Warning: This page contains spoilers for the April 18, 2024, 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 Alphabetical America) for Thursday, April 18, 2024 (Season 40, Game 159):
Until Alabama became the 22nd state, this one was first alphabetically
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Marko Saric, a math professor from Chapel Hill, North Carolina
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Rob Blumenstein, a paralegal originally from Montreal, Quebec, Canada
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Alison Betts, a writer & creative executive originally from San Jose, California (5-day total: $121,500)
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Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Alison Betts is a 5-time champion with total winnings $121,500 after her victory on yesterday’s show. Will she take victory number 6 today? Rob Blumenstein and Marko Saric will want to stop her. One thing working in Alison’s favor will be that this is the start of a new tape day; Alison will have had a chance to get some rest before resuming.
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(Content continues below)
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Correct response: What is Connecticut?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2024 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
Alabama was the first of the four “A” states to gain statehood, doing so in 1819; Arkansas gained statehood in 1836, Arizona in 1912, and Alaska in 1959. Thus, first alphabetically—also first alphabetically amongst the 13 Colonies—was Connecticut. (While both California and Colorado are also in front of Connecticut alphabetically, California’s statehood was 1850, while Colorado’s was 1876.)
I think this Final Jeopardy might have been better suited for a Tournament of Champions, JIT, or Masters; at regular-play level, having this clue hinge on the fact that Arkansas statehood was after Alabama’s is a big ask for a clue that needs to be answered in 30 seconds.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Thursday, April 18, 2024 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: At The Start Of The Sport; Second Cities; All Up In Your Business; What A Literary Character; Crossword Clues “R”; Patience)
The opening 15 clues saw Alison’s score drop to $0 after a missed True Daily Double; however, she rebounded well and nearly re-took the lead by the interviews. Rob led after 15 with $3,400 to Alison’s $2,600 and Marko’s $1,000.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Rob 4 correct 0 incorrect
Alison 6 correct 1 incorrect
Marko 4 correct 2 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Marko learned to spell thanks to Wheel of Fortune.
Rob is a newly-minted paralegal.
Alison accidentally made a viral cat video.
Alison picked up another 6 correct to have the lead after 30, but all three players were playing very well at this point in the game.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Alison 12 correct 1 incorrect
Marko 11 correct 2 incorrect
Rob 5 correct 0 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Alison $5,000
Marko $4,400
Rob $3,600
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Books In History; Medals & Decorations; 9-Letter Words; Acting Up At Juilliard; Biblical Garb; Patients)
After finding the first Daily Double, Rob stayed in a category guaranteed not to have the second—which yielded the last Daily Double to Marko. While Marko went conservative on his bet, it was still enough to have the lead going into Final Jeopardy.
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Marko 22 correct 6 incorrect
Alison 19 correct 3 incorrect
Rob 10 correct 1 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 4 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Marko $12,900
Alison $11,000
Rob $9,600
Final Jeopardy was a Triple Stumper, with all three players not thinking past Arkansas. Things came down to the wagering, and Marko ended up as champion!
Tonight’s results:
Rob $9,600 – $9,559 = $41 (What is Arkansas? Love you)
Alison $11,000 – $8,500 = $2,500 (What is Arizona Arkansas Arkansas <3 OJE)
Marko $12,900 – $9,101 = $3,799 (What is Arkansas?) (1-day total: $3,799)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) SECOND CITIES $1000 (clue #9)
Alison 1800 -1800 (Rob 2400 Marko 800)
2) 9-LETTER WORDS $1600 (clue #2)
Rob 3600 +3600 (Alison 5000 Marko 4400)
3) BOOKS IN HISTORY $1200 (clue #6, $27600 left on board)
Marko 6000 +2900 (Alison 5800 Rob 6800)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 48
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Alison 4 4 5*
Rob 5 5 2
Marko 3 3 4
DJ! Round:
Alison 4
Rob 5 4* 3† 2†
Marko 3*
† – selection in same category as Daily Double
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Marko 3.25
Alison 4.25
Rob 3.71
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 4 (0.03 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Marko $11,200 Coryat, 22 correct, 6 incorrect, 43.86% in first on buzzer (25/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Alison $12,800 Coryat, 19 correct, 3 incorrect, 33.33% in first on buzzer (19/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Rob $7,600 Coryat, 10 correct, 1 incorrect, 14.04% in first on buzzer (8/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $31,600
Lach Trash: $9,600 (on 8 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $12,800
Lead Changes: 7
Times Tied: 0
Player Statistics:
Alison Betts, career statistics:
133 correct, 27 incorrect
10/11 on rebound attempts (on 35 rebound opportunities)
38.60% in first on buzzer (132/342)
10/11 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $32,000)
4/6 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $13,667
Rob Blumenstein, career statistics:
10 correct, 2 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
14.04% in first on buzzer (8/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,600)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $7,600
Marko Saric, career statistics:
22 correct, 7 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
43.86% in first on buzzer (25/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,900)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $11,200
Marko Saric, to win:
2 games: 42.595%
3: 18.143%
4: 7.728%
5: 3.292%
6: 1.402%
Avg. streak: 1.742 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- All three players made a defensible bet from a strategic point of view in this game. It might not have worked out for them in this case, but Alison being in Stratton’s Dilemma certainly made for more strategic options.
