‘Jeopardy!’: Close Game Goes Down to Final Question

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[Warning: The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Tuesday, December 9, episode of Jeopardy!]

The December 9 episode of Jeopardy! was a close game that came down to the final question. Will Riley returned for his second game after defeating Ron LaLonde on Monday. Did he defend his title and win?

Riley, an engineer, went into game two with a total of $16,801. He faced off against Jenna LaFleur, from Washington D.C., and Steve Riddell, from Euless, Texas, on Tuesday.

Although the first half of the round was a back-and-forth between Riley and Riddell, a business manager, Riley came out on top after the first 15 clues. However, LaFleur, a freelancer, found the Daily Double on clue 18.

She made it a true Daily Double with a $2,400 bid. The clue in “That’s Probably Illegal” was: “This crime refers to illegally transporting booze or taping & selling that Doobie Brothers concert.” LaFleur correctly responded with “What is bootlegging?” She doubled her score, giving her the lead with $4,800.

LaFleur kept the lead for the rest of the round and ended with $7,600. Riley had $5,400. Riddell was in third place with $4,400.

In Double Jeopardy, Riley found the first DD on clue six. He made it a true Daily Double in “Islands” with $6,200. The clue was “In 1902, an eruption of Mount Pelée on this French island destroyed the city of Saint-Pierre.” Riley correctly responded with “What is Martinique?” and doubled up to $12,400.

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The rest of the round was a battle for first place between Riley and LaFleur. LaFleur’s opportunity came when she found the third DD on clue 12. She wagered $2,000 in “Say ‘Love.'” The clue was “The June 1915 issue of Poetry magazine contained an angry letter from Ezra Pound as well as this poem by T.S. Eliot.”

“What is The Waste Land?” She answered incorrectly.

“Sorry, no. Gotta have ‘love’ in it. It is The Love Song of J. Alfred Prufrock,” host Ken Jennings replied. She lost $2,000 from her total.

Riley had the lead going into Final Jeopardy with $19,600. However, he didn’t have a runaway as LaFleur was a close second with $14,400. Riddell was in third place with $9,200.

Only one of the game show contestants got the final clue right. The category was “Legends.” The clue read, “Legend says that for military aid, Robert Bruce gave half of a symbol of Scotland’s monarchy to the King of Munster, who turned it into this.” The correct response was the Blarney Stone.

Riddell’s response was “What is a royal crest?” He wagered all of his money, leaving him with $0. LaFleur responded with “What is a unicorn sword?” She wagered $5,201, leaving her with $9,199. Riley had the correct answer. He wagered $9,201, making his final total $28,801.

Riley now had a two-day total of $28,801. He will return for game three on Wednesday.