Regular Game[]
- In 2019, Holzhauer appeared on Jeopardy! starting on April 4, where he went on to win 32 games and accumulated a total of $2,462,216.
- On April 9, he set a new one-day record with $110,914, breaking the previous record of $77,000 set by Roger Craig on September 14, 2010 (which, in turn, eclipsed the previous record of $75,000 set by Ken Jennings on July 23, 2004); and on April 17, he eclipsed his record with $131,127.
- He is the first and only contestant to win $100,000 or more in a single game, accomplishing the feat six times.
- He currently holds the top twelve spots for the highest single-day winnings records in regular play. In addition to his aggressive wagering strategy on Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy! clues, he selects the highest-value clues on the board first to amass his totals quickly and increase his potential wager upon finding a Daily Double.
| Game No. | Air Date | Final score | Cumulative Winnings | Additional Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 4, 2019 | $43,680 | $43,680 | The defending champion, Alex Koral, had previously defeated 5-time champion Steven Grade, who would face to Holzhauer in the semifinals of the 2019 Tournament of Champions. |
| 2 | April 5, 2019 | $38,925 | $82,606 | First game in which James didn't have a runaway. |
| 3 | April 8, 2019 | $50,845 | $133,451 | He is the champion who won $100,000 just three times in just three years after Andrew Pau ($105,202), and it is the record for the most prize money in three consecutive victories after 6-time champion Roger Craig ($138,401). |
| 4 | April 9, 2019 | $110,914 | $244,365 | First time Holzhauer broke the one-day record, and the first time anyone won $100,000 in one regular-play game. This shattered Roger Craig’s $77,000, and with a difference of $33,914, this remains the largest margin between one-day records. This also breaks Austin Rogers’ record for largest Final Jeopardy bet, with $38,314 to Rogers’ $34,000, and break the all-record before FJ! ($72,400), set at $55,000 by Jack Lechner (12/2/98). |
| 5 | April 10, 2019 | $54,322 | $298,687 | Holzhauer breaks Frank Spangenberg’s 5-day record of $205,194 (adjusted for double dollar values) by $93,493. |
| 6 | April 11, 2019 | $27,190 | $325,877 | Only regular-play game in which Holzhauer failed to provide a correct response in Final Jeopardy. |
| 7 | April 12, 2019 | $89,158 | $415,035 | The $22,012 won in this Jeopardy round is the highest record for that round (the previous record was Matt Jackson's $16,800 set on October 8, 2015). |
| 8 | April 15, 2019 | $45,444 | $460,479 | Reached second-place on all-time Jeopardy! regular play winnings list (2nd place at the time: David Madden - $430,400). |
| 9 | April 16, 2019 | $106,181 | $566,660 | |
| 10 | April 17, 2019 | $131,127 | $697,787 | Holzhauer breaks his own one-day record by $20,213 and his own Final wager record by $21,699. This is also the first and only time anyone has wagered $50,000 or more on Final Jeopardy and responded correctly. In addition, he set the maximum number of correct answers without giving a single wrong answer in one game (41 correct)[1]. |
| 11 | April 18, 2019 | $74,133 | $771,920 | |
| 12 | April 19, 2019 | $80,006 | $851,926 | |
| 13 | April 22, 2019 | $90,812 | $942,738 | |
| 14 | April 23, 2019 | $118,816 | $1,061,554 | The previous record for fastest time to reach $1 million was in 30 games, set by Ken Jennings in 2004. (Jennings is now in fourth in this regard as Matt Amodio and Amy Schneider reached the same point after 28 games.) |
| 15 | April 24, 2019 | $73,621 | $1,135,175 | Moved into #10 on American game show winnings list. |
| 16 | April 25, 2019 | $90,812 | $1,225,987 | Moved into #9 on American game show winnings list. |
| 17 | April 26, 2019 | $49,600 | $1,275,587 | Only regular game in which Holzhauer did not find any of the Daily Doubles. |
| 18 | April 29, 2019 | $54,017 | $1,329,604 | First game in which shoutouts were no longer allowed, second game James did not have a runaway, and the closest margin of victory ($18). Adam Levin’s $53,999 is currently the record for highest second place score[2]. |
| 19 | April 30, 2019 | $96,726 | $1,426,330 | Ties David Madden for third-longest winning streak and breaks his own record of most correct answers in a game without being incorrect one time (44 including Final). Additionally, Holzhauer breaks Ben Ingram's record for most consecutive Final Jeopardy responses (12). |
