Film Theory: How One Man BROKE Jeopardy! (Jeopardy is Rigged Part 1)

Most people are familiar with the iconic television game show, Jeopardy. Trivia enthusiasts and more gather around to prove that they are the smartest at recalling random facts. Now, I love Jeopardy and I've always wondered what it takes to be a champion. Do you have to be a genius or can you... work with the system? Today Theorists, we are diving into the strategy behind one of Jeopardy's best champions. Alex Trebek is not ready for this!

#Jeopardy #Champion #AlexTrebek #JamesHolzhauer #Win #Lose #Rigged #FinalJeopardy #Strategy #FilmTheory #Matpat

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Credits:
Writer: Stephanie Patrick
Editors: Josh Langman, Danial "BanditRants" Keristoufi, and Koen Verhagen
Assistant Editor: AlyssaBeCrazySound
Editor: Yosi Berman  

Sources:

[PolarisVega]

Jeopardy and Kahoot: How to start a war in a classroom

[nickgriffin]

Hey MatPat another reason James was so good was the way he hit the buzzer. Most players would spam the button before you were able to ring it, which would give a small penalty making the buzzer inactive for like half a second. James however, would time it up just right so as soon as you were able to hit the buzzer, he hit it, making him be the one to answer the questions.

[Kingfish]

While his strategy is clever, it's not really that complicated. At the end of the day this strategy only works if you are more knowledgeable than your opponent. His breadth and depth of knowledge is really what is impressive to me.

[TheRealGuywithoutaMustache]

He would've went on an undefeated streak for years if he wanted to, that's how good James was at Jeopardy.

Rest In Peace, Alex.

[Cabecool]

James plays real Jeopardy like the rest of us played History Jeopardy in 8th grade

[mikeoz]

I can’t tell if this belongs on Game Theory or Film Theory. It’s a game that is filmed

[williammckinney]

If Matpat actually gets the jeopardy job, he’s probably gonna have to private these two videos, to not expose his employers.

[kingginger]

I'm just glad that Alex was able to witness the greatest Jeopardy player in history before his passing. He probably thought he would never live to see someone break Ken Jennings record.

[crapholeyeahthatsme]

Weird question: Did anyone else have teachers who would make their own “Jeopardy” to help study with tests?

[connoro.]

I actually really like the “irl” theories like this one and polybius, petscop, etc. because it affects something besides just film and games. Hopefully you can do more like these

[gxdhabakkagw]

I found it strange how you mentioned his year-long, in-depth preparation routine prior to being on Jeopardy, and even his buzzer accuracy, but not how he trained for the buzzer. He has stated that he studied from a book written by a former Jeopardy contestant called “The Art of The Buzzer, ” or something like that. What he learned from it was how to anticipate Alex’s speech pattern/ cadence at the end of a question reading to know exactly when to buzz in. He was also very careful to remain still and quick and not lose time by being over-animated or harsh when pressing the button.

[Echo-hggu]

"Hey, Brad's score is still on there!" Is the best thing to come out of jeopardy. This guy is a legend
If you haven't seen it you have to its so good

[bunkie]

Back in 2012, I was a contestant. And I had the exact same strategy planned. But then the show started and it all became real very quickly, once I got control of the board, I ended up picking questions based upon the category more than the dollar value. I was up against a younger champion who was very good and very fadt on the button. I almost beat her in Final Jeopardy.

Unless you have been there, you have no idea what the experience is like. The reason why a typical champion only lasts a few episodes is that it is exhausing, physically, mentslly and emotionally. Five shows are taped each day. The set is incredibly hot. Your brain is going 1000 miles an hour, nothing exists except the game. Every contestant gets a picture with Alex Trebek. It happens during a commercial break. One of the assistant producers had to tap me on the shoulder to tell me that Alex was standing right next to me for our photo, I was so involved, I didn’t see him.

Every once in a while, someone with icewater in their veins becomes a contestant and goes on a run. They are not, necessarily, more knowledgeable, they just have a sort of detatchment that allows them to remain completely cool and get over the hump to the place where their experience becomes a formidable advantages over the challengers who are, basically, thrown into the deep end to either sink or swim.

Is the show “rigged”. No, it is not, in my opinion. There are strict rules, the contestants have a lawyer who represents them, and the staff went put of their way to make us all comfortable and, in my opinion, showed no favoritism to anyone.

[JD-gkeh]

Re: Daily Doubles. There seems to be a difficult time separating the dollars of the show from the dollars of real life. The score a player has is not a dollar amount. It is a total of points with a dollar sign in front of it. Why is this? Because you ONLY get that money if you win, meaning that the goal is to win the game, not preserve or maximize one's dollar total. James was very good at understanding that, that money on his podium is not real until the game is over.

[kevinolsta]

I think the going quickly and using abbreviations was more about making sure the time clock didn't run out before all of the clues were revealed than it was about trying to overrun his opponents. he would also sometimes cut off Trebek when he was quipping about something in between the clues to make sure to get to the next one as fast as possible.

[xXdigleDJXx]

Other contestants: *steps up to stage*

James: so...you have chosen death

[DuranmanX]

I like how this isn't even focusing on the most impressive aspect: his near encyclopedic knowledge of all things. Even if I cheated and used the internet I couldn't answer most of these questions correctly

[justinssongsarehis]

Another important aspect you might have looked over when it comes to speed is that I think James wanted to be sure that every question was answered. Jeopardy has strict time limits and even if the contestants don't get through every question or category, they automatically move onto a commercial break, then Double Jeopardy. I've seen nearly entire categories go untouched because of this.

Though, with James playing there's low likelihood that he's not going to know the answer and he's probably not concerned if there's a $200 question left. It could still be something he kept in mind.

[riverdolphin]

Jeopardy: If you win this whole season you win $100, 000!
James: Wins $100, 000 + in one round!

[PUNCHEDPUNCHEDPUNCHED]

James is literally that dude who came straight out of a gambling manga