recaps
Season 40
Today’s Final Jeopardy – Friday, December 8, 2023
Warning: This page contains spoilers for the December 8, 2023, game ofJeopardy!— please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that the game airs as early as noon Eastern in some U.S. television markets.
Current Champion
Matthew Riggle, career statistics:
47 correct, 6 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
41.23% in first on buzzer (47/114)
3/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $7,600)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $21,300
To win:
3 games: 68.027%
4: 46.277%
5: 31.481%
6: 21.415%
7: 14.568%
Avg. streak: 4.128 games.
(Next game: September 14)
(Click Here for Methodology)
Upcoming Encore Presentations
August 12: S42 E98 (January 21, 2026)
August 13: S42 E99 (January 22, 2026)
August 14: S42 E100 (January 23, 2026)
August 15-16: S41 E141 (March 24, 2025)
August 17: S42 E101 (January 26, 2026)
August 18: S42 E105 (January 30, 2026)
August 19: S42 E102 (January 27, 2026)
August 20: S42 E103 (January 28, 2026)
August 21: S42 E104 (January 29, 2026)
August 22-23: S41 E142 (March 25, 2025)
August 24: S42 E106 (February 2, 2026)
August 25: S42 E107 (February 3, 2026)
August 26: S42 E108 (February 4, 2026)
August 27: S42 E109 (February 5, 2026)
August 28: S42 E110 (February 6, 2026)
August 29-30: S41 E143 (March 26, 2025)
(Source: Bell Fibe TV program guide)
All Time Winnings
All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Regular Play Only:
1. Ken Jennings $2,520,700
2. James Holzhauer $2,462,216
3. Matt Amodio $1,518,601
4. Amy Schneider $1,382,800
5. Jamie Ding $882,605
6. Cris Pannullo $748,286
7. Mattea Roach $560,983
8. Jason Zuffranieri $532,496
9. Scott Riccardi $455,000
10. David Madden $430,400
11. Julia Collins $428,100
12. Matt Jackson $411,612
13. Austin Rogers $411,000
14. Ray Lalonde $386,400
15. Harrison Whitaker $373,999
16. Adriana Harmeyer $349,600
17. Caleb Groen $346,968
18. Adam Remsen $306,415
19. Ryan Long $299,400
20. Arthur Chu $297,200
All Time Jeopardy! Winnings, Including Tournaments (and Consolation Prizes):
1. Brad Rutter $4,968,436
2. Ken Jennings $4,372,700
3. James Holzhauer $3,614,216
4. Matt Amodio $1,964,601
5. Amy Schneider $1,864,800
6. Yogesh Raut $1,098,403
7. Mattea Roach $897,983
8. Jamie Ding $885,605
9. David Madden $785,733
10. Victoria Groce $773,801
11. Cris Pannullo $754,286
12. Roger Craig $706,200
13. Larissa Kelly $671,930
14. Matt Jackson $623,612
15. Jason Zuffranieri $549,496
16. Andrew He $534,365
17. Scott Riccardi $533,000
18. Jerome Vered $499,102
19. Julia Collins $495,767
20. Austin Rogers $493,000
21. Ben Ingram $449,201
22. Paolo Pasco $448,717
23. Adriana Harmeyer $446,600
24. Buzzy Cohen $441,603
25. Juveria Zaheer $441,000
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Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Ancient History) for Friday, December 8, 2023 (Season 40, Game 65):
Before visiting Achilles’ tomb, this man threw his spear onto the ground in Asia & declared the continent “spear-won”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Jon Spurney, a writer & musician from Los Angeles, California
Carmela Chan, a researcher from San Diego, California
Gary Hollis, a chemistry professor from Roanoke, Virginia
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Today is the second-to-last quarterfinal of Fall 2023’s Champions Wildcard Hearts competition; today’s players are Gary Hollis, Carmela Chan, and Jon Spurney. Carmela was a 3-day champion in the lead-up to Election Day 2020; in general, 3-day champions have had a very good time in Champions Wildcard. However, Gary did win a game in the very strong Professors Tournament of 2021. Meanwhile, Jon Spurney was a good player from March 2021 who fell after two wins to a poorly-constructed Mike Richards-era Final Jeopardy. I said in my preview that I didn’t think I could confidently predict a winner in today’s game, and that feeling hasn’t changed.
Another reminder that I have started a Sunday mailbag column where I answer fan & viewer questions regarding the show. If you have a question, feel free to send it to mailbag@thejeopardyfan.com!
(Content continues below)
Are you going on the show and looking for information about how to bet in Final Jeopardy? Check out my Betting Strategy 101 page. If you want to learn how to bet in two-day finals, check out Betting Strategy 102. In case the show uses a tournament with wild cards in the future, there is also a strategy page for betting in tournament quarterfinals.
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Correct response: Who is Alexander the Great?
More information about Final Jeopardy:
(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2023 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)
According to accounts of the era, Alexander the Great, on the beginning of the Macedonian conquest of Asia in 334 BC, was first off the boat, onto the show, declaring the area spear-won. According to legend, he made a sacrifice at the tomb of Achilles while passing through Troy.
