| Steven Grade | |
|---|---|
 | |
| Occupation: | Sports industry consultant Former swimmer for the University of Georgia |
| Years active: | 2019 |
| Known for: | His appearances on Jeopardy! |
Steven Grade is a sports industry consultant, former swimmer for the University of Georgia, and game show contestant from Atlanta, Georgia.
Jeopardy! Run[]
Regular Play[]
| Game No. | Air Date | Final score | Cumulative Winnings | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | March 27, 2019 | $21,600 | $21,600 | Steven's first runaway game. |
| 2 | March 28, 2019 | $35,601 | $57,201 | |
| 3 | March 29, 2019 | $6,999 | $64,200 | |
| 4 | April 1, 2019 | $24,100 | $88,300 | Steven's first win from second place. |
| 5 | April 2, 2019 | $27,201 | $115,501 | |
| 6 | April 3, 2019 | $1 | $116,501 | Alex Koral ends his streak. |
He first appeared on Jeopardy! on March 27, 2019, against Amy Kroll and returning champion Emma Badame. He found all three of the Daily Doubles in the game, and answered two of them correctly. His $21,600 he had going into Final Jeopardy was just enough to lock out Badame’s $10,600, who herself had barely locked out Kroll’s $5,200.
In his second game, he came in with a commanding lead of $27,000, which was still not a runaway as competitor Kenji Shimizu had accumulated $17,800. Both answered Final Jeopardy correctly, but Shimizu had only wagered to cover Grade by $1, whereas Grade bet to cover Shimizu’s doubled score, which gave him his second win.
In his fourth game, airing on April Fools Day 2019, he went into Final Jeopardy in second place, as competitor Reid Setzer had come in with a large lead of $23,000 to Grade’s $17,600. However, Grade was the only player correct in Final, giving him his fourth victory.
He was defeated on April 3 by Alex Koral (who, along with Rose Curtin, had locked out Grade - his score was less than the difference between their scores, meaning he mathematically could not win unless both of them blundered heavily in wagering). Grade would have likely lost the next day, anyway - Koral had the misfortune of going up against Jeopardy giant James Holzhauer in the first of what would be a string of 32 victories.[1]
Tournament Of Champions[]
In the fifth quarterfinal game, he faced 7-day champion Ryan Fenster and 2019 Teachers Tournament winner Francois Barcomb. He gave nineteen correct responses and three wrong responses. Everyone got Final correct. He and Francois advanced to the semifinals.
In the second semifinal game, he faced 5-day champion Rachel Lindgren and 32-day champion James Holzhauer. He gave seventeen correct responses and three wrong responses. Final Jeopardy was a Triple Stumper. James's runaway advanced him to the finals. He and Rachel took home $10,000.
Common with Other Champions[]
Maria Wenglinsky[]
- Both are 5-time champions, and another champion who beat them also advanced to ToC (Maria - Bill MacDonald).
- Both lost to winner in the ToC semifinals, the difference being that Maria lost by $1. In addition, the ToC finalists competed in the Regular game, and the winner's season is the season that produced another ToC.
- They competed against other tournament winners in the quarterfinals, where Maria won and Steven was soundly defeated.
Cora Peck[]
- Both are 5-game winning streak champions and won with a lock game in their first appearance.
- There was a comeback win in a regular game once. Cora on her 3rd win in a row and Steven on his 4th win in a row.
- Both got off on Wednesday in third place and the other champions who beat their successors won the ToC. (Dan Pawson, James Holzhauer). The difference was Steven was in third before the last FJ and Cora was in second before the last FJ.
- Both reached the semifinals at ToC and advanced to WC. Additionally, both have competed against the respective winners. Cora is in the quarterfinals and Steven is in the semifinals.
Vaughn Winchell[]
- Both broke the long hiatus of being champions with five consecutive wins. The duration is also similar at 97 and 96 games.
- The successor champion who defeated them also advanced to the ToC, and in the case of Vaughn, the successor champion also received the right to advance to the ToC.
- Both reached the semifinals as WC and were soundly defeated by the ToC winner, who was placed in Group 2 of the semifinals. Additionally, all ToC finalists advanced on their own.
- Both have one come from behind win. Vaughn in his second game and Steven in his fourth game.
Alan Dunn[]
- Both are from Georgia.
- Both are 5-game winning streak champions and have come from behind to win. Alan on his 5th win in a row and Steven on his 4th win in a row.
- They were soundly defeated by the winner in ToC. Alan in the Quarterfinal and he in the semifinals.
- They both competed against a contestant whose first name was Alex, with Alan stepping down as champion and Steven handing it over.
Trivia[]
- He’s run finally ended what was known on the show as the “four-game curse” (96 games) - before him, eight champions had won four games but lost going into their fifth game. The previous five-game winner was Alan Dunn (Both ended up competing - and losing - against Holzhauer in that year’s Tournament of Champions).
- He is organizing a charity play-along for the ToC finals.
References[]
- ↑ If he had won six games in a row, James would have set a record of winning the ToC for the first time among three or more people in a row who advanced to the ToC.