‘Jeopardy!’: Victoria Groce Speaks Out After Stunning ‘Masters’ Finale
Victoria Groce might have lost her Jeopardy! Masters title to Yogesh Raut on Wednesday night’s (June 4) tense two-game finale, but she is taking the loss in her stride.
The writer from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, went up against Raut and Juveria Zaheer in the finals, and despite winning the first game of the night, Groce was unable to repeat her success in the second. In the end, Raut took the Masters crown, while Zaheer finished in second place.
Taking to the Jeopardy! Reddit forum after last night’s episode, Groce, who won the 2024 edition of Masters, spoke highly of her experience and how she never expected a second chance at Jeopardy! after originally winning just one episode back in 2005.
“In 2005, I went on Jeopardy! I won one game against two spectacular players, lost my second game, figured Jeopardy! was squarely in my rearview mirror, and happily went on with my life,” she wrote. “Between work and school and parenting my life was way too busy to do much else, and quiz is one of the things that I dropped.”
However, slowly but surely, Groce found herself being pulled back into the world of quizzing in 2014 when a friend offered her an invitation to the web-based, invitation-only global quiz league, LearnedLeague. Groce recalled thinking to herself, “Maybe I can relearn what I learned for Jeopardy to get on another game show.”
She continued to hone her craft, competing in the World Quizzing Championships and landing a spot as one of the Chasers on ABC’s The Chase. This would eventually lead to her invite to the 2024 Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament, which she won, earning her a place on the second annual Jeopardy! Masters Tournament, which she also won.
“The utterly insane things that have happened to me over the last three years—The Chase, getting an invitation to come back on Jeopardy!, Masters, everything—I never ever could have predicted when I got back into this hobby a decade ago,” Groce shared. “I don’t feel like I deserved them. I most certainly don’t feel like I was owed them.”
She continued, “I cannot express how grateful I am. Ten years ago I was fearful that I’d have to quit working because of my health and I’d be basically dependent the rest of my life. And now I’ve not only had such amazing experiences in JIT and Masters, but I’ve made the most wonderful friends and gotten the chance to write a book, which had been a dream of mine since I was a kid.”
Groce opened up about her health issues in a 2022 interview with the What It Takes to Know Everything podcast, revealing that after having her daughter at 23, she “spent most of [her] twenties really quite ill.” She explained how she suffers from “chronic migraine,” which she said “varied from being an annoyance to being pretty debilitating through most of my adult life.”
Expressing her gratitude for her Masters experience, Groce told fans on Reddit, “Thank you for watching, and thank you for enjoying this show. I’m acutely aware that I had all kinds of ways to not be here in tonight’s matches—they didn’t have to invite me; I had lots of routes to losses in JIT and Masters last year and this year—and I can honestly say I have felt nothing other than great about how things have gone.”
She also had high praise for her opponents, writing, “All my congratulations to Yogesh and Juveria, who played beautifully and deserved to win 🫶🏻🫶🏻🫶🏻.”
Fans jumped into the comments to react to Groce’s post and her loss in the Masters finals. “This was like watching the Giants beat the Patriots, jaw fully on the floor. Mad respect for your game,” wrote one commenter.
“We loved watching you the past two seasons in tournaments and Masters! Best wishes!” said another.
“I loved watching you on Jeopardy!—especially during the 2024 JIT and the 2024 and 2025 Masters! You’re so entertaining and inspiring. Thanks for sharing your journey!” another added.
Another wrote, “You’re the best! i loved rooting for all three of you – can’t wait to see you come back!”
“It was so much fun to watch you in this year and last year’s Masters!! I hope they have you back next year!” added one commenter.
Did you watch the Masters finals? Let us know your thoughts in the comments below.
Jeopardy! Masters, now streaming on Hulu
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Comments are closed on this story.
