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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Warning: This page contains spoilers for the February 17, 2026, game of Jeopardy! — 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.
Here’s today’s Final Jeopardy (in the category Writers) for Tuesday, February 17, 2026 (Season 42, Game 117):
The winner of 3 Pulitzer Prizes in 2 different categories, he called his home in Connecticut “the house the bridge built”
(correct response beneath the contestants)
Today’s Jeopardy! contestants:
Drew Goins, a journalist from Washington, D.C.
Karen Farrell, a professional lecturer of international affairs from Chesapeake, Virginia
Long Nguyen, a retired engineer from Las Vegas, Nevada
Andy’s Pregame Thoughts:
Our third semifinal for this year’s Jeopardy! Invitational Tournament is between Long Nguyen, Karen Farrell, and Drew Goins. After an impressive quarterfinal performance, Long does come in as the favorite to make the final, but both Karen and Drew put up reasonably good performances in the quarterfinal and can absolutely take victory if things break the right way for them.
(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 Thornton Wilder?
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.)
Thornton Wilder’s three Pulitzer Prizes came for the novel The Bridge of San Luis Rey and for the plays Our Town and The Skin of Our Teeth; the royalties from The Bridge of San Luis Rey in the 1920s paid for the house on Deepwood Drive in Hamden, Connecticut, built for Wilder’s parents in 1929. The author lived there with his sister later in life.
If you remember who wrote The Bridge of San Luis Rey, this should be a relatively straightforward Final. If you get taken on the wrong bridge, though (remembering that Pierre Boulle, author of The Bridge over the River Kwai, was French), you might be in trouble.
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Game Recap:
Long Nguyen found both Daily Doubles on back-to-back picks early in the Double Jeopardy round; he could have had a big lead, but an incorrect response on the second one kept things close throughout the second board; Drew Goins, at one point, was tied for the lead, but a crucial forgotten phrasing kept him in second entering Final Jeopardy.
Thankfully, Drew’s phrasing misstep was rendered moot by Final Jeopardy, as Long was the only player correct. That correct response puts him into the first-to-two-wins final against Andrew He and Roger Craig beginning tomorrow.
Scores going into Final:
Long $15,800
Drew $12,200
Karen $10,000
Tonight’s results:
Karen $10,000 – $0 = $10,000 (Who is ?)
Drew $12,200 – $12,197 = $3 (Who is Agee? :))
Long $15,800 + $5,001 = $20,801 (Who is Wilder?) (Finalist)
Chances of winning tournament:
Andrew He: 36.495%
Roger Craig: 35.218%
Long Nguyen: 28.287%
Chances of 2 games: 33.736%
Chances of 3 games: 44.520%
Chances of 4 games: 21.744%
Game Stats:
Long $15,200 Coryat, 20 correct, 4 incorrect, 35.09% in first on buzzer (20/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Karen $9,600 Coryat, 12 correct, 0 incorrect, 14.04% in first on buzzer (8/57), 3/3 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Drew $12,200 Coryat, 18 correct, 3 incorrect, 36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57), 0/0 on rebound attempts (on 3 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $37,000
Andy’s Thoughts:
- I haven’t specifically asked Long about this wager; the best I can surmise from looking at the numbers was “match Drew’s highest wager if Drew bets to stay ahead of me if I cover”.
- Today’s J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.
Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:
(Scores: Long $15,800 Drew $12,200 Karen $10,000)
Long: Standard cover bet is $8,601. If you want to consider not covering, though—Drew’s best low range caps out at $2,199, as that defends against a $0 bet from Karen in third. A bet between $2 and $1,399 would defend against that, but Drew also has reason to go all in if he decides to cover Karen as well. (Actual bet: $5,001)
Karen: Your best chance of victory is if you play for a Triple Stumper and hope for a cover bet from Long and a big bet from Drew. Bet between $0 and $2,800. (Actual bet: $0)
Drew: You can’t both cover Karen and win a Triple Stumper. If you think Karen will make a low bet, a bet between $601 and $2,199 defends best against that. If you do want to cover, any bet that’s at least $7,801 works—but an all-in bet does force a cover wager out of Long. (Actual bet: $12,197)
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