Who won Jeopardy! tonight? Daily Doubles help one contestant secure victory despite Final Jeopardy blunder
Chris D'Angelo returned for his fifth consecutive game on 'Jeopardy!' and possibly had one of the most turbulent matches. The content manager entered the game with $83,600 in his kitty. He faced off against Chenfei Lu, a data scientist from San Francisco, California, and Rebecca Joseph, a senior cost accountant from Denver, Colorado. Ultimately, it all came down to the Daily Doubles. The 'Jeopardy!' round was a tug-of-war between D’Angelo and Lu. At times, the returning champion held the lead, while at times, Lu looked poised to win it all. Just before the first commercial break (after 15 clues), D'Angelo was in the lead with $3,600, while Lu wasn't far behind with $3,000. Joseph was trailing in third place with $0 to her name. On clue 20, D'Angelo found the first Daily Double of the game.
Possibly encouraged by the results of Monday's game, where D'Angelo answered every DD correctly, the returning champion decided to go all in. At this point, he had $4,600 in his pocket, while Lu had $4,000. The DD belonged to the category 'Archaeology,' and the clue read, “In 2025, 22 massive stone blocks were recovered from the Mediterranean seabed off Egypt, remnants of this ancient wonder.” D'Angelo's lucky streak from last night continued, and he answered correctly with “What is the Lighthouse of Alexandria?” The response doubled his winnings, leaving him with $9,200. The first round closed with D'Angelo at $10,800, Lu with $4,800, and Joseph at $400.
Joseph got her moment to shine in 'Double Jeopardy' after finding a DD on the seventh clue. This DD belonged to the category '2-Word Magazine Titles,' and its clue read, “It now publishes a large-print edition to go along with its familiar 5.5-inch by 7.5-inch version.” The accountant wrote, 'What is TV Guide?' on her slate, which was deemed incorrect. The right answer was 'What is Reader's Digest?' This wrong answer further depleted her winnings from $2,000 to $1,000. Lu finally got his shot at a Daily Double on clue number 11. At that point, he had $7,600 and was firmly in second place. The data scientist decided to bet $2,500 on the DD belonging to the category 'Overseas Territories.'
The clue read, “This island found by the Royal Navy in 1767 is still British territory, so mutineers, think twice about heading there.” The correct answer was "What is Pitcairn Island?" However, Lu responded with “What is Bermuda?” dropping his total to $5,100. The second round wrapped up with D'Angelo holding a commanding lead with $19,200, against Lu's $5,100 and Joseph's $2,200. 'Final Jeopardy' was revealed to be from the category 'Famous Lines From Literature.' Joseph put in $2,100, Lu bet $67, and D'Angelo wagered a massive but conservative $5,800. The clue read, “Both the first line & the last line of this 1859 novel begin with ‘It.'” It turns out that D'Angelo indeed needed the Daily Doubles to go his way, as he responded incorrectly with “What is Uncle Tom’s Cabin?” The other two contestants answered correctly with, “What is A Tale of Two Cities?” Despite the wrong response, D'Angelo walked away as the winner with $13,400. The victory also made him the 293rd 5-time 'Jeopardy!' champion since 1984 and secured his spot in the 'Tournament of Champions.' D'Angelo will return to defend his title on Wednesday.