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Agree that Yogesh -- although a fabulous player and tremendously intelligent -- was very difficult to root for. Smug, arrogant -- whatever you wish to call it. Juveria was a breath of fresh air and was easy to love. She made this Masters' edition watchable. And she came within one Final Jeopardy correct answer by Yogesh from winning it all. Can't wait to see her and her smiling face and kind heart again in next year's Masters/
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I'm sorry that you misunderstood Yogush. As we all could see, he was humble & likeable when he spoke with Ken. I am happy for him.🥰
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D
Humble???? Have you been watching the same show? According to many many sites the majority of viewers find hin Obnoxious. Many other people use more colorful language.
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That is not a misunderstanding. It is a reading of evidence ...we all have different views of that evidence.
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I have to agree. I COULD NOT STAND Yogesh. So hard to watch. Loved every other finalist!
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I was so disappointed that one of the women didn't win. I don't know if Yogesh was trying to distract them with the totally annoying way he used the signaler or not. Regardless, I just couldn't bring myself to root for him. He doesn't seem like a very grateful person. I hate to pass judgment on someone based on this limited viewing, but that's how he came off to me. Looking forward to seeing either of those ladies again in the future!
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Totally agree with your opening sentence. My sentiments exactly. He deserved the win but I would have preferred to see one of the Ladies prevail.
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Gutted. Hate Yogesh, so obnoxious.1 bad game kept her from returning as champion.
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Victoria was clearly running away with it and then poof— I still think she was the smartest one
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James and Matt are the smartest ones
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I haven't enjoyed watching Jeopardy! ANYTIME Yogesh is a contestant. He blasted the show in 2022 and frankly, I don't understand why he was EVER invited back!
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I Totally agree with you!!! I hated that he won.
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I absolutely despised Yogesh and rooted for ANYONE but him anytime he was on. What an insufferable personality.
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Victoria was distracted after talking about her deceased Father during her Jeopardy mini interview before Double Jeopardy. She didn’t play the same afterward. She seemed to have misty eyes and a faraway look for a while. I think her grief over her father distracted her from the game, for besides being a genius and a knowledgeable super computer, she is a very compassionate woman.
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Good point!
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Victoria is SO gracious, intelligent and well spoken! She is the whole package! I admire her so much. I especially enjoyed her time on the Chase!
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Yogesh. Ugh.
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Wonderful competition throughout Masters. So enjoy their competition and positive regard for each other. Really enjoy JIT and Masters. Really enjoyed watching the final 2 games. Could have watched several more at that level of competition.
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Absolutely nothing annoying about Juveria.
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I so wanted Victoria to win ! ! She is amazing in regaining the strength to achieve a new, joyful life. I have thoroughly enjoyed watching every show she has been on. I am in awe of Yogesh and Juveria is completely charming and brilliant. They looked as if they have great respect for each other, which I loved .
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Besides poor schedules, this year's Final was a long shot: Juveria finished slightly ahead of Victoria, who unluckily ended in last place this time, just like Holzhauer did last year. Victoria's final result was similar to Holzhauer's from last year; also, Juveria's was comparable to Mattea's from season 1, with minor differences. As widely anticipated, Victoria and Yogesh, whose levels of competency appear more elite than the other contestants, were most likely to, and did, enter the Finals.
Yogesh has yearned for the big prize, so he's determined to play better this year. Clearly, he started the tournament strong; slowed down occasionally in the quarters & semis, trusting he'll most likely advance; and saved his best for the Finals. On the other hand, Victoria continues to be consistently strong; and is more dominant this year: equally dominant each round, including a clean/sweeping win in the semis. To some extent, her results in the semis made her slightly too confident as she failed to anticipate the best move Yogesh saved for the end. Still, luck was the more critical factor, particularly b/c Victoria didn't hit any daily doubles in Double Jeopardy!, which diminished her chance of a potentially bigger win in Game 2 of the Finals.
After this year's Final, I now consider Holzhauer, Victoria & Yogesh as the 3 next best-value contestants following the Ken Jennings-&-Brad Rutter-era.
I look forward to more similarly challenging tournaments, and expect better changes next time.
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Congrats to Yogesh! He played brilliantly!
The others were equally impressive and a round of applause to them!
