HIRSCH MAKES 'EM HURT
Jeopardy! player makes ‘worst bet fans have seen’ that threw away prize money as Isaac Hirsch nabs ‘elite’ 3rd win
Plus, learn about the new champ and his past game show stints
JEOPARDY! contestant Isaac Hirsch blew viewers away with a powerhouse performance on Friday, instantly making him one to watch.
Isaac beat Duke student Alex Wang and Colorado writer/editor Sarah Crocker, who baffled fans with an inexplicable final wager.
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After two impressive wins, the sharp-dressed Burbank, California customer support team lead was back for more.
In the Jeopardy! round, Isaac surged ahead with $7,000, while Sarah had $3,000 and Alex (after a Daily Double miss) had $400.
Double Jeopardy! was pure domination from the returning champ, who picked up both Daily Doubles for $2000.
By Final Jeopardy, Isaac had led at every commercial break and had a full-on runaway.
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Not only that, but he tied Drew Basile's record for a season-high of 33 correct responses.
Isaac held $26,200, Sarah $5,000, and Alex $1,600; the clue was in the "World Languages" category.
It was, "The flag of Aruba features a 4-pointed star symbolizing its 4 major languages: the local Papiamento & these 3 imported ones."
Alex was correct with "English, Spanish, Dutch?" finishing with $2,010.
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Sarah was incorrect and surprisingly wagered $4,500, dropping to $500 and last place.
Isaac was also incorrect, dropping $4,000, but it was just chump change for him.
He won $22,200 for a towering three-day total of $70,186, which Ken Jennings hailed as "Impressive!"
'WHY?'
Fans took to social media, where they were taken aback by Isaac's money moves and Sarah's bewhildering final wager.
If she had bet nothing she would have won an ensured second-place prize given the scores - instead, the large wager which couldn't have won her the game left her in third place.
"Am I missing something or did Sarah screw herself out of second place and an extra $1000?" one fan asked in a Reddit thread.
"Why did she wager $4500? The game was a huge runaway with Isaac having $26200. Even if [Alex] bet everything and won, he couldn't catch Sarah. She just had to bet $0 and be assured of second place."
"She did. The game was a double-lock if she'd noticed," lamented another.
"Worst bet I've seen," wrote a third. "No reason to wager anything."
"I was surprised by her wager too," wrote a fourth. "But at least the extra $1000 became a bonus for Alex for being the only one getting FJ right."
The prize for second place is $3000, while the prize for third place is $2000.
The rest praised the ongoing champ whose streak is suddenly getting serious.
"Isaac with a majority game (33 of 61). It's borderline impossible to win against someone like that," wrote a fifth.
"I think Isaac is going to be in the ToC Tracker on Monday. That was a scary performance," wrote a sixth.
"Until I looked at the stats, I didn't appreciate just how dominantly Isaac has been playing so far--his average Coryat score is 23,400. Granted, we're only 3 games in, but that's elite," remarked a seventh.
"I’m stanning Isaac! He’s so so good and seems like such a fun person," wrote one more.
Isaac will go for win number four on Monday, which would unofficially qualify him for the next Tournament of Champions.
The other qualifiers are Drew, Adriana Harmeyer (15 wins), Alison Betts (5 wins) and Dr. Amy Hummel (5 wins) and Celebrity Jeopardy!'s Lisa Ann Walter.
With four wins, Grant DeYoung and Amar Kakirde will likely join in as well.
GAME SHOW SAVANT
Isaac arrived on Wednesday, June 3, and his streak comes a week after seven-day champ and Survivor alum Drew Basile was outplayed.
Since then, there had been a string of one-day champions, but no one was expecting another potentially long run so soon.
Gameplay-wise, Isaac has gone 88 correct and 12 incorrect on clues - nothing to sneeze at.
But he also boasts a vast game show resume of past stints that are paying off now.
In 2023, Isaac won $140,000 on the ABC game show The Chase, defeating Chaser and nine-day Jeopardy! champion Buzzy Cohen.
In 2017, Isaac also appeared on Who Wants to Be a Millionaire?, winning $5,000 after incorrectly answering the $20,000 question.
DRESSED FOR SUCCESS
Isaac has also scored attention for his vintage wardrobe style, boasting wide-lapel shirts and eye-catching patterns.
A fan on Reddit who was loving Isaac’s camo button up shirt from Thursday's game wrote, “I NEED to know the brand of tonight's shirt!
Isaac replied to the fan, saying he shops vintage, "According to the tag, it’s a St Michael shirt from the UK from 1993."
Isaac also shared that when he was on The Chase, he was not allowed to showcase his vintage outfits and they made him tone it down.
“They did not let me dress as my true self on The Chase though," he wrote.
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AVENGING HIS FATHER
During his first win, Isaac came in hot with a hilarious story about being a second-generation Jeopardy! contestant.
Isaac's father, Steve Hirsch, was a contestant during Season 2 of the game show - and lost.
"My dad was on Jeopardy! in the '80s - one of the first years Alex [Trebek] hosted, and he lost," Isaac recalled.
"Ooh," Ken, 50, replied. "And we used to tease him about it all the time as a kid," Isaac continued.
"I play him Weird Al's 'I Lost on Jeopardy!' [and say] 'It's about you, dad!'"
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Ken burst out laughing as Isaac concluded, "So today, we get to find out how real karma is."
Jeopardy! airs at 7 p.m. ET - check your local listings.
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