‘Wheel of Fortune’ Contestant Has Olive Garden Moment Before Losing $40,000

A Wheel of Fortune contestant revealed happy memories of family meals at Olive Garden after winning a trip to Italy on the game show. But, sadly, she didn’t win the Bonus Round after a tough puzzle and lost out on an additional $40,000.

Grace Hamilton, from Westcliffe, Colorado, played against Derek Houk, from Spokane Valley, Washington, and Takesha Butler, from Columbia, South Carolina, on Monday, April 14.

Butler, an active Air Force member, solved the first toss-up, earning $2,000. Hamilton, a reality TV lover, solved the second, also earning $2,000. Hamilton also solved the first puzzle — “Simply Perfect” — and had a total of $4,250 in her bank, taking the lead. Houk, a golfer, finally got on the board when he solved the crossword puzzle, moving to second place.

For the prize puzzle, Hamilton solved half of it before landing on Bankrupt. Butler also spun Bankrupt. Houk solved all but two letters when he landed on Lose a Turn. Hamilton solved “Search for the Best Gelato” and won a trip to Italy. This brought her total to $13,850.

Hamilton solved two of the three Triple Toss-Ups, adding $4,000 to her total. Butler solved one of them. Houk solved the final puzzle, “The Motion of the Ocean,” adding $4,500 to his bank, for a total of $7,900. Butler left with $3,000. Hamilton was the night’s big winner with $17,850 and a trip to Italy. She advanced to the Bonus Round, where she picked the category “Thing.”

In the Bonus Round, Hamilton brought her mom and her “homie” boss to cheer her on. After Wheel gave her “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” she picked “C,H,M, and A.” Her puzzle then looked like “_ _ _LTE_  _A_R_C.”

Hamilton said, “Filter,” but then didn’t guess anything else as the clock counted down. The puzzle was “Quilted Fabric.” Host Ryan Seacrest told her that she lost out on an additional $40,000.

After the show, Hamilton was interviewed by social correspondent Maggie Sajak. “You’re an adventerous person. You’re going to be taking a trip to Italy soon,” she said.

“I’ve wanted to go to Italy my whole life,” Hamilton revealed. “We grew up having meals around Christmas at Olive Garden and ever since then, I’ve wanted to go there.”

 

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“The endless breadsticks in Italy are even better,” Sajak said.

Hamilton also admitted that she was so nervous and did not expect to do as good as she did.