Jeopardy Baby, Ooooh-ooh-oooooh (1 Viewer)

[Pip's Invitation]

There have been some horrid players of late. The current 3-day champ has won a total of $21K, making Megan Wachspress look like James Holzhauer. (Like her, he's good at wagering in FJ.) On Monday we were again very close to only one person qualifying for FJ, and today we had one who got in the red almost as far as Wolf Blitzer.

I have a theory as to why we are seeing such variance in performance post-pandemic: Auditions are now done over Zoom instead of in person. This puts more people on the radar than before, and there may be some good players who would not have applied before because they didn't want the commitment or hassle of getting to another city for an in-person audition who are applying now because they don't need to leave their home to do so. At the same time, the in-person audition gives the producers information about potential contestants that they can't get over Zoom, including how good their buzzer skills are, how they perform against actual people in a mock competition and how well they comport themselves in a simulated TV environment. So I think some people who would have been weeded out as duds in an in-person audition are sneaking through.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

I'm just glad the champ didn't do the slow crank after his first win.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I'm just glad the champ didn't do the slow crank after his first win.

If you’re averaging 7k per win, you shouldn’t be mugging for the camera.

 

[brun]

Luckiest champ I can remember. But hey, luck helps sometimes. Don't know how long it lasts but he's getting valuable thumb on the button reps.

Guy in the middle looked like he was seething inside. Probably not used to losing trivia contests.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

Guy in the middle looked like he was seething inside. Probably not used to losing trivia contests.

Then maybe he should know that Jamaica isn't in the South Atlantic. What a doof.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Guy in the middle looked like he was seething inside. Probably not used to losing trivia contests.

Then maybe he should know that Jamaica isn't in the South Atlantic. What a doof.

There was something "off" about that guy. First, he kept answering before Mayim called on him. Then he answered with a weird cadence. And of course many of his wrong answers were ridiculous.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Didn't catch last nights as we had plans but during this truly awful stretch of play I keep reminding myself we are coming fresh off the most insane run of Superchamps ever known to the game. There has never been anything like the second half of Season 37 and Season 38. We were spoiled with absolute stellar play, and through social media, tournaments and the J! Masters, we learned they also happened to be first rate humans.

Tough act to follow. A little ebb and flow is normal.

 

[Runkle]

Didn't catch last nights as we had plans but during this truly awful stretch of play I keep reminding myself we are coming fresh off the most insane run of Superchamps ever known to the game. There has never been anything like the second half of Season 37 and Season 38. We were spoiled with absolute stellar play, and through social media, tournaments and the J! Masters, we learned they also happened to be first rate humans.

Tough act to follow. A little ebb and flow is normal.

Covid was a major factor, a lot of the run was people who knew they'd get on the show and had a year to prepare instead of the two week cram. Once that backlog cleared the play will return to normal levels.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

One of today's contestants also seems to think that Australia is somehow adjacent to the Atlantic. The US needs to require geography as a subject again.

 

[Snoopy]

One of today's contestants also seems to think that Australia is somehow adjacent to the Atlantic. The US needs to require geography as a subject again.

A professor thought that.

 

[Mr. Mojo]

One of today's contestants also seems to think that Australia is somehow adjacent to the Atlantic. The US needs to require geography as a subject again.

Based on this week, they need a lot more Geography questions on the Jeopardy test...

 

[Leroy Hoard]

Even I got that geography question.

 

[BobbyLayne]

One of today's contestants also seems to think that Australia is somehow adjacent to the Atlantic. The US needs to require geography as a subject again.

That was an egregious response, but only marginally worse than how badly worded the FJ was to begin with.

WORLD OF WATER​

The Bass Strait divides Tasmania & mainland Australia & hydrographers have disputed which of these 2 larger bodies it's part of

I hated that Final bc there may be many possible answers to this one. On its west, depending on who’s making the definition, the body of water is either the Great Australian Bight, the Indian Ocean, or the Southern Ocean. On its east, it’s either the Tasman Sea or the Pacific Ocean. Considering that either half of this response has multiple possible responses, I don’t think that it’s an appropriate clue for a Final.

I texted 4 friends from Oz and all of them answered The Southern Ocean.

(weirdly, without any intention on my part, the entirety of my NYC life has been somewhat Aussie centric. My first apartment, where I stayed 8 years, was a Down Under enclave - about 10 Australian families lived on the block, and Heath Ledger bought a townhouse around the corner from another Australian film star, LIttle Nell from Rocky Horror. I've had multiple Australian pastors at churches of different denominations. There are only 20K Australians here - less than 1/4 of 1% of the NYC population.)

***************

Current Champ Ben is the first player in Jeopardy! history to win less than $50,000 post-doubling (or $25,000 pre-doubling) in their first five wins. The previous record was set last June by Megan Wachspress at $52,002.