Over the next eight years, Alexander’s conquests reached as far as the Beas River in northern India before his troops mutinied, and he turned back.
To me, this Final feels like a “Who else could it be?” straightforward clue, as long as the contestants don’t overthink it.
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Game Recap & Tonight’s Game Stats:
Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here’s the Friday, December 8, 2023 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:
Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Organ Recital; We’Re Talking Baseball; Olive Me; The Ivy League; Geographic Titles; As Easy As A-B-C)
In a topsy-turvy opening round that saw 8 lead changes, Jon got off to a hot start, but dropped to third with a missed Daily Double as Gary took a good-sized lead into the first break. However, four incorrect responses after the break dropped him into a distant third, as Jon’s seven correct saw him re-take the lead.
Statistics at the first break (15 clues):
Gary 6 correct 0 incorrect
Carmela 3 correct 1 incorrect
Jon 4 correct 1 incorrect
Today’s interviews:
Jon started a pandemic band that went viral on TikTok.
Carmela eloped since her last appearance (and she apparently nearly forgot about this.)
Gary helps put on a yearly Clue-like scavenger hunt in his department.
Statistics after the Jeopardy round:
Jon 11 correct 2 incorrect
Carmela 9 correct 2 incorrect
Gary 6 correct 4 incorrect
Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:
Jon $3,600
Carmela $3,000
Gary $1,600
Double Jeopardy! Round:
(Categories: Organ Recital; Classic Movie Original Dialogue?; Working On A Building; Car”Eer” Opportunities; A Muse Me; Words From Arabic)
In amongst seven more lead changes—including lead changes on an incredible five consecutive clues—just one Triple Stumper, and zero incorrect responses, Gary caught fire midway through the round and took the lead for good, aided by finding both Daily Doubles in the last 10 clues of the round. His conservative bets, though, made sure he didn’t have a runaway, as everyone was still in it going into Final thanks to Carmela getting 3 of the last 4 clues correct!
Statistics after Double Jeopardy:
Gary 19 correct 4 incorrect
Carmela 18 correct 2 incorrect
Jon 18 correct 2 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 0 (0 today).
Scores going into Final:
Gary $21,200
Carmela $13,400
Jon $10,000
Jon and Gary got Final correct, which makes Gary a semifinalist!
Tonight’s results:
Jon $10,000 + $9,999 = $19,999 (Who is Alexander the Great?)
Carmela $13,400 – $13,400 = $0 (Who is Genghis Khan?)
Gary $21,200 + $5,601 = $26,801 (Who is Alexander the Great?) (Semi-Finalist)
Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:
Daily Double locations:
1) GEOGRAPHIC TITLES $600 (clue #10)
Jon 2600 -2000 (Gary 1600 Carmela 2200)
2) WORDS FROM ARABIC $2000 (clue #21)
Gary 12000 +2000 (Carmela 10200 Jon 9200)
3) WORKING ON A BUILDING $1600 (clue #23, $6400 left on board)
Gary 14800 +4000 (Carmela 10200 Jon 9200)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: -33
Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:
J! Round:
Gary 3 4 5
Carmela 4 4 5 4
Jon 3 5 3*
DJ! Round:
Gary 3 4 2 1 2 4 5 3 5* 2 4*
Carmela 3 5 3 3 3 4
Jon 4 2 4 5 2 1
Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:
Gary 3.36
Jon 3.22
Carmela 3.80
Unplayed clues:
J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 0 (0.00 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles
Game Stats:
Gary $18,800 Coryat, 19 correct, 4 incorrect, 33.33% in first on buzzer (19/57), 1/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Jon $12,000 Coryat, 18 correct, 2 incorrect, 28.07% in first on buzzer (16/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
Carmela $13,400 Coryat, 18 correct, 2 incorrect, 33.33% in first on buzzer (19/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $44,200
Lach Trash: $4,400 (on 4 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $5,400
Lead Changes: 15
Times Tied: 0
Player Statistics:
Gary Hollis, career statistics:
61 correct, 12 incorrect
7/8 on rebound attempts (on 19 rebound opportunities)
33.33% in first on buzzer (57/171)
5/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $9,000)
1/3 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $16,667
Carmela Chan, career statistics:
93 correct, 14 incorrect
7/11 on rebound attempts (on 29 rebound opportunities)
32.20% in first on buzzer (85/264)
4/6 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $6,700)
3/5 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $13,920
Jon Spurney, career statistics:
90 correct, 12 incorrect
7/7 on rebound attempts (on 12 rebound opportunities)
38.60% in first on buzzer (88/228)
2/3 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $2,400)
3/4 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $17,000
Andy’s Thoughts:
Today’s box score: December 8, 2023 Box Score.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Gary $21,200 Carmela $13,400 Jon $10,000)
Gary: Standard cover bet over Carmela is $5,601. (Actual bet: $5,601)
Carmela: Bet at least $6,601 to make sure you cover Jon, but because you have to be correct to win, you might as well go all in. (Actual bet: $13,400)
Jon: You also need to be correct to win, so you might as well go all in here. (Actual bet: $9,999)
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