‘Wheel of Fortune’ Fans Impressed by ‘Fun’ Game as Contestant Loses $69,000

Brittany Sims May 4, 2026, 11:23 am

Wheel of Fortune fans thought the game was really fun since all three contestants walked away with a good amount of money. However, the contestant who won the game couldn’t solve the Bonus Puzzle, so they lost out on $69,000.

Diane Epps, from Pleasantville, New Jersey, returned for her second game on Friday, May 1. She won $63,750 during her first game after host Ryan Seacrest was impressed with her game skills. The woman who has held many jobs was the last WOF contestant to spring forward as part of the champions tournament.

During her second game, Epps played against Phillip Haynes, from Chicago, Illinois, and Lainey Clark, from Colorado Springs, Colorado. Epps solved the first toss-up, and then Haynes, a solar eclipse chaser, solved the second one.

Clark, who almost missed her chance to be on the game show because she had a spotty internet connection, solved the first puzzle — “Appeared On Television.” She won a trip to Australia after landing on a wedge on the wheel. This gave her $17,282.

Haynes solved “The Cat That Swallowed The Canary” in the next round, which gave him $7,000. Clark also obtained the Wild Card before the turn moved to Haynes. However, she lost it in the next round when she landed on Bankrupt.

Haynes solved the prize puzzle — “Sunny Days Ahead” — and won a trip to Turks and Caicos. He took the lead with $27,038.

All three game show contestants solved one of the three Triple Toss-ups. Epps put more money in her bank when she solved the final puzzle — “You’re Growing On Me.” She ended with $11,000. Between her two games, Epps took home $74,750.

Clark left with $19,282. Haynes was the winner with $29,038. He brought two of his best friends with him.

He chose “Food & Drink.” Haynes was given “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” and picked “D,G,Y, and A.”

The puzzle then looked like “TA_ _ _ _A.” As the time counted down, Hanyes guessed “Tomato,” “Taffy,” “Tappas,” “Tobacco,” and more.

Haynes couldn’t figure out “Tapioca.” There was $40,000 in the envelope, which would have given him $69,038.

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At the end of the show, Seacrest and Vanna White told fans that if they liked the Champions Tournament to let them know. However, fans online were more concerned with the game.

Reddit users commented on how much fun the game was. “Haha, this one was fun to watch. Lainey looked like she was gonna run away with it, and her reactions were hilarious, but then Phillip took it back and gained first place with impressive plays. I could tell Diane was getting frustrated, but I’m glad she was able to still win 11k on top of her last game’s winnings,” one said.

“I always like it when everyone wins a good amount of money. Third place got $11,000, that’s a great # for 3rd,” another said.

“These contestants were cool,” a third said.

Wheel of Fortune, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock