# The Contestants on Wheel of Fortune Drive Me Insane!!! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [May 12, 2012, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729 "2012-05-12T22:14:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Sir\_T-Cups](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/ed655f/32.png) [@Sir\_T-Cups](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Sir_T-Cups)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/1 "2012-05-12T22:14:54Z")
So I’m apparently good at Wheel as I watch it occasionally and do well every time that I do. As I’m watching it now I see people needlessly throwing their money away on vowels!!! Half the damn puzzle is done and they’re still “uh…I wanna buy an O” YOU KNOW THERE ARE TWO DAMN O’S!!! WHY SPEND THE MONEY!!! It makes no sense. If I can get these puzzles than they can get these puzzles. I gotta get on this show just to teach em a lesson. ---
**Author:** ![Covered\_In\_Bees](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/7ab992/32.png) [@Covered\_In\_Bees](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Covered_In_Bees)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/2 "2012-05-12T22:17:33Z")
People on nonJeopardy! (which means the occasional retarded final Jeopardy wager even more irritating) game shows are stupid. I don’t watch game shows anymore due to this reason. ---
**Author:** ![etv78](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/d78d45/32.png) [@etv78](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/etv78)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:37pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/3 "2012-05-12T22:37:41Z")
2 guesses: 1.The time Vanna spends revealing the letters gives them time to compose themselves to guess. 2. (corrollary to 1) Being under the lights of national TV is nerve wracking. ---
**Author:** ![garygnu](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/garygnu/32/2924_2.png) [@garygnu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/garygnu)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:44pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/4 "2012-05-12T22:44:14Z")
They take the knowledge that there are two O’s to search for clues for the words they don’t know yet. And vowels are freaking cheap. ---
**Author:** ![John\_DiFool](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/john_difool/32/19543_2.png) [@John\_DiFool](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/John_DiFool)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:50pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/5 "2012-05-12T22:50:45Z")
That’s why I’ve always called it “Wheel of Morons”… ---
**Author:** ![ZenBeam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/3ab097/32.png) [@ZenBeam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/ZenBeam)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 10:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/6 "2012-05-12T22:56:32Z")
I don’t watch any more, but when I did, anyone who had a “Free Spin” would use it as soon as they had a chance. Just hit bankrupt, don’t know the answer, not that many letters left? “Sure I’ll use it!” Then the next letter they guess isn’t in the puzzle. Save it for a later puzzle when you know the answer and hit “Lose a Turn”. ---
**Author:** ![jz78817](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jz78817/32/1028_2.png) [@jz78817](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/jz78817)\ **Post date:** [May 12, 2012, 11:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/7 "2012-05-12T23:00:39Z")
I guarantee you if I was on Wheel of Fortune (or any other game show) I’d totally derp. But I guess I’m just a moron. ---
**Author:** ![Bootis](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/e8c25b/32.png) [@Bootis](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bootis)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 6:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/8 "2012-05-13T06:12:12Z")
I can put up with most of those people’s stupidity, but what makes me change the channel is the way they guess a letter, and before Vanna is even done turning the damn letters, you can hear that wheel spinning again already. Look at the puzzle you moron! You get a few seconds to make a choice to spin or solve, and you’re spinning before you’ve even on the clock. Gee, don’t you think it might be a good idea to at least see the puzzle with the all the new letters in place, and consider it for a second first? ---
**Author:** ![obfusciatrist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/o/4af34b/32.png) [@obfusciatrist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/obfusciatrist)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 6:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/9 "2012-05-13T06:16:14Z")
I don’t know it to be the case but I’ve always assumed there is some editing of that stuff to speed up the game so that it seems like they’ve started spinning right away when that might not actually be the case. ---
**Author:** ![Robot\_Arm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/robot_arm/32/18280_2.png) [@Robot\_Arm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Robot_Arm)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 6:28am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/10 "2012-05-13T06:28:29Z")
If you don’t know the puzzle, vowels are a cheap way to get a lot of information. I’ve seen players guess at consonants, lose control to the next player, and never get another spin. Oftentimes, you can take a pretty good guess based on the letters that have been revealed; if a word ends in \_NG, buy an I. If there are more I’s in the puzzle, great; and if there aren’t, that tells you something, too. Even if you’re 99% sure of the puzzle, it could be worth it just to confirm you’re right. If you solve the puzzle, you win some money; if you don’t, you get nothing. Do whatever it takes to solve the puzzle. The _Wheel of Fortune_ play that drives me nuts is when people don’t seem to realize that the money on the wheel is for each occurrence of the letter they guess. Everybody has seen players who obviously know the puzzle, but keep spinning to build up their bank before solving. If you hit a low number on the wheel, pick a letter there are few of in the puzzle. Even worse is when they know the puzzle, spin, pick a letter that’s only in the puzzle once (when there’s a multiple available) and then solve. That’s just leaving money on the table. I’m not a regular watcher, but I don’t think I’ve ever seen anyone who clearly played that part of the game correctly. ---
