# The Jeopardy thread \[was James Holzhauer\]\[contains spoilers\] **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Tags:** reality-or-game-show\ **Created:** [April 17, 2019, 9:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696 "2019-04-17T21:53:54Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 150
**Author:** ![commasense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/commasense/32/3017_2.png) [@commasense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/commasense)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2021, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2985 "2021-10-08T19:01:12Z")
One thing I don’t get is why he’s so conservative in his DD betting in the DJ round. He’s often in a position where he could bet 15,000 or more and still have more than twice as much as the next player if he lost; this is how Holzhauer achieved his astronomical totals. But Matt doesn’t seem to want to risk it, and usually bets only 5,000 or 6,000. He has had a couple big losses when betting big, so maybe he’s gunshy, but considering his batting average, it seems like he’s leaving a lot of money on the table. I’m enjoying his run. I like him more than Holzhauer, even though Holzhauer was definitely more exciting to watch because of those huge bets. ---
**Author:** ![Turek](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/turek/32/18782_2.png) [@Turek](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Turek)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2021, 8:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2986 "2021-10-08T20:39:15Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > One thing I don’t get is why he’s so conservative in his DD betting in the DJ round. At this point, I think he’s going for number of wins rather than dollars. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2021, 8:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2987 "2021-10-08T20:42:27Z")
I think he’s averaging better than Ken Jennings so if he does manage to keep winning, he’ll end up with a higher total. ---
**Author:** ![Kent\_Clark](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/kent_clark/32/105_2.png) [@Kent\_Clark](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Kent_Clark)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2021, 9:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2988 "2021-10-08T21:17:22Z")
My math may be wrong, but I believe as of today, Matt is exactly halfway to Ken Jennings’ consecutive wins. ---
**Author:** ![aceplace57](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aceplace57/32/3500_2.png) [@aceplace57](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/aceplace57)\ **Post date:** [October 8, 2021, 11:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2989 "2021-10-08T23:24:22Z")
I’m beginning to believe Matt could reach Ken’s record. There’s extra motivation because Ken will be hosting in Nov. Beating your hero’s record is cool. Doing it while Ken’s at the podium would be awesome. It would also get great tv ratings. I’m trying not to get excited until we see what happens in the next two weeks ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 5:50am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2990 "2021-10-09T05:50:44Z")
I’m _so_ glad Claire managed to finish in second place. I felt sorry for her as she repeatedly tried to ring in and failed each time. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 6:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2991 "2021-10-09T06:02:50Z")
I also thought the answer was **Harry Potter**. At first glance that list really seemed to fit. **1984** never even crossed my mind. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 6:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2992 "2021-10-09T06:37:14Z")
> [@commasense](#): > > He has had a couple big losses when betting big, so maybe he’s gunshy, but considering his batting average, it seems like he’s leaving a lot of money on the table. So much of the game is rhythm, confidence, fighting through pressure. He keeps doing things the same way because it keeps him in the right mindset. It keeps his groove going. In terms of winning money the best strategy is to win the game and come back the next day, and he’s got a system that’s worked for 38 games. ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 1:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2993 "2021-10-09T13:55:33Z")
Many years ago I had a job at a convenience store late at night and there were long periods with nothing to do. I decided to kill time I would memorize all the answers to Trivial Pursuit. At that time there was just one edition, now there are many. Memorizing all of those could help a contestant. ---
**Author:** ![Mike\_Mabes](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mike_mabes/32/1782_2.png) [@Mike\_Mabes](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mike_Mabes)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 2:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2994 "2021-10-09T14:02:45Z")
very bad final question. If I had not read a book about the revolution a couple of months ago would have had no clue, and there was nothing in the clue so that you could figure it out, unless you spoke French. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 2:48pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2995 "2021-10-09T14:48:10Z")