| 20 | May 1, 2019 | $101,682 | $1,528,012 | Ties Julia Collins for second-longest winning streak. Moved up to #8 on American game show winnings list. |
| 21 | May 2, 2019 | $80,615 | $1,608,627 | |
| 22 | May 3, 2019 | $82,381 | $1,691,008 | Ties his own record of most correct answers in a game without being incorrect one time. After this game, he had to wait two weeks due to the 2019 Teacher’s Tournament, which saw fellow ToC finalist Francois Barcomb take home the $100,000 prize (Barcomb is also only the second Teacher champion to make it to the third place of the ToC)[3]. |
| 23 | May 20, 2019 | $89,229 | $1,780,237 | Moved up to #6 on American game show winnings list. |
| 24 | May 21, 2019 | $86,905 | $1,867,142 | Moved up to #5 on American game show winnings list. |
| 25 | May 22, 2019 | $71,885 | $1,939,027 | |
| 26 | May 23, 2019 | $52,108 | $1,991,135 | Third game in which James did not have a runaway. |
| 27 | May 24, 2019 | $74,400 | $2,065,535 | The previous record for fastest time to hit $2 million was in 59 games, set by Ken Jennings in 2004. In addition, he broke the highest record in the Jeopardy Round ($24,600). |
| 28 | May 27, 2019 | $130,022 | $2,195,557 | Despite how the scores looked, Holzhauer could not safely break his own one-day record; the most he could've wagered is $58,821 to cover challenger Monica Foy's doubled score, which would bring him up to $130,843. Moved up to #4 on American game show winnings list. |
| 29 | May 28, 2019 | $59,381 | $2,254,938 | |
| 30 | May 29, 2019 | $69,033 | $2,323,971 | |
| 31 | May 30, 2019 | $58,613 | $2,382,583 | |
| 32 | May 31, 2019 | $79,633 | $2,462,216 | |
| 33 | June 3, 2019 | $24,799 | $2,464,216 | Fourth game in which James did not have a runaway. Emma Boettcher ends his streak before he can break Ken Jennings's Regular Game winning record, and goes on to win two more games herself, making her the first giant killer to win more than a single game. The Combined Coryat score for the game of $53,200 is an all-time regular play record[4]. |
End of the Streak[]
On June 3, 2019, he was defeated by challenger Emma Boettcher, falling short of Ken Jennings's regular-game winnings record by $58,484. one day ago, some station accidentally aired the Final Jeopardy! round from Holzhauer's last show. Over the weekend, video clips of that fateful Final Jeopardy! circulated over the internet (#)[5].
Neither he nor Emma answered a single clue incorrectly for the entire game, and challenger Jay Sexton only gave one incorrect response, giving the trio a record Combined Coryat Score of $53,200. Emma found both daily doubles in Double Jeopardy, wagered aggressively on both, and answered them both correctly, giving her the lead going into Final Jeopardy at $26,600 to James’ $23,400 (with Jay sitting in third at $11,000). Emma wagered $20,201 to cover him, while he wagered $1,399 to lock out Jay, securing second place and assuring a win if Emma was wrong and presumably wagered a large sum. All three players answered Final Jeopardy correctly, ending his streak. Coincidentally, he stepped down a day before Ken Jennings's first appearance date.[6]
Tournament of Champions[]
| Game No. | Air Date | Final score | Additional Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| QF | November 6, 2019 | $30,635 | |
| SF | November 12, 2019 | $30,156 | With this episode, FJ's record of correct answers came to an end (28 games). |
| F1 | November 14, 2019 | $49,326 | |
| F2 | November 15, 2019 | $27,597 ($76,923) |
He moved up to #3 on American game show winnings list. |
In this ToC, it was almost twice as much as the sum of the other 14 players' prize money, so there were many people who predicted his victory. However, not one of the champions who have won more than 10 consecutive wins so far has never won the ToC. None of the previous 10+ game winners had won a Tournament of Champions before, with the closest player to that 10-game threshold being Dan Pawson and Buzzy Cohen with 9 games. Previously, among the ToC winners, the recipient of the most regular game prize money was Roger Craig ($230,200) with six consecutive wins.
As expected, without any major incidents, he passed the Quarterfinal and the semi-finals without incident, advanced to the finals, and had a rematch with Emma and 2019 Teacher’s Tournament winner Francois Barcomb[7][8].
