Warning: This page contains spoilers for the March 12, 2026, 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 21st Century Women) for Thursday, March 12, 2026 (Season 42, Game 134):
The Iowa legislature passed a resolution declaring February 22, 2024 her day across the state
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Lydia Cawley, a director of product from Arlington, Virginia
|
Luke Henson, a grocer from East Moline, Illinois
|
James Denison, a college professor & museum curator originally from Alexandria, Virginia (4-day total: $99,400)
|
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Since Jeopardy! returned to the airwaves on September 10, 1984, 290 people have won five games. 188 more have had their win streak halted at four. We see today which of these groups James Denison—stopped short of $100,000 two games in a row—will find himself in at the conclusion of play today. James has dodged a couple of bullets thus far in that his nearest competitor has also gotten Final Jeopardy incorrect when he has; certainly, Luke Henson of Illinois and Lydia Cawley of Virginia would be happy if one of them managed to land a singleton get in Final Jeopardy.
The good thing is for James is that win or lose today, he is extremely likely to see a Tournament of Champions invitation—assuming, of course, that next year stays with a 21-player field.
(Content continues below)
Did you accidentally get logged out of your TJ!F Plus account? Log in here!
My friends over at Geeks Who Drink have a daily trivia game—Thrice! Existing to make daily clever trivia content accessible to a wide audience, it's a daily challenge that tries to get you to the answer via three separate clues. It has a shareable score functionality to challenge your friends and new questions every day will give you a new daily social ritual. You can find it at thricegame.com.
Are you going on the show and looking for information about how to bet in Final Jeopardy? Check out my Betting Strategy 101 page. If you want to learn how to bet in two-day finals, check out Betting Strategy 102. In case the show uses a tournament with wild cards in the future, there is also a strategy page for betting in tournament quarterfinals.
Are you looking for information on how to stream Jeopardy! in 2026? Find out information here on how to stream from most places in North America!
You can find game-by-game stats here at The Jeopardy! Fan of all 20 players, now including Jamie Ding, that have won 10 or more games on Jeopardy!
You can now listen to Alex Trebek-hosted Jeopardy! episodes from TuneIn Radio without leaving The Jeopardy! Fan — listen now!
Correct response: Who is Caitlin Clark?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2026 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
In honor of her college basketball accomplishments as a member of the Iowa Hawkweyes, including surpassing Pete Maravich as the NCAA Division I all-time leading scorer, the Iowa legislature declared February 22, 2024 as Caitlin Clark Day throughout the state of Iowa—the 22nd was chosen due to her jersey number of 22. In what has been called the “Caitlin Clark effect”, she has singlehandedly raised the profile of women’s basketball in the United States.
I’m always curious to see how this sort of a Final Jeopardy clue plays, even moreso today because it’s a stealth sports clue—something the show doesn’t often do.
In order to redesign our merchandise area to serve you better in 2026, all merchandise sales have been temporarily taken offline. Look for a return in early 2026! All previous orders will still be supported.
Game Recap:
As is often the case in modern Jeopardy!, the Daily Doubles proved to be the game’s major inflection points. A close game early looked like it was going to break James’s way when he picked up $4,400 just after the interviews thanks to a successful True Daily Double, only for things to come back to our challengers when James lost $5,400 on the game’s second Daily Double that proved to be as much current events as geography. (Yes, that does mean that if you’re studying for an upcoming appearance on the show, you really should be looking at studying Venezuela and/or Iran.)
To add insult to injury for our champion, Daily Double 3 was in James’s best category of the round (Entertainment by the Numbers), but it was Lydia who found it after going there before James did. Unfortunately for Lydia’s chances, she had some struggles with remembering the category constraints, missed the Daily Double, and was out of contention entering Final Jeopardy. James, however, was in a familiar position—Luke needed to be correct, with James incorrect, to unseat our champion.
Unfortunately for James and his fanbase, Final did not break in his direction today, as Luke was the only player correct in Final; that makes Luke our new champion. He’ll return tomorrow to defend—but I’m steeling for at least one game where we see a lot of top-row clues taken early.
Scores going into Final:
James $14,400
Luke $8,400
Lydia $1,200
Tonight’s results:
Lydia $1,200 – $27 = $1,173 (Who is Gauff)
Luke $8,400 + $8,398 = $16,798 (Who is Caitlin Clark?) (1-day total: $16,798)
James $14,400 – $5,999 = $8,401 (Who is Collins)
Game Stats:
Luke $8,400 Coryat, 13 correct, 4 incorrect, 26.32% in first on buzzer (15/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
James $16,000 Coryat, 24 correct, 4 incorrect, 40.35% in first on buzzer (23/57), 2/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
Lydia $3,400 Coryat, 9 correct, 4 incorrect, 19.30% in first on buzzer (11/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $27,800
Luke Henson, to win:
2 games: 31.640%
3: 10.011%
4: 3.167%
5: 1.002%
6: 0.317%
Avg. streak: 1.463 games.
Andy’s Thoughts:
- I am wondering if they went back after this game concluded to reshoot James’s interview to ask him what he was going to do with the money, because it felt like an interesting interview choice if it was in the “normal” order.
- I have to say that one of the best parts of the WBBJ watching experience is the local ads and PSAs—including one for CrimeStoppers that sends me every time I see it.
- Today’s J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: James $14,400 Luke $8,400 Lydia $1,200)
James: Standard cover bet is $2,401. (Actual bet: $5,999)
Luke: You have to bet at least $3,600 to have any chance of winning. If you want to guarantee second, any bet here between $3,600 and $6,000 exactly does that—you do have the “paper tiebreaker” for second over Lydia. (Actual bet: $8,398)
Lydia: You’ve actually got a bit of a dilemma here in the battle for second, and no real way to tell how the other player will act. If you think Luke is more likely to go all in, bet small. If you think he’s more likely to bet exactly $6,001, go all in. Honestly, either strategy here is valid, as both strategies tend to be about equally likely from an unknown player and we have no indication what Luke will do. (Actual bet: $27)
The new TJ!F Plus section is active! In order to get the Daily Details of each episode coming soon, as well as the ability to comment on posts site-wide, make sure to register for your account! It should be noted that if you have not registered for an account since December 13, 2025, that registration for a new account is necessary.
Did you accidentally get logged out of your TJ!F Plus account? Log in here!
Become a Supporter now! Make a monthly contribution to the site on Patreon!
Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com
When commenting, please note that all comments on The Jeopardy! Fan must be in compliance with the Site Comment Policy.
If you are going to quote any information from this page or this website, attribution is required.
Have you had a chance to listen to our podcast game show, Complete The List, yet? Check it out! It's also available on Apple Podcasts.