‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant Makes Disastrous Final Wager (VIDEO)

April Marquet Jeopardy!
Jeopardy!/YouTube

Jeopardy! is back and already delivering buzzworthy moments, as a contestant on Tuesday’s (September 13) episode made a final wager blunder so shocking that it lost her the entire game.

The show’s 39th season kicked off on Monday with now permanent co-host Ken Jennings at the helm and reigning champion Luigi de Guzman, who won the last game of Season 38, returning to defend his crown. Guzman continued his winning ways on Monday with an impressive 34 correct responses and a $42.4K total, the biggest single-game showing since Mattea Roach.

However, Guzman had some stiff competition on Tuesday’s episode, as digital production artist April Marquet went into Final Jeopardy with a slight lead, with her $16,600 to Guzman’s $15,700. All she had to do was correctly answer the last question: “Prince Philip’s titles included Baron Greenwich & Duke of Edinburgh, but not Prince Consort, last used by this royal.”

Marquet knew the answer, as did Guzman, with both competitors writing down “Prince Albert.” That should have been game over for Guzman. Instead, the attorney from Arlington, Virginia, wagered a massive $15,699, doubling his earnings, while Marquet only wagered a meager $1801. Even Jennings seemed surprised when he saw the result. “Just $1801,” he said before adding, “Good for second place.”

“Luigi de Guzman survives a scare; you are a three-day Jeopardy! champion,” Jennings continued as Marquet shook her head in disappointment, realizing she had just made a fatal error.

“Poor April. You could tell she was very nervous and realized her mistake in not wagering enough. I bet she was thinking I’ll never live this down,” tweeted one viewer. “I won’t criticize because I have never been in her shoes. I would be nervous AF.”

” I can’t believe April waged so little. Big mistake,” added another commenter. Others shared similar sentiments, with one fan writing, “Wow. April made a horrible bet and will rue that one for a while.

As for Marquet, she fully admitted her blunder. “My wager was a huge mistake,” she wrote on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum. “I was confident in the final category, too! I intended to cover Luigi’s potential final total by a dollar, but I lost perspective while I scribbled on scratch paper. Soon after I submitted my wager, I realized I’d messed up.”

Jeopardy!, Weeknights, Check your local listings