Why did James Holzhauer lose even after his initial answer to final question was correct? Jeopardy! Masters fans’ reactions explored

Jeopardy! Masters 2023 aired episode 2 on Tuesday on ABC, featuring two games. The second game welcomed three champions — James Holzhauer, Andrew He, and Matt Amodio. James and Matt tied in the Double Jeopardy round, but the game changed completely in the final round. Despite initially guessing the correct answer in the Final Jeopardy round, James lost all his money.

As the players have to guess and show their final answers at the same time, James’ scribble showed he crossed his initial guess which was actually the correct answer. Therefore, he lost to Matt Amodio in episode 2 game 2.

Fans felt bad for the Las Vegas native as his score of $28,400 came down to $0 in the end.

Interestingly, none of the three players gave the correct answer. As James wagered all his money, he was left with zero dollars in the end.

“He’s gonna have nightmares”: Fans react to James Holzhauer’s Final Jeopardy results

In Jeopardy! Masters 2023 episode 1, James Holzhauer, Andrew He, and Matt Amodio were put up against each other in Game 2. To note, James and Andrew won in episode 1.

In episode 2 game 2, Matt and James were neck and neck right up to the final round. Unfortunately, none of the players were able to correctly answer the Final Jeopardy question and lost their respective bets. The reason why the result affected James the most was because his initial guess was correct, but he crossed that answer and wrote a wrong one. On top of that, he wagered all his money, which he eventually lost on the game show.

While the nail-biting final round kept viewers on the edge, they felt bad when James lost even after his first guess was correct. Some fans trolled him as well for wagering all his money.

Final Jeopardy round of Jeopardy! Masters Episode 2 Game 2 explored

Each game of Jeopardy! Masters consists of three rounds — Jeopardy, Double Jeopardy, and Final Jeopardy.

In episode 2 game 2, James Holzhauer and Matt Amodio’s scores tied in the Double Jeopardy round. They earned $28,400, respectively, while third player Andrew He ranked third with a score of $9,600.

As per the show format, the final round includes one question and the players have to write the answer and reveal it at the same time after mentioning their bets. In the latest episode, James put a bet on his entire amount, while Andrew wagered $0 and Matt wagered $1,000. Andrew didn’t guess an answer, but Matt and James’ final responses were “Nicaragua.”

However, James’ initial answer was “Haiti,” which he crossed out and wrote Nicaragua.

Under the category of Western Hemisphere History, the Final Jeopardy question read:

The correct answer was “Haiti,” which was James’ initial guess. Unfortunately, he didn’t believe in his first answer, which turned out to be a big loss for the player.

Hence, Matt Amodio won Jeopardy! Masters Episode 2 Game 2 and earned three points. Andrew He landed in second place and received one point, while James, who was the episode 1 winner, ranked third and got zero points.

The players will return with a new episode in the upcoming episode, hosted by Ken Jennings. Jeopardy! Masters 2023 episode 3 will air on Wednesday, May 10, 2023, on ABC at 8.00 pm ET.

About the author

Sushmita is a Reality TV writer and content specialist at SK POP. She holds a master's degree in English from Pondicherry University and has previously worked with NewsBytes and IBTimes. In her spare time, Sushmita loves to catch up on the latest reality TV shows but also finds comfort in classics like FRIENDS and Grey’s Anatomy.

Know More