‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Blast Show After Contestant Loses $40,000
Wheel of Fortune fans have blasted the game show after a contestant lost $40,000 on a puzzle many thought was impossible to solve.
Byron Bernard, from Austin, Texas played against Hunter Simmons, from Fullerton, California, and Melissa Ortiz, from North Babylon, New York, on Wednesday, April 30. Bernard changes his hobbies frequently with his most recent being snowboarding. He also loves temperature changes and told host Ryan Seacrest that he goes outside and sits in his rain jacket to enjoy the weather.
“The other day it hailed and I went outside at three in the morning,” Bernard said. Seacrest stared at the camera in silence with a confused expression on his face for a few seconds.
“Doesn’t hail hurt?” the host asked after he pulled himself together.
“It’s not too bad,” Bernard admitted.
“I’m going to try it sometime,” Ryan Seacrest said.
Bernard solved the first toss-up, “Inflating an Inner Tube,” for $1,000. Ortiz, a librarian at Lorette Park Elementary School, solved the second one, “Tequilla Sunrise,” for $2,000.
Bernard solved the first puzzle for $1,000, tying Ortiz. Simmons had no money at that point. He finally got on the board when he solved the third puzzle, adding $1,700 to his bank.
Bernard took the lead when he solved the Prize Puzzle — “Mouth Water Risotto” — and won a trip to Italy, making his total $11,600.
All three game show contestants solved one Triple Toss-Up each, putting an extra $2,000 into their banks. In a rare occurrence, Wheel of Fortune fit in one more puzzle before the final puzzle, and Ortiz solved it. Simmons solved the final puzzle, “Number One Best-Seller,” and added $9,000 to his total. This put him in second place after he was last the whole game.
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Only $900 behind Bernard, Simmons ended with $12,700. Bernard had $13,600 and advanced to the Bonus Round. Oritz went home with $6,700.
For the Bonus Round, Bernard chose “Living Things.” He brought his cousin with him to cheer him on who told Ryan Seacrest that Bernard is actually non-committal to his hobbies.
After Wheel of Fortune gave him, “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” he chose “G,M,C, and O,” to round out the puzzle. It then looked like “_ _ _ _T_C _ _R_S.” He mumbled words like “Pacific, “Artic,” and “Blast,” but none of them were correct.
The puzzle was revealed to be “Aquatic Birds,” and he lost out on an additional $40,000. Still, he walked away with more than $13,000 total.
When Bernard’s Bonus Round was posted to YouTube, fans had something to say about the odd puzzle.
“Aquatic Birds. Where and what the hell are they!?” one fan asked. (Editor’s Note: An aquatic bird is a bird that lives on or around water.)
“Very tough solve,” said another.
“Wow. This show sucks now,” added a third.
“They are really making the contestants earn the wins this week,” a fan commented.
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