This is not the only record that James Holzhauer made on the game show as he previously set the highest one-day prize record with $110,914 win before topping his own record on last Wednesday.
- Apr 24, 2019
AceShowbiz - A contestant on "Jeopardy!" has broken records! James Holzhauer, professional sports gambler from Las Vegas, has surpassed $1 million in total earnings in the Tuesday, April 23 episode of the show, thanks to his calculated strategy. The 34-year-old reached the milestone after 14 games, making him the only contestant who did it in the shortest time in the show's history.
Holzhauer earned $118,816 in the game that aired on Tuesday after correctly answering this Final Jeopardy clue that read, "On May 1, 1869, these two men met at the White House, four years and three weeks after a more historic meeting between them." His win put his total take at $1,061,554.
His stategy is to go for the high-value clues first and hunt for the Daily Doubles. When he finds them, he bets everything he has. "I'm going to get the Daily Double right a lot more often than I'm not going to," he told ESPN on Monday. "I want to maximize that bet."
This is not the only record that Holzhauer made on the game show. He previously set the highest one-day prize record by winning $110,914 earlier in his run, stealing the title from Roger Craig. Craig took home $77,000 in a single game back on September 19, 2010.
"I said all along that I wanted to break Roger Craig's one-game record and I did it," Holzhauer said.
Holzhauer's first record-breaking prize was such a special thing for him as the number has his daughter birthday. His daughter was born on November 9, 2014 (11/09/14). However, he soon broke his own record by collecting $131,127 on last Wednesday.
Despite his $1,06 million win, Holzhauer still has so much to catch if he wants to surpass "Jeopardy!" legend Ken Jennings' record. Jennings brought home $2.25 million back in 2004. However, considering the short amount of time for Halzhauer to reach $1 million mark, it seems like it won't be long until Holzhauer breaks Jennings' record since the latter amassed that prize over 74 games.
Jennings took to his Twitter account to share his feelings upon learning Holzhauer's record. "This is absolutely insane. I've always wanted to see someone try Jeopardy! wagering this way who had the skills to back it up," he wrote on the micro-blogging app.
"He's a beast but you're more likeable and funny," one fan replied in the post. "I've been watching it. It's been amazing. A long time since I've seen someone this good, haha," another one added.
"You are still the most intelligent of all Jeopardy contestants hands down. His strategy is great and his betting is well calculated," another user said. "Waiting to see who will unseat him. My guess is a young non white contestant who is quick on the buzzer. He's very exciting to watch."
