recaps

This weekend's Final Jeopardy answer (in the category Plays & Playwrights) and statistics for the September 26-27, 2026 game between Robert Yan, Helen Yoas, and 1-day champion Tristan Williams.

Weekend Jeopardy! Recap - September 26 & 27, 2026

Published September 26, 2026 - 9:00 a.m.

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

September 26-27: S42 E174 (May 7, 2026)
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

Warning: This page contains spoilers for the September 26-27, 2026, game of Jeopardy!—please do not scroll down if you wish to avoid being spoiled. Please note that today's game is an encore presentation of the game that originally aired on May 7, 2026.

Here's today's Final Jeopardy (in the category Plays & Playwrights) for September 26-27, 2026 (Season 42, Game 174):

The first version of a 1960s play by this man had a slightly different title, ending with "Meet King Lear"

(correct response beneath the contestants)

Today's Jeopardy! contestants:

Robert Yan, a language expert from Huntsville, Alabama

Helen Yoas, a retired librarian from Williamsport, Pennsylvania

Tristan Williams, a data scientist originally from Lincoln, Nebraska

Tristan enters today's game as a 1-day champion with winnings of $20,000.

Andy's Pregame Thoughts:

This weekend's encore presentation features Tristan Williams going for victory #2 against Alabama's Robert Yan and Pennsylvania's Helen Yoas.

One thing that I do want to point out: if you were reading my Second Chance article from just before the start of Season 43, you might remember me mentioning both Helen's and Robert's chances of being invited due to their performance in this game, especially after how well Tristan ended up doing himself on the show. (I also figure that this will inspire the usual suspects to write their thinkpiece threads on other platforms—I'm just pointing out that this happens; I think it's a good idea, as it's a good starting point for weekend discussion.)

Speaking of weekend discussion, make sure to tune in to Episode 2 of Jeopartalk, on Sunday at 6:00 PM Eastern; the live show is simulcast on both Twitch and YouTube.

(Content continues below)

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

My friends over at Geeks Who Drink have a daily trivia game—Thrice! Existing to make daily clever trivia content accessible to a wide audience, it's a daily challenge that tries to get you to the answer via three separate clues. It has a shareable score functionality to challenge your friends and new questions every day will give you a new daily social ritual. You can find it at thricegame.com.

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.

Are you looking for information on how to stream Jeopardy! in 2026? Find out information here on how to stream from most places in North America!

You can find game-by-game stats here at The Jeopardy! Fan of all 23 players, including Caleb Groen, Adam Remsen, Tristan Williams and Jamie Ding, that have won 10 or more games on Jeopardy!

You can now listen to Alex Trebek-hosted Jeopardy! episodes from TuneIn Radio without leaving The Jeopardy! Fan — listen now!

Correct response: Who is Tom Stoppard?

More Information About Final Jeopardy!:

Tom Stoppard's famous absurdist play Rosencrantz and Guildenstern are Dead was originally titled Rosencrantz and Guildernstern Meet King Lear and was a one-act short play, before Stoppard took the characters out of the dementia-suffering Lear and expanded it into a full-length play, named after the Ambassador's announcement to the Danish court shortly after Hamlet's death in Act 5, Scene 2 of Hamlet.

This play has always been a favorite of the Jeopardy! writers; this would definitely be one of those "this will be easier to those who have been longtime fans of the show" clues.

Game Recap & Tonight's Game Stats:

Looking to find out who won Jeopardy! today? Here's the Saturday, September 26, 2026 Jeopardy! by the numbers, along with a recap:

Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: Liminal Spaces; Parenting; Baddies In Books; Total Valley Speak, Dude; What'S The Point!; Face Cards?)

Both challengers did better than our champion out of the gate; after 15 clues, the scores were Helen $2,600 Robert $1,000 Tristan $0.

Statistics at the first break (15 clues):

Helen 4 correct 1 incorrect
Robert 5 correct 2 incorrect
Tristan 2 correct 1 incorrect

Today's interviews:

Robert thinks Jeopardy! has saved his marriage.
Helen did genealogy research in her local library, which sparked her own love for the subject.
Tristan had a fast food mascot-themed bachelor party.

Tristan stormed back to take the lead—and then consolidated that advantage with a True Daily Double. On the opening board, Tristan went 3/5 in points, while Robert went 3/5 in book villains and valleys.

Statistics after the Jeopardy round:

Tristan 10 correct 1 incorrect
Robert 9 correct 2 incorrect
Helen 5 correct 2 incorrect

Scores after the Jeopardy! Round:

Tristan $6,200
Robert $3,400
Helen $2,200

Double Jeopardy! Round:

(Categories: Presidential Moms; Celebrity Books; The Celts; "M"Edicine; Only Heard In Plural; May I Please Have Some Water?)

