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Warning: This page contains spoilers for the May 11, 2023, game of Jeopardy! — please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that the game airs as early as noon Eastern in some U.S. television markets.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category History) for Thursday, May 11, 2023 (Season 39, Game 174):
His epitaph, in a church in England, reads, “Sometime general in the army of George Washington”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Kat Waller, a school business administrator from Pawtucket, Rhode Island |
Jon Carnegie, a social media manager from Brooklyn, New York |
Hannah Wilson, a data scientist from Chicago, Illinois (6-day total: $163,801) |
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Hannah Wilson is now a 6-day champion after her win last night. Today, her challengers are Brooklyn’s Jon Carnegie and Pawtucket, Rhode Island’s Kat Waller. One thing I’ve been slightly afraid to bring up (mostly in fear of potentially jinxing someone): whoever is the champion in tomorrow’s game will be facing off against returning champion Ben Chan—and Ben had runaways in his first three appearances. If that champion is Hannah, next Monday will probably be one of the most anticipated regular-play matchups in recent memory.
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(Content continues below)
Correct response: Who is Benedict Arnold?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2023 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
Notorious American Benedict Arnold was famously caught before attempting to surrender West Point to the British (along with Major John André—Arnold escaped; André did not) and was buried in England after his 1801 death.
I think today’s Final will be straightforward; however, I also think this sort of Final Jeopardy clue is more than okay. I want to make a couple of points, which I hope might also serve as a preemptive rebuttal to anything that might come from the vox Twittuli today:
- Straightforward Final Jeopardy clues are important for the overall balance of game strategy. If players start to feel that every clue that they may see is going to be a difficult one, players will be more apt to make smaller bets in Final Jeopardy—and I would certainly posit that the show would greatly prefer that players make more aggressive bets overall;
- If a player does not happen to get a more straightforward clue correct, it is not a license for the home viewer to pillory that contestant on social media. As I’ve said many times before, “One does not have to put every thought that comes into their head onto Twitter, Facebook, or Reddit.” You don’t know what it’s like for the contestant on that stage. They may have made a mistake parsing the clue. They may have been more tired than usual under the pressure of the stage and the lights. I’m sure that contestant feels bad enough—you don’t need to make it worse by forcing them to be trailed by a history of news articles about it. Act how you’d want to be treated if it was you.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Thursday, May 11, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: American Authors; Country Music; Differs By A Letter; Historic Eras & Ages; Travel Usa; Lions & Tigers & Beers)
Hannah had the best time once again in the opening round; she got the Daily Double just after the break and got her score up to $8,600 by the end of the round! Kat was in a strong second, though, after 30 clues.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Hannah 8 correct 1 incorrect
Kat 4 correct 1 incorrect
Jon 1 correct 0 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Kat is a dog mom to a cover dog for a leash company.
Jon got lost in Melbourne.
Hannah thinks pet rats are unfairly maligned.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Hannah 12 correct 2 incorrect
Kat 10 correct 1 incorrect
Jon 4 correct 1 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Hannah $8,600
Kat $5,000
Jon $1,400
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Met-Ieval Art; Notable Black Americans; Quadrisyllabic Words; Asian Geography; Grandma; Watching My Stories)
Hannah didn’t get to either Daily Double in this round—both challengers did—and that was enough to keep things from being a runaway!
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Hannah 26 correct 2 incorrect
Kat 15 correct 1 incorrect
Jon 9 correct 2 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 26 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Hannah $23,000
Kat $12,800
Jon $5,200
Everyone got Final today—that means Hannah is now a 7-day champion! She’ll go for win #8 tomorrow!
Tonight’s results:
Jon $5,200 + $623 = $5,823 (Who is Benedict Arnold?)
Kat $12,800 + $12,795 = $25,595 (Who is Benedict Arnold?)
