, which was my night-before meal for both taping weeks and will be again when I come back for the TOC.  Maybe I shouldn’t hurt my competitive advantage by revealing this secret, but the Mexican food there is amazing.”

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