‘Wheel of Fortune’: Marine Wins $92,000 With Help From ‘Game of Thrones’

Brittany Sims April 23, 2026, 12:59 pm

Another one for the history books! Wheel of Fortune‘s returning champion secured himself as one of the highest winners the game show has ever had. Although he did not win Wednesday’s game, one of his rivals, a retired Marine, took home more than $92,000 with a little help from one of his favorite TV shows.

The show’s all-time biggest winner is still Christina Derevjanik who won more than $1 million this season to became WOF’s highest winner ever.

Chad Cabanilla, from Nicolett, Minnesota, entered his fifth game with $171,068. He returned as part of the Spring Forward Champions Tournament, where the winner from the previous night comes back the next night. The champion can keep coming back if they keep winning.

On April 22, he played against Stevi Smith, from Bonner Springs, Kansas, and Edwin Bates, from Belle Chasse, Louisiana. Smith, a woman who takes her 83-year-old grandma on motorcycle rides with her, solved both toss-ups, giving her $3,000.

Cabanilla, a flight attendant, solved the first puzzle — “Loitering In the Left Lane” — for $10,665. He also picked up a wedge for a trip to Monterey, California, adding to the six trips he has already won.

In the next round, which was the “Crossword” puzzle, Cabanilla obtained the Wild Card, but soon lost it after landing on Bankrupt. The turn moved to Bates, a retired Marine and stay-at-home dad, who guessed all of the letters in the “Beat Them” puzzle. He solved “Opponents, Eggs, Bongos” for $4,150.

Bates added to his total even more when he solved “Learning To Fly” for a trip to Canada. He also picked up the Harley Davidson wedge, which gave him a total of $15,700.

“Wow. I haven’t seen this in a long time, someone who is in the lead who isn’t Chad,” host Ryan Seacrest said.

All three game show contestants solved one Triple Toss-up each. Smith solved the final puzzle — “In For The Long Haul.” This gave her a final total of $6,700.

Cabanilla did not win his fifth game and left with $12,655. He left with a grand total of $183,723. Bates won the game with $17,700 and advanced to the Bonus Round.

Cabanilla became the sixth-highest winner in Wheel of Fortune history (not including the celebrity version). He beat out Cindy Kling, who won $147,000 in Season 30. Above him is Laura Trammel, who won $398,690 in Season 38.