Did ‘Wheel of Fortune’ Just Serve Up Its Most Impossible Puzzle Ever?
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Wheel of Fortune is celebrating Valentine’s Day with a special Sweethearts Week, but there was nothing sweet about what went down at the end of Tuesday’s (February 13) episode. The show served up what was an almost impossible puzzle to solve. And, perhaps not surprisingly, the contestants missed out on a $40,000 jackpot.
Contestants Greg Ruvolo and Tom Bayer, from Lathrup Village, Michigan, quickly won fans over. The likable couple, who have been married for six years and together for 18, opened up about their love of food and desire to open a gourmet bistro market.
When they reached the bonus round, the pair had a chance to win a big chunk of money to put towards their bistro dreams. After leading the competition for most of the episode, Greg and Tom entered the bonus round with $15,350 cash and a trip to France, plus a Wildcard Wedge.
They picked “Event” as their category and the additional letters “C, M, P, and O” to go with the given letters of “R, S, T, L, N, and E.” And, due to the Wildcard Wedge, the couple also got to select an extra consonant, choosing “Y.”
The “Y” proved to be a wise choice, as the two-word puzzle read, “YE _ R LY _ _ N _ _ ET.”
Unfortunately, Greg and Tom struggled to find the correct answer, guessing “Yearly Bonnet” and “Yearly Benefit.”
“I’m sorry, you were right there, you had the right idea,” host Pat Sajak said as he opened the prize envelope to reveal the couple lost out on $40,000.
“Hey, they’re going to France and got $15,350,” Sajak added as the studio audience groaned in disappointment.
Viewers at home were also disappointed that Greg and Tom lost out on the big prize.
“They got a gay couple on Sweethearts Week, im in joy!!!” wrote one fan on X (formerly Twitter).
“I just want to be Greg and Tom’s friend they are so much fun,” added another commenter.
Another said, “I love this gay couple on Wheel of Fortune.”
“Shoutout to the gay couple on wheel of fortune whose names are tom and greg,” wrote another.
“It’s refreshing to see there is more diversity and inclusivity in all game shows. People who think otherwise need to have a clear reality check,” said another viewer in the YouTube comments.
Would you have solved the bonus round puzzle? Let us know in the comments below.
Correction 03/14/24: A previous version of this article had an incorrect spelling of Greg Ruvolo’s surname.
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