‘Jeopardy!’ Can ‘Baby Shark’ Liam Starnes Make Tournament of Champions?

Spoiler Alert

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[The following post contains MAJOR spoilers for the Tuesday, April 22, episode of Jeopardy!]

Liam Starnes returned for his third Jeopardy!game with a two-day total of $52,802. The undergraduate student from Barrington, Illinois, could possibly qualify for an upcoming Tournament of Champions if his winning streak continues.

Starnes played against Kyle Dunn, from New York City and Sara Grady, from Nashville, Tennessee, on Tuesday, April 22. The returning champion had an impressive first round that put him in the lead quickly.

Host Ken Jennings started the episode by explaining that, after the last episode, he asked Starnes if he was happy that he could continue playing, and Starnes replied, “Of course, this is amazing!”

What set Starnes over the top was he picked questions that were $1,000 and $800 towards the beginning of the round. He also found the first Daily Double of the game, and with $5,800 in his bank, Starnes wagered $3,000. The clue read, “Most of the $100 million in loot stolen from this Belgian city’s diamond center in 2003 is still missing.” He correctly answered, “What is Antwerp?” making his total $8,800.

By the end of the first round and 15 questions, he had answered 11 questions, with 10 correct and one wrong. He had $9,200. Grady, an instructional coach, had -$600. Dunn, an actor and director, was in third with -$800.

During the interview round, Dunn shared that the money he makes on Jeopardy! is going to be used to pay back his therapist since he didn’t have the money to pay him when he was younger. Grady is a proud cat owner whose fur baby has lived on three different continents. Starnes shared that he is a huge sports fan, which is why he was so good at the category, and he has been to 17 major sporting events (so far).

By the end of the round, Starnes had $11,600. Although Grady answered numerous questions correctly, she only had $3,000. Dunn was still in the negatives with -$1,200.

In Double Jeopardy, Dunn finally got out of the hole and found the first DD of the round. He made it a true Daily Double and wagered all of his $2,000. The clue read, “Pity these big mammals for which a bay near Key Largo is named; in summer 2023, water temps there hit 101.1 degrees.” He correctly answered, “What are manatees?” giving him $4,000. This moved him to second place.

Starnes found the last DD of the game. With $18,400 in his bank, Starnes only wagered $2,000. The clue read, “The title of his 2024 memoir Sonny Boy refers to his mother’s childhood nickname for him, not his character in Dog Day Afternoon.” Starnes didn’t know the answer and guessed, “Who is Kevin Hart?”

“It was a movie clue, Al Pacino,” Jennings said. “Kind of the Kevin Hart of his era, some might say.”

Starnes lost $2,000, giving him a total of $16,400. He still maintained a wide lead, however. He dominated the rest of the round with 31 correct answers in total. By the end of the round, he had a huge lead with $24,400. Dunn was in second with $9,200. Grady had $3,000. Unless Starnes made an outrageous wager, he was almost guaranteed to win this game.

The category for Final Jeopardy was “Images of 2024.” The clue read, “Item in common to a January 1889 self-portrait & several of those attending the 2024 Republican National Convention.” Grady wrote, “What is an ear bandage?” That was correct and gave her a total of $4,500, after wagering $1,500. Dunn didn’t write anything. He wagered all of his money, ending with $0. Things were looking good for Starnes even as incorrectly answered, “What is an elephant?” Starnes wagered $5,000 and ended with $19,400.

Starnes thus became the night’s winner and a three-time champion. He is only one win away from qualifying for an upcoming Tournament of Champions and now has a three-day total of $72, 202. He will face off against two new opponents on Wednesday, April 23.

Reddit users couldn’t believe how good of a game Starnes played. One of them even called him a baby shark, after he was dubbed a “young Sheldon Cooper” by fans.

“Baby shark is doing a good job,” the fan wrote.

“Liam might be around for a LONG time if he brushes up on his pop culture. I am impressed by his general and sports knowledge,” wrote another.

“Liam has been killing it in his games so far wow! Impressive game with a coryat north of 24000 and 31 correct responses,” said a third.

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