Jeopardy! will host its biggest Tournament of Champions yet with 27 players taking on the challenge starting Friday, February 23.
The field includes players who have won the most games since Jeopardy!’s last Tournament of Champions in 2022. It also includes six players who advanced out of Jeopardy!’s Wildcard competitions, which feature former contestants who won between one and three games playing for $100,000 and an invitation to the Tournament of Champions. Four Wildcard champions are playing from season 37/38 and two are coming in from season 39, which has yet to conclude on broadcast. Rounding out the cast are the winners of the Jeopardy! High School Reunion Tournament as well as season one of ABC’s Celebrity Jeopardy!.
Players will compete across nine quarter-finals, three semi-finals and a best-of-seven finals series. The first player to win three games during the best-of-seven final will claim a $250,000 grand prize and an invitation to compete on the upcoming Jeopardy! Masters primetime event on ABC.
Jeopardy!’s Tournament of Champions tends to garner strong ratings, especially as the tournament goes on and the stakes climb ever higher.
Following is the list of returning champions and the competition schedule:
Friday, February 23: Quarterfinal 1
– Suresh Krishnan, a six-game champion from Suwanee, Ga.
– Matthew Marcus, a four-game champion from Portland, Ore.
– Emily Sands, a three-game champion and S37/38 Champions Wildcard winner from Chanhassen, Minn.
Monday, February 26: Quarterfinal 2
– Ben Goldstein, a five-game champion from Dexter, Mich.
– Cris Pannullo, a 21-game champion from Ocean City, N.J.
– Jared Watson, a three-game champion from Greenville, Texas
Tuesday, February 27: Quarterfinal 3
– David Sibley, a four-game champion from Walla Walla, Wash.
– Yungsheng Wang, three-game champion and S37/38 Champions Wildcard winner originally from Lafayette, La.
– Hannah Wilson, an 8-game champion from Chicago, Ill.
Wednesday, February 28: Quarterfinal 4
– Nick Cascone, a one-game champion and S37/38 Champions Wildcard winner originally from Queens, N.Y.
– Jake DeArruda, a three-game champion originally from Ludlow, Vt.
– Yogesh Raut, a three -game champion from Vancouver, Wash.
Thursday, February 29: Quarterfinal 5
– Kevin Belle, a three-game champion from Silver Spring, Md.
– Luigi de Guzman, a five-game champion from Arlington, Va.
– Juveria Zaheer, a S39 Second Chance winner and S39 Champions Wildcard winner from Whitby, Ontario, Canada
Friday, March 1: Quarterfinal 6
– Brian Henegar, a three-game champion from LaFollette, Tenn.
– Josh Saak, a three-game champion and S37/38 Champions Wildcard winner from Boise, Idaho
– Stephen Webb, an eight-game champion from Longmont, Colo.
Monday, March 4: Quarterfinal 7
– Ike Barinholtz, Celebrity Jeopardy! Season 1 champion from Chicago, Ill.
– Melissa Klapper, a three-game champion from Merion Station, Pa.
– Ray Lalonde, a 13-game champion from Toronto, Ontario, Canada
Tuesday, March 5: Quarterfinal 8
– Justin Bolsen, Jeopardy! High School Reunion Tournament champion from Canton, Ga.
– Ben Chan, a nine-game champion from Green Bay, Wisc.
– Emmett Stanton, a three-game champion from Baltimore, Md.
Wednesday, March 6: Quarterfinal 9
– Sean McShane, a three-day champion from South Boston, Ma.
– Troy Meyer, a six-day champion from Tampa, Fla.
– Season 39 Champions Wildcard Winner (to be determined)
The semi-finals start Thursday, March 7, and the finals begin Tuesday, March 12. The finals will run through at least Thursday, March 14, if someone manages to win three in a row, but if seven games are needed, the tournament will conclude Wednesday, March 20.
Syndicated game show Jeopardy!, now in its 40th season, is produced by Sony Pictures Television and distributed by CBS Media Ventures. It is hosted by Ken Jennings and executive produced by Michael Davies.
