James Holzhauer | |
|---|---|
 Holzhauer onThe Chase in 2014 | |
| Born | (1984-08-06)August 6, 1984 (age 41) Naperville,Illinois, US |
| Alma mater | University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (BS) |
| Occupations |
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| Known for | 32-gameJeopardy! winning streak |
| Spouse | |
| Children | 1 |
James Holzhauer (born August 6, 1984) is an Americangame show contestant and professionalsports gambler.[1] He is thefourth-highest-earning American game show contestant of all time. Holzhauer is best known for his 32-gamewinning streak as champion on thequiz showJeopardy! from April to June 2019, during which he set multiple single-game records for winnings, and for winning the followingTournament of Champions that November.[2]
Holzhauer won $2,464,216 in his 33 appearances, making him the second-highest winner inJeopardy! regular-play (non-tournament) winnings (behind onlyKen Jennings, who won $2,520,700 in 2004) and, at the time, second in number of games won (again behind only Jennings) although he has since been surpassed byMatt Amodio (38 games) andAmy Schneider (40).[3] His $250,000 top prize in the Tournament of Champions, $250,000 runner-up prize in the Greatest of All Time Tournament and $500,000 first prize in the inaugural Masters tournament[4] brought his total to $3,464,216, making him still the third-highest winningJeopardy! contestant, behind Jennings andBrad Rutter.[5] Holzhauer also set the single-game winnings record with $131,127 and holds all top 10 single-game winning records.[6][7] Based on his success onJeopardy!, Holzhauer has been nicknamed "Jeopardy James".[8][9][10]
Born on August 6, 1984,[11][12] Holzhauer was born and raised inNaperville, Illinois.[13][14] His father was a German immigrant.[14][15] His maternal grandmother was Japanese and spoke very little English; he had promised her that he would appear onJeopardy! before she died.[16] In 1989, when Holzhauer was four, his teacher was astounded by his mathematical abilities and developed advanced classwork just for him. At age seven, Holzhauer was moved up to a fifth-grade math class, and skipped second grade at his mother's urging. Holzhauer consistently got A's on math tests and competed on theNaperville North High School math team.[17]
Despite high marks on individual tests, Holzhauer was a C student overall, as he often skipped class and homework on the grounds that he could use the time more "productively", such as playingonline poker. Holzhauer memorized obscurebaseball andprofessional wrestling statistics, prompting his parents to reprimand him for "wasting his life" learning about sports.[14]
Holzhauer was a member of theWorldwide Youth in Science and Engineering Team that won the state competition at theUniversity of Illinois Urbana-Champaign; he contributed by taking first place in physics and second in math.[18][15] Holzhauer graduated with aBachelor of Science degree in mathematics in 2005.[19][20]
Holzhauer appeared on the American version of the quiz showThe Chase on September 2, 2014.[21] In his first round, a one-minute round called the Cash Builder, Holzhauer correctly answered 12 questions out of 13 posed by hostBrooke Burns; the last question was asked just before time expired and was quickly passed on by Holzhauer. His score set a record for the Cash Builder that was never surpassed during the show's run.[22]
In his second round, Holzhauer facedMark Labbett to determine whether he would advance to the final round and add money to the team prize pool. Holzhauer had a choice of three amounts to play for: $60,000 based on his score in the Cash Builder, $30,000 to reduce the difficulty of the round; and $120,000, which would increase the difficulty. He chose to play for $60,000; after the show, Holzhauer said that the odds did not favor playing for the maximum amount and that it was not worth the gamble.[22]
The Chase was played head-to-head, with the players using hidden buttons to select multiple-choice answers. Holzhauer advanced to the finals and added to the prize pool with a score of five right and one wrong. Labbett scored a perfect five, with his final answer not revealed since Holzhauer had already achieved the necessary points to win the round.[23]
