JEOPARDY! has fans rallying behind a contestant in the Second Chance Tournament following her snub.
Former player Sadie Goldberger will return to the podium after her loss to Megan Wachpress on June 20.
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Fans of the game show are looking forward to the 32-year-old’s return, claiming she was “robbed” in her last appearance.
In an online thread, viewers discussed Sadie’s comeback, with one person writing: “I can’t be the only one that’s still super upset about how she got robbed, right?
“I feel like, given the other recent bad handwriting finals that got accepted, the decision just gets more and more indefensible.”
Others agreed, admitting they were still not over the Maryland native’s upset last season.
“I am rooting for her, too, and it was clear she knew the answer. That said, there are rules that apply to everyone. The producers have also clearly got the message from the viewing audience that there was discontent over the decision.”
The fan continued: “They had two choices. There are no do-overs once the contestants have left the auditorium. They could either invite her back to a regular season game (there is a precedence for that) or invite her to the SCT. They have obviously considered the choices and made a decision they think is appropriate.”
The original poster responded: “Exactly. This was the best way to attempt to make her whole while at the same time not needing to admit fault since it really was a judgment call.”
Sadie’s loss came down to the judges’ ruling that her otherwise correct Final Jeopardy! response of “Harriet Tubman” was “incomplete.”
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Many felt Sadie was misjudged as she would have won if the show ruled in her favor – calling it the season’s “most painful loss.”
‘PAINFUL LOSS’
It all kicked off with the Final Jeopardy! clue: “Congratulating her on the 1869 release of her biography, Frederick Douglass wrote, ‘I have wrought in the day- you in the night.”
After a short time, contestant Molly Fleming correctly answered, “Who is Harriet Tubman,” adding $3,200 to her winnings for a total of $6,500.
Then-champ Megan answered correctly to increase her final game total to $17,199.
Sadie also appeared to have the same answer in mind; however, judges off-camera decided she didn’t write it out in full.
Mayim Bialik– who is permanently sharing hosting duties with Ken Jennings – said: “It looks like you were going for ‘Harriet Tubman,’ but you did not finish, so, unfortunately, that is not going to be acceptable.”
Sadie nodded in agreement but seemed to look disappointed in the results.
She ended up wagering $7,500, which would have given her a total of 17,300 if her answer was accepted and would have made her the new champ over Megan.
Sadie has scored a comeback since she will participate in the Second Chance Tournament in October, with Ken as the host.
SECOND CHANCE
In August, Jeopardy! producers broke their silence on the jaw-dropping defeat, claiming that they’ve “cleaned up some rules” going forward.
In an episode of the Hall of Fame podcast hosted by Executive producer Mike Davies and his co-host, “Clue Crew” member Sarah Foss, Sadie’s return was a big topic of discussion.
“Many will remember Sadie. She competed against Megan Wachpress, who you’ll see in the Tournament of Champions,” Sarah said.
A podcast guest and judge added: “Sadie had a strong game with 32 buzzer attempts. She led Megan going into Final Jeopardy.
“And she had an incomplete written response, and the game went to Megan instead.”
Sarah sighed, “This is one of those things we wanted to bring up because it talks about what happens for us as judges in the game.
“When it comes to Final Jeopardy, you have to finish your response.”
“We could actually go back and watch the tape, the style pens are timed out to 30 seconds with the music, and they stop working as soon as the time is up.
“In Sadie’s case, we did go back.
“We stopped the show, we went back and watched it repeatedly – we can see she went through each of the letters.
“She wrote a ‘T-U-B-M-A’ and we knew she had not begun to write an N.'”
“I think in hindsight she wished she’d written ‘Tubman’ and not Harriet Tubman.’
EP Mike then spoke out: “We talked to Sadie. It was a tough ruling, it was a great game, and we’re so happy we can invite her back.”
“The judging process – there are a few people involved … the outside standards and practices agency…
“Precedent is a big thing, and the question is, what is the precedent – we have cleaned up a few rules in the off-season.
“And I’m trying to find some way we can find consistency. People cite things from seasons of yore – it’s tough for me to deal with that.”
“None of this is never perfect, but we try to apply sound logic and equity, and we are delighted to welcome Sadie back.”
If Sadie wins the Second Chance Tournament, she would theoretically face off against her victor Megan again.
The full lineup for the Second Chance event is Isaac Applebaum from the College Championship, James Fraser, Sadie, Aaron Guylas, Molly Karol, Alicia O’Hare, Do-Hyoung Park, Tom Philipose, Tracy Pitzel, Nikkee Porcano, Renée Russell, Pam Schoenberg, Jeff Smith, Sarah Snider, Jessica Stephens, Rowan Ward, Jack Weller, and Cindy Zhang.
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