# If I see one more person screw up a Jeopardy! bet... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 31, 2012, 12:57am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246 "2012-01-31T00:57:08Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 2
**Author:** ![Joey\_P](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/919ad9/32.png) [@Joey\_P](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Joey_P)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 4:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/21 "2012-01-31T16:06:50Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I don’t understand why you wouldn’t always automatically bet it all (assuming you know the answer). If you don’t know the answer that’s one thing, but if you do and you’re behind, what do you have to lose?! The tell you the category, but not the question (answer). In other words, you wager based on what you think the question is going to be about. But even that can be difficult when they the topic is something really vague. Who cares how many graduate degrees you have when the topic is “The 19th Century” and Alex says “Oooh, sounds like fun, place your bets and we’ll be right back after 17 Aleve commercials.” ---
**Author:** ![DCnDC](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dcndc/32/2842_2.png) [@DCnDC](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DCnDC)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 4:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/22 "2012-01-31T16:07:58Z")
Okay, I see. Guess I haven’t watched Jeopardy! in a while, I forgot that you had to bet before getting the question. ---
**Author:** ![Christopher\_Robin\_Davies](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8dc957/32.png) [@Christopher\_Robin\_Davies](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Christopher_Robin_Davies)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 4:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/23 "2012-01-31T16:41:58Z")
> [@DCnDC](#): > > I don’t understand why you wouldn’t always automatically bet it all (assuming you know the answer). If you don’t know the answer that’s one thing, but if you do and you’re behind, what do you have to lose?! If you are in second place when it comes to the FJ round and the person in first place does not have more than twice your score the thing to do is to bet enough to tie with the third-place person if you both get it right, and hope the first-place person gets it wrong. You assume the third-place person gets it right and bets everything. ---
**Author:** ![pulykamell](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pulykamell/32/3166_2.png) [@pulykamell](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/pulykamell)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 4:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/24 "2012-01-31T16:52:03Z")
What happens in a two-way or three-way tie? Do all three win the money? I understand that the first place players would come back for the next game, but I’m curious as to what happens prize-wise. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 5:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/25 "2012-01-31T17:48:56Z")
> [@pulykamell](#): > > What happens in a two-way or three-way tie? Do all three win the money? I understand that the first place players would come back for the next game, but I’m curious as to what happens prize-wise. Yes, the people who tie for first all get their money and all return for the next game, unless they all tied at zero, in which case they all lose. I only saw this once, during a Seniors Tournament. I assume two contestants who tied in second place would both get the second-place prize. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 5:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/26 "2012-01-31T17:53:10Z")
No, they told us but I forget - I think the one who had more coming into FJ gets the $2000. They don’t both get second. ---
**Author:** ![Bryan\_Ekers](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bryan_ekers/32/183_2.png) [@Bryan\_Ekers](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bryan_Ekers)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 5:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/27 "2012-01-31T17:58:17Z")
Well, what if they have equal amounts going into FJ? In fact, that’s where I’d expect a resulting tie to be most likely - the contestants bet everything and end up doubling their scores. ---
**Author:** ![FlightlessBird](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/cdc98d/32.png) [@FlightlessBird](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/FlightlessBird)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 7:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/28 "2012-01-31T19:06:43Z")
> [@Zsofia](#): > > Because you don’t know if you know the answer. > > And you don’t know if anybody else does, either. A friend who was on (and won twice!) said that she knew what her competitor’s strength were. And that helped her make a betting decision. The category was ‘Port Cities’, and knew the leader wasn’t strong in Geography, so she had a shot so she bet it all. I think her point was that if she knew it was a strong suit of his, she would have tried to save some money. I can understand how to bet from ahead, but I think it’s tougher to figure out from 2nd or 3rd. But here’s a [wagering calculator](http://www.j-archive.com/wageringcalculator.php) I found on a great Jeopardy site (search for any game over the life of the show) ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 7:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/29 "2012-01-31T19:30:23Z")
