Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions

[crashdown]

5 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

Not that Ben needs anyone to hand him a win, but this is the second time he has benefited from bad wagering. First by Yogesh, who was focused on Troy, and now by Troy, who was betting to beat Yogesh. They need to start remembering Ben is there, or he will quietly take the whole thing. 

It wasn't bad wagering. I'm going to paste in something from the Jeopardy subreddit, because it elegantly explains what was going on with those wagers much better than I ever could:

Quote

 

To all who think Troy overwagered definitely forgot their marbles, or math skills, or both...  

 The scores going to FJ is of a crush game between 1st and second and also, between 2nd and third place! 

Ben's score is approximately 62.75% of Yogesh's score. 

And Yogesh is approximately 61.45% of Troy's. 

So, in the event Yogesh gets it correct and goes all in, he gets to 40,800.   

So for Troy, he made the standard cover, which is 7,601. Because his score before FJ is 33,200 and if you do the math, 33,200+ 7,601= 40,801. 

But here's the problem, if he gets FJ wrong, Troy will fall to 25,599. 

Therefore for Ben to win. He must get FJ correct and wager it all! That is ONLY way. As his score of 12,800, if Ben gets is correct and doubles up, he gets to 25,600. 

And Ben does get the FJ correct which is frankly the most important part. So in the end, Ben deserved the win for getting FJ correct and making the ONLY correct bet. 

Yogesh is actually trapped here. He is practically crushed in the crush game scenario. He can either, wager 5,201 to cover an all in wager from Ben or go all in to force Troy to cover. But more importantly, he must get FJ correct. As a miss from him will get him a loss from either scenario. 

So many nuances in this game but Ben finds the ONE AND ONLY correct move and gets the crucial game 4 win. 

 

And a response to that from another redditor:

Quote

 

so it's just divine serendipity that ben's max wager happens to be one dollar more than troy's missed cover wager for yogesh doubling up. talk about the slimmest of possible margins, there is literally no margin...

the math here is so utterly perfect and poetic that i can't believe there's not aliens, honeybees, or witchcraft involved somehow. crazy how the stars aligned for ben to snag the win-- had a single buzzer race turned out differently, we wouldn't have gotten this beautiful, miraculous, impossibly perfect manifestation of spinoza's god

 

 

[secnarf]

That's really neat, thank you for sharing.

[ams1001]

Was at my parents’ for my brother’s birthday and there was an older Jeopardy game on. It was one of Troy’s from when he first appeared (he was in the champ spot so not his first game). He was standing for that one. 

[SoMuchTV]

9 minutes ago, ams1001 said:

Was at my parents’ for my brother’s birthday and there was an older Jeopardy game on. It was one of Troy’s from when he first appeared (he was in the champ spot so not his first game). He was standing for that one. 

We may have seen the same game? See my post here 

 

ETA, I don’t normally watch the “rerun” games but I wonder if they’ve been replaying games from the current competitors. 

Edited March 17 by SoMuchTV

[Clanstarling]

14 hours ago, ams1001 said:

Was at my parents’ for my brother’s birthday and there was an older Jeopardy game on. It was one of Troy’s from when he first appeared (he was in the champ spot so not his first game). He was standing for that one. 

I do remember him standing, but I also seem to remember him sitting at some point.

[ams1001]

32 minutes ago, Clanstarling said:

I do remember him standing, but I also seem to remember him sitting at some point.

According to the archive, his first two games were taped on 11/16/22 and the other five were taped on 12/6. Going by comments on the relevant reddit recap threads, the chair appeared in his sixth game. The game I saw last night was his fifth, so it was the third one he played that day; if it is health-related, he was probably getting tired by that point. I know I would be!

[ProudMary]

2 hours ago, ams1001 said:

The game I saw last night was his fifth, so it was the third one he played that day; if it is health-related, he was probably getting tired by that point. I know I would be!

Question for those here who have appeared on Jeopardy!:  When the show cuts away for a commercial break, do the contestants get a short break, where they can walk around or sit down for a bit, take a few sips of water, etc.? Maybe not during the first commercial break, when it runs right into the interview segment, but at least between the Jeopardy and Double Jeopardy rounds? While the entire show may only last 22-23 minutes, those are stressful minutes! I know I'd want to sit down and do some deep breathing, even just for a few moments.

