Today’s Final Jeopardy – Thursday, March 5, 2026

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

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

Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category 21st Century Heroes) for Thursday, March 5, 2026 (Season 42, Game 129):

In his memoir, he referenced Alfred Hitchcock’s “The Birds” while writing about a near disaster

(correct response beneath the contestants)

Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:

Nishal Shah, a research scientist originally from Parsippany, New Jersey

Cory Aiello, a development officer from Indianapolis, Indiana

Quentin Powers, a returned Peace Corps volunteer from Arlington, Virginia (2-day total: $20,798)

Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:

Quentin Powers is your 2-day defending champion on Jeopardy!; today, he goes for win #3 against Cory Aiello and Nishal Shah.

The Brier—the Canadian men’s curling championship—is taking place here in St. John’s this week. As I’ve taken up curling myself this year for the first time since high school, I’ve spent a little bit of time lurking on r/Curling. And one thing I’ve noticed is that the ideas some of the people have on that subreddit for curling are similarly hare-brained as the ones people have on r/Jeopardy for Jeopardy. The only difference is that I’m reasonably certain that World Curling or Curling Canada haven’t actively come out and said they read the subreddit—quite thankfully, I must add. That, and the curling media doesn’t put out clickbait articles that are just a quote roundup of the subreddit.

Correct response: Who is Chesley “Sully” Sullenberger?

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.)

Sully Sullenberger came to worldwide prominence on January 15, 2009, when US Airways Flight 1549 ended up having to make an emergency landing in the Hudson River after an accidental bird strike caused the disabling of both of the plane’s engines. The fact that all 155 aboard the plane survived turned Sully into a national hero. As a result of the acclaim he received, his memoir Highest Duty: My Search For What Really Matters became a New York Times bestseller later that year, and the events of the flight were turned into the 2016 biographical drama Sully.

This is the sort of Final Jeopardy clue that tests everyone’s memory of non-quite-recent events; had this Final played 15 years ago, it would have been a near-guaranteed triple-get because it was still in everyone’s mind. Let’s see how it plays today.

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 late 2026! All previous orders will still be supported.

Game Recap:

When you’re three-quarters of the way through Double Jeopardy and just outside of 50% of the leader’s score, you really have two options: 1) most of your score; 2) a tiny amount. Nishal Shah chose neither on DD3, and his incorrect response on that clue ensured Cory Aiello had a runaway entering Final Jeopardy, risking way too much for not nearly enough upside.

Scores going into Final:

Cory $17,400
Nishal $8,000
Quentin $5,000

Tonight’s results:

Quentin $5,000 + $4,999 = $9,999 (Who is Captain Sully?)
Nishal $8,000 + $3,001 = $11,001 (Who is Sully? (Sullenberger))
Cory $17,400 + $530 = $17,930 (Who is Sully Sullenberger?) (1-day total: $17,930)

Game Stats:

Cory $16,600 Coryat, 24 correct, 2 incorrect, 43.86% in first on buzzer (25/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Nishal $10,000 Coryat, 12 correct, 3 incorrect, 22.81% in first on buzzer (13/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Quentin $6,000 Coryat, 11 correct, 4 incorrect, 22.81% in first on buzzer (13/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $32,600

If you are looking for more detailed statistics about today’s game of Jeopardy!, as well as the ability to leave a comment, make sure to check out the Daily Details section.

Cory Aiello, to win:

2 games: 57.634%
3: 33.217%
4: 19.144%
5: 11.034%
6: 6.359%
Avg. streak: 2.360 games.

Andy’s Thoughts:

• Today’s J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.

Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:

(Scores: Cory $17,400 Nishal $8,000 Quentin $5,000)

Quentin: Might as well go all in; you have to be correct to have a chance of second. (Actual bet: $4,999)

Cory: Bet no more than $1,399. (Actual bet: $530)

Nishal: Standard cover bet over Cory is $2,001. (Actual bet: $3,001)

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