‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Blast Show After ‘Bogus’ Puzzle Costs Couple Huge Win
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Another unlucky couple fell victim to a confusing “Place” category on Thursday night’s (February 15) Wheel of Fortune, and fans are not happy about it.
The episode, part of the long-running game show’s Sweethearts Week, saw three couples facing off in a fierce competition. The three pairs were Laura and Gary Novi from Odessa, Florida, Cassie and Jeremy Rowe from Lake Stevens, Washington, and Irene and Vince Washington from Harrison, New Jersey.
Things started off fairly even between the three couples, but as the episode went on, Laura and Gary pulled away from the competition. By the end of regular play, the Novis had a whopping $16,349 in cash and a trip to Ireland, which was enough to advance them to the Bonus Round.
Faced with a two-word puzzle, Laura and Gary picked the additional letters “W, D, M, and I” to go with their given letters of “R, S, T, L, N, and E.” Unfortunately, not a single one of their additional letters appeared on the board.
“Well, those are very nice letters, and you’ll find them in many words in the English language. These don’t happen to be two of them, unfortunately,” host Pat Sajak said.
As the timer started, Laura and Gary were tasked with solving a puzzle that read: “_ _ TER L_ _ _ _”
The couple looked absolutely stumped and struggled to even come up with an educated guess.
After the timer ran out, Vanna White revealed the correct answer: “Outer Lobby.”
While Laura and Gary took the loss in good spirits, viewers at home reacted more passionately. Many fans believed “Outer Lobby” was a made-up thing, not an actual place.
“Outer Lobby. WTF is that ?? You mean there is an inner lobby too ? What a joke that was,” wrote one fan on X (formerly Twitter).
“#Wheeloffortune what the hell is an ‘outer lobby’ ??? Stop coming up with these weird combos so no one wins,” said another.
Outer Lobby.
WTF is that ??
You mean there is an inner lobby too ?
What a joke that was.— Dennis Walker (@1946dwalker) February 16, 2024
#wheeloffortune what the hell is an ‘outer lobby’ ??? Stop coming up with these weird combos so no one wins
— Christopher Anthony (@redheadanthony1) February 16, 2024
“”Outer lobby” was the final puzzle tonight.. nor my family, friends or I have every heard of it and we couldn’t find much online…did they just make this up?” asked another commenter on the Wheel of Fortune Reddit forum.
“It’s not a real thing. Completely made up. I’m not a member of this sub, but some of these bonus round answers are so bogus. I have never heard someone say “outer lobby,” added another.
“@WheelofFortune “Outer Lobby”??? When have those two words EVER been used together??? What??” said one confused fan.
#wheeloffortune@WheelofFortune “Outer Lobby”??? When have those two words EVER been used together??? What??
— ColaCity (@ColaCity1) February 16, 2024
There was at least one viewer who had an explanation, noting, “We have an outer lobby at my office building. This is where visitors first arrive before they are checked in at security and passed through the turnstiles. I or someone from my team must go out to that outer lobby and process them through security.”
This is the second Bonus Round puzzle this week that has caused a stir among fans. On Tuesday’s (February 13) episode, a sweet couple lost out after failing to get the answer “Yearly Banquet” under the “Event” category.
Have you ever heard of an Outer Lobby? Let us know in the comments below.
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