In Quarterfinal, he easily won against Alan Dunn, the 5-time champion, and Lindsey Shultz, the 4-time champion. Raising the Coryat Score to $31,200 is a bonus. In the semifinals, he easily defeated Steven Grade and Rachel Lindgren, the 5-time champions, and Steven even encouraged him by writing 'What is Thanks for having me back!' in FJ.
Emma was barely able to prevent James from turning the tournament into a runaway, with a possible total of $69,600 as compared to James’ at-the-time total of $67,111 going into the second day’s Final Jeopardy. (With a maximum possible total of $5,000, Barcomb was locked out of first and second place.) All three players got Final Jeopardy correct, and James had wagered enough to cover Emma’s possible total of $69,600, finishing with $76,923. Emma’s total of $65,000 is currently the highest non-winning total in any tournament[9].
Jeopardy!: The Greatest of All Time[]
After the Tournament of Champions concluded, Holzhauer competed against Ken Jennings and Brad Rutter for a million dollars on Jeopardy!: The Greatest of All Time, a primetime special that aired January 7-14, 2020, on ABC. This was the first tournament in which the first player to win three matches wins the event. Holzhauer won one match, and finished as the first runner-up to winner Jennings, taking home $250,000.
Although he lost to Ken, he won two games against Brad and Ken, who had previously beaten each other, and especially showed a great performance until the end, including winning the $20,600 TDD in the second half of game four. It's a shame that Shakespeare-related clues got in the way like the last Regular game.
Jeopardy! Masters[]
He played in the 2023 Jeopardy Masters.
Quarterfinals[]
He played in game two of night one against 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 2021 Professors Tournament winner Sam Buttrey. He gave 22 correct responses (including all DDs) and two wrong responses. He wrote a joke response in Final saying "Stop ducking a rematch, Ken". He earned 3 match points for finishing first in a lock game.
He played in game two of night two against 5-day champion Andrew He and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 27 correct responses (including one DD) and only one wrong response. Nobody got Final correct when he crossed out the right response. He earned no match points for finishing third and still has 3 match points.
He played in game one of night three against 40-day champion Amy Schneider and 2021 Professors Tournament winner Sam Buttrey. He gave 29 correct responses (including two DDs) and no wrong responses. Amy was the only correct respondent; James's runaway gave him 3 match points for a total of 6 match points.
He played in game two of night four against 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 25 correct responses (including one DD) and three wrong responses. He was the only one who did not get Final and earned 3 match points for a total of 9 match points.
He played in game two of night five against 5-day champion Andrew He and 2021 Professors Tournament winner Sam Buttrey. He gave 25 correct responses (including two DDs) and two wrong responses. He wrote another joke response in Final "If a Ken falls in the forest and no one's around, does it make a dad joke?". He earned 3 match points for a total of 12 match points.
He played in game two of night six against 38-day champion Matt Amodio and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. He gave 35 correct responses (including one DD) and one wrong response. For the second day in a row, he wrote a joke response in Final "Is there NO ONE ELSE". He earned 3 match points for a total of 15 match points.
He played in game two of night seven 5-day champion Andrew He and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. He gave 30 correct responses (including all DDs) and two wrong responses. He was the only player who attempted a response in Final but got it wrong. He earned 3 match points for a total of 18 match points.
The top four finishers were 32-day champion James Holzhauer, 38-day champion Matt Amodio, 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 5-day champion Andrew He. 2021 Professors Tournament winner took home $50,000 and 40-day champion Amy Schneider took home $75,000.
Semifinals[]
He played in both games of night one. In game one, he faced 5-day champion Andrew He and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 23 correct responses (including two DDs) and three wrong responses. Everyone got Final correct. He earned 3 match points. In game two, he faced 5-day champion Andrew He and 23-day champion Mattea Roach. He gave 24 correct responses (including one DD) and no wrong responses. He and Andrew got Final correct. He earned 3 match points for a total of 6 match points.
He played in game one of night two against 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 23 correct responses (including two DDs) and three wrong responses. Nobody got Final correct. He earned 3 match points for a total of 9 match points.
At the end of the semifinals, 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 5-day champion Andrew He tied for last with 2 match points. The first tiebreaker is the number of correct responses during the semifinals. 23-day champion Mattea Roach won the tiebreaker (50-45). 5-day champion Andrew He took home $100,000.
Finals[]
He played against 38-day champion Matt Amodio and 23-day champion Mattea Roach. In game one, he gave 20 correct responses (including one DD) and two wrong responses (including one DD). Everyone got Final correct. In game two, he gave nineteen correct responses and two wrong responses (including one DD). No one got Final correct. With where the scores stood, he was the winner of Jeopardy Masters Season 1. 23-day champion Mattea Roach finished with $250,000 and 38-day champion Matt Amodio finished with $150,000.
