‘Jeopardy!’: Ken Jennings Stunned by Contestant’s Jaw-Dropping Win

Spoiler Alert

Jeopardy.com

[The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Monday, July 21, episode of Jeopardy!]

It’s the final week of Jeopardy! for Season 41, and a contestant has been on a major winning streak. Scott Riccardi came into the week having won 12 games, making him the super-champion of the season with $312,501 so far. So could he win lucky number 13, or did someone else beat him out? What was to follow was so jaw-dropping that even Ken Jennings went “Whoa!”

Riccardi, an engineer from Somerville, New Jersey, played against Anna Ciamporcero, from Ridgefield, Connecticut, and Jeff Hague, from Carmel, Indiana, on Monday, July 21.

Host Ken Jennings said at the beginning of the episode that there are only 13 Jeopardy! players who have earned more wins than Riccardi. “He’s certainly experiencing something special on the Alex Trebek stage,” the host said.

The game didn’t start off too well for Riccardi, an engineer. He answered the first clue wrong, putting him in the negatives. The other two contestants correctly answered a handful of clues. However, by the first commercial break, Riccardi was back on his luck and led by $2,000 with $4,000.

Hauge, a firefighter, found the first Daily Double. He was in second with $3,400 and wagered $2,000, which would put him in the lead if he got it right. In “Women,” the clue read, “This fashion house whose name is a female first name has mainly been led by women, like Stella McCartney & now Chemena Kamali.” Hauge answered with “What is Donna Karen?” which was incorrect, and dropped down to $1,400. The correct response was Chloé.

By the end of the round, Riccardi led with $5,400. Hauge had $2,200. Ciamporcero, a stay-at-home mom, was in third with $400.

In Double Jeopardy, Riccardi found the first DD on clue two. With the lead at $5,800, he wagered $4,000. In “A Year-O With a Zero In It,” the clue was “The war of this started in its alliterative way in 1701 after Charles II had to go & die all childless & stuff.” “What is Spanish succession?” he answered correctly, giving him $9,800.

All three game show contestants answered clues correctly between the first and second DD, but Riccardi found the last one. He had $13,800 in his bank and wagered $4,000 again. In “Nonfiction,” the clue was “This memoir begins with a relative from Nairobi breaking the news about a fatal car accident.” “What is Dreams From My Father?” Riccardi answered correctly, which meant he had $17,800.

The reigning champion continued to answer clue after clue correctly in a jaw-dropping display. His opponents got a few answers in towards the end of the round, but it wasn’t enough to catch up to him. Riccardi ended with $35,400. Ciamporcero moved to second with $4,800. Hauge had $4,600.

The category for Final Jeopardy was “Mythological Places.” The clue read, “A 17th c. English trаnslation of the ‘Aeneid’ rhymes ‘my soul remains’ & ‘perpetual pains’ with this 2-word place.” The correct response was “What is Elysian Plains?” and only one contestant got it right.

Hauge did not give an answer. He wagered $4,400, leaving him with $200. Cipamporcero answered, “What is ??” She wagered $1,800, dropping down to $3,000. Riccardi had the correct response. He wagered $15,000, which made Ken Jennings go “Whoa!” This gave Riccardi a total of $50,400. He had a 13-day total of $362,901. This moves him into 13th place for all-time winnings, above Adriana Harmeyer, according to The Jeopardy! Fan website. Riccardi will return for his fourteenth game on Tuesday.

“Scott is getting better and better,” a Reddit user said.

“What a payday. Great work, Scott!” wrote another.

Jeopardy!, weeknights, check local listings