The Spades and Diamonds brackets are complete—it is now time for the Clubs bracket in the Fall 2023 Champions Wildcard event. While I should say that the opening game has been played, my preview (which was written prior to the game being played) will be published for posterity.
I should also note that the 27 players have been ranked by wins and money won (with the two tournament/competition invitees ranked between the 1- and 2-day champions). Those “seeds” are posted along with the players.
Thursday, November 9, 2023:
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Charlie Fonville (14) Los Angeles, California  57 correct, 7 incorrect 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities) 52.63% in first on buzzer (60/114) 2/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $5,000) 2/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $18,500 Charlie won 1 game in November 2020. That may seem incongruous with the stat line above, but Charlie picked up 29 and 28 correct responses in his two games, only losing in his second game because Henry Baer expertly rebounded Charlie’s incorrect responses. Charlie also won his lone game against 4-timer Andy Wood. If there’s a 1-day champion who could make a run in this sort of competition, it’s certainly Charlie. |
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Jen Jazwinski (5) Algonquin, Illinois  65 correct, 8 incorrect 3/4 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities) 35.67% in first on buzzer (61/171) 3/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $5,400) 3/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $15,933 Jen Jazwinski’s run spanned the end of Dr. Sanjay Gupta’s and the start of George Stephanopoulos’s hosting stints in July 2021. Jen’s first game saw her put up $26,000 going into Final Jeopardy; if we see that Jen in this one, we could very well have fireworks in the opening game of this part of the bracket. |
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Matt Takimoto (20) Moraga, California  40 correct, 6 incorrect 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities) 36.04% in first on buzzer (40/111) 2/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,000) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $14,500 Matt was a 1-day champion from February 2022; much like Charlie and Jen, Matt has very strong statistics. However, my game write-ups from Matt’s initial run noted that Matt seemed indifferent to finding Daily Doubles. One good thing about this event is that it is a chance to see if players choose to make different strategic choices. |
Overall Thoughts: This will be the first game aired that was taped after the writers returned to work following the WGA strike. It’s going to be interesting to see what this means for the caliber of play in the last two parts of this Champions Wildcard bracket. Seeing players with stats like Charlie, Jen, and Matt paired with each other gives me high expectations and hope for some really good games coming up! Charlie is probably the favorite based off stats alone, but it also wouldn’t surprise me if we had a very competitive game with all three players over $10,000.
Friday, November 10, 2023:
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Alan Johnson (25) Metuchen, New Jersey  41 correct, 4 incorrect 4/4 on rebound attempts (on 12 rebound opportunities) 32.46% in first on buzzer (37/114) 1/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $600) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $17,500 Alan was a 1-day champion in February 2021; his victory would have seen a lot of clickbait had it occurred a year later, as it came due to Andy West responding to Final Jeopardy with “William Jennings Bryant” (with the extra T). Alan then lost a very close game to Sam Stapleton. |
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Dennis Chase (9) Palm Springs, California  79 correct, 8 incorrect 5/5 on rebound attempts (on 10 rebound opportunities) 43.53% in first on buzzer (74/170) 4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $4,100) 1/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $21,333 Dennis was a 2-game champion—with very strong stats, as you can see—before losing to Erick Loh during Aaron Rodgers’ hosting stint in April 2021. |
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Kate Lazo (24) Walnut Creek, California  34 correct, 2 incorrect 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities) 27.68% in first on buzzer (31/112) 0/0 on Daily Doubles 2/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $12,800 Kate was a 1-day champion from November 2020 before losing to John Bussard. Interestingly, Kate’s mother, Meg Shreve, would have been eligible for Season 3 Champions Wildcard had it existed; Meg won 3 games in June 1987. |
Overall Thoughts: Dennis is another player who was dominant in his wins with a run that ended much too soon. It will be very interesting to see how he does against two other strong players in Alan and Kate. I could very much see Dennis dominate this one too—I could also see a very competitive match-up!
Monday, November 13, 2023:
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Emily Fiasco (1) St. Louis, Missouri  75 correct, 9 incorrect 4/5 on rebound attempts (on 23 rebound opportunities) 30.26% in first on buzzer (69/228) 4/6 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $7,000) 4/4 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $15,700 Emily’s run got off to a slow start, but once she got going, she was dominant—her third win saw her pick up a Coryat north of $25,000, and she was an alternate for the 2022 Tournament of Champions. |
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Stuart Crane (9) Kalispell, Montant  38 correct, 9 incorrect 2/4 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities) 34.21% in first on buzzer (39/114) 1/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$400) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $13,300 Stuart was a 1-day champion from February 2021; one thing that I noted from his initial win—he made a “Lazarus wager” from the lead in his first game, letting the third-placed player back into contention unnecessarily. Again, it will be interesting to see if this part of Stuart’s game improves. |
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Fred Nelson (21) Fresno, California
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Overall Thoughts: This game has a player who was on the cusp of the Tournament of Champions playing a pair of 1-game winners. If Game 3 Emily—where she had buzzer timing—shows up to this one, this one won’t be close. However, Emily does have the worst overall buzzer numbers of our three players in this one—which might keep this one interesting through all 61 clues.