Hannah $23,000 + $3,000 = $26,000 (Who is Benedict Arnold?) (7-day total: $189,801)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) AMERICAN AUTHORS $400 (clue #16)
Hannah 4200 +3000 (Jon 800 Kat 1600)
2) NOTABLE BLACK AMERICANS $2000 (clue #1)
Jon 1400 +1400 (Hannah 8600 Kat 5000)
3) GRANDMA $1200 (clue #19, $15200 left on board)
Kat 7000 +3000 (Hannah 17400 Jon 4800)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 184
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Hannah 1 2 3 4 4 3 4 2 5 3 4 2*
Jon 3
Kat 3 2 2
DJ! Round:
Hannah 1 2 3 4 5 1 2 3 4 5 1 4
Jon 5* 1 3 1† 2†
Kat 2 3*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Hannah 3.00
Kat 2.40
Jon 2.50
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 26 (0.15 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Hannah $20,400 Coryat, 26 correct, 2 incorrect, 45.61% in first on buzzer (26/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Kat $11,000 Coryat, 15 correct, 1 incorrect, 22.81% in first on buzzer (13/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Jon $5,800 Coryat, 9 correct, 2 incorrect, 17.54% in first on buzzer (10/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $37,200
Lach Trash: $13,400 (on 11 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $3,400
Player Statistics:
Hannah Wilson, career statistics:
189 correct, 18 incorrect
11/15 on rebound attempts (on 31 rebound opportunities)
43.61% in first on buzzer (174/399)
10/11 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $35,300)
5/7 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $20,057
Jon Carnegie, career statistics:
10 correct, 2 incorrect
0/0 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
17.54% in first on buzzer (10/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,400)
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $5,800
Kat Waller, career statistics:
16 correct, 1 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
22.81% in first on buzzer (13/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,000)
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $11,000
Hannah Wilson, to win:
8 games: 75.717%
9: 57.330%
10: 43.409%
11: 32.868%
12: 24.886%
Avg. streak: 10.118 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- Kat would have been in a much stronger pre-Final position had she been more aggressive on the last Daily Double.
- Today’s box score: May 11, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Hannah $23,000 Kat $12,800 Jon $5,200)
Hannah: Standard cover bet is $2,601. (Actual bet: $3,000)
Jon: Bet $0 to have the best chance at second place.(Actual bet: $623)
Kat: Bet at least $7,600 to have any chance of winning—interestingly, doing that exact number would bring you down to exactly Jon’s score if you’re wrong, while winning by $1 if Hannah makes the standard cover bet, you’re right, and she’s wrong. (Actual bet: $12,795)
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Finally, an easy get for me (and for others?) I just thought “Who would be buried in England who was a general in the American Revolution?” But what clinched it for me was the word “sometime”—a gentle euphemism for “traitor” (since the British might consider him a “hero” for acting on their side?)
I also guessed correctly given the ‘clues’ in the clue
I agree, this one should play on the easier side. Perhaps the show chose to adjust after the recent cascade of triple stumpers.
Precisely my train of thought. It was like “Who is buried in Grant’s Tomb?” all over, except this time the answer isn’t “no one”😉
I already knew about him moving to London after the war, but I just learned today that he spent several years in New Brunswick, between 1785 and 1791, before incurring the disfavor of the locals there and having to return to England. A sad fellow🙁
Today’s game is a good reminder that saying “True Daily Double” does not necessarily equate to making the maximum wager.
Sometimes, it seems that people are so eager to say “True Daily Double,” that they forget they can wager more. That’s one reason it is always good for the host to point out that they can wager up to $1,000 or up to $2,000 as the case may be. I haven’t seen the show yet so I don’t know whether or not Mayim mentioned that.
