Jeopardy! Masters 2023 LIVE Fans slam James Holzhauer's win as 'rigged' after last-minute upset
Jeopardy! Masters has crowned its first winner, James Holzhauer - but some fans weren't very happy with the result.
Many Jeopardy! fans have shared their thoughts on social media, with many saying that the game was "rigged" after self-proclaimed game villain James' win.
James took home the $500,000 grand prize along with the Trebek Trophy after beating competitor Mattea Roach, who uses they/them pronouns.
They, along with fellow contestant Matt Amodio, battled it out against James in the final Jeopardy, "Latins in Literature," and the clue read: "A work by this 15th century English writer quotes the phrase ‘rex quondam rexque futurus.'"
Matt forfeited the question while Mattea guessed incorrectly and James took home the prize. However, fans were unhappy with the outcome with many taking to social media to slam the winner.
"@Jeopardy is rigged," one fan tweeted.
Another wrote: "DANG IT MATTEA WHY DID YOU LET THE EVIL WIN??? UGH."
Despite their losses, Matt and Mattea along with James have the opportunity of returning to the competition next year.
Follow our Jeopardy! Masters blog for the latest news and updates...
Fans are loving the episode
Viewers have been enjoying the semi-finals of Jeopardy! Masters, with there being some tough competition between competitors, especially Mattea and James.
It's been a tough episode
Despite all contestants bringing their A-game, James remains in the lead and has been very difficult to beat.
Mattea praises James
Despite their rivalry in the show, most contestants are close friends.
In a string of tweets, Mattea praised their fellow contestants. They called James' performance "on another level."
speaking of incredible performances - putting up a >50k score before Final is an incredible feat in any game, but to do it against two of the greatest to play in recent history is another thing altogether. @James_Holzhauer is on another level; I was SCARED going into semis
— Mattea Roach (@mattearoach) May 18, 2023
The second round of games
The second round of games kicks off with Mattea, James, and Andrew.
Mattea Roach is in
James won the first round of games, prompting the entry of Mattea Roach.
They are currently in fourth place and have to make a strong entrance to jump back to a top position.
James takes the lead
Despite a rough start, James quickly took the lead.
He leads the group with 10 correct answers.
Who is Ada Limon?
Ada Limon was featured in today's episode. She is an American poet and the first Latina to be Poet Laureate in the country.
Limon shared a message on Twitter, calling her appearance in Jeopardy! a "life highlight."
I've been sitting on this news for a while, but on my birthday I had the chance to film an entire category for @jeopardy The category, PURE POETRY, will be airing Monday May 22nd on Jeopardy! Masters (8/7C on ABC)! This was a life highlight. Tune in! pic.twitter.com/fjjEpAyqKV
— Ada Limón (@adalimon) May 20, 2023Viewers are tense by the show's opening minutes
The episode's opening went off to a rocky start, especially for James, who answered some questions wrong.
Fans of his shared their feelings on Twitter.
Well then. James finds himself in a tiny bit of difficulty after the opening #Jeopardy round. But he’ll have plenty of opportunity to turn things around.#JeopardyMasters
— 🇺🇸 Matt Carberry 🇮🇱🇺🇦 (@mfc248) May 23, 2023Jeopardy Masters! official Twitter warns for spoilers
The official Jeopardy account has shared a tweet, suggesting that the semi-finals are going to be filled with surprises.
In the tweet, they asked longtime viewers of the show to tune in live in order to avoid being spoiled.
🚨 SPOILER ALERT 🚨
— Jeopardy! (@Jeopardy) May 23, 2023
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.
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Turn back now if you don't want to spoil tonight's #JeopardyMasters semifinals!
James has many fans
While James Holzhauer plays the role of the villain in the show, many viewers love his attitude and his tendency for having the correct answers.
Fans and viewers are sharing their predictions
Jeopardy! Masters fans are throwing in their predictions for winners and losers tonight.
#JeopardyMasters semifinals. Starting NOW. Mattea will have the first bye; each remaining player will sit out one of the next four #Jeopardy games.
— 🇺🇸 Matt Carberry 🇮🇱🇺🇦 (@mfc248) May 23, 2023The competition is down to four
As we enter the Semifinals of Jeopardy! Masters, only four competitors are left.
In the first match-up, Andrew He, James Holzhauer, and Matt Amodio are playing each other.
Tune in!
Jeopardy! Masters starts NOW on ABC.
When Jeopardy! Masters ends
The Jeopardy! Masters finals will be during the week of Monday, May 22, according to the official ABC Jeopardy! Masters release schedule.
There will be four rounds of semifinal matches starting tonight, followed by the Jeopardy! Masters finals on Wednesday, May 24.
Amy and James are friends in real life
Despite the competitiveness that exists between Jeopardy! contestants, it appears like Amy Schneider and James Holzhauer have nothing but respect for each other.
"James may play a villain on tv, but in real life he’s a great guy, as enjoyable to be around as he is frustrating to play against," wrote Amy on Twitter.
"And I mean that; if I didn’t actually like him, I just wouldn’t say anything about him at all."
Amy Schneider reacts to her elimination
Amy Schneider, a fan favorite of the Jeopardy! series, was eliminated last week.
She reacted to her defeat on Twitter.
