A Wheel of Fortune contestant had an “awkward” loss during the Bonus Round, which resulted in them not taking home $61,000. Host Ryan Seacrest reacted to what happened after they could only figure out one word.
Cherie Noisette, from Oak Lawn, Illinois, played against Kaycee Hallett, from Oak Harbor, Ohio, and Roger Hapka, from Carlsbad, California, on Wednesday, October 15. Noisette is a consummate hostess and a former motorcycle rider.
Noisette solved the first toss-up and Hapka, a man deemed “Mr. Fix It”, solved the second. Noisette took the lead when she solved the first puzzle, which was a crossword in the category “Miami.” She solved “Dolphins,” “Beaches,” and “Vice” for $12,350. She also solved the next puzzle — “Snuck Snacks Into a Movie Theater” — and obtained a Wild card and $17,350.
During the Prize Puzzle round, she landed on the Express Wedge and guessed a “D,” but since it wasn’t in the puzzle, she went Bankrupt and had to get rid of her Wild Card. Hapka solved “Top-Notch Fishing” and won a trip to Tampa Bay, Florida, giving him a total of $13,680.
Noisette solved two of the three triple toss-ups, giving her $4,000. Hapka solved the last one, giving him $2,000 more. Hallett, a comic book fan, finally got on the board when she solved the final puzzle — “Flamingos” — for $3,200.
“I’m so happy for you!” Seacrest said. “I was crossing my fingers.”
Hapka ended with $15,680. The big winner was Noisette with $21,350, and she advanced to the Bonus Round, where she picked “Phrase.” The game show contestant brought her aunt and two of her cousins with her.
After being given “R,S,T,L,N, and E,” Noisette chose “D,M,H, and A.” Her puzzle then looked like “_ _ND _ _ A_ _ _ARD.”
As the clock counted down, she guessed “Something Awkward,” but couldn’t guess the beginning of it.
“Well, it’s ‘Kind of Awkward’,” Seacrest chuckled. “Nice try!” He showed her the $40,000 in the envelope, which would have given her a total of $61,350. “That’s alright!”
“That was… just like that awkward to lose out on the $40,000,” a YouTube user said.
“This has been going on since Thursday, and it’s a kind of awkward situation. The answer to today’s puzzle tells the story,” wrote another.
“Ugh, I had no idea also,” added a third.
Wheel of Fortune, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock