You say ‘tomato,’ Roger says ‘onomano…’?

     So he’s okay with Fed, and he seems to love tennis.  That makes him okay by me.  And speaking of tennis, Buddy got this one right in The Doctor Will “C” You Now: “Try stretching if you suffer these, like Rafael Nadal did at the 2011 U.S. Open, including at a press conference.”  The next clue was the Daily Double, in the same category.  Buddy had 1200, Tom had 1600, and Roger had 2400.  Buddy bet everything on this clue: “What’s that I say? You need this type of implant in your inner ear that directly stimulates the hearing nerve.”  Buddy and I got it right.  I swept the category.
     The only other one I didn’t get right before the first break was this one in the category about the “For Dummies” books: “‘Allergies &’ this ‘ for Dummies’ lists famous folks with the condition, including Beethoven and Theodore Roosevelt.”  Tom got that one.  At the first break, he had 1600, Buddy had 2400, and Roger had 3400.
     I wonder if my response would’ve been accepted on this clue in French Fixins: “In a remembrance of things Proust, it’s a small, buttery sponge cake eaten as a cookie, often dipped in coffee.”  I pronounced the last syllable with a long “a” sound instead of short “i” kind of sound.  When I look at the spelling, I tend to think it would’ve been accepted.
     If you accept my response to the above clue, my only neg of the round came in Petra (Jordan).  I responded with “Greeks” on this clue: “The approach to Petra is through a narrow cleft, which in 312 B.C. helped it withstand the siege by the army of Antigonus of these people – he was an heir to Alexander the Great.”  At the end of the round, Roger had 5400, Tom had 6200, and Buddy had 3800.
     Tom’s slim lead was not to last – oh no.  Roger found the first Daily Double in Novels (maybe Tom’s wheelhouse, as he said during his interview he was working on writing one!)  Roger had 9000, Tom had 7400, and Buddy had 4200.  I thought Roger’d wager everything, and he did, on this clue: “Her ‘Agnes Grey’ appeared in 1847 under the pseudonym Acton Bell (note the initials).”  I didn’t give myself credit on this one, but I think I’d have gotten it if I wasn’t worried about my blog notes.  Roger got it right!!!
     Imagine the excitement when the next clue was the Daily Double, this time in Languages.  I thought Roger might wager everything again…and he did.  That’s $18,000.  I loved how he did it, so relaxed, smiling and nodding: “I’ll bet it all.  Yeah.”  This was the clue: “Although Dutch is the official language, Sranan Tongo is spoken by most people in this South American country.”  I slam-dunked this one, and knew Roger would, too, when I saw it.  WOW!
     Now, I had to wonder what Roger said wrong on this clue in 4 straight
vowels: “‘The moan of doves in immemorial elms, and murmuring of innumerable bees’ is an example of this literary device.”  It was counted right at the time, but before Final Jeopardy was read, Mr. Trebek said Roger didn’t say it right and he was dinged for $4000.  I couldn’t figure it out until Tom live-tweeted that Roger had an “n” in the word where there should’ve been a “t.”  Like it mattered in this case.  He still had 43200, while Tom had 9400 and Buddy had 11000.  Roger and Tom were smiling but Buddy looked quite serious.
     Mr. Trebek had mentioned to Roger that he could break the one-day record.  Roger joshed, “What’s the old one?”  I totally got it but it was lost on Trebek, who looked off to the side and asked what the record was.  Then he gave the wrong number, and I caught that, too.  After the break, the audience laughed as Mr. Trebek explained that Roger himself had set the record of $77,000.  That Roger!
     The Final Jeopardy category was The Presidential Cabinet.  This was the clue: “Seven women have been Secretary of this, the most for any department in the president’s cabinet.”  Buddy and I missed it.  Buddy lost 5000.  Tom got it right and doubled his score.  (I like his wager.)  Roger, naturally, got it right too, and wagered 6800.
     Although the winner of the Tournament seems like a foregone conclusion, the same thing could happen to Tom or Buddy tomorrow.  Don’t. Miss it.  Whether you do or don’t, come back here for the recap!
     My Coryat today was 24000.  Roger‘s was 19000, Tom’s was 9400, and Buddy’s was 10600.