‘Jeopardy!’ Contestant Explains Controversial Responses: ‘Greetings From a Second Chance Loser’

After losing the latest Jeopardy! tourney with a score of just $1, player Dondi DeMarco is explaining himself on Reddit.

DeMarco narrowly lost a Jeopardy! game in April but got another shot on the Alex Trebek Stage in the third group this year’s Second Chance Tournament. He did well in the semifinals, winning his game with a score of $27,201. But he ended New Year’s Day’s finals match with $0 and ended his second finals match with $1 the following day.

And this operations executive from New York City reflected on his performance in a Reddit post titled “Greetings from a Second Chance Loser” on Saturday.

“As for how things fell apart, it was pretty much everything that can go sideways when you’re up there: bad categories for me, misunderstanding of clues, old man brain, and a couple of killer opponents who knew their stuff and were quick on the buzzer,” he wrote. “I was lucky to finish with a dollar. But I’m at peace with it. I won a game of Jeopardy!, and that’s pretty cool.”

DeMarco also used his Reddit platform to give his thoughts on “a few of the little controversies” from his Second Chance Tournament run, starting with his misspelling of “Komodo dragon” in the Final Jeopardy! round of his semifinals game.

“I would’ve understood if the judges didn’t give me credit for it, but at the same time, I’m pretty sure that a lot of people, myself included, casually pronounce ‘kimono’ with a schwa in the first syllable, just like ‘Komodo,’” DeMarco wrote in his Reddit post. “So I don’t think ‘Kimodo’ is an implausible spelling, just an incorrect one. I should have known better, and with a few more moments to reflect, I probably would’ve spelled it correctly.”

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As for saying “What is An Indecent Proposal?” earlier in that game, instead of using the correct title of the 1993 film — Indecent Proposal with no article — DeMarco said, “I benefited from the longstanding policy of not penalizing for an incorrect leading article unless it creates confusion or ambiguity. Maybe that’s a good policy or maybe not, but it’s well established, and it impacts how you study for and play the game: don’t sweat over learning leading articles, and don’t let uncertainty about one keep you from buzzing in.”

And regarding a response in that same category, DeMarco promised he “definitely said ‘Albert Brooks’” and not “Albert Brook.” As a fan of Brooks for 40 years, DeMarco said he would no more say “Albert Brook” than he would say “Woody Allens.” and he conjectured that the “s” sound in his correct response “might have gotten buried in the sound mix.”

DeMarco, who previously gave the Jeopardy! subreddit an on-air shout-out, ended his post by thanking his fellow Reddit users for the “thoughtful attention” they give to players and the game. “As with any community, there are squabbles and quibbles and philosophical differences, but you guys care. For us players, that means everything. Even those of us who don’t know a Coryat from Corey Haim.”

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