At the outset, host Ken Jennings was excited to wrap the first week of episodes of the new year with Schneider on the verge of reaching the $1 million mark. Still, he warned anything was possible.
“If you watched yesterday’s show, you saw that it was not a runaway,” he noted. “You saw how tenuous any champion’s run on ‘Jeopardy!’ can be.”
At the end of Double Jeopardy!, Schneider led the pack with $32,400. Her nearest competitor lagged far behind at $2,790, prompting Jennings to praise her achievement.
“Amy put on another dominating performance here for us today,” he said.
In Final Jeopardy!, the clue in the category of 20th Century Nonfiction: “‘Norwegian Independence Day’ and ‘A Vast Blue Sea’ are mentioned in Chapter 1 of a 1948 book by this man.” Schneider correctly answered Heyerdahl (Thor Heyerdahl) and wagered $9,800, bringing her episode total to $42,200.
The Chaminade-Julienne graduate is the fifth millionaire and first female millionaire in “Jeopardy!” history as well as the fourth to do so in regular-season play.
“What a week, what a champion,” Jennings exclaimed. “How long can she keep it going? Join us Monday. We’ll find out.”
In a post-show interview, Jennings and Schneider addressed the history that had been made, particularly the significance of her wager. In fact, if she had answered incorrectly, she would have had a total of exactly $1 million.
“It seems pessimistic to wager for the downside,” Jennings said.
“It did but I also didn’t feel great about the category,” she replied. “I’ve missed a couple big wagers and it does sort to, like, be there in the back of your mind.”
To see the full interview, visit jeopardy.com/overheard.
She can be seen on “Jeopardy!” weeknights at 7:30 p.m. on WDTN Channel 2.
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