In the Final Chase round (as team leader with two other contestants also participating), Holzhauer's team defeated Labbett by a score of 26 to 9, earning him a $58,333.33 share of the $175,000 team prize pool.[24] By answering 19 questions correctly for his team, he set a Final Chase record, which was also never surpassed.[22]
Bob Boden, the producer ofThe Chase, was impressed by Holzhauer’s performance and had him audition to join the show as a colleague of Labbett.[25] In July 2020, Holzhauer and several other famous game show contestants were said to be in negotiations to become chasers for a potentialreboot ofThe Chase, which would be produced forABC.[26] The reboot starring Holzhauer,Ken Jennings, andBrad Rutter premiered January 7, 2021, on ABC.[27]
Holzhauer appeared on the American quiz show500 Questions on May 22, 2015.[28] This show did not allow the challenger to replace the champion unless the champion answered three questions wrong in a row. The incumbent champion, Steve Bahnaman, prevailed over Holzhauer, who did not receive any winnings.[29]
| External videos | |
|---|---|
 Highlights from Holzhauer's 32-game winning streak onJeopardy! |
Holzhauer appeared on 33 episodes of Season 35 of the American quiz showJeopardy!, from April 4[30][31] to June 3, 2019.[32][33]
During his first game, Holzhauer won $43,680, the second largest single-game total to that point in Season 35, behind fellow Tournament of Champions competitor Eric R. Backes' $48,001 on February 11, 2019. In his fourth game, which aired on April 9, he broke the previous single-gameJeopardy! winnings record ($77,000, set byRoger Craig in 2010) by winning $110,914.[34]
During his 33 appearances, Holzhauer exceeded Craig's single-day total 16 times (see table below), including a new all-time record set on April 17, when he won $131,127.[35][36] Holzhauer is also the first and only player to win $100,000 or more in a single episode,[37] a feat he accomplished six times.[38] His $298,687 total winnings across his first five days[39] surpassed the five-day record set byFrank Spangenberg in 1990 before the changes in the values of the clues. Holzhauer is the only contestant to date to do so.[40] He won a total of $2,464,216, averaging $75,362 per episode—a 33-day average that nearly equaled the previous all-time single-day record.[41][42] FellowJeopardy! championKen Jennings has likened this feat to "a basketball player notching 70-point games for an entire season or a baseball player hitting for the cycle in every game".[43]
Holzhauer was defeated in his 33rd game, which aired on June 3, 2019, and was watched by 14.5 million people.[32][44] The winner, Emma Boettcher, used many of the same strategies as Holzhauer.[45]
In July 2019,Jeopardy! confirmed that Holzhauer would return for theTournament of Champions in November.[46] Holzhauer won both his quarterfinal and semifinal games to advance to the final round, which featured a rematch against Boettcher, who was invited separately and also won her first two tournament games.[47] Holzhauer won thetwo-day final, winning the first game by a larger margin than Boettcher won the second and claiming the $250,000 grand prize.[2] The following week,Jeopardy! announced that Holzhauer would compete against Jennings and Rutter in prime-time specials for a million-dollar prize inJeopardy! The Greatest of All Time, which aired in January 2020.[48] Holzhauer won one match in the tournament, but lost to Jennings in the others, and received the runner-up prize of $250,000.[49]
On May 8, 2023, Holzhauer placed second in the first round ofJeopardy! Masters; despite knowing the Final Jeopardy! question, he wrote in an "answer" challengingKen Jennings to a tournament. In spite of this, he won his bracket as he was far ahead of (over 20,000 points) the other competitors. He entered Final Jeopardy! with a lead (40,800 points).[50] Earlier in the day, he had teased that he would be the "villain" of the tournament. On May 24, 2023, Holzhauer won the Masters tournament, edging outMattea Roach and Matt Amodio to earn the $500,000 grand prize.[4]
In May 22, 2024, Holzhauer wrapped up part one of the two part finals with a total of 28,309 points to hold a sizable lead going into part two of the finals, but ultimately he finished in 3rd with a total of 38,017 behind winner Victoria Groce who finished with a total of 55,400 and runner up Yogesh Raut who finished with a total of 45,910.[51]
