Here are today’s contestants:
- Kara Brown, a payroll manager from Seattle, Washington;
- Blythe Roberson, a writer from Brooklyn, New York; and
- Harrison Whitaker, a researcher originally from Terre Haute, Indiana. Harrison is a seven-day champ with winnings of $208,201.
Jeopardy!
A.I. IS COMING FOR YOU // HOMOPHONES // CALDECOTT MEDAL & HONOR BOOKS // ANNIVERSARIES // GOODBYE, FISH & CHIPS // INTERNATIONAL HOOPS TERMS WITH CLEANTHONY EARLY
DD1 – $1,000 – ANNIVERSARIES – For the 40th anniversary of her death. she was on a 100-zloty coin; for the 50th, a 100-franc coin (Harrison added $2,600 from his leading score of $3,600.)
Scores at first break: Harrison $6,200, Blythe -$200, Kara $1,800.
Scores entering DJ: Harrison $9,200, Blythe $200, Kara $1,400.
Double Jeopardy!
APPROPRIATELY NAMED PLACES // SETTLE DOWN // AMERICANA // FUNNY PEOPLE // AFTER U // 1929
DD2 – $1,200 – SETTLE DOWN – The first chapter of this man’s Bible book says, “so they took” him, “and cast him… into the sea: and the sea ceased from her raging” (Kara lost $3,000 from her score of $5,800 vs. $10,800 for Harrison.)
DD3 – $2,000 – APPROPRIATELY NAMED PLACES – This Down Under state is bounded by the Timor Sea, the Indian Ocean, the Southern Ocean & a whole lotta desert (Kara doubled to $5,600 vs. $13,600 for Harrison.)
Kara got back in the game with a double-up on DD3, and on the last clue of DJ she moved to within two-thirds of Harrison’s score. Into FJ it was Harrison with $16,400, Kara at $11,200 and Blythe with $3,000.
Final Jeopardy!
WOMEN AUTHORS – In her 2016 New York Times obituary, this author was said to have “gained a reputation as a literary Garbo”
Everyone was incorrect on FJ. Kara made a big overbet of $5,201, so Harrison was able to hang on, dropping $6,001 to win with $10,399 for an eight-day total of $218,600.
Final scores: Harrison $10,399, Blythe $0, Kara $5,999.
Wagering strategy: Kara’s bet was intended to put her one dollar ahead of Harrison if he wagered $0 and she was correct on FJ. However, the chances of Harrison betting nothing are far, far less than him making the standard cover wager, which is why a bet of no more than $800 by Kara was the percentage play. Also note that if Kara had gone with the small bet, the $1,000 that Harrison held back from his DD1 wager would have made the difference between him winning and losing.
Triple Stumper of the day: In AFTER U, no one knew the “2-word term for a policy of severe punishment for rule breaking, with no exceptions” is zero tolerance.
Clue valuation station: There was a top-row clue about the proverb “to pour oil on troubled waters”, which I guess is something they say a lot where the writers come from.
Correct Qs: DD1 – Who was Marie Curie? DD2 – Who is Jonah? DD3 – What is Western Australia? FJ – Who was Harper Lee? (Harrison wrote “Well, it’s been fun” rather than even attempting a guess at an author.)