‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant’s Changed Final Answer Leads to Stunning Win

Trust your gut. A last-minute answer change gave one Jeopardy! contestant the win after a close game.

Tristan Williams, from Lincoln, Nebraska, returned for his eleventh game on May 20. The data scientist became a super champ on Tuesday when he won his tenth game with a total of $221,902.

On Wednesday, Williams played against Allegra Rosenberg, from Skokie, Illinois, and Chris D’Angelo, from Washington, D.C. Warning: Spoilers for the May 20 episode of Jeopardy! ahead.

Williams fell behind and was in second place when he found the Daily Double on clue 11. He had $2,600 compared to D’Angelo’s $3,600. Williams wagered $1,600 in “Bible People in the Quran.” The clue read, “A tafsir, or commentary, says this royal ‘set forth from her country and reached Jerusalem.'”

“Who is Esther?” he answered. That was incorrect, and he dropped down $1,000 since the correct response was the Queen of Sheba.

D’Angelo, a content manager, remained in the lead with $5,200, whereas Williams had $2,400. The reigning champion ended with $4.400. D’Angelo was in the lead with $8,000. Rosenberg, a writer, had $2,000.

When Williams found the first DD in Double Jeopardy on clue 17, he was very close to D’Angelo with $12,000. D’Angelo had $13,600.

He wagered $3,500 in “We’ve Got Your Back.” The clue was “From Greek for narrowing spinal this occurs when the space inside the backbone is too small for the nerves, & ouch.”

“What is compression?” he guessed. The correct response was spinal stenosis, dropping him down to $8,500, but remaining in second place.

Rosenberg found the last DD on clue 21. He had $5,200 and wagered $5,000. If she got it right, it would move her to second place with $10,000 since Williams had $9,700.

In “‘Ora’ Framing,” the clue was “Alexander Hamilton said of this quadrennial institution that, while it might not be perfect, it was ‘at least excellent.'” She dropped to $200 when she didn’t have a response. The correct response was “the electoral college.”

D’Angelo ended with $12,800. Williams was in second place with $9,700. Rosenberg had $1,400.

“The 20th Century” was the category for Final Jeopardy. The clue was “51 days after this event, Edward Teller said the United States had lost ‘a battle more important & greater than Pearl Harbor.'”

“What is Hiroshima + Nagasaki?” was Rosenberg’s response. That was wrong, so she ended with $299, after wagering $1,101.

Williams response was “What Fall of Saigon?” He was also wrong. Williams wagered $3,101, making his final total $6,599.

D’Angelo first wrote “What is the Tet Offensive?” but crossed it out and wrote, “What is the Sputnik Launch?” That was the correct answer. D’Angelo wagered $6,601, making his final total $19,401. If he had not changed his answer, he would have ended with $6,199, and Williams would have won by a few $100.

D’Angeleo became the new champion and will return on Thursday for game two. Williams will be back for the Tournament of Champions.

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