Jeopardy Masters Season 2[]
Quarterfinals[]
He came back for Jeopardy Masters Season 2 along with 38-day champion Matt Amodio and 23-day champion Mattea Roach. He played in game two of night one against 3-day champion Yogesh Raut and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. He gave twenty correct responses and three wrong responses (including one DD). Everyone got Final correct. He earned 1 match point for second place.
He played in game one of night two against 23-day champion Mattea Roach and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 23 correct responses (including two DDs) and no wrong responses. Everyone got Final correct. He earned 3 match points for first place and a total of 4 match points.
He played in game two of night three against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 23-day champion Mattea Roach. He gave 22 correct responses (including one DD) and only one wrong response (the DD). Everyone came up with the same incorrect response "Who is Thomas More?". He earned 1 match point for second place and a total of 5 match points.
He played in game two of night four against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 3-day champion Yogesh Raut. He gave seventeen correct responses (including one DD) and only one wrong response. He did not get Final correct. He earned no match points for finishing third and still has 5 match points.
He played in game one of night five against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave 21 correct responses (including one DD) and four wrong responses. Everyone got Final correct. He earned 1 match point for finishing second and a total of 6 match points.
He played in game one of night six against 3-day champion Yogesh Raut and 38-day champion Matt Amodio. He gave twenty correct responses (including one DD) and three wrong responses. He and Matt got Final correct. He earned 3 match points for finishing first and a total of 9 match points.
The top four finishers were 1-day champion Victoria Groce, 3-day champion Yogesh Raut, 32-day champion James Holzhauer and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. 38-day champion Matt Amodio took home $50,000 and 23-day champion Mattea Roach took home $75,000.
Semifinals[]
He played in game one of night one against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 3-day champion Yogesh Raut. He gave eighteen correct responses and two wrong responses. He and Yogesh got Final correct. He earned 1 match point for finishing second.
He played in both games in night two. In game one, he played against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. He gave 21 correct responses (including one DD) and only one wrong response. Victoria was the only correct respondent; however, he made a $1,122 wager and earned 3 match points for finishing first and a total of 4 match points. In game two, he played against 3-day champion Yogesh Raut and 40-day champion Amy Schneider. He gave 24 correct responses (including two DDs) and two wrong responses. Everyone got Final correct. He earned 3 match points for finishing first and a total of 7 match points.
The top 3 finishers were 1-day champion Victoria Groce, 3-day champion Yogesh Raut and 32-day champion James Holzhauer. 40-day champion Amy Schneider got a shutout as she earned no match points during the semifinals and took home $100,000.
Finals[]
He played against 1-day champion Victoria Groce and 3-day champion Yogesh Raut. In game one, he gave twenty correct responses (including one DD) and only one wrong response (the DD). He and Yogesh got Final correct. In game two, he gave eleven correct responses and no wrong responses. All players got Final correct. Victoria is the winner of Jeopardy Masters Season 2. Yogesh Raut finished with $250,000 and he finished with $150,000.
References[]
- ↑ The previous record was 35 questions set by David madden on July 11, 2005.
- ↑ The previous record for the runner-up was $44,400 by Michael Cudahy, the challenger during Ken Jenning's 18 consecutive wins, and when doubled, the record was Steve Hettinger's $23,000x2 (March 10, 1998).
- ↑ This recording was recorded on April 1st and 2nd, two months after James got off the recorder, and this was the day Steven had 4 or 5 consecutive victories on the broadcast.
- ↑ The previous record was $53,000 on May 9, 1994 (1994 College Championship semifinal game 1, Before double clue value) and February 11, 2008 (2008-A Teen Tournament quarterfinal game 1). This is just a hypothetical theory, but if Jay had guessed the $400 Clue, it would've had an unprecedented perfect game.
- ↑ Coincidentally, the new champion was from the same local university that James attended. As a result, just before setting a record, he handed over his position to a junior from the same region.
- ↑ Additionally, the day Julia Collins and Dan Feitel left the show was the first appearance of Ken Jennings.
- ↑ In the semi-final matchup, the results were exposed on YouTube before the broadcast.
- ↑ If it had been the same, 4-time champ Dave Leffler ($100,102) would have come up.
- ↑ It's a hypothetical theory, but if she hadn't accumulated a lot of points on the first day or hadn't guessed the last FJ, Emma would have come from behind to win.