> [@FlightlessBird](#): > > A friend who was on (and won twice!) said that she knew what her competitor’s strength were. And that helped her make a betting decision. The category was ‘Port Cities’, and knew the leader wasn’t strong in Geography, so she had a shot so she bet it all. I think her point was that if she knew it was a strong suit of his, she would have tried to save some money. > I can understand how to bet from ahead, but I think it’s tougher to figure out from 2nd or 3rd. But here’s a [wagering calculator](http://www.j-archive.com/wageringcalculator.php) I found on a great Jeopardy site (search for any game over the life of the show) How was she able to discern his strenghts/weaknesses in 22 minutes? ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 8:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/30 "2012-01-31T20:12:49Z")
Optimal betting strategy isn’t entirely determined by the dollar totals everyone has, and you do have some idea of how likely you are to get the right answer from the category. If I’m ever on the show and the final category is physics, for example, I’m betting it all no matter what the scores are, because to do any less is just leaving money on the table. If, on the other hand, it’s something about contemporary musicians, I’d be more likely to just bet a pittance and hope the other two fail big, because I have very little chance of getting that one. That said, though, I can’t think of any conceivable betting strategy that makes that bet the right one. ---
**Author:** ![Zsofia](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/7bcc69/32.png) [@Zsofia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zsofia)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/31 "2012-01-31T20:17:36Z")
You never know when the category is “physics” but the answer really has nothing to do with physics, see. The goal isn’t to make all the money, the goal is to stay in the next game. ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 8:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/32 "2012-01-31T20:40:56Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > If I’m ever on the show and the final category is physics, for example, I’m betting it all no matter what the scores are, because to do any less is just leaving money on the table. I’m still driven by nerves getting the better of me in the seventh grade spelling bee when as the first person up I misspelled “opposite.” Even though I absolutely knew how to spell it. So I’d still bet the maximum I could with minimal risk of losing if wrong. With my luck I’d have had a brain fart and Alex actually said “psychics.” ---
**Author:** ![That\_Don\_Guy](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/that_don_guy/32/538_2.png) [@That\_Don\_Guy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/That_Don_Guy)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 8:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/33 "2012-01-31T20:50:21Z")
> [@Bryan\_Ekers](#): > > Yes, the people who tie for first all get their money and all return for the next game, unless they all tied at zero, in which case they all lose. I only saw this once, during a Seniors Tournament. I think that’s the only time all three ended the Double Jeopardy round with zero (or less). They didn’t bother with the Final Jeopardy question that day. In one episode of the show’s first week, all three bet everything on Final Jeopardy and missed; there were three new contestants on the next show. (BTW, for those of you not overly familiar with the show, if only one contestant has a positive score at the end of Double Jeopardy, they do play Final Jeopardy with just that one contestant. I don’t know how it started, but, for some reason, a number of people (usually posting to “what is the most you can win in one episode?” threads) think that they skip Final Jeopardy if only one player is eligible.) ---
**Author:** ![Cartoonacy](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/848f3c/32.png) [@Cartoonacy](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Cartoonacy)\ **Post date:** [January 31, 2012, 11:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/34 "2012-01-31T23:55:43Z")
[This was the first three-way tie ever.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72zn2KODSsY) AFAIK, the only one that was greater than zero. ---
**Author:** ![Chronos](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/chronos/32/134_2.png) [@Chronos](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chronos)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 12:07am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/35 "2012-02-01T00:07:20Z")
> [@](#): > > You never know when the category is “physics” but the answer really has nothing to do with physics, see. The goal isn’t to make all the money, the goal is to stay in the next game. In my experience watching the show, if it’s a category like “physics”, then even if the clues aren’t actually physics per se, it’s still always close enough that I would still get it right. > [@](#): > > I’m still driven by nerves getting the better of me in the seventh grade spelling bee when as the first person up I misspelled “opposite.” Even though I absolutely knew how to spell it. > > So I’d still bet the maximum I could with minimal risk of losing if wrong. And I already know from experience that nerves don’t hit me that way. When I’m onstage or in a competition, I’m at my sharpest (and yes, I have been on a televised quiz show, though not _Jeopardy_). Oddly, immediately _after_ a competition, when it doesn’t matter any more, I’m a total nervous wreck. ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/36 "2012-02-01T00:20:13Z")