The Daily Double monster bit both Robert and Tristan in this round, with Robert losing $3,000 and Tristan $5,000. This allowed Helen to lead entering Final—and crucially, Tristan and Robert were tied for second.

Statistics after Double Jeopardy:

Helen 13 correct 2 incorrect
Tristan 18 correct 4 incorrect
Robert 19 correct 4 incorrect
Total number of unplayed clues this season: 11 (0 today).

Scores going into Final:

Helen $12,600
Tristan $9,200
Robert $9,200

In a dramatic Final Jeopardy! Round, Tristan was correct and went all-in. Robert was also correct, but did not go all in. Then, Helen's response was revealed to be incorrect—giving Tristan victory #2. He'll be back for game #3 tomorrow.

Tonight's results:

Robert $9,200 + $3,402 = $12,602 (Who Stoppard!)
Tristan $9,200 + $9,200 = $18,400 (Who is Stoppard?) (2-day total: $38,400)
Helen $12,600 - $5,861 = $6,739 (Who is Mamet?)

Other Miscellaneous Game Statistics:

Daily Double locations:

1) PARENTING $400 (clue #26)
Tristan 3000 +3000 (Helen 2000 Robert 2800)
2) "M"EDICINE $2000 (clue #18)
Robert 11400 -3000 (Tristan 9000 Helen 8600)
3) MAY I PLEASE HAVE SOME WATER? $1200 (clue #22, $7200 left on board)
Tristan 12600 -5000 (Helen 10600 Robert 6400)
Overall Daily Double Efficiency for this game: 34

Clue Selection by Row, Before Daily Doubles Found:

J! Round:
Tristan 4 3 4 5 5 3 5 2 2 2 2*
Helen 2 1 1 1
Robert 5 4 4 3 4 3 5 5 3 4 3

DJ! Round:
Tristan 3 3 5 4 5 3*
Helen 1 1 2 1 2 3 4 5
Robert 4 5 2 3 4 3 5* 4

Average Row of Clue Selection, Before Daily Doubles Found:

Tristan 3.53
Robert 3.84
Helen 2.00

Unplayed clues:

J! Round: None!
DJ! Round: None!
Total Left On Board: $0
Number of clues left unrevealed this season: 11 (0.06 per episode average), 0 Daily Doubles

Game Stats:

Tristan $11,600 Coryat, 18 correct, 4 incorrect, 31.58% in first on buzzer (18/57), 2/2 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Robert $12,200 Coryat, 19 correct, 4 incorrect, 36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57), 1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
Helen $12,600 Coryat, 13 correct, 2 incorrect, 21.05% in first on buzzer (12/57), 2/3 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
Combined Coryat Score: $36,400
Lach Trash: $8,200 (on 8 Triple Stumpers)
Coryat lost to incorrect responses (less double-correct responses): $9,400
Lead Changes: 6
Times Tied: 3

Player Statistics:

Tristan Williams, career statistics:

49 correct, 9 incorrect
5/5 on rebound attempts (on 8 rebound opportunities)
40.35% in first on buzzer (46/114)
2/5 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$7,000)
1/2 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $19,100

Helen Yoas, career statistics:

13 correct, 3 incorrect
2/3 on rebound attempts (on 6 rebound opportunities)
21.05% in first on buzzer (12/57)
0/0 on Daily Doubles
0/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,600

Robert Yan, career statistics:

20 correct, 4 incorrect
1/1 on rebound attempts (on 4 rebound opportunities)
36.84% in first on buzzer (21/57)
0/1 on Daily Doubles (Net Earned: -$3,000)
1/1 in Final Jeopardy
Average Coryat: $12,200

Andy's Thoughts:

This is a reminder that contestants are permitted to request seating on stage for any reason they choose, and do not need to disclose that reason to home viewers.
Today's J!6 clues can be found at the monthly archive.

Final Jeopardy! wagering suggestions:

(Scores: Helen $12,600 Tristan $9,200 Robert $9,200)

Tristan: If you think your chances of getting Final Jeopardy correct are less than 50%, bet $0. If you think they are 50% or higher, go all in. Because you’re between two-thirds and three-quarters of Helen in the lead, a bet in the $3,401 or $3,402 neighborhood succumbs to Zerg’s Fallacy and does more harm than good for your chances of victory today. (Actual bet: $9,200)

Helen: Standard cover bet today is $5,801. Counting on two people to bet small here probably won’t happen. (Actual bet: $5,861)

Robert: The suggestions I made for Tristan hold true for you as well. (Actual bet: $3,402)