[Warning: The below contains MAJOR spoilers for the Wednesday, December 11 episode of Jeopardy!]
Jeopardy!’s restauranteur returning champ Invoice McKinney left no crumbs on Wednesday night time, pulling off an all-out runaway third victory. He shared on social media how he pulled off what seemingly was the game-clinching clue, and no, it wasn’t what followers dubbed one of many extra questionably straightforward Last Jeopardy clues concocted by the quiz present.
McKinney, a VP of eating places & bars initially from Boston, Massachusetts, entered with a two-day complete of $28,000 after a low-scoring earlier episode, largely as a result of a triple-stumper Last clue that the champ known as “brutal” on Reddit. He confronted Sam Nguyen, a tax accountant from Hyattsville, Maryland, and Molly LeBlanc, an administrative assistant from New Orleans, Louisiana.
Within the Jeopardy! spherical, McKinney discovered the primary Each day Double nearly instantly within the “Rhyming Final Names” class, appropriately making what Ken Jennings joked “appeared like a guess” with “Miller and Schiller.” After floating his daughter as Johnny Gilbert’s substitute within the interviews, the dad of two led the way in which with $5,400, LeBlanc had $3,600, and Nguyen $1,200.
In Double Jeopardy, the sport was all McKinney’s as he discovered each remaining Each day Doubles. He gained $4,000 on the “Outdated Testomony” clue in search of “Esau,” which felt just like the night time’s conclusive second. Whereas he dropped $3,000 on the bottom-row “Asian Individuals” clue in search of “Pei,” he had the wiggle room to take action and cruised into Last Jeopardy with $14,800, Nguyen with $3,200 and LeBlanc with $2,000.
The “Phrase of Science” clue was, “nobelprize .org says some papers of this scientist ‘are saved in lead containers,’ a ‘legacy that’s actually untouchable’.” It was a triple-get, as everybody was right in writing, “Who’s: Marie Curie?” The champ added $4,000 to win with $18,800 for a three-day complete of $46,800.
Followers flooded the Reddit thread for the episode, with many sharing that they have been astonished by the unchallenging Last query.
“FJ was like a $200 clue…….” one Redditor wrote.
“I might get the FJ! reply proper after the phrase ‘papers’ I feel,” wrote one other.
“Solely method it might have been simpler is that if they specified that it was a girl who received a Nobel in two completely different fields,” wrote a 3rd.
“Hey! I respect them often throwing a bone to these of us who would by no means get FJ in any other case,” wrote a fourth. “Additionally, off-topic, however Ken’s tie in the present day was probably the most lovely tie he has ever worn on the stage. SO PRETTY! I feel it’s time you lean into the florals, Ken.”
A fifth wrote, “How is that clue worthy of Last Jeopardy?”
And a sixth, “Echoing everybody else’s sentiments: what a surprisingly easy FJ after two pretty powerful boards!”
McKinney buzzed in to the thread to share his mindset in the course of the large second Each day Double, realizing Esau was “The furry one” within the nick of time.
A fan wrote, “Good job on the Each day Double. I slipped up and mentioned, Jacob, fully forgetting who was born first.”
McKinney wrote again, “That’s why I used to be grimacing as quickly as I learn it. But it surely popped into my head that he was the furry one. Thanks to the publishers of the children’ Bible guide I purchased.”
McKinney didn’t mince phrases concerning the earlier episode’s “Williams Jennings Bryan” Last Clue, which introduced him a $6,000 win. He wrote within the Reddit thread for that episode, “This one was brutal for me.”
In the meantime, a 3rd win means he cemented his place within the (2026) Match of Champions given the 2025 ToC cutoff is up, although his common play streak could also be removed from over if he retains it up.
What did you consider the sport? Did you assume Last Jeopardy was too straightforward? How did nobody know Moses struck the rock within the bible? Oy vey! Tell us your ideas within the feedback part under.
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