**Author:** ![Isamu](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/7c8e57/32.png) [@Isamu](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Isamu)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 2:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/11 "2012-05-13T14:01:23Z")
Wasting money on buying a useless vowel? I find those people really annoying. Worse than naggers. ---
**Author:** ![EmilyG](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/emilyg/32/364_2.png) [@EmilyG](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/EmilyG)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 3:16pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/12 "2012-05-13T15:16:59Z")
As I’ve said elsewhere, the thing that bugs me most about Wheel is the screaming that a lot of the women contestants do when they solve a puzzle. (I’m not a woman-hater. I’m a woman myself. It’s just that the men never shriek like that.) ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 3:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/13 "2012-05-13T15:30:00Z")
Now that _Family Feud_ follows _Jeopardy!_ on the same channel at our preferred time of day, we don’t have to change channels to watch Wheel, so we haven’t in months. But trying to solve [Common Knowledge](http://www.puzzability.com/cgi-bin/commonknowledge.pl) without getting at least some vowels can be daunting. ---
**Author:** ![Tangent](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/tangent/32/3098_2.png) [@Tangent](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Tangent)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 3:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/14 "2012-05-13T15:36:59Z")
> [@Robot\_Arm](#): > > If you don’t know the puzzle, vowels are a cheap way to get a lot of information. I’ve seen players guess at consonants, lose control to the next player, and never get another spin. Oftentimes, you can take a pretty good guess based on the letters that have been revealed; if a word ends in \_NG, buy an I. If there are more I’s in the puzzle, great; and if there aren’t, that tells you something, too. Yeah, but people buy vowels all the time in situations where it is completely pointless. Like, the remaining puzzle is: B\_N\_N\_ SP\_IT “Pat, I’d like to buy an A!” :smack: ---
**Author:** ![Zeldar](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/z/b77776/32.png) [@Zeldar](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Zeldar)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 3:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/15 "2012-05-13T15:43:25Z")
In case you haven’t checked YouTube for “Wheel of Fortune” fuckups, you could spend the next hour laughing yourself sick. Start with [Wheel Of Fortune Idiot](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jsubvaIj2Cg) and work your way through the associated clips. ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_L.A](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_l.a/32/1084_2.png) [@Johnny\_L.A](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_L.A)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 3:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/16 "2012-05-13T15:48:33Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > Yeah, but people buy vowels all the time in situations where it is completely pointless. Like, the remaining puzzle is: > B\_N\_N\_ SP\_IT > > “Pat, I’d like to buy an A!” > > :smack: I’d want to buy a cherry. _I’m looking for a cherry for my banana split Because without a cherry, a split just ain’t a split I went to see Old Maid Blye She still had hers but it was old and dry Looking for a cherry for my banana split!_ ---
**Author:** ![BobLibDem](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/boblibdem/32/3149_2.png) [@BobLibDem](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BobLibDem)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 4:29pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/17 "2012-05-13T16:29:22Z")
It bothers me that so few seem to want to learn how to spin the wheel. After a couple spins, you should be looking where the loser wedges are and spin to avoid them. To see someone hit the wedge right next to bankrupt twice and a row and then hit it on the third time is inexcusable. ---
**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:** [May 13, 2012, 4:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/18 "2012-05-13T16:46:16Z")
“Three _loins_ in a fountain” ! ---
**Author:** ![Hippy\_Hollow](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hippy_hollow/32/4841_2.png) [@Hippy\_Hollow](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Hippy_Hollow)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 4:49pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/19 "2012-05-13T16:49:07Z")
I’ve been on the show and you buy vowels for three reasons: one, you have no idea what the puzzle is; two, you are fairly sure what the puzzle is, but you don’t know the phrase/idiom; and three, karma. Not everybody’s cultural reference points are the same. And even when I did my show in 1993, the fear that you would get a letter wrong, or pronounce it incorrectly was real. If you had every word revealed the odds of you hearing Pat say, “No, I’m sorry, that’s not it,” are greatly reduced. ---
**Author:** ![TreacherousCretin](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/treacherouscretin/32/476_2.png) [@TreacherousCretin](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/TreacherousCretin)\ **Post date:** [May 13, 2012, 5:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729/20 "2012-05-13T17:03:29Z")
> [@Tangent](#): > > Yeah, but people buy vowels all the time in situations where it is completely pointless. Like, the remaining puzzle is: > B\_N\_N\_ SP\_IT > > “Pat, I’d like to buy an A!” > > :smack: Huh? What’s a “banana splat” ?? [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-contestants-on-wheel-of-fortune-drive-me-insane/621729.md?page=2)