> [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > Going into Final Jeopardy the leader had $21,000, second place $11,400, third place $11,000. > > Third place gets it right, bets it all, for a total of $22,000. > > Second place gets it right, bets $10,000 (!!??) for a total of $21,400. > > First place gets it wrong, so the person who was in third wins the game. It was that $10,000 bet that flipped me out. All I could think was math error, but that’s a really basic one…though I think the guess that she meant $11,000 might be right. I’ll admit there are some pretty complex scenarios around betting, which were lovingly detailed on the old Jeopardy! site. But going back to last week, in general if there are 3 close scores, and you’re in 3rd, you should sit tight and bet nothing…which someone failed to do last week, and it cost her the game (admittedly if the category is Famous Generals and you’re a West Point instructor you might change that strategy, but hopefully you get the general idea). ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 12:51am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/37 "2012-02-01T00:51:21Z")
> [@etv78](#): > > How was she able to discern his strenghts/weaknesses in 22 minutes? They film 5 episodes a day, so if you’re on one of the later episodes from that day, you will have gotten to see the returning champ at least once, and maybe more than once. Definitely enough time to get a feel for their strengths and weaknesses. When I was on the show, I went up against a 3-time champ whose three games I’d gotten to see filmed. So after watching him flub (or at least, not do well on) a category on the US Constitution, I figured he was weak on law-related material. That should have worked out well for me when my Final Jeopardy was law-related, but it turned out the question was really easy :smack: ---
**Author:** ![MilTan](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/71e660/32.png) [@MilTan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MilTan)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 12:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/38 "2012-02-01T00:53:30Z")
> [@Cartoonacy](#): > > [This was the first three-way tie ever.](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=72zn2KODSsY) AFAIK, the only one that was greater than zero. We talked about that one in the green room when I was on. Apparently the first-place contestant asked before making his wager if there’d ever been a three-way tie. He deliberately bet to make it happen, and all three contestants got to play another game. It backfired on the 1st place guy when he didn’t win his next game, though. ---
**Author:** ![Arnold\_Winkelried](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/3d9bf3/32.png) [@Arnold\_Winkelried](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arnold_Winkelried)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 1:14am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/39 "2012-02-01T01:14:54Z")
> [@Chronos](#): > > Optimal betting strategy isn’t entirely determined by the dollar totals everyone has, and you do have some idea of how likely you are to get the right answer from the category. If I’m ever on the show and the final category is physics, for example, I’m betting it all no matter what the scores are, because to do any less is just leaving money on the table. If, on the other hand, it’s something about contemporary musicians, I’d be more likely to just bet a pittance and hope the other two fail big, because I have very little chance of getting that one. > [@Chronos](#): > > In my experience watching the show, if it’s a category like “physics”, then even if the clues aren’t actually physics per se, it’s still always close enough that I would still get it right. Oh yeah? 😛 _drumroll_ This well-known contemporary musician has a Ph.D. in astrophysics. (_tick… tick… tick…_) ---
**Author:** ![Maserschmidt](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/maserschmidt/32/18829_2.png) [@Maserschmidt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Maserschmidt)\ **Post date:** [February 1, 2012, 1:27am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246/40 "2012-02-01T01:27:09Z")
> [@Arnold\_Winkelried](#): > > Oh yeah? 😛 _drumroll_ > This well-known contemporary musician has a Ph.D. in astrophysics. > (_tick… tick… tick…_) I know! I know! [http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14089278&postcount=60](http://boards.straightdope.com/sdmb/showpost.php?p=14089278&postcount=60) [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246.md?page=1) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/if-i-see-one-more-person-screw-up-a-jeopardy-bet/611246.md?page=3)