Ben Goldstein, career statistics:​

98 correct, 18 incorrect
2/3 on rebound attempts (on 31 rebound opportunities)
36.62% in first on buzzer (104/284)
1/4 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$5,200)
1/5 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,360

 

[Mjolnirs]

I hated that Final bc there may be many possible answers to this one. On its west, depending on who’s making the definition, the body of water is either the Great Australian Bight, the Indian Ocean, or the Southern Ocean. On its east, it’s either the Tasman Sea or the Pacific Ocean. Considering that either half of this response has multiple possible responses, I don’t think that it’s an appropriate clue for a Final.

Completely agree. I went with Pacific and Indian assuming they were going to go with the most basic answer. But there were multiple correct ways to answer that.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I said Indian Ocean & Pacific Ocean based on the word "larger". Also because I couldn't remember the smaller water entities around there. But I can see how the wording would be confusing.

What we do know is that Atlantic Ocean is wrong. In what universe is that anywhere near Australia?

 

[BobbyLayne]

Well played game tonight by all 3 players, a refreshing change.

50 correct responses
3 incorrect
9 triple stumpers
Combined Coryat Score: $42,800

That's the best Combined Coryat since mid-May, and a far cry from the beginning of the week when we saw a season low 11,800 game.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

Well played game tonight by all 3 players, a refreshing change.

First time I remembered seeing all three players going into FJ with more than $10K in a while.

 

[Mr. Mojo]

Well played game tonight by all 3 players, a refreshing change.

50 correct responses
3 incorrect
9 triple stumpers
Combined Coryat Score: $42,800

That's the best Combined Coryat since mid-May, and a far cry from the beginning of the week when we saw a season low 11,800 game.

I even liked all 3 players.

 

[jhib]

WORLD OF WATER​

The Bass Strait divides Tasmania & mainland Australia & hydrographers have disputed which of these 2 larger bodies it's part of

I hated that Final bc there may be many possible answers to this one. On its west, depending on who’s making the definition, the body of water is either the Great Australian Bight, the Indian Ocean, or the Southern Ocean. On its east, it’s either the Tasman Sea or the Pacific Ocean. Considering that either half of this response has multiple possible responses, I don’t think that it’s an appropriate clue for a Final.

I texted 4 friends from Oz and all of them answered The Southern Ocean.

Would the Strait be considered part of the Great Australian Bight and/or the Tasman Sea, though, or just adjacent to each? I would guess a straight would be considered separate, and each of the three considered part of one ocean or another.
That would still leave the Southern Ocean issue, but I wonder if they would have just accepted that instead of the Indian. One might assume the host would have mentioned that, but it was Mayim after all. Maybe Ken would have.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Would the Strait be considered part of the Great Australian Bight and/or the Tasman Sea, though, or just adjacent to each? I would guess a straight would be considered separate, and each of the three considered part of one ocean or another.

Wikipedia:

Bass Strait is a strait separating the island state of Tasmania from the Australian mainland (more specifically the coast of Victoria, with the exception of the land border across Boundary Islet). The strait provides the most direct waterway between the Great Australian Bight and the Tasman Sea, and is also the only maritime route into the economically prominent Port Phillip Bay.

 

[BobbyLayne]

The way Donna played her last 7 clues, bet FJ AND the challenger FJ bet had me crying Oh the humanity!

 

[Leroy Hoard]

The way Donna played her last 7 clues, bet FJ AND the challenger FJ bet had me crying Oh the humanity!

Yeah, that last part of the game was a disaster waiting to happen.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

From the expression on her face, I think she just doubled the $11K and forgot that the units carry the one over.

I had to go back and make sure I had just seen that. Oy!

 

[Pip's Invitation]

It's funny to think that James, with his gambling background, would probably be one of the best at FJ wagering, but he's rarely had to display that skill because the vast majority of his games are runaways.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Yesterday the DD2 came on the first clue of Double Jeopardy. All three avoided the science category like the plague, and DD3 came on the 30th and final clue (2000 level.)

Interestingly, the Jeopardy writers have been consistently sticking a DD at 1600 or 2000. Like a half dozen times in the last few months. Maddenly, we have mostly players who don't hunt for DDs.

Andy from Jeopardy Fan has a theory on the how the writers strike has been affecting the quality of clues:

Why I Think We’re Seeing “Harder” Games​

The “hot” talking point of the past couple of weeks has been clue writing. There has been an increased variance in clue difficulty and several cases where clues—including Finals—could have been pinned better. And I think there’s a good reason for that: the WGA strike.

