Today’s players in the Champions Wildcard semifinal are:
- Joe Velasco, a director of customer care, originally from La Mirada, California;
- Lawrence Long, a nursing student & stay-at-home uncle from East Bend, North Carolina; and
- Sam Stapleton, a college consultant from Los Gatos, California.
Jeopardy!
WE WHISTLE WHILE YOU WORK // BACK TO SCHOOL, SPORTS STAR // LET’S GET MEDICAL // WHO SAID THIS? // AWARDS & HONORS // LIKE A ROCK
DD1 – $600 – WHO SAID THIS? – In a 1974 national TV address he conveyed, “Our long national nightmare is over…” (Lawrence added $2,200.)
Scores at first break: Sam $2,200, Lawrence $5,000, Joe $600.
Scores going into DJ: Sam $4,000, Lawrence $6,000, Joe $4,600.
Double Jeopardy!
LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES // PRE-FAME CELEBS IN ADS // CRAFTMANSHIP // VOCABULARY // ‘ROUND MIDNIGHT // FELONIOUS MONKS
DD2 – $1,600 – LANDLOCKED COUNTRIES – Ouagadougou, the capital of this country, is about 500 miles from the seacoast (On the first clue of the round, Sam added $4,000.)
DD3 – $2,000 – VOCABULARY – Having all 5 vowels in alphabetical order, it means cleverly amusing, but it can also be snarky in tone (Joe dropped $2,500.)
Scores going into FJ: Sam $18,400, Lawrence $10,000, Joe $7,300.
Final Jeopardy!
ROYALTY – Before his death in 2005, he said he was “probably the last head of state to be able to recognize all his compatriots in the street”
Everyone was incorrect on FJ, as Lawrence had the right person but gave them an incorrect royal title. As a result, Sam was able to advance, dropping $1,601 to finish with $16,799.
Final scores: Sam $16,700, Lawrence $0, Joe $7,300.
Correct Qs: DD1 – Who was Ford? DD2 – What is Burkina Faso? DD3 – What is facetious? FJ – Who was Prince Rainier III of Monaco? (Lawrence wrote “King Rainier”.)