[MrAtoz]

19 hours ago, ProudMary said:

When the show cuts away for a commercial break, do the contestants get a short break, where they can walk around or sit down for a bit, take a few sips of water, etc.?

There is a break, lasting roughly as long as a commercial break lasts when you're watching. The game is played, as much as possible, in real time. You can't move around, but they do bring the contestants a little bottle of water to sip from. The bottles are marked 1, 2, and 3 (corresponding to the podium numbers), so that they can be sure to give you the same bottle every break. That way you don't drink from anybody else's bottle.

Alex would talk to the audience during the breaks, answering questions and so forth. I assume Ken probably does the same, but don't know that for certain.

[proserpina65]

FJ was one of those weird clues that upon first reading provoked my patented "I have no fucking idea" response.  Then I took a second to look at the parts of the clue which seemed most important (Solway Firth = Scotland & US vice admiral = American navy) and it clicked.  The answer was someone who'd been born in Scotland but had been instrumental in forming the US Navy.  Which meant John Paul Jones.  Now, I had read a biography of him so I knew he'd been born in Scotland, but even if I hadn't, it seemed clear it had to be someone involved with the navy who hadn't been born in the US, and coming up with the most famous naval officer during the American Revolution was fairly easy for me.  Helps that I'm interested in early naval history.

I was quite surprised that Troy and Yogesh didn't get it correct.  And for Troy to close the game by $1, damn.  But just goes to show that being in a distant third place going into FJ isn't necessarily terrible if you bet correctly and get the answer right.

 

On 3/15/2024 at 10:32 PM, Bastet said:

based on how Troy should have bet, Ben not only risking it all but being the only one to get it right was only going to get him to a tie-breaker, not a win, but Troy threw in that extra dollar and Ben had himself another match point.

Troy bet exactly what he needed to win if Yogesh bet everything and they both got FJ correct.

 

On 3/16/2024 at 3:23 AM, Bastet said:

Ben did, Troy didn't

I disagree that Troy's bet wasn't clever IF he felt confident about the category.  He'd have won outright if both he and Yogesh had been correct.  I don't agree with saying someone should play for a tie in FJ.  Just my opinion, of course.

 

[ams1001]

23 minutes ago, MrAtoz said:

Alex would talk to the audience during the breaks, answering questions and so forth. I assume Ken probably does the same, but don't know that for certain.

He does; I've seen a few videos on the J! facebook page of Ken taking audience questions. I assumed they were either during commercial breaks or between games.

[Katy M]

I got FJ right.  I used to work for a travel agency, and we did travel for an Au Pair program where they came from Yerevan, Baku, and Tblisi.  I'm glad the clue wasn't for Tblisi, because I remember EVN and BAK, but can't remember Tblisi's code.

I got the entire category of 5 sides wrong.  

Not the worst night of this tournament for me.

[ams1001]

March 18:

63% / 50% / 56%

In J! I ran 21st Century Words, missed one in Annual Events, two in Musical Films and Protein, and three in K-Town and 5 Sides. In DJ I missed two in Introductory Words, Mormons, and Horrors!, and three in VP Quotes, Statues, and Business Partners (well, two and a half; I knew Brin but not Page). Not a clue for FJ.

TSes: (J had 0; DJ had 2) I got colossus (lucky guess).

I laughed at Yogesh thanking "…the good people of the Red Bull corporation."

For anyone else wondering about "Fast & Furious" being accepted (as I was); according to wikipedia, that is the name of the franchise. "The Fast and the Furious" is just the first movie (the clue asked for the movie series).

Also, obligatory:

[Browncoat]

Yet another no clue for FJ.  Alas.  And I got no TS, either.

Yogesh almost won me over with the Galaxy Quest quote -- "Never give up, never surrender!"  But then he lost me again with his abuse of the buzzer.

So, Troy needs to win tomorrow night to even things up again, right?

[secnarf]

Didn't quite get there in time for FJ tonight *sigh*. I've been doing the globle capitals which is helping refresh me, as it's been a while since I did the Jetpunk quizzes, but couldn't sort through all the countries/capitals in time.

[Bastet]

Gutsy DD wager by Yogesh that paid off.  Now I need Troy to do it again tomorrow and force a game seven. 

I liked Yogesh's "Like the three of us" after answering the bromance clue.

And I always enjoy the opportunity to entertain myself by saying "Aaron Burr" as if I have a mouth full of peanut butter.