"To the best of my knowledge, only two games of Jeopardy have ever aired in which nothing was at stake, and I played in both of them," she wrote.
"So that’s something."
Jeopardy! Masters leaderboard
The following are the current standings of the Jeopardy! Masters,
- 1st: James Holzhauer (18 points, 6 wins, 193 correct)
- 2nd: Andrew He (13 points, 3 wins, 131 correct)
- 3rd: Matt Amodio (9 points, 3 wins, 115 correct)
- 4th: Mattea Roach (8 points, 2 wins, 112 correct)
James Holzhauer's career statistics
According to Jeopardy! fan, James Holzhauer's career statiscs are as follows,
- 1604 questions correct, 71 incorrect
- 48/52 on rebound attempts (on 107 rebound opportunities)
- 53.24% in first on buzzer (1477/2774)
- 90/97 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $783,188)
- 41/49 in Final Jeopardy
- Average Coryat: $27,176
- To win: 28.2%
- To make finals: 75.1%
- To make semifinals: 96.4%
Ken Jennings on sharing hosting duties
Although Ken Jennings is hosting Jeopardy! Masters solo, he normally shares hosting duties with Mayim Bialik.
He joined Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos on last Tuesday's episode of Live with Kelly and Mark to talk about the long-running game show.
"The secret of Jeopardy! is that we do like five in a day," Ken told Kelly and Mark.
He explained how the dual-hosting duties work: "It's really a 50/50 split, mostly reliant on her sitcom schedule. When she was doing Call Me Kat, her time was very limited, so when she was on her sitcom, I was hosting Jeopardy!, and then she would trade in."
Ken added that he thought sharing the spotlight gave a "good variety" to viewers.
Jeopardy! Masters filming location
Jeopardy! Masters films in Culver City, California.
The production crew is situated in the Alex Trebek Stage, previously Stage 10, which is a Sony Pictures Studios building.
In addition to 18 stages that range in size from 7,600 to 42,000 square feet, other on-lot locations offer a variety of settings, including Calley Park, Fish Alley, and Main Street's regional facades.
Who is Amy Schneider?
An engineering manager from Oakland, California, Amy Schneider became the fourth person to top $1million in the 28th round of Jeopardy.
“It feels amazing, it feels strange,” she said in a statement. “It’s not a sum of money I ever anticipated would be associated with my name.”
After a 10-day streak in November 2021, Schneider said: “It’s just so surprising. I’m not going to pretend I didn’t think I could do good, but this has just been so much better than I thought I would do that it’s really hard to say what it means yet.”
Schneider grew up watching the show and in high school was voted as most likely to appear on Jeopardy.
She can set the record for being the first transgender person to qualify for the Tournament of Champions with “the second-longest winning streak in the quiz show’s history,” according to NBC News.
How much James Holzhauer won on Jeopardy!
James Holzhauer lost in the 33rd round against the third-place contestant, Emma Boettcher in a question about Shakespearean literature.
He left the show, having earned a whopping $2,464,216, according to Newsweek.
The final payout of over $2.4million earned him the no. 2 spot for most earned in his time on the show, but he advanced to the no. 1 spot for the highest-earned winnings in one episode with $131,127 on April 14, 2019.
He finished with 32 game wins and 97 percent for his response accuracy, and 71 out of 75 daily doubles.
Fans evolving perspectives on James Holzhauer
Jeopardy! legend James Holzhauer is winning fans and making them change their minds about him.
“Anyone else completely changed how they feel about James Holzhauer?” wrote a viewer on the Jeopardy! Reddit page.
"I was someone who just could not stand him during his initial run, felt he was too cocky, too obnoxious, etc," they continued.
"Watching him in the Masters' tournament, I have appreciated him more than any other contestant. He brings a lot of comic relief, and his embracing of that “villain” role has honestly made him endearing in a way."
Other Redditors agreed, sharing that James seemed more relaxed in the Masters' tournament when compared to his previous appearances on Jeopardy!
Former contestant slams Ken Jennings
Former Jeopardy! contestant Will Wheaton slammed Ken Jennings in a Facebook post, calling him out for not supporting the ongoing writers' strike.
Ken has decided to continue his hosting duties despite his co-host, Mayim Bialik, stepping down in support of the writers asking for fair wages.
"This is a VERY small town, Ken Jennings, and we will all remember this. Your privilege may protect you right now, but we will never forget. #WGAStrong," wrote Will.
The post quickly drew comments from all sorts of people, including those supporting Ken.
"He has the choice to support his fellow workers, or to support management who are exploiting them," replied Will.
"He's made his choice."
Font category slammed by fans
The Double Jeopardy category "A Real Font of Knowledge" appeared during the first game of the hour-long program starring Amy Schneider, Matt Amodio, and Andrew He.
Long-time Jeopardy! viewers presumably guessed from the spelling that the category would use particular type typefaces.
The clue's precise phrasing gave the competitors an opportunity to predict the typeface, and the text itself was printed in that font, which was unique from the game show's usual font.
While some fans (opens in new tab) were happy that a category was created for a subject they were passionate about, others (opens in new tab) had strong negative reactions, including thinking that someone ought to go to jail.
One fan wrote: "This feels illegal and someone should go to jail."
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