What a whirlwind! Jamie Ding‘s Jeopardy! streak almost ended on April 8, but the final question saved him from defeat. Now, his opponent, who almost beat him, is speaking out.
Ding, from Lawrenceville, New Jersey, played against Dominex Kovacs, from Sacramento, California, and Erica Wagner, from St. Louis, Missouri, on Wednesday night. Ding was in the lead throughout the first round, but wrong Daily Double responses and correct ones in Double Jeopardy from Kovacs tied up the game.
Kovacs, a software engineer, took the lead after the third DD was found and answered incorrectly by Ding, a law student. At the end of the game, Kovacs had $17,600, whereas Ding was in second place with $14,400.
What saved him was the Final Jeopardy clue. None of the game show contestants guessed that Hulk Hogan was a name adopted in 1979 by a man to reflect strength and size.
Luckily for Ding, Kovacs made a huge wager, and Ding won the game with $9,201. He became a 19-day champion with a total of $539,573.
Kovacs opened up on Reddit about the near defeat. “The whole game was such a blur, and I hardly remember any of the details,” he wrote. “Hope you enjoyed the nailbiter!”
“What a whirlwind!” Kovacs wrote after the episode aired. “The highs and lows of the daily doubles and final are still intense even the second time around.”
“Once I knew we were facing a super champion, I knew the only chance any of us had of beating him was going big on the daily doubles, but even knowing that it was the right strategic move, it’s still so hard to actually risk it all when you’re put in that position!”
Kovacs went on to say that the final question was a “tough draw.” He prepped pop culture questions, knowing the Oscars and Grammys took place during his filming. “Unfortunately, wrestling never ended up being a category I focused on, so I was never gonna pull that one,” Kovacs said.
“Still don’t regret a thing, and I hope I get another chance to represent my Coda community out there in Second Chance!” he ended. Kovacs’ parents and one of his brothers are deaf, as well as multiple family members.
Fans replied to him, saying he deserves to be in Second Chance, especially since he went all-in on his Daily Double wager.
“Giving one of the best Jeopardy players ever a good run for their money is quite impressive,” another said.
“What a great game today. My heart was racing at final jeopardy. Look forward to seeing you on a second Chance episode in the future,” a fan commented.
“You did so good! We were unironically rooting for both you AND Jamie!” one last fan said.
Jeopardy!, Weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock
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