I finally had a first round performance closer to that of a regular game -- I only ran K-Town and events but got all but one each in everything else other than sides, in which I missed two.

I blew statues entirely and missed three each in business and horror, so DJ was a return to ToC form.  I didn't run anything, but I got all but one each in the rest.

I knew FJ, though, which has frequently not been the case in this tournament, so that was a nice way to end.

[Cotypubby]

I guess I am resigned to the now very likely outcome that Yogesh is going to win the whole thing. 😔 

What a disappointing ending that will be.

Edited March 19 by Cotypubby

[30 Helens]

Interesting comment today from Yogesh, during the interview segment. I don't remember his exact words, but it seemed to hint at some anxiety/ depression he suffered after his last time playing-- presumably because of a backlash to his anti-Jeopardy statements. He thanked some fellow contestants who had helped him through it, including Juveria and Troy.

I'm not excusing Yogesh for anything he said, and in my opinion he deserved every bit of the backlash.  But based on the softer-edged Yogesh we've been seeing in this tournament, maybe he really did take it to heart and learned from it. I hope so. I'm willing to give anyone a second chance, if they make a genuine effort.  That said, I'm still skeptical. Tigers may change some of their stripes, but they rarely become housecats.

And it certainly doesn't mean I'm ready for a Yogesh win. Come on, Troy! (Or Ben!) (But mostly Troy!)

[possibilities]

Troy seemed tired this game. They shoot them all in one day, don't they? He was slower on the buzzer and he reminded me of myself when I'm past my exhaustion point and I make goofy mistakes.

Edited March 19 by possibilities

[Bastet]

1 hour ago, possibilities said:

They shoot them all in one day, don't they?

The traditional schedule for regular games was five episodes per day, which was reduced at the end of Alex's run when he could no longer keep up with that pace.

Things can get changed around a bit in a tournament.  The J! Archive always lists the taping dates.  For this ToC, it has:

- The first five quarter-final games on 2/6
- The remaining four on 2/7
- The three semi-final games on 2/8
- The first two final games also on 2/8
- The next three final games thus far on 2/9

So presumably game six and, if necessary, game seven will have been from that same long day.

[chitowngirl]

It seems Yogesh is both humbled a bit that he didn’t runaway with the TOC in 3 straight games and is now enjoying the challenge and competition. I like the camaraderie that develops over these longer competitions.

[PaulaO]

Troy did seem tired which could be why he answered Fiddler on the Roof instead of Jesus Christ Superstar.  I also said FotR .  JCS never entered my mind.  FJ!  WTF?  I don’t know that I’ve heard of the country, let alone the capital

[sharifa70]

12 hours ago, Bastet said:

And I always enjoy the opportunity to entertain myself by saying "Aaron Burr" as if I have a mouth full of peanut butter.

That’s the ONLY way my dad and I ever say his name!

[Clanstarling]

16 hours ago, Katy M said:

I got FJ right.  I used to work for a travel agency, and we did travel for an Au Pair program where they came from Yerevan, Baku, and Tblisi.  I'm glad the clue wasn't for Tblisi, because I remember EVN and BAK, but can't remember Tblisi's code.

I might have gotten BAK (heavy on the maybe), but though I know Yerevan, I just couldn't connect it with EVN. Sometimes I can get it - but I consoled myself that I don't even do well with US airport codes unless I've been there.

15 hours ago, secnarf said:

Didn't quite get there in time for FJ tonight *sigh*. I've been doing the global capitals which is helping refresh me, as it's been a while since I did the Jetpunk quizzes, but couldn't sort through all the countries/capitals in time.

Me too, only on Sporcle. I mean, there are a lot of capitals, especially in Eurasia.

11 hours ago, Cotypubby said:

I guess I am resigned to the now very likely outcome that Yogesh is going to win the whole thing. 😔 

What a disappointing ending that will be.

I'm coming around, and though I'm still pulling for Ben, I think I'll be fine with whoever wins.

3 hours ago, PaulaO said:

Troy did seem tired which could be why he answered Fiddler on the Roof instead of Jesus Christ Superstar.  I also said FotR .  JCS never entered my mind.  FJ!  WTF?  I don’t know that I’ve heard of the country, let alone the capital

He did seem tired. JCS didn't enter my mind, I even said "A musical about Jesus?" - when it's one of my favorite musicals in the world, when I have several strong high school memories related to it, and when I used to play it ever year at Easter (because I'm weird). Sigh....

