This Jeopardy! champion stunned the host into silence with one answer

Jeopardy! is one of the most popular game shows on television.

For decades Americans have tuned in to play along.

And this Jeopardy! champion stunned the host into silence with one answer.

Past Jeopardy! champion cracks a risqué joke

Jeopardy! is running its Master’s Tournament where past champions come back to compete against one another.

The competition runs from May 1 to May 22.

This is a popular change to the show that draws in big ratings.

One of the contestants was James Holzhauer.

Holzhauer – a former professional sports gambler – went on a 32-game winning streak in 2019.

In that run, he racked up winnings of $2,464,216.

That trails only current host Ken Jennings’ total of $2,520,700 that he won in 2004.

In this episode, Jennings asked, “The last name of botanist Leonhard gave us this word for a type of flower & a shade of reddish purple.” 

Holzhauer buzzed in to deliver the correct answer of “fuchsia.”

But Holzhauer decided to have a little fun first by spelling out “fuchsia.”

“What is F – U – C,” a grinning Holzhauer began before entering into a dramatic pause before finishing with, “H – S – I – A.” 

That quip earned a laugh from the audience.

Holzhauer’s fellow contestants Yogesh Raut and Amy Schneider also laughed.

“Gotta be careful with that fourth letter,” Jennings interjected.

“What do you mean by that?” a mischievous Holzhauer responded.

In the show’s intro, Jennings introduced Holzhauer saying he calls himself the “final boss.” 

Jennings asked Holzhauer what he meant by that.

“I’m the main event,” Holzhauer responded.

“We’ve got five openers, and then it’s you,” Jennings shot back.

Holzhauer compared himself to a Super Mario Brothers video game where the player first has to defeat the underlings before reaching the final fight with the game’s main boss.

“You’ve beaten the Goombas. Now it’s time to beat Bowser,” Holzhauer concluded.

Jeopardy! rule changes allow for mass winners

In September 2003, Jeopardy! changed its rules to allow contestants to continue playing after they won five straight days.

The show needed a ratings boost and producers found that forcing popular champions off the show because they won too much also ran off the viewers.

Now viewers could watch in anticipation to see who could topple a supposedly unbeatable contestant.

Jennings was the first big star made by the rule that allowed contestants to remain on the show until they lost.

And he proved so popular with viewers that he’s now the sole host of the show following the tragic passing of Alex Trebek.

Holzhauer’s 32-show-long winning streak made him a national celebrity five years ago.

Using his gambler’s instincts to play the percentages, Holzhauer only asked for the big money questions and hunted for the famed Daily Doubles.

But on this night, Holzhauer wasn’t the main event as he failed to win this round of the Jeopardy! Master’s Tournament.