recaps
Season 40
Today’s Final Jeopardy – Tuesday, December 26, 2023
Warning: This page contains spoilers for the December 26, 2023, game ofJeopardy!— 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.
Current Champion
Matthew Riggle, career statistics:
47 correct, 6 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
41.23% in first on buzzer (47/114)
3/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $7,600)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $21,300
To win:
3 games: 68.027%
4: 46.277%
5: 31.481%
6: 21.415%
7: 14.568%
Avg. streak: 4.128 games.
(Next game: September 14)
(Click Here for Methodology)
Upcoming Encore Presentations
August 12: S42 E98 (January 21, 2026)
August 13: S42 E99 (January 22, 2026)
August 14: S42 E100 (January 23, 2026)
August 15-16: S41 E141 (March 24, 2025)
August 17: S42 E101 (January 26, 2026)
August 18: S42 E105 (January 30, 2026)
August 19: S42 E102 (January 27, 2026)
August 20: S42 E103 (January 28, 2026)
August 21: S42 E104 (January 29, 2026)
August 22-23: S41 E142 (March 25, 2025)
August 24: S42 E106 (February 2, 2026)
August 25: S42 E107 (February 3, 2026)
August 26: S42 E108 (February 4, 2026)
August 27: S42 E109 (February 5, 2026)
August 28: S42 E110 (February 6, 2026)
August 29-30: S41 E143 (March 26, 2025)
(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 $1,098,403
7. Mattea Roach $897,983
8. Jamie Ding $885,605
9. David Madden $785,733
10. Victoria Groce $773,801
11. Cris Pannullo $754,286
12. Roger Craig $706,200
13. Larissa Kelly $671,930
14. Matt Jackson $623,612
15. Jason Zuffranieri $549,496
16. Andrew He $534,365
17. Scott Riccardi $533,000
18. Jerome Vered $499,102
19. Julia Collins $495,767
20. Austin Rogers $493,000
21. Ben Ingram $449,201
22. Paolo Pasco $448,717
23. Adriana Harmeyer $446,600
24. Buzzy Cohen $441,603
25. Juveria Zaheer $441,000
DISCLAIMER
The Jeopardy! Fan is created by fans, for fans. The Jeopardy! game show and all elements thereof, including but not limited to copyright and trademark thereto, are the property of Jeopardy Productions, Inc. and are protected under law. This website is not affiliated with, sponsored by, or operated by Jeopardy Productions, Inc.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Book Characters) for Tuesday, December 26, 2023 (Season 40, Game 77):
Early in a 1966 novel, this title character beats the protagonist in maze races; later on he bites him
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Myles Karp, a journalist & consultant from Weston, Florida
Emily Kawaler, a bioinformatician from New York, New York
Christopher Pennant, a sports journalist & announcer from Chicago, Illinois
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Today begins Week 2 of the originally planned Season 40, with a second group of Second Chance returnees. Today’s returnees are Christopher Pennant, Emily Kawaler, and Myles Karp. Christopher definitely had the signaling device timing down in his first appearance, picking up 25 correct responses in his first appearance, but also had a lot of incorrect responses. He’ll need to drop that number to have a better chance today.
Today feels like a good day to remind everyone that we are on this path because of the writer’s strike from the summer of 2023. I’m not entirely sure what other options the show had, other than “delay the start of the season and show reruns until the the strike ended”, at which point everyone complaining about tournaments instead would have complained about reruns. It’s almost as though many people in America don’t care about organized labor.
Another reminder that I have started a Sunday mailbag column where I answer fan & viewer questions regarding the show. If you have a question, feel free to send it to mailbag@thejeopardyfan.com!
(Content continues below)
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 23 players, including Caleb Groen, Adam Remsen, Tristan Williams and 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 Algernon?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2023 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
While “Flowers for Algernon” originally began its life as a science fiction short story in the 1950s, author Daniel Keyes expanded the story into a 1966 novel. In that novel, protagonist Charlie, the first human set for intelligence-increasing surgery, is pitted against laboratory mouse Algernon, who has already received that surgery in testing. During the novel, Charlie realizes that the surgery will not ultimately succeed as Algernon regresses to his past state and dies. Charlie manages to publish the academic findings from the study before regressing himself.
The 1968 film Charly, which saw Cliff Robertson win the Oscar for Best Actor for playing the role of Charly Gordon, was also based upon the story.
