‘Wheel of Fortune’: Italian Restaurant Owner Loses $60,000 on ‘Terrible’ Final Puzzle

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It wasn’t a poetic ending for one Wheel of Fortune player as they lost out on taking home $60,000. Fans were left confused over the bonus puzzle.

Tierra Woods, from Rowlett, Texas, solved the first toss-up on May 25. She is a Jane-of-all-trades and can make anything, including furniture, earrings, and party decorations.

Woods played against Josh Montiel, from Northfield, Illinois, and BJ Herndon, from McRae, Georgia. Herndon, a 40-year-old woman who took her first-ever flight to come on Wheel of Fortune, solved the second toss-up.

Woods took the lead when she solved “That Makes My Blood Boil” for $5,200. She added even more to her total with $8,500 when she solved “Boardwalk and Park Place.”

Montiel, owner of an Italian restaurant that has been open since 1985, obtained the Wild Card during the next round. He solved “Poets and Writers” and won a trip to Ireland. This put him in the lead with $13,747.

Woods solved two of the three triple toss-ups. Montiel added to his lead when he solved the third.

Herndon put $3,000 more in her bank when she solved the final puzzle — “Teddy Bears.” She ended with a total of $5,000.

Woods went home with $12,500. Montiel was the winner with $15,747. Montiel chose “Phrase” for his Bonus Round category.

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Wheel of Fortune gave the game show contestant “R,S,T,L,N, and E.” He rounded out his puzzle with “M,D,B,O, and H.”

From those picks, the puzzle appeared as “_ _ _    _OET_ _.” Montiel didn’t guess anything as the clock counted down.

“This is so tough to figure out without the letters there,” host Ryan Seacrest said.

The puzzle was “Wax Poetic.” There was $45,000 in the envelope, which would have given him $60,747.

Fans reacted to the bonus puzzle, saying they had never heard of the phrase. “Terrible final puzzle,” one Reddit user said.

“What the What? Phrase in the final?” another commented.

“Having poet twice in one game threw me off,” a fan said.

However, some said they got it at the last minute. “I can’t believe I solved the final puzzle tonight. WAX POETIC. It’s odd that we had just seen ‘poet’ in the previous puzzle. No R, so poetic is the only option for a 6-letter word with OET. The WAX came from all the TV and old movies I’ve seen,” one said.

“I got it too, at the very last minute. Once I got ‘poetic,’ I had it!” one last fan said.

Did you solve the final puzzle? Let us know in the comments.