Giant-slayer Chris D’Angelo spoke out about a math error that affected his Jeopardy! betting strategy. On Wednesday, he took down 10-day champion Tristan Williams in Final Jeopardy. Did the error cost him the win?
D’Angelo, from Washington D.C., had a one-day total of $19,401. On May 21, the content manager played against Liz Guinn, from Seattle, Washington, and Sidney Elie-Pierre. Warning: Spoilers for the May 21 episode of Jeopardy! ahead.
D’Angelo was in second place until clue five when he took the lead. He had a huge lead of $7,200 by the first commercial break, compared to Guinn, a law school administrator, who had $1,600.
The reigning champion found the Daily Double on clue 17 when he had $7,800. He wagered $3,200 in “Business Notables.” The clue read, “Fred Smith lost around $30 million after founding this Memphis co. in 1971, but Fred’s blackjack winnings in Vegas kept it flying.”
“What is JetBlue?” D’Angelo guessed. The correct response was FedEx, so he dropped to $4,600.
By the end of the round, D’Angelo maintained the lead with $8,000. Guinn was in second place with $3,400. Elie-Pierre, a software engineer, had -$800.
In Double Jeopardy, D’Angelo found the first DD on clue five. He had $9,200 and wagered $2,200.
In “The Dye Is Cast,” the clue read, “Also known as mehndi, this plant ‘is used to make dye for temporary tattoos that can last up to 3 weeks.’” “What is Henna?” he answered correctly, giving him $11,400.
He had $15,000 when he found the last DD on clue 16. D’Angelo wagered $4,000 in “What’s the Difference?” The clue read, “In particle physics, the muon has electrical charge; the muon type of this, discovered in 1962, doesn’t.”
“What is the neutron?” he answered incorrectly. The correct response was neutrino. He dropped to $11,000.
By the end of the round, D’Angelo had $14,600. Guinn was in second place with $11,000. Elie-Pierre could not participate in Final Jeopardy because he had -$1,200.
The category for Final Jeopardy was “Sports Venues.” The clue read, “Surface material laid down in 1909 gave a landmark venue this nickname; a 36-inch strip remains today.”
Neither game show contestant correctly answered, “What is the Brickyard?” Guinn’s response was “What is Wimbledon?” She wagered $3,700, giving her a final total of $7,300. D’Angelo answered, “What is Rock Field?” He wagered $5,401, making his final total $9,199.
This made D’Angelo a two-day champion with $28,600. He will return on Friday for his third game.
D’Angelo spoke out about his wager on Reddit, saying, “I did not ‘choose’ to hold back $2,000. I made a silly arithmetic error that affected my betting plan, realized it after locking in the bet, and got extraordinarily lucky to get to live to fight another day. I do have to admit that it’s been bothering me. Liz is a great competitor and, in my opinion, is definitely deserving of consideration for the Second Chance Tournament.”
Jeopardy!, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock
