Good morning! Andy here with the recap of Monday’s game!
This week’s Hometown Howdies:
Jen Aprahamian – Los Angeles, CA (KABC)
Michelle DeGrothy – Neptune Beach, FL (WTLV)
Emily Goodlander – Baltimore, MD (WBFF)
Danny Jacobs – Laurel, MD (WBFF)
Gudrun Juffer – Milwaukee, WI (WDJT)
Matthew Linnabary – Wichita, KS (KSNW)
Sarah McNitt – Ann Arbor, MI (WDIV)
Stacy Meyers – Fredericksburg, VA (WJLA)
Miriam Musco – Freeville, NY(WSYT)
Geoff Norcross – Portland, OR (KATU)
I count 10. Hmmm…
Today’s contestants:
J! round categories:
EUROPEAN CAPITALS
AS THE TITLE CHARACTER’S WIFE
CADILLACS
WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF?
“B” ABBREVIATIONS
VALLEY FORGE
Michelle continued her buzzer dominance, running EUROPEAN CAPITALS. Miriam picked up 2 negs herself over the first six clues. Scores at the first break, which felt as though it came early, but that’s to be expected against a champion like Michelle who rings in quickly:
Michelle $5,000
Miriam $400
Matthew -$200
Matthew has an interesting occupation: a phlebotomist – he works at a plasma center, so he sticks needles in people’s arms all day!
If Michelle continues her dominance and wins a lot of money, she would buy an airplane (in spite of being a helicopter pilot!)
Coming out of the break, Michelle continued her strength on the buzzer. Thankfully, I did not have to transcribe a video Daily Double, as it was at the bottom of WHAT ARE YOU AFRAID OF! Scores:
Michelle $8,600
Miriam -$200
Matthew -$200
Michelle bet $600. Her clue: Selenophobia. Michelle wins Best Wrong Answer today with “Fear of Mexican Music Stars” and her score falls to $8,000.
Which brings us to our Tweets Of The Night:
Selenophobia
“What is fear of Mexican music stars?” – Michelle, the only one in the plus column #Awesome #Jeopardy #DailyDouble
— Neville Fogarty (@flyingelevator) January 14, 2014
LOLOL — the champ finally showed a personality! “Selenophobia — fear of Mexican music stars.” HA. #JEOPARDY
— UberGoof™ (@MetsFanInPhilly) January 14, 2014
Scores at the end of the J! round:
Michelle $7,800
Miriam -$800
Matthew -$800
DJ! Round categories:
THE MOOR YOU KNOW
FROM PAGE TO STAGE
CHEMISTRY
RELIGIOUS MATTERS
TV DAVIDS
TO “EACH” HIS “OWN”
Miriam and Matthew slowly pulled themselves out of the whole, whereas Michelle had a couple of negs to keep her score static. Matthew got to play the first Daily Double in the round under FROM PAGE TO STAGE $1200. Scores:
Michelle $7,800
Miriam $1,200
Matthew $400
Matthew left $1,000 on the table, betting only half of the maximum! His clue: Gosh darn it! Douglass Wallop’s “The Year The Yankees Lost The Pennant” hit a home run as this musical. His correct response put him at $1,400.
Meanwhile, Michelle just seemed to lose her buzzer mojo, as the two competitors clawed into her lead. RELIGIOUS MATTERS $1600 had the second Daily Double and it was Matthew’s to play again! If only he’d had that extra $1,000 to play with! Scores:
Michelle $6,600
Miriam $4,000
Matthew $2,600
$1,000. AGAIN. I don’t get it. His clue: In 1536 this French reformer moved to Geneva, which became the center for his form of Protestantism. Another correct response means he’s now at $3,600. However, Matthew could have been at $7,200 right now. So much waste.
Meanwhile, after the minute-to-go signal, Michelle liked giving her opponents a shot, by going to the $2000 clues. Not how I’d play that! The end-of-round signal ended Miriam and Matthew’s chances, where he’ll be kicking himself over lost opportunites!
Scores going into Final:
Michelle $12,200
Matthew $4,400
Miriam $4,000
(Even a pair of $2,000 wagers, instead of $1,000, would have saved our phlebotomist from the lock game.)
FJ! category: ASIAN NATIONS
FJ! clue: Since 1991, it’s the only former Communist nation to restore its monarchy, which it still has
Miriam 4000 – 3900 = 100
Matthew 4400 – 3601 = 399
Michelle 12200 – 0 = 12200
So Matthew’s betting follies don’t come back to haunt him, and Michelle is now a 2-day champ! We’ll see if she can get win #3 tomorrow!
One final comment: I sometimes get flak about commenting on wagering, because of “how hard it is to come up with decisions under the lights”. But that’s why I do it. So that prospective contestants think about it beforehand! If you’ve thought about it beforehand, the chances of you making the right decision under pressure are much greater!