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Tuesday, November 14, 2023:
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Nick Cascone (16) Queens, New York  44 correct, 11 incorrect 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities) 40.35% in first on buzzer (46/114) 2/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $800) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $13,800 Nick’s games in March 2021 spanned Katie Couric’s (yay!) and Dr. Oz’s (nay!) hosting stints. Nick’s two games were also a Jekyll-and-Hyde performance, but his poor performance may have been because Dr. Snake Oil was hosting. I would think he’s more likely to have a strong performance with a more normal host. |
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Brandon Deutsch (2) Long Beach, California  89 correct, 14 incorrect 13/15 on rebound attempts (on 24 rebound opportunities) 34.36% in first on buzzer (78/227) 6/6 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $18,900) 3/4 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $15,300 Brandon won 3 times during Aaron Rodgers’ hosting stint while he was a student at UC Berkeley—a fact that delighted the then-reigning NFL MVP. He finished just short of a ToC spot and, especially considering his Daily Double stats, might be in a good position to take this entire bracket. |
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Emily White (8) Wilmington, Delaware  55 correct, 7 incorrect 7/9 on rebound attempts (on 22 rebound opportunities) 26.19% in first on buzzer (44/168) 3/6 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,400) 3/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $12,800 Emily was a 2-day champion in June 2021; Savannah Guthrie was Emily’s guest host. Emily is one of many in this event who has very similar statistics; despite going 3-for-6, though, her average bet size was high on the Daily Doubles. |
Overall Thoughts: I think Brandon has to be a slight favorite overall, but he’s not going to have an easy time in this quarter-final. Nick and Emily are both very capable of strong performances, and any one of these three players can win this game.
Wednesday, November 15, 2023:
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Leah Caglio (22) Phoenix, Arizona  34 correct, 1 incorrect 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities) 28.18% in first on buzzer (31/110) 1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,200) 2/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $15,200 Leah was a 1-game winner during Anderson Cooper’s run; interestingly, she has experience playing against strong opposition: her one victory was over Second Chance winner Hari Parameswaran, and her losing game was a $18,600–$17,200–$17,200 battle going into Final Jeopardy that newly-crowned ToCer Emily Sands won. |
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Kit Sekelsky (3) Kent, Ohio  76 correct, 16 incorrect 3/4 on rebound attempts (on 17 rebound opportunities) 35.09% in first on buzzer (80/228) 3/4 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $4,000) 1/4 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $12,200 Kit was a 3-game champion during Mayim Bialik’s and Savannah Guthrie’s guest-hosting stints in June 2021; one thing that I can count on is that Kit is probably the likeliest to have wagering strategy down—some skillful wagering brought Kit through a stretch of difficult Final Jeopardy clues. |
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Henry Rozycki (11) Richmond, Virginia  52 correct, 7 incorrect 6/7 on rebound attempts (on 17 rebound opportunities) 26.32% in first on buzzer (45/171) 4/4 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $6,400) 2/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $14,200 Henry was a 2-day champion in February 2022 before losing a tiebreaker to eventual ToCer Christine Whelchel. Henry is also an expatriate Canadian, which gives us north-of-the-border fans someone to cheer for. |
Overall Thoughts: Jeopardy! has put three of my favorite champions from Seasons 37 & 38 in the same quarterfinal. Regardless of the outcome, I’ll be happy for whoever wins. (And yes, now that the strike is over, I will feel more comfortable cheering for contestants again.)
