'It proved to be my undoing': 'Jeopardy!' champion Jared Watson's disastrous mistake ends his 3-day winning streak

Three day champions Jared Watson moved to Final Jeopardy with a good lead despite missing two big Daily Doubles

UPDATED JUN 7, 2023

Three day champion Jared Watson on 'Jeopardy!' (ABC)

LOS ANGELES, CALIFORNIA: ‘Jeopardy!’ can be a brutal game at times. The long-running game show is a fan favorite but it can fire the contestants on a rollercoaster of emotions. In the latest episode, such a thing transpired once again when one of the ‘Jeopardy!’ Champions was at the top until the final round but then he fell and lost it all in a snap. Jared Watson, three-day ‘Jeopardy!’ Champion was in for his fourth straight victory and the quality control specialist from Greenville, Texas entered the competition with hope, confidence, and a three-day winning total of $56,202.

He was faring well on Tuesday, June 6, episode against Suresh Krishnan, a networking engineer from Suwanee, Georgia, and Deborah Claymon, a writer from St Helena, California. A victory would have ensured a ticket to the Tournament of Champions in September 2024 but fate had other plans for Jared. He was solid, leading the board despite missing two big Daily Doubles, and entered Final Jeopardy with $12,800 while Suresh and Deborah could only manage $7,600 and $600 respectively. But it was at this moment, everything was snatched from Jared and he had only himself to blame.

The contestants went into Final Jeopardy looking for 'Nato', but only Jared failed to answer (ABC)

'It proved to be my undoing'

Jared wagered $2401 on Final Jeopardy where the question under “Historic Organizations” read, “A senator called the 1949 pact that formed this a 'fraternity of peace' that 'makes the obligation plain …for us & others.’” Suresh and Deborah answered correctly with NATO while Jared wrote United Nations which doomed him. He lost a big sum and came in second place as Suresh was crowned the winner. It wasn’t an easy loss. Right after the game, Jared clarified his mistake on Reddit.

“Congrats to Suresh, who did exactly what he needed to do to win. Long may he reign! If you had to handpick a category that I would be least thrilled to see for Final, it would be something to do with politics or international organizations. I've just never found the subject interesting to follow or study, and it proved to be my undoing.” Jared was inconsolable but thanked everyone for their support on his journey. “Thank you from the bottom of my heart to everyone at Jeopardy for making my dreams come true beyond anything I could have hoped. And thank you to everyone who has supported me on this journey.”

Remembering Jared’s sweet first victory on ‘Jeopardy!’

Jared won his first ‘Jeopardy!’ on the June 1 episode of the game show. He went into the last round in second place but was thrilled to have turned it around on Final Jeopardy. “Oh man!” he said, and Mayim replied: “Oh man is right!” As the credits rolled Jared said to the host, "I can't words right now." Jared also won $24,000 during the June 2 episode of ‘Jeopardy!’ as he extended his winning streak on the game show.