I would like to preface this by saying that I believe that Jeopardy!‘s writers are the most important part of the show’s staff; their work has caused Jeopardy! to become the institution it is today. However, I think the overall quality of their work has suffered over the past few weeks because they were forced to prioritize quantity over quality. Because there were so many games that needed to be finalized before the writers went on strike—a full four weeks’ worth of boards had to be finalized before the strike, in addition to the 1,220 extra clues that needed to be written for Jeopardy! Masters—the overall quality of the material has fallen. It seems clear that the writers and producers, forced by a massive deadline crunch, greenlit material that ordinarily would have been sent for significant revisions—either for difficulty or pinning reasons. Once the strike is resolved and the writers return to work—hopefully sooner rather than later—I’m sure we’ll see a resumption of the higher-quality writing for which the show is known.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Hiding the DD in science categories:

• June 26 - Scientists 2000
• June 5 - The Science of Poetry 1600
• May 30 - Scientists 1600
• April 7 - Science 1600

If you want to find a Daily Double, maybe look at the $1600 clue in the science category lol.

Yesterday the champ had a chance at a lockout with the final clue DD. Seems like that would be the play most of the time, no? If you're really not feeling it, then just bet $5 and be content knowing you just blocked your opponents. Her bet of $1000 kind of didn't make sense.

We see poor betting strategy on DDs often in the DJ round. I was just looking at the April 7 game, and it's a classic (IMO) misstep.

Player finds DD3; he had $8,000 to his opponents' $10,000 and $11,200, with $7,600 in clues still to play.

He wagered $4,000--half his stake, and enough to take a slight lead, which he then extended afterwards--but there's a compelling argument for going all-in there.

The reason is that having a slight lead going into FJ leaves you vulnerable to losing on a triple stumper (a "two-thirds" situation), whereas having a lead of at least 50% more than your nearest opponent (a "crush") means the only realistic way you lose is if you miss FJ and they get it right (and wager appropriately).

Statistically speaking, DDs are easier than FJs*, so depending on comfort level with the category, they probably would have been better off wagering everything on DD3, which would have given them enough of a lead to likely win on the triple stumper FJ. Even if they had missed DD3 and been wiped out, with $7600 in clues still on the board, there was still an opportunity for them to pick up some points and maybe still have a shot at winning from third place in FJ.

*players have gotten 69% of DDs correct in Season 39; FJ correct responses are around 46%.

 

[dino259]

Every version of today's show that I am trying to watch on youtube is very glitchy. Annoying.

 

[Don Quixote]

“Only Fans” category today.

… Happy that Chris won after the story about using any proceeds to honor his late brother.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

What is Rutgers? Oh, child, no.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

“Only Fans” category today.

The lack of quality control due to the haste to get things completed before the writers' strike includes category titles. S-less chaps?

 

[Mr. Mojo]

For me, yesterday was one of those rare days where I knew all 3 Daily Doubles and the Final and ran several categories.
I haven't had many of those days lately.

 

[UOFI_316]

When my 15yo saw the category about koalas she immediately said "I bet one is about those "koala kare" changing tables."

 

[Don Quixote]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

Figures. They usually take a six week break mid-July.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

Bet $1000 on the 29th clue (a $2000 clue) - 2501 would have ensured a runaway

I wish when they play that way the host would needle them with "OK, not trying to win"

BRyan let his first DD miss affect his thinking too much. He had a runaway Thursday and was having a comfortable game Friday:

• 9 correct 1 incorrect after the 15 clue break
• 13 correct 3 incorrect after the Jeopardy round
  (compared to 3 correct 2 incorrect + 2 correct 2 incorrect from the challengers)

But a missed true DD meant a mere 1K lead going into the Double Jeopardy round. That miss was probably bugging him the whole game - easy to be the critic, but you can't play that way.

 

[Don Quixote]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

Bet $1000 on the 29th clue (a $2000 clue) - 2501 would have ensured a runaway

I wish when they play that way the host would needle them with "OK, not trying to win"

BRyan let his first DD miss affect his thinking too much. He had a runaway Thursday and was having a comfortable game Friday:

• 9 correct 1 incorrect after the 15 clue break
• 13 correct 3 incorrect after the Jeopardy round
  (compared to 3 correct 2 incorrect + 2 correct 2 incorrect from the challengers)

But a missed true DD meant a mere 1K lead going into the Double Jeopardy round. That miss was probably bugging him the whole game - easy to be the critic, but you can't play that way.

Yeah, I did not know that DD in the DJ round, but he obviously did and got it right. Had to play to win in that moment and have confidence in self.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

Bet $1000 on the 29th clue (a $2000 clue) - 2501 would have ensured a runaway

I wish when they play that way the host would needle them with "OK, not trying to win"

BRyan let his first DD miss affect his thinking too much. He had a runaway Thursday and was having a comfortable game Friday:

• 9 correct 1 incorrect after the 15 clue break
• 13 correct 3 incorrect after the Jeopardy round
  (compared to 3 correct 2 incorrect + 2 correct 2 incorrect from the challengers)

But a missed true DD meant a mere 1K lead going into the Double Jeopardy round. That miss was probably bugging him the whole game - easy to be the critic, but you can't play that way.