Thursday, November 16, 2023:
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Amy Bekkerman (6) Durham, New Hampshire  61 correct, 11 incorrect 8/8 on rebound attempts (on 12 rebound opportunities) 30.99% in first on buzzer (53/171) 6/8 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $12,000) 2/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $13,800 Amy was a 2-time champion in March 2022, known for some aggressive Daily Double betting and a very strong second victory. |
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Tim Moon (4) Los Angeles, California  65 correct, 4 incorrect 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities) 34.50% in first on buzzer (59/171) 5/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $17,200) 2/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $16,733 Tim was one of the rare players to win over $70,000 in their first two wins and not qualify for a Tournament of Champions. This is a golden opportunity for redemption. He’s a strong player, but I did note that in his first game that he had a Coryat of $20,000, went 3/3 on Daily Doubles, and didn’t have a runaway—his Daily Double Efficiency was just 55 for that game. On the flip side, if both Tim and Jen Jazwinski make the final, we would get our first rematch of Champions Wildcard. |
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Scott Plummer (15) Golden, Colorado  41 correct, 6 incorrect 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities) 35.96% in first on buzzer (41/114) 1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $4,000) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $14,400 Scott was a 1-day champion from February 2022. As I noted when Jay Foster played in the last bracket, Scott won the game that saw Zoha Khalili make an incredible late comeback, only to falter in Final—and I’m still left feeling that Zoha was snubbed for Second Chance last season. |
Overall Thoughts: Tim seems to be very aggressive when behind, but much too conservative when holding onto a lead. If some of that come-from-behind aggression bleeds over, I think Tim can make a run in this event. If not, he could be very vulnerable, especially if Final Jeopardy doesn’t break his way.
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Friday, November 17, 2023:
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Danielle Maurer (10) Peachtree Corners, Georgia  49 correct, 9 incorrect 4/5 on rebound attempts (on 16 rebound opportunities) 27.11% in first on buzzer (45/166) 5/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $13,800) 1/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $10,600 After being a “giant killer”, ending Mattea Roach’s run, Danielle won a second game before losing to Mallory Kass (author of The 100). |
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David Ferrara (27) Los Angeles, California  37 correct, 4 incorrect 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 9 rebound opportunities) 32.11% in first on buzzer (35/109) 0/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$10,400) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $13,900 While David’s lone win was just under $5,000, he lost $7,400 on a True Daily Double in the game he lost. If he’s not “once bitten twice shy” over this, he could absolutely do well in this event. |
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Carrie Cadwallader (26) Aurora, Colorado  40 correct, 14 incorrect 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities) 39.64% in first on buzzer (44/111) 2/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$4,000) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $11,600 Carrie’s one win was against “giant killer” Rhone Talsma in January 2022. Her win total in that game was deflated due to a difficult Final Jeopardy that fell for a Triple Stumper. |
Overall Thoughts: If past stats are any indication, Danielle has a definite Daily Double advantage going into this one. It wouldn’t surprise me if this ended up as a close match, though; David and Carrie are better than their “seeds” indicate.
Monday, November 20, 2023:
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Verlinda Johnson Henning (23) Memphis, Tennessee  34 correct, 3 incorrect 1/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities) 27.19% in first on buzzer (31/114) 2/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,500) 2/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $10,000 Verlinda is a 1-day champ from June 2021; Mayim Bialik was Verlinda’s guest host. |
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Kevin Hirsh (18) Fort Lauderdale, Florida  33 correct, 4 incorrect 4/5 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities) 24.56% in first on buzzer (28/114) 2/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,500) 2/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $10,800 Kevin is another one of Mayim Bialik’s champions from her Season 37 guest host stint. |
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Deanna Bolio (13) Campbell, California  77 correct, 11 incorrect 8/9 on rebound attempts (on 24 rebound opportunities) 31.14% in first on buzzer (71/228) 4/4 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $8,800) 1/4 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $14,450 Deanna is a Second Chance winner from this past September. |
Overall Thoughts: Deanna both has the best statistics in this one and the most recent playing experience. Much like Jilana and Hari both played extremely well in Champions Wildcard Diamonds, I expect Deanna to have a strong game in this one and advance to the semifinals.
Tuesday, November 21, 2023:
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Nick Heise (17) Madison, Wisconsin  33 correct, 2 incorrect 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 10 rebound opportunities) 26.32% in first on buzzer (30/114) 1/2 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$1,400) 1/2 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $14,600 Nick was champion in Season 38 in between a couple of well-known 3 timers: he defeated stay-at-home uncle Lawrence Long before losing to the expertly Mohawked Dave Rapp. Nick’s stats might be understated because of this stronger opposition. |
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Ed Hashima (12) Sacramento, California  90 correct, 16 incorrect 12/13 on rebound attempts (on 23 rebound opportunities) 35.96% in first on buzzer (82/228) 5/7 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,800) 1/4 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $17,500 The runner-up to Sam Buttrey in the 2021 Professors Tournament, Ed had an extremely strong first game but ended up losing to Sam in the Professors Tournament final. I noted during that tournament that Ed wasn’t as aggressive as he needed to be late in the final against Sam—it would be great if Ed played more aggressively in this one. |
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Sandy Olive (7) St. Louis, Missouri  77 correct, 6 incorrect 4/6 on rebound attempts (on 13 rebound opportunities) 41.52% in first on buzzer (71/171) 2/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,000) 1/3 in Final Jeopardy Average Coryat: $20,000 Sandy was a 2-day champion during Savannah Guthrie’s hosting stint, whose run ended earlier than it probably should have. Sandy definitely is going to be a strong player in this event. |
Overall Thoughts: I’m expecting to see fireworks in this one—Nick, Ed, and Sandy are all incredibly strong players. I think most fans will cheer for Ed, especially once they remember that he was runner-up to Sam, but I also think that this game will come down to whichever player the board suits best.
