Jeopardy! fans have been left in uproar over a returning champion’s ‘brutally awful’ final wager that cost him his fifth win – and thousands of dollars in potential prize money.
During Tuesday’s final episode of the popular TV game show, host Ken Jennings, 50, introduced the concluding category, ‘European Scientists.’
He went on to pose his question, saying: ‘On the 2022 bicentennial of his birth, the body of this man was exhumed and DNA used to determine his genetic afflictions.’
Contestant Amar Kakirde proceeded to stun viewers by betting almost every dollar he had in the bank – only to offer up an incorrect answer to what some have branded a ‘pretty easy’ final question.
Jeopardy! fans have been left in uproar over a returning champion’s ‘brutally awful’ final wager that cost him his fifth win – and thousands of dollars in potential prize money
During Tuesday’s final episode of the popular TV game show, host Ken Jennings, 50, introduced the concluding category, ‘European Scientists’
Contestant Amar Kakirde stunned viewers by betting almost every dollar he had in the bank – only to offer up an incorrect answer to what some have branded a ‘pretty easy’ final question
Having already racked up an impressive $14,200, Amar made the bold decision to bet all but $1 of his winnings, wagering $14,199 while responding with, ‘Who is Tesla?’
Ken replied with: ‘I’m afraid that’s not right. He wagered big – $14,999, and he is left with one dollar.’
Although Amar’s fellow contestants, Abby Mann and Steve Miller, also got the answer incorrect, viewers were left horrified by his decision to bet so much money on the wrong suggestion, with many claiming that the correct answer should have been ‘easy’ to get.
Having delivered the devastating blow to Amar, Ken went on to reveal the answer they had in fact been looking for, explaining: ‘The reason why they celebrated this man by looking at his genes is because it was Gregor Mendel, the father of heredity.’
According to New Scientist: Czechian Gregor Mendel (1822-1884) ‘discovered the basic principles of heredity through experiments with pea plants, long before the discovery of DNA and genes.’
Meanwhile, Amar’s choice, Nikola Tesla (1856-1943), was a Croatian-Serbian ‘inventor and engineer who discovered and patented the rotating magnetic field, the basis of most alternating-current machinery.
Having already racked up an impressive $14,200, Amar made the bold decision to bet all but $1 of his winnings, wagering $14,199 while responding with, ‘Who is Tesla?’
Although Amar’s fellow contestants, Abby Mann (seen) and Steve Miller, also got the answer incorrect, viewers were left horrified by his decision to bet so much money
‘He also developed the three-phase system of electric power transmission,’ states Britannica.
Jeopardy! fans flocked to X, formerly know as Twitter, to share their shock at Amar’s response.
One person wrote: ‘When I saw genetic, I knew it was referring to Gregor Mendel. He was the father of Genetics. Pretty easy final.’
A second person commented: ‘Amar, Amar, Amar. You didn’t need to wager that much. #Jeopardy.’
A third person added: ‘Horrible Final Jeopardy wager from Amar. 🙁 #jeopardy.’
A fourth person wrote: ‘Are we clear on what “bicentennial” means?’
A fifth person commented: ‘No better feeling than getting the final jeopardy right when no contestant does.’
A sixth person wrote: ‘Absolutely brutal Final #Jeopardy clue today, outdone by the brutally awful Final wager by returning champion Amar, that cost him the win.
Jeopardy! fans flocked to X, formerly know as Twitter, to share their shock at Amar’s response
‘It is incredible to me how often players wager poorly in FJ. Category is European Scientists.’
Contestant Abby had wagered $3,000 out of her total of $8,200, meaning that her incorrect guess of Charles Darwin left her with $5,200.
Player Steve had wagered $13,001 out of his total of $15,400; he incorrectly answered Herschel, and finished with $5,200.
Despite none of the contestants getting the answer right, Abby ended up winning having been left with the highest sum overall.
Had Amar answered correctly, he would have been one game away from participating in Jeopardy’s Tournament of Champions season.
