Today’s Final Jeopardy – Monday, July 20, 2026

Current Champion

Nikolas Polsinelli, career statistics:
44 correct, 6 incorrect
2/2 on rebound attempts (on 5 rebound opportunities)
35.96% in first on buzzer (41/114)
4/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: $10,600)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $17,500

To win:
3 games: 64.111%
4: 41.102%
5: 26.351%
6: 16.894%
7: 10.831%
Avg. streak: 3.786 games.
(Click Here for Methodology)

Upcoming Encore Presentations

October 3-4: S42 E175 (May 8, 2026)
October 10-11: S42 E176 (May 11, 2026)
(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 $1,598,403
7. Victoria Groce $1,023,801
8. Mattea Roach $897,983
9. Jamie Ding $885,605
10. David Madden $785,733
11. Cris Pannullo $754,286
12. Roger Craig $706,200
13. Andrew He $684,365
14. Larissa Kelly $671,930
15. Matt Jackson $623,612
16. Jason Zuffranieri $549,496
17. Paolo Pasco $548,717
18. Scott Riccardi $533,000
19. Jerome Vered $499,102
20. Julia Collins $495,767
21. Austin Rogers $493,000
22. Juveria Zaheer $491,000
23. Ben Ingram $449,201
24. Adriana Harmeyer $446,600
25. Buzzy Cohen $441,603

Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Annual Events) for Monday, July 20, 2026 (Season 42, Game 226):

It celebrated its 40th edition in 2026; the first one featured Jimmie Dale Gilmore & Jimmy Carl Black

(correct response beneath the contestants)

Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:

Sam Ryan, a regulatory consultant from Kansas City, Missouri

Tatiana Chichilla, a genetic counselor originally from Mill Hall, Pennsylvania

Caleb Groen, a law & policy student originally from Thousand Oaks, California (12-day total: $346,968)

Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:

Over the history of Jeopardy! since the “Sky’s The Limit” rule was introduced in 2003, there have been two types of contestants, based on how they react when they find out at the start of a taping session that the current champion has won 12 games (and nearly $350,000), as our current champion Caleb Groen has. One type of contestant resigns themselves to defeat and just feels happy to have made it to the show—and that player will inevitably face defeat. The other type of contestant relishes the idea of playing “giant killer”, knows they can win, and that’s when you get a more exciting game. I remember back in 2004, Nancy Zerg telling herself that she was capable of beating Ken Jennings—in contrast to many others who had resigned themselves to defeat immediately upon hearing about or seeing Ken in the studio. And it was Zerg who became an important name in the show’s history.

As we enter the final week of Season 42, the biggest question on everyone’s mind is “Will Caleb Groen be the champion at the end of the season?” A lot of that will be answered by what type of player enters the Green Room this week, only to find a 12-day champion occupying the champions’ lectern. Today’s challengers are Tatiana Chichilla, originally from Pennsylvania, and Sam Ryan of Kansas City.

Correct response: What is South by Southwest? (SXSW)

More information about Final Jeopardy:

(The following write-up is original content and is copyright 2026 The Jeopardy! Fan. It may not be copied without linked attribution back to this page.)

The famous Austin, Texas, festival known as South by Southwest was first held in March 1987; it began as a music festival but has expanded to encompass other areas of media and technology; acts or other things that came to prominence as a result of an appearance at SXSW include Hanson, John Mayer, and Twitter.

That being said, I am struggling to find an “in” here other than simply knowing that Jimmie Dale Gilmore and Jimmy Carl Black were both Texas musicians, and even that feels like an esoteric piece of knowledge for both contestant and viewer alike. Kudos to anybody who gets today’s Final Jeopardy clue correct.

In order to redesign our merchandise area to serve you better in 2026, all merchandise sales have been temporarily taken offline. Look for a return in late 2026! All previous orders will still be supported.

Game Recap:

Sam Ryan found two of the three Daily Doubles today, and Caleb found 0—that, and three incorrect responses from Caleb, was enough for Sam to have a runaway game entering Final Jeopardy.

As predicted, Final Jeopardy was a Triple Stumper, and that makes Sam a giant killer; he’ll be back tomorrow to defend his title.

Scores going into Final:

Sam $24,000
Caleb $11,400
Tatiana $6,900

Tonight’s results:

Tatiana $6,900 – $6,900 = $0 (What)
Caleb $11,400 – $3,000 = $8,400 (What is Congrats Sam!!)
Sam $24,000 – $1,000 = $23,000 (What is Wrestlemania?) (1-day total: $23,000)

Game Stats:

Sam $17,600 Coryat, 20 correct, 0 incorrect, 26.32% in first on buzzer (15/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
Caleb $11,400 Coryat, 17 correct, 3 incorrect, 31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57), 1/2 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Tatiana $6,600 Coryat, 15 correct, 6 incorrect, 33.33% in first on buzzer (19/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 2 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $35,600

If you are looking for more detailed statistics about today’s game of Jeopardy!, as well as the ability to leave a comment, make sure to check out the Daily Details section.

Sam Ryan, to win:

2 games: 71.277%
3: 50.804%
4: 36.212%
5: 25.811%
6: 18.397%
Avg. streak: 3.482 games.

Andy’s Thoughts:

• Why is it always that someone posts a really specific question about something on the Jeopardy! subreddit shortly before that exact situation becomes a major spoiler for a game in the near future?
• Today’s J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.

Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:

(Scores: Sam $24,000 Caleb $11,400 Tatiana $6,900)

Caleb: Standard cover bet for second over Tatiana is $2,401. (Actual bet: $3,000)

Tatiana: You have to be correct to take second place; might as well go all in. (Actual bet: $6,900)

Sam: Bet no more than $1,199 and enjoy your victory! (Actual bet: $1,000)

---

Add The Jeopardy! Fan to your preferred sources on Google by clicking the button below!

Become a Supporter now! Make a monthly contribution to the site on Patreon!

Contestant photo credit: jeopardy.com

When commenting, please note that all comments on The Jeopardy! Fan must be in compliance with the Site Comment Policy.

If you are going to quote any information from this page or this website, attribution is required.

Have you had a chance to listen to our podcast game show, Complete The List, yet? Check it out! It's also available on Apple Podcasts.

---