‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Meltdown After Player Loses $68,000 on ‘Cruel’ Puzzle

A Wheel of Fortune contestant said she had no clue what a word was in her Bonus Round puzzle which resulted in her losing out on an additional $40,000. This makes it the eighteenth Bonus Round loss in a row, causing fans to complain.

Amy Johnston, from Schertz, Texas, played against Misha Graves, from Minneapolis, Minnesota, and Jon Reinink, from Indianapolis, Indiana, on Wednesday, May 21.

Graves, who has been married for nine years with seven children, solved the first two tossups for $3,000. She also solved the first puzzle — “Hula Hoops and Happy Hour” — giving her a huge lead.

Johnston, who used to open for an Elvis impersonator at a Chinese restaurant, finally got on the board when she solved the Mystery Puzzle — “Ice Cream In a Waffle Cone.” She gained a substantial lead when she guessed most of the letters in the Prize Puzzle and then solved it — “Shake off the Winter Blues.” Johnston won a trip to Lake Tahoe, giving her a total of $13,739.

Johnston gained another $10,000 when she guessed all three Triple Toss-Ups. She secured her spot in the Bonus Round when she solved the final puzzle — “Wellness Spa.”She ended with $28,539. Graves left with $5,000. Reinink, a minister by trade, was given $1,000 by Wheel of Fortune after not winning any money.

For the Bonus Round, she picked “What are you doing?” The game show contestant brought her parents and her middle daughter, Kayla, with her.

After Wheel of Fortune gave her “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” Johnston picked “G,C,M, and O.” Her puzzle then looked like “_ _ _ _ NG  _T  O_ER NO_.”

“Something it over now,” Johnston guessed as the timer counted down. “Picking it over now,” “Making it over now,” “Taking it over now,” “Watching it over now,” “I got nothing,” she said.

The puzzle was revealed to be “Faxing it over now.” “Of course. I don’t even know what faxing means,” Johnston said. She lost out on an additional $40,000.

Fans also didn’t understand the puzzle. “OK, that one really didn’t seem fair because who on this planet uses a fax machine anymore??” a YouTube commenter said. 

“The person who is making these final puzzles should be fired. THERE ARE IMPOSSIBLE,” wrote another. 

“Pretty sure until now, a lot of people forgot at one point, things could be faxed over. This puzzle seemed a little cruel,” a third added. 

“Such a dumb puzzle,” said another.

“This is just a cheap, twisted show that is designed to defeat its own contestants,” one Reddit user commented.

“Nobody has sent a fax in over 20 years. Seriously stupid,” said one last fan.