‘Jeopardy!’: Andrew He Wins Thrilling First Game of TOC Finals
This… Is… Jeopardy!
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The finals of Jeopardy!‘s highly-competitive Tournament of Champions kicked off on Monday, November 14, and saw an intense rematch between two former rivals.
California natives Amy Schneider, Andrew He, and Sam Buttrey took to the podiums to compete for the TOC crown and the $250,000 prize. But there was more than just money on the line; there was also personal pride, especially for He, as he looked for revenge on Schneider, who ended his five-game winning streak back in November 2021 on regular Jeopardy!
Things started out evenly matched after the first round. Schneider led with $5,000, while Buttrey had $4,888 and He had $4,200. However, just like in his semi-finals game, He made a massive wager when he landed on a Daily Double in the second round. After betting his entire amount, He ended up doubling his total. Buttrey tried to do the same after he hit a Daily Double, but he answered incorrectly.
As the trio entered Final Jeopardy!, He led the way with $18,800, while Schneider had $14,600 and Buttrey had $12,000. He was the only one to answer the final clue correctly. He wagered $10,401 and increased his pot to $29,201, while Schneider answered incorrectly, dropping to $4,600. Buttrey wound up finishing second with his $12,000.
“Andrew He strikes first in his rematch with Amy Schneider,” said host Ken Jennings as He breathed a sigh of relief.
The tournament isn’t over just yet, though. Under the new TOC rules, the winner is the first player in the finals to win three games, so it could potentially be a 7-game competition. So there is still time for super-champ Schneider to fire back, or perhaps Professors’ Tournament winner Buttrey will surprise us all.
“Andrew is dialled in,” wrote a commenter on YouTube. “Sam and Amy have been playing well but he had them covered, even [if] Sam had got the DD and bet it all in FJ Andrew had capacity to still win.”
“I believe Andrew will be at a slight disadvantage if he doesn’t find the DD’s in the following games, and I predict Amy and Sam will both be more aggressive and DD hunting from here on out,” added a user on the Jeopardy! Reddit forum. “I’m not slighting Andrew’s ability one bit. Sam and Amy are just too fast, and their wealth of knowledge is at least on par with Andrew’s.”
“These three are jeopardy TITANS,” said another fan. “This first game did not disappoint – everybody was in it at FJ, and just a few clues made the difference between andrew going into final with the lead and either of sam or amy.”
“Wow. Wow. Wow. That was a VERY even match, and you could see everyone’s talent and knowledge,” wrote one viewer. “The fact that Sam was still in it until FJ despite losing thousands on a DD shows how good he is on the buzzer.”
“My money is now on Andrew, although I think I’m rooting for Sam (“i think” because I like them all),” added another fan. “But it’s clear that Daily Doubles are going to make or break you at this level of competition, and Andrew is most serious about finding them and leveraging them.”
Jeopardy!, Tournament of Champions, Weeknights, Check your local listings
