The quarter-final round of Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions (ToC) 2022 came to an end on Monday, November 7, 2022.
Season 38 champions who returned to earn a spot in the semi-finals of ToC 2022 were:
- Sam Buttrey, an associate professor of operations research at the Naval Postgraduate School from Pacific Grove, California (Professors Tournament champion).
- Jessica Stephens, a statistical research specialist from Nashville, Tennessee (Second Chance Tournament champion).
- Zach Newkirk, an attorney from Arlington, Virginia (6 wins, $18,896 average score).
The format of the tournament is the same as that of Jeopardy!. The official synopsis of the game show reads:
“The host tests the knowledge of the contestants on a wide range of subjects and the winner gets to claim the title and keep the prize money.”
Today’s Jeopardy! winner is Sam Buttrey
The result of the November 7 episode was quite predictable from the start. The categories for the first round included “Valleys, That ’70s Or ’80s Show, Dance; ‘D’ In Science, Get A Handle On It, In The Nato Phonetic Alphabet.”
Sam Buttrey was thriving in this round as he gave 20 correct answers and banked $8,000. Despite losing his first Daily Double, he was unstoppable.
Zach Newkirk, who had the highest wins in Season 38, got only five questions correct and scored $2,200. Jessica Stephens, on the other hand, gave three answers correctly but also delivered the same number of incorrect responses. Thus, her score went negative, at -$1,400.
In the second round, the categories were “Vice Presidents, A Crash Of Symbols, Brit Bits, 13-Letter Words, In That Novel, Herbal & Spicy Names.”
Jessica tried her best to get out of the negative mark, but failed to do so and ended up with a score of -$5,800. Sam took the lead in the Double Jeopardy round and scored $19,600. Seeing his total, Zach tried to up his game by wagering a large amount during his Daily Double but lost the chance. He backed $5,200 in round 2.
The Final Jeopardy was not as competitive as expected. Jessica was not allowed to participate as her round 2 total ended in a negative score. Zach and Sam played the final round and won. As the latter’s total was higher, Zach landed in second place.
Hence, Sam Buttrey won Jeopardy! today.
Final Jeopardy! results today
In the November 7 episode, the category for the final round was “Phrases from the Ancient World.” The question, in the form of a clue, read:
“Cicero wrote that a tyrant ordered this to be hung from the ceiling “by a horse-hair”; his guest begged to leave.”
The correct answer for the final clue was “Sword of Damocles.”
Sam and Zach gave the correct response, while Jessica couldn’t participate in the final round as her score was negative.
If you’re in the J! Tournament of Champions, they send you some sweet swag, like a blanket, a hat, a pint glass, socks, and pictures of your favorite TV/movie star. I picked that guy from “Only Murders in the Building.” I love that guy! #JeopardyToC #Jeopardy @SteveMartinToGo https://t.co/GwZEiryKGI
Take a look at the final results of Monday’s quarter-final episode:
Sam Buttrey: $19,600 + $0 = $19,600 (What is the Sword of Damocles?) (Semi-Finalist)
Zach Newkirk: $5,200 + $528 = $5,728 (What the Sword of Damocles?)
Jessica Stephens: -$5,800 (As per show’s rule, she didn’t participate in the final round)
The stage is set. The die is cast. The fuse on the most highly anticipated #JeopardyToC ever is lit, and it’s going to be 🔥Tune in TONIGHT! https://t.co/yVJpo3Qn42
With today’s win, Sam earned a spot in the semi-finals, which will be held for three days. The quarter-finals of the 2022 Tournament of Champions started last Monday, and so far, the semi-finalists are Maureen O’Neil, Andrew He, Tyler Rhode, John Focht, Eric Ahasic, and Sam Buttrey.
Amy Schneider, Matt Amodio, and Mattea Roach are the highest scorers from Season 38 who will directly compete in the semi-finals in the upcoming episodes.
Hosted by Ken Jennings, the next episode will air on Tuesday, November 8, 2022.
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