Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category The Continents) for Tuesday, September 28, 2021 (Season 38, Game 12):
It’s the only continent with its mainland lying in all 4 hemispheres as defined by the equator & the prime meridian
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Important note for those in the New York City or Philadelphia broadcast area, or if you watch the show on WABC or WPVI: Tonight’s game will be airing overnight in both of these markets due to the New Jersey gubernatorial debate. Make sure to check your local listings as to when the episode will actually be airing.
Today’s contestants:
Lori Waters, a retired teacher from New Braunfels, Texas
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Stu Selonick, a TV writer from Los Angeles, California
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Matt Amodio, a Ph.D student from New Haven, Connecticut (29-day total: $1,037,001)
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Andy’s Pregame Thoughts: As Matt nears James Holzhauer’s 32 wins for second on the all-time list, the talk online is moving to “when, if ever, will Matt lose?” I still believe that it is a matter of when, not if—Jeopardy!, by its design, has a lot of randomness baked into it. If Matt takes extra time to find buzzer timing, or the Daily Doubles/Final Jeopardy! break poorly for him, there will be an episode where Matt loses. Matt is absolutely one of the best players to ever play this game, but he will lose at some point. But he sure is fun to watch while the run is happening!
PSA: The best way to keep COVID-19 at bay (and keep Jeopardy! producing new episodes) is for everybody to get their vaccinations as soon as they are able to. When wearing a mask, ensure that your mask covers both your nose and your mouth.
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(Content continues below)
Correct response: What is Africa?
More information about Final Jeopardy: (The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2021 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
As per Britannica, “Geographers…have divided the planet into two sets of two hemispheres. These are the Northern and Southern hemispheres and the Eastern and Western hemispheres.” Note “two sets of two” and not “four” here in this definition—that means that the land mass need not appear in “northwest”, “southwest”, “southeast” and “northeast”, just that its mainland appear in “north and south” and “east and west”. As only Asian islands are situated in the Southern Hemisphere, Africa is the only continent to fit this clue.
That being said: I have usually defended the writers when it comes to easier Final Jeopardy! clues—they are important in the grand scheme of things in order to keep the wagering strategy “honest”. If players knew an absolute softball (such as this one) would never happen, then you would see contestants (especially leaders) failing to bet to win the game in Final Jeopardy, and the endgame would be significantly less exciting as a whole. However, it seems to me that the only redeeming quality to this question is that it seems to be a trap set up to potentially make contestants look stupid.
Mike Richards was still Executive Producer for these episodes. It is abundantly clear to me that even now, after his dismissal as host and executive producer, that he never once figured out the ethos of Jeopardy. Deliberately trying to make smart people look stupid has never been the aim of this show. Considering that, by greenlighting this clue, he felt this was an appropriate subject for a Final Jeopardy! in any context, let alone an adult regular-play one, I am very glad that he has been shown the door and that he will not have his thumb on the scales for much longer.
We have many new offerings at The Jeopardy! Fan Online Store! Proceeds from the sale of the “Doctor Oz’s Fast-Acting Snake Oil Elixir” T-shirt are being donated to The Trevor Project:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Tonight’s results are below!
Scores going into Final:
Matt $48,400
Stu $12,000
Lori $3,800
Tonight’s results:
Lori $3,800 + $3,799 = $7,599 (What is Africa?)
Stu $12,000 + $4,000 = $16,000 (What is Africa?)
Matt $48,400 + $22,000 = $70,400 (What is Africa?) (30-day total: $1,107,401)
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Matt $14,000
Stu $2,400
Lori $2,200
Opening break taken after: 15 clues
Daily Double locations:
1) SIGNS & SYMBOLS $800 (clue #12)
Matt 5200 +5200 (Stu 1000 Lori 0)
2) FROM GRAY’S ANATOMY $1200 (clue #10)
Matt 24800 +6000 (Stu 4000 Lori 600)
3) HISTORIC SPEECHES $800 (clue #11, $20000 left on board)
Matt 30800 +10000 (Stu 4000 Lori 600)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 157
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 0 (0.00 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Matt $30,000 Coryat, 35 correct, 2 incorrect, 57.89% in first on buzzer (33/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Stu $12,000 Coryat, 13 correct, 1 incorrect, 19.30% in first on buzzer (11/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Lori $3,800 Coryat, 9 correct, 2 incorrect, 19.30% in first on buzzer (11/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $45,800
Lach Trash: $3,400 (on 3 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $4,800
Matt Amodio, career statistics:
966 correct, 96 incorrect
48/55 on rebound attempts (on 106 rebound opportunities)
53.66% in first on buzzer (910/1696)
57/66 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $227,200)
22/30 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $26,893
Stu Selonick, career statistics:
14 correct, 1 incorrect
3/3 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
19.30% in first on buzzer (11/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,000
Lori Waters, career statistics:
10 correct, 2 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
19.30% in first on buzzer (11/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $3,800
Matt Amodio, to win:
31 games: 93.326%
32: 85.844%
33: 79.188%
34: 73.857%
35: 68.928%
Avg streak: 42.603 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- $70,400 is the 24th-highest one-day total of all time, and the 4th-highest that does not belong to James Holzhauer.
Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com
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So easy it was difficult…
Andy thanks for the scathing and spot-on “more information” commentary.
I do not mind the occasional softball. At least it was in a runaway. Easy questions are harder to stomach when there is a chance for a second place contestant to win.
A good game wasted for Stu. $12K Coryat against Matt’s buzzer timing w/o a Daily Double. He’d probably win a typical game.
I had no idea that this FJ would be so controversial. I wouldn’t even have gotten it right, and I love maps and geography.
Andy, I read that Sony admitted that it made a horrible mistake regarding Mike Richards and have re-instated him both as EP and permanent host. I also read that they sent you a personal note thanking you for your unwavering support of Richards.
Toungue firmly in cheek. 😄