‘Jeopardy!’: Did Scott Riccardi Win Again & Hit All-Time Top 20?

Spoiler Alert

Jeopardy.com

Jeopardy! went from tying the record for the most one-day champions in a row to having an eight-day champion. Scott Riccardi, from Somerville, New Jersey, returned for his ninth game, and tried to hit the All-Time Top 20, but did he?

Riccardi faced off against Pete Johnston, from Lansing, Michigan, and Carl Adams, from Des Moines, Iowa, on Tuesday, July 15. Riccardi had an eight-day total of $201,301. It took over 220 episodes for a player to win over $200,000 this season, according to The Jeopardy! Fan. He was only $30,000 away from making it into the Top 20 all-time in terms of regular-play winnings and surpassing Roger Craig, who has total winnings of $231,200.

“In yesterday’s game, our champion Scott Riccardi scored his eighth victory, so another win today would make it nine. That’s a milestone we have not seen here on the Alex Trebek stage since exactly one year ago today when Isaac Hirsch earned his ninth victory,” host Ken Jennings said. “So, will July 15 prove lucky for Scott as well, or will Pete or Carl start a streak of their own?”

Riccardi, an engineer, and Johnston, a filmmaker and educator, were tied at $4,200 when Riccardi found the Daily Double. He wagered $4,000 in “Homer.” The clue read, “The last book of the Iliad contains the funeral of Hector; the last book of the Odyssey has the funeral of this slayer of Hector.” The reigning champion answered, “Who is Achilles?” which was correct. That gave him the lead with $8,200.

During the interview rounds, Riccardi explained that he plays Scattegories all the time with his friends, and he once put Albert Einstein as a celebrity, but his friends didn’t categorize the inventor in that way. Riccardi said that he saw in an old video that Ken Jennings called Einstein a celebrity, so they accepted it. “Well, you’re sort of an Einstein-like smart guy celebrity right now,” the host said.

By the end of the round, Riccardi kept the lead with $12,600. Johnston had $6,000. Adams, a litigation technology specialist, was finally on the board with $400.

In Double Jeopardy, Adams answered a few more questions and found the first Daily Double of the round. With $2,800 in his bank, he wagered $2,700. In “Movies Set in the 1920s,” the clue was “In this 1952 film, Don Lockwood works as a stuntman elevated to leading man, just before the advent of talking pictures.” Adams answered correctly with “What is Singin’ In The Rain?” This gave him $5,500, but he was still in third place.

The rest of the round belonged to Riccardi as he answered most of the clues correctly. He found the second Daily Double and tried to maintain his lead. Riccardi had $22,200 and wagered $6,000 in “It’s Borderline.” ” This Mexican state between Sonora & Coahuila has all 3 of the border crossings from Mexico to New Mexico,” read the clue. He hesitated before answering, “What is Chihuahua?” which was correct. That gave him $28,200 and a huge lead.

After getting a few clues wrong, Riccardi ended with his above total. Johnston had $15,600. Adams’ total was $9,600. Unless Johnston made a risky wager in Final Jeopardy, Riccardi had the win in the bag.

The category for Final Jeopardy was “Theater.” The clue read, “The title of a Pulitzer-winning play from 2007 mentions this month, as does another winner 54 years prior.” All of the contestants answered correctly with, “What is August?”

Adams wagered $0, keeping his $9,100. Johnston wagered $12,601, giving him a $1 over Riccardi. But, since Riccardi got it right (and didn’t wager $0), he was guaranteed the win. Riccardi wagered $4,000, giving him $32,200, and a nine-game total of $233, 501. He will return for his 10th game on July 16 against two new opponents. Riccardi surpassed Craig and is now in the top 20 players of all time.

However, he still has a long way to go to crack the top 20 in the other categories.

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