👏👏👏👏
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It seems that the way the contest is played is not very consistent. While I’m very happy for Yogesh and Juveria, it seems that switching the way the scoring is done at the end seems wrong. Victoria killed it all the way through the entire tournament and deserved the win. Sorry, but I feel it should be cumulative points all the way through….. not switching back to a two game contest. After weeks of watching, there could have been no need for the finale.
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Agreed..wish it would have been the first to win 2 games so that one answer wouldn't catapult someone to the win. That said all 3 were amazingly intelligent.
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Yogesh, like most smart people, is arrogant. Juveria and Victoria are just as smart and are sweet and kind. Go ladies
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I join those who rooted against the arrogant Yogesh. Victoria's utter collapse in Double Jeopardy was simply astonishing, almost as if she had exited the stage. But she and Juveria are two of the nicest Jeopardy contestants ever.
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She is great.i was truly disappointed she was not the winner after that first win.
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I ageee with Jason Mo, Victoria was the smartest one in the competition and should have one. I think she let Yogesh win just to make him happy. She was the clear winner through every round and not until the last double Jeopardy round she shut down and came in third. She is a great example of a wonderful woman. I am afraid I won’t watch Jeopardy any longer as this seemed to have a fix for Yogesh to win. Ken did a great job, the questions were difficult to pronounce but he pulled it off.
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I can’t stand Victoria. I hope this is her last appearance. She comes across as a know it all. I didn’t like her on The Chase either.
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Was really rooting for Victoria and Juveria won me over. Disappointed that the tournament's villain won.
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The greatest takeaway for me was not so much the high caliber of intelligence on display - that was undeniable - but the hilarious shots of YOGESH FIGHTING WITH HIS BUZZER!🤣🤣🤣😂😂😂 His buzzer antics seemed to have reached a combative and frenetic level I thought embarrassing.🫣 I just cannot believe none of his fellow quiz veterans, viewers, or even Jeopardy! staff have made him aware of how bizarre, ridiculous and mostly ineffective he looks when lifting the buzzer up in the air, while making multiple, futile, hard-pumping motions.😱😱😱 Luckily for him, Victoria and Juveria are human after all, allowing him to get through and answer enough times when it mattered. I don't watch podcasts, but I'll be interested to know if anyone approaches Yogesh about his (lack of) buzzer skills.🤔 Or are we going to have to anticipate cringe buzzing from Yogesh forever?😵💫😜 Congrats to all the participants this season!👏🏽
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best champion since ken imo.yogish is a smug asshole like holtzhouser.
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Who else thinks she purposefully threw the final game. She knew how badly Yogesh wanted it, didn't need the pressure of having to defend her title again and already had the satisfaction of knowing she could've beaten him anyday.
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I don't think she threw it. If so, she would not have answered correctly in the final moments of Double Jeopardy to get within striking distance of Yogesh. But I do agree that she probably feels relieved now that she is no longer the defending champion (two-time defending, no less) and can come back next year fresh and ready to challenge.
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Not at all b/c Victoria has been very consistent throughout the entire tournament, and from watching, I noticed she's often able to answer what I consider to be the most difficult clues, not necessarily new ones, but those containing uncommon contexts that specialists and/or elites would understand. Still, any defending champion should expect some diminishing luck upon his/her return and/or increased difficulty against potentially new rivals.
While I trust that the Finals was played fairly and think the combined score was precisely anticipated among the contestants themselves, I didn't expect Game 2 to be very different from Game 1. If I remember correctly, Juveria hit a daily double in Double Jeopardy before Yogesh did. Juveria's decision indirectly helped Yogesh, who followed her and doubled his score as well. Without any more dailies in Double Jeopardy, Victoria's unlikely to catch up, and realizing that slowed her down near the end of the round.
Despite the actual outcome, I still consider Victoria as one of the best-value contestants of all time.
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I think groce is a freud. Remember the 64 thousand dollar question show
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Great game. Only fitting that it would that way. Three great players in a race to wire. Been watching Jeopardy for many years. Looking forward to more.
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Congrats to Yogesh! He played brilliantly and won fair & square!
The other contestants were equally impressive…applause to all of them!
👏👏👏👏👏👏
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