Today’s Final Jeopardy – Monday, April 7, 2025

Current Champion

Nikolas Polsinelli, career statistics:
44 correct, 6 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
35.96% in first on buzzer (41/114)
4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $10,600)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $17,500

To win:
3 games: 64.111%
4: 41.102%
5: 26.351%
6: 16.894%
7: 10.831%
Avg. streak: 3.786 games.
(Click Here for Methodology)

Upcoming Encore Presentations

September 26-27: S42 E174 (May 7, 2026)
October 3-4: S42 E175 (May 8, 2026)
October 10-11: S42 E176 (May 11, 2026)
(Source: Bell Fibe TV program guide)

All Time Winnings

All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Regular Play Only:

1. Ken Jennings $2,520,700
2. James Holzhauer $2,462,216
3. Matt Amodio $1,518,601
4. Amy Schneider $1,382,800
5. Jamie Ding $882,605
6. Cris Pannullo $748,286
7. Mattea Roach $560,983
8. Jason Zuffranieri $532,496
9. Scott Riccardi $455,000
10. David Madden $430,400
11. Julia Collins $428,100
12. Matt Jackson $411,612
13. Austin Rogers $411,000
14. Ray Lalonde $386,400
15. Harrison Whitaker $373,999
16. Adriana Harmeyer $349,600
17. Caleb Groen $346,968
18. Adam Remsen $306,415
19. Ryan Long $299,400
20. Arthur Chu $297,200

All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Including Tournaments (and Consolation Prizes):

1. Brad Rutter $4,968,436
2. Ken Jennings $4,372,700
3. James Holzhauer $3,614,216
4. Matt Amodio $1,964,601
5. Amy Schneider $1,864,800
6. Yogesh Raut $1,598,403
7. Victoria Groce $1,023,801
8. Mattea Roach $897,983
9. Jamie Ding $885,605
10. David Madden $785,733
11. Cris Pannullo $754,286
12. Roger Craig $706,200
13. Andrew He $684,365
14. Larissa Kelly $671,930
15. Matt Jackson $623,612
16. Jason Zuffranieri $549,496
17. Paolo Pasco $548,717
18. Scott Riccardi $533,000
19. Jerome Vered $499,102
20. Julia Collins $495,767
21. Austin Rogers $493,000
22. Juveria Zaheer $491,000
23. Ben Ingram $449,201
24. Adriana Harmeyer $446,600
25. Buzzy Cohen $441,603

Are you looking for today’s UK Jeopardy recap? Find that here!

Warning: This page contains spoilers for the April 7, 2025, 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 American Literature) for Monday, April 7, 2025 (Season 41, Game 151):

His 1821 novel was inspired by stories told to him by John Jay of Jay’s experiences with spies during the Revolution

(correct response beneath the contestants)

Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:

Taylor Mattox, an IT specialist from Columbus, Ohio

Erin Li, a psychiatrist from Queens, New York

Mike Dawson, a technology manager from Portland, Oregon (1-day total: $21,601)

Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:

Another week of Jeopardy! play begins with Portland’s Mike Dawson defending his title today against Queens’s Erin Li and Columbus’s Taylor Mattox. Mike will very likely need another victory (or a field expansion) at this point in order to see an invitation to Champions Wildcard; he’s just 0.22% to qualify at this point.

The NCAA men’s basketball championship game airs tonight, making for a smattering of pre-emptions on CBS stations in the Mountain, Pacific, and Hawaiian time zones. If you think you may be affected, check your local listings or Matt Carberry’s Google sheet.

Correct response: Who is James Fenimore Cooper?

More information about Final Jeopardy:

(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2025 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)

James Fenimore Cooper, best known for his series of five novels known as the Leatherstocking Tales, was inspired by John Jay’s stories of spies in the American Revolution to write his second novel, 1821’s The Spy, the work that brought Cooper to prominence. In the work, Harvey Birch was based upon real-life spy Enoch Crosby, who had helped Jay during the Revolution.

In terms of difficulty, you basically have to know of The Spy in order to be certain of Cooper; otherwise, you’re essentially flipping a coin between the two most prominent New York authors of the era (Cooper and Washington Irving), especially since Irving’s “The Legend of Sleepy Hollow” was also from the early 1820s.

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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:

Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Monday, April 7, 2025 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:

Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: Nameless In Shakespeare; Gang “Way”; Ear, Ear; Movie Title Fill In The Blank; Fine; Dandy)

Mike found the Daily Double very early and used it to build an early lead. After 15 clues, the scores were Mike $4,400 Taylor $2,800 Erin $1,400.

Statistics at the first break (15 clues):

Mike 5 correct 0 incorrect
Taylor 5 correct 0 incorrect
Erin 4 correct 1 incorrect

Today’s interviews:

Taylor was a professional bowler in 1989.
Erin had a bar trivia team named The Psychosomatics.
Mike was on Japanese TV in a pair of “vox pop” interviews.

