‘Wheel of Fortune’ Player Loses $40,000 But Fans Were Distracted by Other Contestant

A Wheel of Fortune contestant seemed to follow in the footsteps of their fellow Bonus Round contestants this week and lose out on extra money. However, fans of the game show weren’t paying attention to who won the game, but rather the winner’s competitor, who was easy on the eyes.

Renea Zuidmulder, from Colorado Springs, Colorado, played against Jake Cronkhite, from Oak Lawn, Illinois, and Charlotte Williams, from Kingston, Oklahoma, on Thursday, May 1.

During the introductions, Cronkhite mesmerized host Ryan Seacrest. “I like your hair,” he told the contestant.

“I’m trying to follow you, and Johnny Bravo,” Cronkhite said. The contestant said that he is a 90’s baby, so he’s “30, flirty, and thriving.” He also met Maggie Sajak during an audition for Wheel of Fortune in Chicago, Illinois. Seacrest joked that he was “50 and needs a facelift.”

According to his LinkedIn page, Cronkhite is a partner service account manager at Booking.com, which he has worked at since May 2023. He also has a bachelor’s Degree in Marketing and seems to be a bachelor himself. He also seems to be a fan of jorts.

“Jake’s a cutie,” one YouTube user wrote.

“I like Jake’s hair too,” said another.

Cronkhite soon found himself on the “Hot Guys of Wheel of Fortune” X page, which featured a shirtless photo of him.

Williams, who is a grandmother to 13 grandkids and five great-grandkids, solved both of the toss-ups, putting her in the lead. For the first puzzle of the game in “Same Letter,” Cronkhite landed on the One Million Dollar wedge. “Do you know what you’re doing?” Seacrest asked. “You’re flirting with a million dollars.”

 

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He took the lead when he solved the puzzle — “Fish, Frogs, Fireflies, and Fiddlesticks.” This gave him the lead of $3,750. If he made it to the Bonus Round, there would be a $1 million envelope on the wheel.

However, Zuidmulder, a cook, quickly took the lead on the next puzzle when she picked up the Mystery Wedge for $10,000 and solved the puzzle. Williams won the prize puzzle and a trip to Lake Tahoe, which put her in the lead at $12,765, only $715 ahead of Zuidmulder. She quickly took the lead back, however, when she solved all three Triple Toss-Ups for $10,000, giving her a total of $22,050.

Cronkhite “soaked up the sun” for the last puzzle, giving him a final total of $6,950. He didn’t win the game, but he did win fans’ hearts. Williams went home with $12,765. Zuidmulder went to the Bonus Round with $22,050.

Zuidmulder picked “What are you doing?” for the Bonus Round. She brought her husband and sons with her to cheer her on. After Wheel of Fortune gave her “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” she chose “G,M,C, and I.” Her puzzle then looked like “_CTING _ _IR _ _.”

As the clock counted down, Zuidmulder said “Acting viral, acting….” but never figured out the last word. The puzzle was “Acting Quirky.” The contestant lost out on an additional $40,000.

“Quirky is a tricky word and Renea did everything that she could but failed to solve it, that was a tough puzzle on Acting Quirky,” a YouTube user said.