Andy,
Don’t forget that the wager for Final is made only after the Category has been revealed, not the actual final clue. So while the clue may be straightforward, the category may still seem daunting in itself. “History” is much broader than, say, “20th Century Female Writers” would be, and such a broad category may also be daunting to a player, especially if they are stronger in some areas of history than others. Also, even the final question word, usually “Who…” or “What…” is not given to the contestants until after their final wager is locked in, and sometimes that word can help a contestant feel better getting ready for the final clue (and occasionally not, too). Yes, playing the game in person, on stage, is different than playing at home, and each player will react differently. Also, when you play at home, you are merely responding to the next clue called; on stage, you are actually having to decide what the next clue would be, and you could have a totally different game if one of the other two players got a correct response as they might go in a different direction with clue choices. So, I really try to refrain from offering commentary about any player’s specific responses or reactions, simply because we don’t know what was leading up to that point.
Yes, but if contestants start to believe that they’ll see an “easier” Final Jeopardy! clue much less often, their bets will eventually trend more conservatively.
Part of me hopes Ben gets a brand new champion on Monday as if he doesn’t he will lack that returning champion advantage most would have. On the other hand a showdown between Hannah and Ben on Monday is an exciting prospect as well. Also if they both return Monday do they flip a coin to see who picks first?
Based on precedent, the winner of Friday’s game will be at the first lectern on Monday and thus choose first. Unsure about Mr Chan’s position or how it will be chosen. Zach Newkirk, who took a break due to Covid travel restrictions, returned at the third lectern.
Below is what I was trying to post and got an error message that I was posting too fast. I “copied” my sentences and came back in to find your new entry so I guess we hit ‘POST’ at the same time! I am going to leave my original below, but I think your citing of precedent likely indicates what will happen since both Ben and Zach had no control over their having to miss episodes. I had taken for granted whichever of the two was not first would be second, but now I think making the “other” champion third keeps the one non-champion from feeling TOTALLY “third wheel” or “odd man out” (though they are bound to feel somewhat that way regardless). If not so blatantly against the norm, I’m now thinking the most fair way to do it would be to put the champions on each end BUT start play with the newby! [Though of course whatever is done is ALREADY done.]
I think if there does happen to be a brand new champion then they should be in the first position because Ben has already had that experience and they will have not. However, if it is Hannah I can think of a couple of reasons why it should be her but I imagine it will be a coin toss and I have no problem with that.
London, “Sometime general in the army of George Washington” were enough to have me respond “Who was Benedict Arnold?” And, I was right. In fact this Final Jeopardy was so straight forward that anyone who remembers their US history should have gotten it without a problem. So it came down to wagering. Hannah decided to just risk enough to win over Kat.
I would imagine most Americans know the name Benedict Arnold as a traitor but I wonder how many actually know the details of what happened.
Hannah looks to be unbeatable and it looks like we’re on track to face Ben Chan….this could be interesting.
Between this and the master’s tournament, it’s a good time to be a Jeopardy Fan
“Dixie Chicks” would have been acceptable in place of “Chicks”, as it was the name of the band at the time of the album, correct?
The clue about the Jefferson Memorial in the Travel USA category required a person’s name – not the name of the edifice. And yet Kat’s response was “What is the Jefferson Memorial?” and Mayim immediately ruled it as correct.
Considering how many times contestants have been penalised for this kind of error in the past, it seems – at the very least – inconsistent. I doubt it would pass muster in a tournament setting.
I will now dismount from my high horse and bid you all a good night.
I would say that it “only required” the person’s name as it is not totally uncommon for a player to include a bit of the clue in their spoken response that includes the desired response. I can’t think of any specific actual examples at the moment but sort of like if the clue said “The mountain said to be the final resting place of Noah’s Ark” and the player says “Mount Ararat” when all he had to say was ‘Ararat’. [especially when the title of the category implies places]
Of course, if extra information is included, the information included must be correct. Had the contestant said, “What is the Jefferson Monument”, it would have been ruled incorrect.
In the cases Tim remembers, it’s generally that there’s no overlap between “what the contestant said” and “what the correct response is” such that the show couldn’t accept what the contestant said as correct.