Being able to speak French obviously wouldn’t have helped, since the name was derived from Greek. You could only know it if, as you indicate, you know something about history. ---
**Author:** ![The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/the_other_waldo_pepper/32/12370_2.png) [@The\_Other\_Waldo\_Pepper](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Other_Waldo_Pepper)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 2:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2996 "2021-10-09T14:54:23Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > Being able to speak French obviously wouldn’t have helped, since the name was derived from Greek. You could only know it if, as you indicate, you know something about history. Technically, I got it from reading comic books. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 2:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2997 "2021-10-09T14:58:23Z")
Comic books can be a great source of information (seriously)! I learned a lot from reading Sgt Rock, Uncle Scrooge, and Little Dot (to name but a few) when I was a kid. ---
**Author:** ![RickJay](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/r/bb73d2/32.png) [@RickJay](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/RickJay)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 3:21pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2998 "2021-10-09T15:21:48Z")
Last night’s Final Jeopardy was insanely easy and one guy somehow blew it. ---
**Author:** ![Arcite](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/67e7ee/32.png) [@Arcite](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Arcite)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 4:36pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/2999 "2021-10-09T16:36:30Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > So much of the game is rhythm, confidence, fighting through pressure. He keeps doing things the same way because it keeps him in the right mindset. It keeps his groove going. In terms of winning money the best strategy is to win the game and come back the next day, and he’s got a system that’s worked for 38 games. Yes, I think his wagers make sense. If he has $19,000 and the 2nd place contestant has $3000… well, he could risk $13,000 and even if he got it wrong, still have double the 2nd place contestant’s score. But if the other guy gets the next Daily Double, bets it all, and gets it right, suddenly it’s a tie game. It’s better to make sure he doesn’t give up his runaway status. ---
**Author:** ![mordecaiB](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mordecaib/32/7725_2.png) [@mordecaiB](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mordecaiB)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 5:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/3000 "2021-10-09T17:02:09Z")
> [@RickJay](#): > > Last night’s Final Jeopardy was insanely easy and one guy somehow blew it. And I can’t even understand how he came up with that answer. Sometimes people get the wrong answer, but you can at least tell how they came up with it. The only thing I can think of was that he just drew a complete blank for some reason. ---
**Author:** ![terentii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/terentii/32/212_2.png) [@terentii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/terentii)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 5:38pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/3001 "2021-10-09T17:38:23Z")
Many years ago, I was playing Trivial Pursuit with a bunch of co-workers. After the game was over, I started going through the cards idly, just to see how many answers I already knew. (Most of them, it turned out.) One of my colleagues saw what I was doing and was aghast. “You’re _reading_ the _cards_?!?” he asked. “Of _course_ I’m reading the cards,” I replied. The whole point of the game is to know the information on them. Whether I _remember_ it is another matter. Anyway, it’s all general knowledge, so there’s nothing specific to the game that might give me an advantage over the other players. I could learn the same things by reading at a library. (I also found some answers that I knew to be inaccurate.) ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 7:59pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/3002 "2021-10-09T19:59:29Z")
> [@terentii](#): > > And yes, I was waiting for Mayim to say “Be more specific” on the “What is … Adams?” response. Maybe the “1801” was enough to differentiate John from John Q. Well, if she had, and he had said “John Adams,” that’s the other’s name too. ---
**Author:** ![Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/j/ba9def/32.png) [@Just\_Asking\_Questions](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Just_Asking_Questions)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 8:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/3003 "2021-10-09T20:17:05Z")
LUCILLE Ball! Say her name! ---
**Author:** ![Siam\_Sam](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/d78d45/32.png) [@Siam\_Sam](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Siam_Sam)\ **Post date:** [October 9, 2021, 8:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696/3004 "2021-10-09T20:20:04Z")
Or he could have gone with, “LOOOOOSEEEEE!” Side note: I just learned Lucie Arnaz is 70. That makes me feel old. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=149) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-jeopardy-thread-was-james-holzhauer-contains-spoilers/832696.md?page=151)