Ken Jennings became the ‘Jeopardy!’ “Greatest of All Time” tournament champion when he defeated James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter.
Jennings won his third match in the “Jeopardy!” “Greatest of all Time” contest televised on Tuesday. He pocketed $1 million by dispatching James Holzhauer, who won one match, and Brad Rutter, who came up empty.
At the end, Hozhauer and Rutter hoisted Jennings on their shoulders in honor. The losers each took home $250,000
Here are the latest updates:
Update 9:30 p.m. EST Jan. 14: Ken Jennings has won the third match Tuesday evening, defeating James Holzhauer and Brad Rutter.
Update 1:18 a.m. EST Jan. 10: Jennings distanced himself from the competition in Thursday’s matchup, not only winning his second match but earning enough points to make it a runaway.
Despite missing the Final Jeopardy clue in Game 2 of Thursday’s competition, Jennings minimized the damage by wagering conservatively to lock in a final two-game point total of 67,600, or more than twice Holzhauer’s second-place finish of 33,692 points. Rutter placed third with 23,467 points, USA Today reported.
If Jennings’ streak continues, he could be crowned the "Jeopardy! Greatest of All Time” with a third win in Friday’s competition. Should Holzhauer and Rutter rally, however, and stretch the tournament to a maximum three-way, winner-take-all sceneraio that would conclude on Jan. 16.
Update 5:43 a.m. EST Jan. 9: In Wednesday’s matchup, Holzhauer came out on top, with a two-game total of 82,414 points, compared with 57,400 for Jennings and 14,400 for Rutter, USA Today reported.
Jennings scored 44,314 points in Game 1 and 38,100 pounds in Game 2. Meanwhile, Jennings finished Game 1 with 40,000 points and Game 2 with 17,400. Rutter scored 14,400 in the first game and zero points in the second.
Original report: Tuesday’s first game had Jennings proving he still has what it takes to win, totaling up 45,000 points, with Holzhauer in second place with 32,000 and Rutter in third with 11,400, USA Today reported.
For the second game of the night, the champions were closer, with Holzhauer leading the pack with 15,000, Jennings in second with 12,200 and Rutter again in third with 10,000 going into Final Jeopardy round.
Holzhauer bet it all, answered the final question correctly, and doubled his points to 30,000. Jennings, also answering correctly, bet 6,200, ending the round with 18,400. Rutter, who got the answer wrong, lost all his points.
When the two rounds were added up, only 200 points, or the amount of the lowest-valued question, separated Jennings 63,400 from Holzhauer’s 63,200. Rutter finished the two-episode round with 10,400.
The next two-game match will air Wednesday, with the third airing Thursday on ABC stations. The game could come to an end Thursday night if Jennings wins the next two nights. If he doesn’t, and if no other players get three wins, then a winner-take-all match will air Jan. 16, USA Today reported.
The Associated Press contributed to this report