Jeopardy! Masters Fans Predict Whether 2025 Tournament Ratings Will Suffer Without James Holzhauer After His Stunning Reason For Not Competing

Jeopardy! Masters viewers aren’t necessarily particular about who will be playing the game day-to-day, but those who indulge in Jeopardy! Masters are somewhat more particular about who’s playing in the tournament, and without James Holzhauer in the mix, it’s possible the competition could suffer. James, best known for a 32-game winning streak in 2019, has been part of the Jeopardy! family in recent years, but won’t be returning for Jeopardy! Masters season 3, despite viewers hoping he’d be part of the competition. According to Jeopardy! producers, James decided not to compete in the upcoming tournament, despite being invited.

Fans took to Reddit to give their honest reactions to how Jeopardy! Masters might fare amid recent changes, like James Holzhauer not competing.

According to some of the most invested Jeopardy! Masters fans, the competition could genuinely suffer from James choosing not to compete. According to Ajsy0905 on Reddit, Jeopardy! Masters could face a difficult fate in the same way Celebrity Jeopardy! season 3 has. While some seem to agree that the ratings could be poor, most feel that Jeopardy! Masters’ viewership potential is far different from Celebrity Jeopardy! “I think that Jeopardy Masters will still have good ratings this year. It’s much more entertaining,” Positive_Earth_1999 explained, while Niklnarf144 explained they’re “looking forward to the Masters matches” for “the difficulty of the questions.”

What Fan Predictions Mean For Jeopardy! Masters 2025 Tournament

The Tournament Will Likely Do Well In Ratings

Although some Jeopardy! viewers are interested in the weeknight episodes and don’t find themselves indulging further into the series, more die-hard Jeopardy! viewers find themselves more invested in special series, like Celebrity Jeopardy, or tournaments, like Jeopardy! Masters. With such big fans coming into the competition with an interest in seeing who will take the top spot, it’s not surprising to hear that big Jeopardy! fans are enthusiastic and hopeful about this year’s tournament, even without James as a main draw of the competition. Many are looking forward to seeing different faces in the upcoming tournament, which is already stacked.

With a long list of Jeopardy competitors including Victoria Groce, Brad Rutter, and Neilesh Vinjamuri competing, there are plenty of fan-favorites coming to the podium for Jeopardy! Masters. Though some may be disheartened to see James out of the running, the competition will be an uphill battle for the majority of those who are competing in the Jeopardy tournament, which will be fascinating to watch. With things heating up episode after episode within the tournament, by the time there are a few games played, Jeopardy! Masters viewers may not even find themselves realizing James is missing from the competition.

Our Take On Jeopardy! Fan Predictions For 2025 Tournament

The Fans Are Likely Correct

While there are times TV fans may not be the best indicators of whether or not a show will be popular, Jeopardy! fans are an exception to the rule. With so many Jeopardy! Masters fans sharing that they’ll be watching the tournament, there are certainly others who aren’t commenting online about their viewership that will be there as well. On top of that, there are many viewers who will stumble on the competition while searching for something to watch. Though there may be more competition than expected, Jeopardy! Masters is sure to be an exciting tournament with plenty of viewers.

Jeopardy! Masters season 3 premieres Wednesday, April 30 at 9 p.m. EDT on ABC.

Source: Ajsy0905/Reddit