Stressed, but in a good way. Tristan Williams spoke out about his Jeopardy! hot streak as the data scientist goes for win number five, which would secure him a spot in an upcoming Tournament of Champions.
Williams, from Lincoln, Nebraska, told 1011 Now that he grew up watching Jeopardy! with his family in Nebraska. He has auditioned to get on the game show since he was 16. Williams is a huge trivia nerd and was excited to finally be chosen as a contestant in February.
“When you’re a trivia nerd, Jeopardy! is kind of your Super Bowl,” he told the outlet. “It’s such a rush just to see the whole stage, see where it’s actually made. You meet Ken, you go up there, you play games, it’s the most stressful thing you’ve ever done in your life, but it’s so fun.”
To prepare for the show, Williams watched old episodes, took practice quizzes online, and read a lot of books on a lot of different topics. His love for knowledge started during his high school Science Olympiad and math teams.
Right before he got the call to be on the show, Williams’ wife had their first baby. He was afraid he would have to be on while still on paternity leave. “We were very afraid that it was actually going to happen where I would finally get the call right as we had the baby, so we had like a true newborn, and I’d be like stumbling in there on two hours of sleep, but thankfully we made it a few months past that point,” he said.
Williams recounted his time on the show as a “blur,” but recalls the two Daily Doubles where he “lost seemingly horrific amounts of money.” Three out of his four games have been runaways.
He came into his fifth game on May 12 with a four-day total of $76,199. Williams played against Will Thornton, from Worthington, Ohio, and Laurel Gilmer, from Itacha, New York. Warning: Spoilers for the May 12 episode of Jeopardy! ahead.
Williams and Thornton, a teacher, battled for first place during the first half of the round. The reigning champion came out on top after 15 clues with $4,800. Thornton had $2,000.
During the interviews, Williams revealed that with his winnings, he wants to rent out a tennis court that is used for the U.S. Open and play tennis with his friends. He shared that when the courts aren’t being used, they are open for anyone to use, for a price.
Gilmer, a music events director, found the Daily Double on clue 18. She was in third place with $1,200 and wagered all of her money.
In “‘Inter’ Is Coming,” the clue read, “From German, it’s the ‘back’ country behind a port or, more figuratively, someplace out in the sticks.” “What is hinterland?” she answered correctly. Gilmer moved into second place with $2,400.
Williams kept the lead by the end of the round with $8,600. Thornton moved back to second place with $2,800. Gilmer was not far behind with $2,400.
Gilmer also found the first DD in Double Jeopardy. She had $4,800 and wagered $3,000. In “Arty Supreme,” the clue read, “Igor Stravinsky worked with Russian mystic Nicholas Roerich on this ballet originally called ‘The Great Sacrifice.'”
She answered incorrectly with “What is the Firebird?” The correct response was The Rite of Spring, so Gilmer dropped to $1,800.
Williams found the last one on clue 23. He had $19,000 and wagered $1,500 in “4 of the Same Vowel.”
The clue was “Vasily Andreyev brought this 3-stringed folk instrument to the concert stage.” “What is a balalaika?” he answered correctly. This gave him $20,500.
He ended the round with $23,700. Thornton had $9,200. Gilmer was in third place with $4,600.
The category for Final Jeopardy was “U.S. Lakes.” The clue read, “This big lake named for a French marine minister begins its name with a way that an official might conceivably cross the body of water.”
Only one of the game show contestants had the correct response. Gilmer’s response was “What is Champlain?” She was wrong and wagered all of her money, leaving her with $0.
Thornton answered, “What is Lake Swim?” He wagered $0, leaving him with $9,200 at the end. Williams had the correct response of “What is Lake Pontchartrain?” He wagered $3,600, which left him with $27,300, making him the winner.
This gave him a five-day total of $103,499. Williams has secured a spot in the TOC. He will return for his sixth game on Wednesday.
Jeopardy!, weekdays, check local listings, stream next day on Hulu and Peacock
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