Today’s Final Jeopardy – Wednesday, November 8, 2023

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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

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Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Explorers) for Wednesday, November 8, 2023 (Season 40, Game 43):

Perhaps inspiring a line 2 centuries later, in 1774, he wrote that he was headed “farther than any other man has been before me”

(correct response beneath the contestants)

Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:

Aaron Craig, an attorney originally from Toronto, Ontario, Canada (Yesterday’s total: $10,000)

Jilana Cotter, a senior data analyst from Dade City, Florida (Yesterday’s total: $3,000)

Emily Sands, a project manager from Chanhassen, Minnesota (Yesterday’s total: $30,400)

Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:

In yesterday’s game, Emily Sands jumped out to a significant advantage over Aaron Craig and Jilana Cotter, with Emily’s score north of $30,000. With today’s scores added to yesterday’s, and today’s pre-Final scores able to be doubled in Final Jeopardy, Emily’s “effective lead” is $10,200 over Aaron and $13,700 over Jilana. This is a commanding position, and Jilana and Aaron will likely need to keep Emily from finding a Daily Double in order to have any hope of victory today. However, with how players play Jeopardy in 2023, this match is absolutely not over.

One interesting note is that today’s game was the final game taped before the end of the WGA strike; this is the last game that required crossing a picket line in order to tape. I expect to see significantly fewer reused clues going forward.

I should also note that due to the CMA Awards airing on ABC this evening, Celebrity Jeopardy is taking the week off. Quarterfinal #7—between WWE superstar Becky Lynch, Rachel Dratch (who played the Debbie Downer character from the famed Saturday Night Live sketches), and Macaulay Culkin—will take place next Wednesday (November 15).

Correct response: Who is Captain James Cook?

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.)

In his diary in January 1774, during his second voyage, famed explorer Captain James Cook wrote “Ambition leads me not only farther than any other man has been before me, but as far as I think it possible for man to go”. This was written when Cook reached 71º10’S, the farthest south anyone had ever traveled to that point in recorded human history. Cook was searching for the Antarctic continent but his searches for the mainland were blocked by sea ice.

It has been said that Cook’s words inspired the famous “to boldly go where no man has gone before” from the introductory narration of the television series Star Trek.

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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:

Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Wednesday, November 8, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:

Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: Fan Mail To Historic Figures; The “A” Team; I Pity Da Food!; On The Old Map; Metallica; L____O)

Our first segment today saw 15 correct responses and a combined $11,400 earned by our players! Immediately after the break, Jilana successfully converted a True Daily Double to find herself leading this game, but Emily still had a commanding overall advantage!

Statistics at the first break (15 clues):

Aaron 5 correct 0 incorrect
Emily 4 correct 0 incorrect
Jilana 6 correct 0 incorrect

Today’s interviews:

Aaron would like to thank his family and his colleagues who’ve picked up a lot of work slack.
Jilana would like to thank her husband John, her parents, and her brother.
Emily would like to shout out her history & English teachers, and her grandmothers.

Statistics after the Jeopardy round:

Jilana 9 correct 0 incorrect
Emily 11 correct 0 incorrect
Aaron 9 correct 2 incorrect

Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:

Jilana $7,200
Emily $6,200
Aaron $4,800

Double Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: A “C” In Anatomy; “The” Movie; Encyclopedia Brown; Dear Abbey; At A Loss For Worlds; More Than One Meaning)

Both challengers found the Daily Doubles early in this one—Jilana pulled herself back into contention by adding $10,000 to her score! Unfortunately, Aaron’s True Daily Double went wrong for him and he finished Double Jeopardy in the red. Emily didn’t need a Daily Double to make sure she still had a lead going into Final, and a judges’ reversal made things slightly closer going into that last clue!

Statistics after Double Jeopardy:

Jilana 17 correct 0 incorrect
Emily 22 correct 1 incorrect
Aaron 14 correct 7 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).

Scores going into Final:

Jilana $24,000
Emily $16,200
Aaron -$2,800

Both Emily and Jilana missed Final—Emily is going to the Tournament of Champions!

Tonight’s results:

Aaron -$2,800 (By rule, did not participate in Final Jeopardy); $0 + $10,000 = $10,000 ($50,000)
Emily $16,200 – $4,401 = $11,799 + $30,400 = $42,199 (Who is Magellan?) ($100,000)
Jilana $24,000 – $24,000 = $0 + $3,000 = $3,000 (Who is Lewis?) ($25,000)

Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:

Daily Double locations:

1) FAN MAIL TO HISTORIC FIGURES $800 (clue #16)
Jilana 3200 +3200 (Emily 3600 Aaron 4600)
2) DEAR ABBEY $1200 (clue #6)
Jilana 10800 +10000 (Emily 9400 Aaron 6800)
3) AT A LOSS FOR WORLDS $1600 (clue #9, $21600 left on board)
Aaron 5600 -5600 (Emily 9400 Jilana 20800)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 93

Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:

J! Round:
Emily 4 4 4 4
Jilana 1 2 3 4 5 5 4*
Aaron 5 5 3 5 3

DJ! Round:
Emily 4 4
Jilana 5 3* 2†
Aaron 5 4 5 4*

† – selection in same category as Daily Double

Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:

Emily 4.00
Aaron 4.33
Jilana 3.40

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:

Emily $16,200 Coryat, 22 correct, 1 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 2/3 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Aaron $2,800 Coryat, 14 correct, 7 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 0 rebound opportunities)
Jilana $12,800 Coryat, 17 correct, 0 incorrect, 26.32% in first on buzzer (15/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $31,800
Lach Trash: $9,400 (on 6 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $12,800

Player Statistics:

Emily Sands, career statistics:

182 correct, 27 incorrect
8/13 on rebound attempts (on 31 rebound opportunities)
38.27% in first on buzzer (173/452)
12/15 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $38,400)
6/8 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $15,275

Jilana Cotter, career statistics:

159 correct, 20 incorrect
14/16 on rebound attempts (on 39 rebound opportunities)
31.80% in first on buzzer (145/456)
9/10 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $21,300)
5/8 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $15,025

Aaron Craig, career statistics:

139 correct, 20 incorrect
8/8 on rebound attempts (on 20 rebound opportunities)
34.84% in first on buzzer (139/399)
2/6 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$11,600)
3/6 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $11,943

Andy’s Thoughts:

• Viewers are reminded that, to go from a correct response to an incorrect one (and vice versa), twice the value of the clue is deducted (or awarded). That is because you are going from +2000 to -2000 (and not from +2000 to 0).
• Yes, I did listen carefully; I agree with the judges’ ruling to deduct from Emily.

• Today’s box score: November 8, 2023 Box Score.

Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:

(Scores: Jilana $24,000 ($3,000) Emily $16,200 ($30,400) Aaron -$2,800 ($10,000))

Aaron’s current combined score: $10,000
Aaron’s maximum possible score: $10,000
Jilana’s current combined score: $27,000
Jilana’s maximum possible score: $51,000
Emily’s current combined score: $46,600
Emily’s maximum possible score: $62,800

Emily: Cover bet over Jilana is $4,401. (Actual bet: $4,401)

Jilana: If Emily covers you and is incorrect, she falls to a total of $42,199. If you bet between $15,200 and $16,999, you will both surpass Emily if she’s incorrect and stay ahead of Aaron’s Day 1 total (for an extra $25,000) if you’re incorrect. (Actual bet: $24,000)

Aaron: (By rule, did not participate in Final Jeopardy.)

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