Yeah, I did not know that DD in the DJ round, but he obviously did and got it right. Had to play to win in that moment and have confidence in self.

like I said, easy to be the critic. if it were me under the lights I'd probably forget my name. "only" a 2-day champ but Bryan looked like he was playing on Easy Mode. way better than that 5-day chump from Dexter and a bunch of other winners from the last month.

 

[Mjolnirs]

Bryan had some good stories. I’d probably sign up for his one man show. Was hoping he’d stick around longer. Should have bet more on that DD.

In other news, they ended by saying Ken Jennings back on Monday.

Bet $1000 on the 29th clue (a $2000 clue) - 2501 would have ensured a runaway

I wish when they play that way the host would needle them with "OK, not trying to win"

BRyan let his first DD miss affect his thinking too much. He had a runaway Thursday and was having a comfortable game Friday:

• 9 correct 1 incorrect after the 15 clue break
• 13 correct 3 incorrect after the Jeopardy round
  (compared to 3 correct 2 incorrect + 2 correct 2 incorrect from the challengers)

But a missed true DD meant a mere 1K lead going into the Double Jeopardy round. That miss was probably bugging him the whole game - easy to be the critic, but you can't play that way.

Yeah, I did not know that DD in the DJ round, but he obviously did and got it right. Had to play to win in that moment and have confidence in self.

like I said, easy to be the critic. if it were me under the lights I'd probably forget my name. "only" a 2-day champ but Bryan looked like he was playing on Easy Mode. way better than that 5-day chump from Dexter and a bunch of other winners from the last month.

I liked him and thought he was going to go on a run. He seemed really comfortable. He'll regret that DD wager for a while.
On the FJ question, the use of the word emperor and 1000 years instantly made me think China or Japan (and thinking a communist country probably wouldn't use 'emperor', my guess was Japan) ... A Eurocentric mind sunk him there.

 

[BobbyLayne]

He'll regret that DD wager for a while.

immediately after he bet (before clue #30) my wife looked at me with her mouth agape "how could he do that?"

after clue #29 9300-4600-4000
after clue #30 9300-5400-4000

but what a get by ilena, pulled it out of the fire

 

[Pip's Invitation]

I give people more slack on DD bets than FJ bets, because they don't have much time to think through the nuances of the math. I knew he needed to bet a certain amount to cinch a runaway, but I couldn't think fast enough to come up with what that amount should be.

There's no excuse for biffing FJ bets because you get 15 minutes and scratch paper to figure it out.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

The exception of course to giving slack on DD bets was that woman who had a runaway and bet huge on a late DD. That was one of the dumbest things I've ever seen on any TV show, fiction or nonfiction.

 

[BobbyLayne]

Ken back
KEN BACK
man happy
Ken good

 

[BobbyLayne]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

 

[Mrs. Rannous]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

I love the lack of pause to check whether or not an answer is acceptable.

GOD BLESS KEN JENNINGS!

 

[Pip's Invitation]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

I love the lack of pause to check whether or not an answer is acceptable.

GOD BLESS KEN JENNINGS!

Also the request to be more specific returned. We rarely hear that from Mayim.

 

[Pip's Invitation]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

I had the same wrong FJ answer as two of the contestants. 1940s fashion is definitely not in my wheelhouse.

 

[rockaction]

Also the request to be more specific returned. We rarely hear that from Mayim.

rook-ery?

 

[BobbyLayne]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

I had the same wrong FJ answer as two of the contestants. 1940s fashion is definitely not in my wheelhouse.

was I the only one who thought Bobby socks (Bobby soxers) was a 50s era (nascent rock n roll)? turns out wrong on all counts; 40s and Frank Sinatra.

I guessed Zoot suits (a def 40s fashion craze) and thought “how weird to have FJ be the same answer as an earlier clue.” illogical as that may sound Andy Saunders at Jeopardy Fan thought the same thing & wrote the clue wording was clumsy. again.

 

[Mr. Mojo]

“No, the President is not in his 90s yet”

“You did it again, we needed the inside word.”

Ken channeling his inner Trebek snark without being too mean about it.

Spoiler: 28 correct responses

Impressive debut for today’s winner

I had the same wrong FJ answer as two of the contestants. 1940s fashion is definitely not in my wheelhouse.

Me, too!

 

[rockaction]

was I the only one who thought Bobby socks (Bobby soxers) was a 50s era (nascent rock n roll)? turns out wrong on all counts; 40s and Frank Sinatra.

No, you're not, but now that I think about it, it's saddle shoes and poodle skirts for rock n' roll and the '50s. But I also thought the Bobby socks went with the saddle shoes.