- Today’s box score will be linked to when posted by the show.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Marko $12,900 Alison $11,000 Rob $9,600)
Alison: You’re in Stratton’s Dilemma; you can’t both cover Rob and win a Triple Stumper. If you think Rob is going to make a small bet, you might consider something less than $1,400 or between $4,001 and $7,199. If you think he’s making a large bet, you have to bet at least $8,201 to cover. (Actual bet: $8,500)
Rob: If you think Alison is going to bet small, go all in yourself. It does mean you have to be correct to win, though. If you think Alison is going to make a large bet, play for the Triple Stumper and limit yourself to a bet between $2,800 and $5,800. (Actual bet: $9,559)
Marko: Standard cover bet over Alison is $9,101. (Actual bet: $9,101)
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I felt this was a pretty straightforward final once I realized it wouldn’t be an “A” state. I’d bet this is a triple get.
yeah, I figured (hoped) Arkansas would be a red herring being I didn’t know exact dates for Arkansas and Alabama, and went with Connecticut.
“once I realized it wouldn’t be an “A” state” is key here; I personally think it’s an acceptable ask of a ToC player; I’m not as sold on regular play.
For the sake of completeness, I think you should mention California in your discussion of why Connecticut is the answer. Like the other three “A” states, it comes before Connecticut alphabetically but well after Alabama chronologically.
Excellent idea. Thank you. (Also, Colorado.)
[Not counting Alaska and Hawaii] Colorado has one of the few joining dates that I remember after the first 13 since it is called ‘The Centennial State’ because it joined in 1876. I guess I will remember California as 1850 now that I notice it was one year after “the 49ers gold rush”. [Someone on some game show very recently (maybe Weakest Link) didn’t know whether Alaska or Hawaii was last — I thought everybody knows that because of ‘Hawaii-5-0’ 😉.]
I guessed that since Arkansas was west of the Mississippi River it wouldn’t have had enough population to become a state until after Alabama and thus chose Connecticut.
I don’t think it’s a big ask to realize that Arkansas’s statehood would have come after Alabama’s. The general rule of course is that you move east to west over time, and Arkansas is well west of Alabama. The hard part of this clue in my opinion is having to visualize the whole US eastern seaboard in 30 seconds and find Connecticut in your head.
That works okay-ish until you get to the Gold Rush, and California goes from “a part of Mexico” to “admitted State” in about two years’ time (1848-1850), with the discovery of gold at Sutter’s Mill about in the middle of that time frame. And since California straddled the Missouri Compromise Line, it led to a new round in the fight over slavery vs. free states. After California, the east-to-west pattern breaks down, with the last six states admitted, in order, being Utah, Oklahoma, New Mexico, Arizona, Alaska, and Hawaii.
Although I also relied on the “East to West” rule of thumb in assuming Alabama was admitted before Arkansas, that rule of course has had exceptions, even in early periods. For example, I see that both Louisiana and Mississippi were admitted ahead of Alabama.
Yes, I was certainly thinking of it only as a general rule too, knowing it had exceptions as well. In any case, it seems a moot point as all 3 contestants guessed Arkansas anyway….
Serena, what you say is surely true for actual Jeopardy! contestants, but I bet some viewers (especially those who have not been in school for decades and live well outside the Southeast) may get Alabama and Arkansas mixed-up with each other 😄 thus being unsure which is east or west of the other. Or they think of Arkansas as a Southern State (rather than physically the SE corner of the Mid-West) because of the news-making, documentary-inspiring 1957 desegregation problems in Little Rock. [And besides the ‘A’ state names, that Little Rock instance plus the Selma marches could cause some people to get the two states confused.]
I will say that this will not be a triple get. It took me over 30 seconds to even come up with a “C” state.
California!
That’s the first “C” state that comes to mind for many people.
For me, this was a race against time. But I came up with Connecticut within 30 seconds. Like some others, I ruled out Arkansas because it is west of Alabama.
I attribute getting today’s FJ to the US Mint’s “50 State Quarters” program. That really helped with chronology.
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/50_State_quarters
The key is a number, not a letter. Alabama was the 22nd state, so it has to be a state in the first 21. Most likely one of the original 13 colonies, which leads to Connecticut. If you’re faster than that, you can run down the states east of the Mississippi.
This is the key that others seemed to miss. I thought the same way, but in my office I have a map of the US, so scanning down the eastern seaboard, I landed on CT early.
Arkansas statehood trivia. When it became a state it had been the longest time elapsed between states getting statehood. It now stands second to Alaska.
Took me about 3 to 5 seconds to eliminate all of the A’s (of which at least half a second was feeling confident that Arkansas was admitted after Alabama). Then realizing there were no B’s, and that California and Colorado were well after Alabama, leaving my native state, Connecticut, and with writing time there were over 10 seconds to spare. This is where the MA in Geography and the minor in History during undergrad worked to my advantage, I think.
Knowing all 50 states in alphabetical order as a youngster came in handy on this one, and I agree that Arkansas is as solid a negbait answer as it gets (it became a state just 17 years after Alabama did).
I’m a southerner (Alabama by birth) and an American history major, this is one of the rare triple misses, that was easy for me.
Yeah, I thought it should be easy, too, as it was very likely to be one of the first 13, which included Georgia (which is the next state east of Alabama). Then, of course, both Connecticut and Delaware are “original 13s” that come earlier alphabetically than Georgia. What I mean is that assuming it’s one of the first 13 is easier than trying to think of a state that is 14-20 AND begins with a letter lower than any of those “low” 13s.