Edited March 19 by Clanstarling

[proserpina65]

Not gonna comment on Yogesh.

I should've gotten Yerevan because I know it's the capital of Armenia but I was thrown by "Eurasian" and never got there.  I guess I just always considered it a European country but looking at a map, I can see where it might also be Asian.

14 hours ago, Bastet said:

And I always enjoy the opportunity to entertain myself by saying "Aaron Burr" as if I have a mouth full of peanut butter.

As indeed, one must. 😁

12 hours ago, 30 Helens said:

Interesting comment today from Yogesh, during the interview segment. I don't remember his exact words, but it seemed to hint at some anxiety/ depression he suffered after his last time playing-- presumably because of a backlash to his anti-Jeopardy statements. He thanked some fellow contestants who had helped him through it, including Juveria and Troy.

It did sound like he was addressing that whole mess, at least obliquely.

4 hours ago, PaulaO said:

Troy did seem tired which could be why he answered Fiddler on the Roof instead of Jesus Christ Superstar.  I also said FotR .  JCS never entered my mind.

Nor mine.  I guess Teyve is the world's second most famous Jew, lol.

1 hour ago, Clanstarling said:

I might have gotten BAK (heavy on the maybe), but though I know Yerevan, I just couldn't connect it with EVN. Sometimes I can get it - but I consoled myself that I don't even do well with US airport codes unless I've been there.

I just suck at airport codes for the most part, no matter where they are.

 

[Good Queen Jane]

1 hour ago, Clanstarling said:

and when I used to play it ever year at Easter (because I'm weird). Sigh....

Me, too. Not so weird.

[HissyFit]

If, indeed, all our electronic devices are programmed to scan our utterances for terrorist code words and transmit them to the FBI or Homeland Security, I imagine this recent report: "On March 18 we observed a huge, synchronized spike in domestic chatter using the same phrase. The language is not yet determined, but the phrase sounds like 'A-unh Buhh.'"
 

[ams1001]

March 19:

43% / 43% / 43%

…at least I was consistent? In J! I missed one in Organizations, two in Speechmaking, Newer Machines, and Silence, Letters!, and all five in Rivers and Big Leagues. In DJ I missed one in Mind the Gap, two in Underground, three in Books & Authors and Classical Music, and four in Jeoportmaneau and Directors Acting. Could not come up with FJ (was also thinking spleen but was sure it was wrong; also considered thyroid, which I knew was wrong but at least was closer?).

TSes: (J had 1; DJ had 3 + 1DD) I got Cumberland Gap (DD).

Ouch, Ben! That last DD hurt!

Dammit, Yogesh. Congratulations.

Wow, Troy is tall! When he was actually standing in his first games it wasn't as noticeable since they try to even them out on the platforms.

[Katy M]

I was feeling pretty good after the first round, but then the rest of the game happened.

I said adrenal gland. I don't know why. It was between that and thyroid.  So, wrong either way, though I feel like thyroid wouldn't have been as embarrassingly wrong.

I got the missed clue of Cumberland gap, only because it's the only gap I know.  I was thinking nobody would name their kid Cumberland, but now realize he was probably the Duke of Cumberland.

I got the entire category of silent letters right and the entire categories of directors and music wrong.  Yep, 2 whole categories in DJ wrong.  

[proserpina65]

Fuck, fuck, FUCK!!!!!!!  That asshole shouldn't even have been invited back.

[annzeepark914]

I was watching until a few minutes ago and decided to peek. I agree with proserpina65. He should never have been invited back after his outrageous sore loser behavior. 

[ProudMary]

[secnarf]

Well, my elation at finally getting FJ was quickly tempered by Yogesh winning. Agree that he shouldn't have been invited back. I would have been happy with either Ben or Troy winning. I bet Troy is kicking himself over his wager, although he had to do it.

[BuckeyeLou]

Wow, Troy is Tall!  Ben seems like such a nice person, he gave Yogesh a big hug.  For FJ, I said "Thyroid" but I knew it wasnt correct

[Bastet]

I'm not going to be home tonight, so just checked the archive.  Bummer Troy didn't make this tournament more exciting by picking up his second win and forcing a game seven, but good on Yogesh winning without finding a single DD.  He wagered differently in FJ than recommended on the archive, and it paid off for him.