Mike picked up 8 correct responses after the break, extending his lead.

Statistics after the Jeopardy round:

Mike 13 correct 0 incorrect
Erin 9 correct 1 incorrect
Taylor 5 correct 1 incorrect

Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:

Mike $8,000
Erin $3,600
Taylor $1,800

Double Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: Malice In Wonderland; Medieval Histories; Scrabble Scores; Habitats For Humanity; On The “M”ap; Her Mom’s A Singer)

Both challengers found the Daily Doubles in this one; Erin picked up $3,000, but Taylor lost $3,000. Mike picked up 13 correct, including three at the $2,000 level, to lead going into Final Jeopardy.

Statistics after Double Jeopardy:

Mike 26 correct 2 incorrect
Erin 19 correct 1 incorrect
Taylor 10 correct 3 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 30 (0 today).

Scores going into Final:

Mike $22,000
Erin $15,000
Taylor $3,600

This Final Jeopardy was a Triple Stumper; which might have been advantage Erin. But I’m guessing she thought that Mike wasn’t going to make a cover bet in this scenario, and she chose to go all in. Unfortunately for her, Mike did cover, and Mike’s now a 2-day champion. He’ll go for win #3 tomorrow.

Tonight’s results:

Taylor $3,600 – $3,000 = $600 (Who Nathaniel Hawthorne?)
Erin $15,000 – $15,000 = $0 (Who is Crane?)
Mike $22,000 – $8,001 = $13,999 (Who is Irving?) (2-day total: $35,600)

Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:

Daily Double locations:

1) NAMELESS IN SHAKESPEARE $1000 (clue #2)
Mike 0 +1000 (Erin 0 Taylor 0)
2) ON THE “M”AP $2000 (clue #3)
Erin 6000 +3000 (Mike 8000 Taylor 1800)
3) MEDIEVAL HISTORIES $1200 (clue #11, $20000 left on board)
Taylor 3000 -3000 (Mike 14800 Erin 11400)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 50

Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:

J! Round:
Mike 4 5*
Erin
Taylor

DJ! Round:
Mike 4 4 5 3
Erin 4 5* 3 2 5
Taylor 2 3*

Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:

Mike 4.17
Taylor 2.50
Erin 3.80

Unplayed clues:

J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 30 (0.20 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles

Game Stats:

Mike $22,000 Coryat, 26 correct, 2 incorrect, 47.37% in first on buzzer (27/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Taylor $6,600 Coryat, 10 correct, 3 incorrect, 17.54% in first on buzzer (10/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Erin $14,000 Coryat, 19 correct, 1 incorrect, 31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $42,600
Lach Trash: $4,600 (on 4 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $6,800
Lead Changes: 4
Times Tied: 1

Player Statistics:

Mike Dawson, career statistics:

45 correct, 5 incorrect
2/3 on rebound attempts (on 9 rebound opportunities)
38.60% in first on buzzer (44/114)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $1,000)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $18,500

Erin Li, career statistics:

19 correct, 2 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,000)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $14,000

Taylor Mattox, career statistics:

10 correct, 4 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
17.54% in first on buzzer (10/57)
0/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$3,000)
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $6,600

Mike Dawson, to win:

3 games: 58.281%
4: 33.967%
5: 19.796%
6: 11.537%
7: 6.724%
Avg. streak: 3.397 games.

Andy’s Thoughts:

• Mike is now 2.46% to qualify for the Tournament of Champions and 34.00% to return for Champions Wildcard.
• Obviously there was no way for either show to know they were airing today, but it was ironic to see a clue about the Maldives in both the US and UK versions today.
• If you’re in second place going into Final Jeopardy and your read is that the player in the lead isn’t going to make a cover bet, going all-in is the strategic play.
• Having seen our three responses to Final Jeopardy today, I’m still of the opinion that requiring players to know that Cooper was the novelist might be a bridge too far to ask of regular play players; maybe this FJ clue could have been saved for the Tournament of Champions?
• Today’s box score will be linked to when posted by the show.

Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:

(Scores: Mike $22,000 Erin $15,000 Taylor $3,600)

Mike: Standard cover bet today is $8,001. If you think Erin might defend against that, a bet between $2 and $5,998 would also be viable, but you’d have to be pretty certain as to her intentions. (Actual bet: $8,001)

Erin: If you think Mike will make a cover bet here, bet between $0 and $1,000. If you don’t, going all in is viable. (Actual bet: $15,000)

Taylor: You need to overbets to have a chance. Do whatever you like, but you might want to keep a couple of bucks around in case Erin goes all in. I might bet $3,550 here to circle back to the $50 from your interview story. (Actual bet: $3,000)

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