JEOPARDY!’s last big winner, Grant DeYoung, faced defeat on Tuesday night after racking up four wins, a total of $81,203 and countless fans.
The Arizona grocery store clerk caused his own downfall in an overly cautious move by the Daily Double, viewers lamented, and would have otherwise won.
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With a worrying 11 errors in his thrilling previous victory, Grant came back burnt but not bitten, facing Chris D’Amico and Sam Spar.
After Danger! round, he narrowly led with $3,800 (and an opening Daily Double), Chris was right behind with $3,400 and Sam had $600.
On Double Jeopardy!, the apparently married champion fans have been buzzing all week and have found the two remaining Daily Doubles.
He lost $4,000 in the second with an admirable guess on the “Leche League” track.
Then things got dicey in the last Daily Double, late in the game, under an $800 clue (or nearly the top line).
Grant had $9,800 and Chris had $11,400, as Ken Jennings warned: “It’s late in the match and you’re losing, Grant.”
Despite the chance to end the game with a larger bet, Grant only bet $3,000.
Although he was correct with “Orphenous,” his lead did not last, and he and Chris battled for the remaining seven lanes of the top row.
Chris regained the lead on the last clue before Final Jeopardy (setting aside the frustrating decision on the “Little League” clue) for just $200.
Heading into a suddenly crucial final round, Chris had $12,600, Grant had $12,400 and Sam had $3,400.
The clue about “The Movies” was: “Louise and Lisa Burns, twins featured in this 1980 film, told a magazine, “We’re naturally scary!
Everyone was right with “The Shining,” and Sam bet small to take third place.
Grant bet $399 to get $12,799 and seemed frustrated with himself.
Chris earned $12,500, winning and becoming the new champion with $25,100.
Chris will face two new challengers tomorrow night to see if he can beat a few more.
Ken assured that although Grant only had four wins, he “had a feeling” we would see him in the next Tournament of Champions.
‘NO’
Fans flooded social media, where they didn’t know why Grant didn’t bet more on the last Daily Double, as he would have won otherwise.
“Grant nooo,” lamented one fan on a Jeopardy! Reddit thread.
“Should have bet a few hundred more on that DD,” wrote another.
“The only thing worse than losing the lead on the final clue of the game is losing the lead on the final clue of the game being followed by one of the easiest Final Jeopardy clues ever. Bad luck for Grant,” wrote a third.
“I would be curious to know what he was thinking at that moment,” wrote a fourth.
“Brutal way to go out,” wrote a fifth.
A sixth posted: “I didn’t like Grant’s DD3 bet. I don’t know how much time they have to place DD bets, but there were only 7 clues left and the numbers turned out to be easy to calculate.
“$5,201 would be the bet to secure the lead. If not, then bet small. Your $3,000 bet was very much in the middle.”
One more had to admit: “Tough break on little league track,” referring to Grant self-correcting after Ken ruled.
GENIUS GRANT
Grant had been strong since defeating three-day champion Will Newton last week.
He went five out of five on Final Jeopardy, a strength that proved decisive for champions like Ray LaLonde.
Speaking of super champions, Grant would often say “What is” when selecting tracks, a page from Matt Amodio’s book.
Everyone said Grant’s four wins couldn’t have come at a better time.
There were a number of three-day champions who failed to clear the hurdle this month, so even if he lost, he broke the curse.
Grant’s four wins also unofficially qualify him for the next ToC, so it’s just the end of the road for now.
The players in the upcoming ToC are currently five-day champions Alison Betts and Dr. Amy Hummel and Lisa Ann Walter from Celebrity Jeopardy!
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SITTING CHAMPION
Meanwhile, fans couldn’t stop clamoring about how Grant competed sitting in a chair instead of standing.
Grant sat in a black swivel chair with silver arms and full back support, adjusted to the same height as his standing opponents.
“Is Grant in a chair?” a user X of many snarked previously.
“Looks like we have another tall one, and his name is Grant, he was sitting in a chair tonight…” another speculated.
“Why do some competitors sit on chairs and others stand? Just out of curiosity, no complaints,” a Redditor previously asked.
Grant decided to share why he was on Reddit.
He explained that he has “arthritis in his back” and the producers gave him a chair so he could perform to the best of his ability.
“They give it if you ask,” he wrote. “I have arthritis in my back which makes it very difficult to sit still for so long.
“I wouldn’t expect every Jeopardy! contestant to reveal why they need one, but I don’t mind saying mine.”
Another user asked: “Do they let you work at the supermarket? (That’s great if they do, I’m just wondering).
Grant joked, “Better yet, they let me walk and be in continuous motion, but Jeopardy hasn’t figured that out yet.”
Other users theorized that he was sitting down because of his height – which isn’t the case, even though he is tall at 6ft.
Grant explained, “Indirectly, you’re not wrong, I’m too tall for my own good!”
While his height isn’t the reason he sits down, it is the reason he can’t turn 360 degrees when he wins.
“A good idea, but my knees keep hitting the podium and I’d probably give them a good slap if I tried (I don’t think being 6’4″ looks that dramatic in the chair).”
‘SOMETHING WE ALWAYS OFFER’
Producers also talked about the policy for Grant or anyone who needs to compete sitting down.
It’s rare to see a contestant seated, and the choice wasn’t addressed on stage or mentioned on the show’s website.
“Fans have noticed that Grant is sitting in a chair during his games,” Sarah Whitcomb Foss said on the Inside Jeopardy! podcast.
“This is something we always offer to competitors.
“We don’t ask why; It’s none of our business,” she added.
“If you want a chair, we’ll give it to you.”
Fans may remember 2024 Tournament of Champions finalist Troy Meyer sitting in on their games.
Troy started sitting in the middle of his initial run the year before.
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‘HIT AND RUN’
Grant instantly caught fans’ attention with a whirlwind Q&A story about a car accident during his first game.
He revealed that he was hit by a car at the exact moment he found out he had taken part in the iconic quiz show.
Grant shared this on the right when he got the message about the big news – a car hit him on the road.
“I left work, got in the car, picked up my phone and it was sinking.
“I’m on the verge of tears looking at this, I got hit and ran away.”
Ken was surprised and his eyes widened, “’A car hit you while you were getting the message?!”
Grant said he was so excited by the news that he didn’t even notice the accident.
“Yes,” he replied, adding, “And I didn’t even realize it because I was, you know, engrossed in getting the text.”
“There were people coming up to me after [saying], ‘Are you aware that your car was just hit?’ and I said ‘No’ by holding my phone and looking at the message.”
Ken then asked if he was okay.
“The car needs some work, but I’m fine, thanks,” Grant replied.
“Grant can buy a new car!” a user X was happy at the time.
“Grant already won the Best in Show award for that wonderful hair,” joked another.
A third wrote: “Well, even after taxes, even the third place #Jeopardy money will help cover any expenses Grant has for that car.”
Clearly, he has accumulated enough money to cover his car and more.
Danger! airs at 7pm ET on ABC – check your local listings.
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This story originally appeared on The-sun.com read the full story