I got FJ; cells + immunity made me think of T-cells as I was just watching something about HIV last night, so I started thinking of glands that start with T.  Thyroid came to mind first, but I knew that wasn't it, but while my mind was on thy-, it brought me to thymus and that sounded right.

Other than that, so-so game for me.  I knew Ben's missed DD of Cumberland Gap, but the TS all stumped me, too.  Along with quite a few that they knew.

I joined Ben in being tickled by smorgasbordello.

[ams1001]

11 hours ago, Katy M said:

but now realize he was probably the Duke of Cumberland.

He was, indeed.

11 hours ago, Bastet said:

I joined Ben in being tickled by smorgasbordello.

Smorgasbordello is fun to say.

Edited March 20 by ams1001

[Lady Lucy]

My suffering is over (until the Master's Tournament). I agree with those above - he shouldn't have been there.  

[possibilities]

I knew thymus. Not much else, though. I think the show is weighted heavily toward types of literature I have no interest in, and doesn't have enough science questions! 

I noticed that Yogesh is trying to be more humble and less obnoxious, but he never did apologize for his bad behavior, and he had plenty of opportunity to do so during his interviews. So, I'm sort of forgiving him, as I said previously, but he's still not my favorite. I think that, honestly, a lot of people don't know how to do better at contrition than he's done, so I do give him credit for getting the message to the extent he has.

[annzeepark914]

My only hope is that James will take care of Yogesh in the Masters Tournament.

[Grizzly]

Poor Troy, it seems like he was in the lead going in to most of the Final Js. That's what makes this game so addictive. If you know it, it's easy, but you never know what they're going to ask.

[SomeTameGazelle]

My jaw dropped when I saw the pre-FJ scores and realized that for the second time Ben's score doubled would be $1 more than Troy's score if he bet to beat Yogesh if he doubled. When Ben was right and Yogesh was wrong I hoped history would repeat but Yogesh was too smart to wager everything when he could clinch only if Troy was wrong.

It would have been more satisfying if the winner had also had FJ correct but Yogesh did what he needed to win.

[ams1001]

Ben's line hurt my heart. Troy and Yogesh climbed the mountain together.

[Bliss]

Liked Ben a lot, yet found him difficult to understand at times... I blame my aging ears.

Was hoping Troy would win (and not just game 6). Sometimes, it seems like there's no 'real' justice.

 

[shapeshifter]

I would have liked to have seen Juveria in the finals. 
Is there a path for her into any future Jeopardy! contests?

[Phebemarie]

The end when everyone was standing there awkwardly was unusual.

[SoMuchTV]

3 minutes ago, shapeshifter said:

I would have liked to have seen Juveria in the finals. 
Is there a path for her into any future Jeopardy! contests?

I’m gonna say, they will definitely find a path for Juveria and some of the other high achievers/fan favorites back onto the game. But then of course there will be complaints about them taking an opportunity away from new players. I hope they can find a balance, but I suspect people will complain no matter what. 

I'm pretty sure I’ve seen that once we’re done with the JIT, it will be all regular game play at least through the current season. Maybe the next?  I know Jeopardy! Masters is coming up at some point but maybe that’s network? I’m not sure. 

And… I guess now we’ll have to remember to go back to posting in the regular season thread. I wonder if there’s a mod who could unpin this one. I’ll flag this post and see. 

[possibilities]

How much season will be left after the JIT?

[Cotypubby]

Booooo.

[Scott]

At least I don't have to listen to any more smarmy jackassery for a while.

[3 is enough]

I am spending some time in Portland, just across the river from Vancouver,  and of course Yogesh was on the local news just before the episode aired. 😐

Now that he has won I’m sure they will feature him tomorrow

Troy is very tall but he was the same height seated as Ben and Yogesh  standing so I was only slightly surprised.  I do hope he is ok. He looked very tired.

Edited March 20 by 3 is enough

[30 Helens]

8 hours ago, Bastet said:

I joined Ben in being tickled by smorgasbordello.

I was even more tickled by Ben thinking he needed to confirm his comment was just a joke. He's so nice.

7 hours ago, annzeepark914 said:

My only hope is that James will take care of Yogesh in the Masters Tournament.

My disappointment in Yogesh winning was eclipsed only by the realization that he will be back. AGAIN. Haven't we suffered enough??