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 & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Tuesday, December 26, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Times: New Roman; Children’s Literature; Best Actress Oscar Winners; Homophonic Pairs; Forks, Knives, Spoons; Just “E”at It)
The opening segment saw Emily get off to the best start, with 7 of 15 correct responses before the interviews. However, an unsuccessful True Daily Double shortly after the break put Myles into the lead; Christopher worked himself into a tie for the lead with Myles by the end of the opening round.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Emily 7 correct 0 incorrect
Myles 3 correct 0 incorrect
Christopher 4 correct 1 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Myles wants to report that his banana plant is thriving, even though bananas at large may still be in danger.
Emily wants to shout out the OQL’s “Four Horse Girls of the Apocalypse”.
Christopher got a lot more sleep before Second Chance.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Myles 7 correct 0 incorrect
Christopher 8 correct 1 incorrect
Emily 11 correct 2 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Myles $3,600
Christopher $3,600
Emily $2,200
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Music Terms; TV Comedies By Workplace; Yellow Stone; Colleges & Universities; Literal National Names; Addend”um”)
The good news for Emily: She found the Daily Doubles immediately. The bad news for Emily: Her attempt to quadruple her score ended with an incorrect response on the second one, dropping her to $0 for a second time. She rebounded well, but couldn’t get back into the lead. As it was, Christopher held a $800 lead over Myles going into Final!
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Christopher 17 correct 3 incorrect
Myles 12 correct 1 incorrect
Emily 23 correct 5 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Christopher $10,800
Myles $10,000
Emily $7,600
Christopher and Emily got Final correct; Christopher is now a finalist!
Tonight’s results:
Emily $7,600 + $3,300 = $10,900 (Who is Algernon? Hi Lauren <3)
Myles $10,000 – $5,201 = $4,799 (Who is Stuart)
Christopher $10,800 + $10,000 = $20,800 (Who is Algernon?) (Finalist)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) BEST ACTRESS OSCAR WINNERS $800 (clue #17)
Emily 4800 -4800 (Christopher 1800 Myles 2000)
2) MUSIC TERMS $1600 (clue #1)
Emily 2200 +2200 (Christopher 3600 Myles 3600)
3) LITERAL NATIONAL NAMES $1200 (clue #2, $33200 left on board)
Emily 4400 -4400 (Christopher 3600 Myles 3600)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: -100
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Christopher 2 1 3 2 4
Emily 4 3 4 4 3 3 3 4*
Myles 3 5 4 2
DJ! Round:
Christopher
Emily 4* 3*
Myles
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Christopher 2.40
Emily 3.50
Myles 3.50
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 0 (0.00 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Christopher $10,800 Coryat, 17 correct, 3 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Emily $16,200 Coryat, 23 correct, 5 incorrect, 40.35% in first on buzzer (23/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Myles $10,000 Coryat, 12 correct, 1 incorrect, 15.79% in first on buzzer (9/57), 3/4 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $37,000
Lach Trash: $7,000 (on 6 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $10,000
Lead Changes: 6
Times Tied: 6
Player Statistics:
Christopher Pennant, career statistics:
43 correct, 10 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
43.86% in first on buzzer (50/114)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $10,800
Emily Kawaler, career statistics:
43 correct, 8 incorrect
3/3 on rebound attempts (on 7 rebound opportunities)
36.84% in first on buzzer (42/114)
2/4 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$4,000)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $14,100
Myles Karp, career statistics:
31 correct, 6 incorrect
4/5 on rebound attempts (on 10 rebound opportunities)
25.44% in first on buzzer (29/114)
1/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $3,800)
0/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,700
Andy’s Thoughts:
This is the first recorded instance of Daily Doubles being found on the first two clues of Double Jeopardy since Hank D’Angelo did so on July 20, 1990. (Remember to cite your sources, folks, if putting this information elsewhere!)
Today’s box score: December 26, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Christopher $10,800 Myles $10,000 Emily $7,600)
Christopher: Standard cover bet over Myles is $9,201. (Actual bet: $10,000)
Emily: The chances are very high that both Christopher and Myles are going to make cover bets. There’s no need to defend against $0 bets here, just limit your bet to $2,799 or less and play for a Triple Stumper. (Actual bet: $3,300)
Myles: Standard cover bet over Emily is $5,201. (Actual bet: $5,201)
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.