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Verlinda has the trivia chops to go further than people think. She is my “dark horse”.
With all due respect, Jeopardy! does not allow for unlimited thinking time (unlike something like LearnedLeague).
Since this is already a day after the first match aired, I figured I might as well skip that, and all I will say for those who haven’t watched it yet is that I did predict correctly. Either way, here are my thoughts on the other eight!
Match 2: Dennis – Again, I’m gonna let his stats speak for themselves here. I’d absolutely consider it an upset if anyone other than Dennis emerged a semifinalist in this game.
Match 3: Emily – I think the most accurate way to describe this match is similar to what I thought about Dave Pai in the last bracket. If the $25,200 Coryat Emily shows up, I don’t think there’s gonna be any question. If any of the other Emilys show up, though, this is anyone’s game. (It’s also kind of funny how the top seeds in two of the three brackets thus far are both named Emily.)
Match 4: Brandon – Nick might have had a much stronger debut, but Brandon is much more consistent in his play, which makes me think he’s the favorite. He’s gonna have to be error-free in his Daily Double hunting, though – he’s been matched with a pair of very aggressive wagerers, and if one of them pulls off a good Daily Double or two, it’s game over.
Match 5: Kit – I’ve picked Kit as the favorite to win for one reason; she knows how to bet. That might have to carry her through, as otherwise, she gives too many incorrect responses for a runaway to be realistic, in my opinion. That being said, I like all three of these players, so I’d be happy with any of them making it through.
Match 6: Tim – The biggest question is, as you mentioned, whether Tim goes in knowing he needs to be aggressive at pretty much all times, and not just when he’s playing catch-up. But otherwise, I think he’s a very strong player and has the best chances of advancing. (Not related, but I completely agree about Zoha Khalili being snubbed for SCC.)
Match 7: Danielle – I mean, you have to have done something very right to have beaten Mattea Roach with a Coryat of $6,200. If she’s able to find more buzzer success and better hunting tactics, I think she’s absolutely got potential to go on a deep run in the event.
Match 8: Deanna – Obviously, there’s the advantage of having played the most recently, but I do think Deanna’s statistics are much better than the other two. I think it says something that I haven’t predicted a single Second Chancer to lose their first match afterwards (or maybe it says more that I’m usually wrong about that!).
Match 9: Sandy – I initially thought Ed was the favorite, but looking back at his performance, I think he bets far too conservatively and takes too many incorrect responses to really get a run going in this tournament. Sandy, on the other hand, is a much stronger player in every aspect – and the odds of her losing in the same fashion she did in her initial run (having the “curse of too much knowledge”) don’t seem to me as though they would be extremely high.
I think the postseason and the return of past non-ToC qualifying contestants is one of my favorite Jeopardy played, because I love seeing all of the alternate timelines that have potential to play out. Looking forward to this, as always!
Clubs:
Game 1 – Charlie Fonville
Game 2 – Dennis Chase
Game 3 – Emily Fiasco
Game 4 – Brandon Deutsch
Game 5 – Henry Rozycki
Game 6 – Tim Moon
Game 7 – Danielle Maurer
Game 8 – Deanna Bolio
Game 9 – Sandy Olive
It’s going to be a fun run with 7 more Quarterfinal matches to go. Just a few minutes ago I read an article that quoted Sandy Olive saying that she and quite a few others Season 37/38 winners wouldn’t come and play due to the strike. And here she is in Game 9 of this round. It’s all good though. It would have been hard to say no when being called to come back and play the game, so I get it.
Jeff:
Lest you think these Clubs players went back on their word and crossed a picket line, the writers’ strike was over—and Jeopardy was no longer considered a struck production by any union—two full weeks before the Clubs bracket taped.
Hi Andy:
Yeah, I hear you. Do you think she might have had to commit before the strike ended though. I would never begrudge her decision in any fashion.
No; contestants were not required to commit, nor were they asked again, before the strike’s conclusion.
Thank you for letting me know. I humbly appreciate it.