| Game no. | Air date | Final score | Cumulative winnings | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | April 4 | $43,680 | $43,680 | |
| 2 | April 5 | $38,926* | $82,606 | |
| 3 | April 8 | $50,845 | $133,451 | |
| 4 | April 9 | $110,914† | $244,365 | First breaks single-day winnings record (previously $77,000 held byRoger Craig), Also breaks net first five days winnings record. (previously net $205,194 held byFrank Spangenberg)[15] |
| 5 | April 10 | $54,322 | $298,687 | |
| 6 | April 11 | $27,190 | $325,877 | Only game during his 32-day winning streak in which he failed to give a correct response in Final Jeopardy[52][53] |
| 7 | April 12 | $89,158 | $415,035 | |
| 8 | April 15 | $45,444 | $460,479 | Reached second-place on all-timeJeopardy! regular play winnings list.[54] |
| 9 | April 16 | $106,181† | $566,660 | |
| 10 | April 17 | $131,127† | $697,787 | Broke his own single-day winnings record.[55] |
| 11 | April 18 | $74,133 | $771,920 | |
| 12 | April 19 | $80,006 | $851,926 | |
| 13 | April 22 | $90,812† | $942,738 | |
| 14 | April 23 | $118,816† | $1,061,554 | Became secondJeopardy! contestant to win $1 million in regular gameplay winnings and the fastest contestant to hit the milestone.[56] |
| 15 | April 24 | $73,621 | $1,135,175 | Moved into #10 onAmerican game show winnings list, including $58,333 he won in 2014 onThe Chase. |
| 16 | April 25 | $90,812† | $1,225,987 | Moved up to #9 on American game show winnings list |
| 17 | April 26 | $49,600 | $1,275,587 | |
| 18 | April 29 | $54,017* | $1,329,604 | Narrowest margin of victory, winning by $18.[57] Challenger Adam Levin's final total of $53,999 is the highest second place regular play total inJeopardy! history.[58] |
| 19 | April 30 | $96,726† | $1,426,330 | |
| 20 | May 1 | $101,682† | $1,528,012 | Moved up to #8 on American game show winnings list. |
| 21 | May 2 | $80,615 | $1,608,627 | PassesJulia Collins for second-longest winning streak in regular play.[59] |
| 22 | May 3 | $82,381 | $1,691,008 | Holzhauer's run went on a two-week hiatus after this broadcast whileJeopardy! aired the Teachers Tournament following this episode. |
| 23 | May 20 | $89,229† | $1,780,237 | Moved up to #6 on American game show winnings list |
| 24 | May 21 | $86,905 | $1,867,142 | Moved up to #5 on American game show winnings list |
| 25 | May 22 | $71,885 | $1,939,027 | |
| 26 | May 23 | $52,108* | $1,991,135 | |
| 27 | May 24 | $74,400 | $2,065,535 | Became second Jeopardy! contestant to win $2 million in regular gameplay winnings and the fastest contestant to do so.[60] |
| 28 | May 27 | $130,022† | $2,195,557 | Moved to #4 on American game show winnings list |
| 29 | May 28 | $59,381 | $2,254,938 | |
| 30 | May 29 | $69,033 | $2,323,971 | |
| 31 | May 30 | $58,612 | $2,382,583 | |
| 32 | May 31 | $79,633 | $2,462,216 | |
| 33 | June 3 | $24,799‡ | $2,464,216 | Defeated by challenger Emma Boettcher, who finished the game with $46,801.[32] Holzhauer trailed Boettcher heading into Final Jeopardy!, the first time he trailed a challenger at that point of the game. He was awarded the then-standard $2,000 prize for finishing second place.[61] |
| † Green background denotes an addition to Holzhauer's exclusive hold of the top ten positions onJeopardy!'s single-day winnings list | ||||
| * Yellow background denotes game which was not a runaway (lead going intoFinal Jeopardy round could not guarantee a win). | ||||
| ‡ Red background denotes game in which Holzhauer is defeated. | ||||
| Round | Air date | Final score | Cumulative winnings | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2019Jeopardy! Tournament of Champions | ||||
| QF | November 6, 2019 | $30,635[62] | $2,714,216 | |
| SF | November 12, 2019 | $30,156[47] | ||
| F1 | November 14, 2019 | $49,326[2] | Aggregate total of $76,923 surpassed his nearest opponent Emma Boettcher, though Boettcher had the higher score in game two of the final.[2] Holzhauer wins first place prize of $250,000, and moved up to #3 on American game show winnings list. | |
| F2 | November 15, 2019 | $27,597† | ||
| Greatest of All Time | ||||
| Match.Game | Air Date | Final score | Cumulative Winnings | Notes |
| 1.1 | January 7, 2020 | 33,200 | $2,964,216 | Holzhauer lost game one toKen Jennings and won game two. However, his aggregate total for match one (63,200) was less than the 63,400 points by Jennings, the winner of the match.[63] |
| 1.2 | 30,000† | |||
| 2.1 | January 8, 2020 | 44,314† | Finished in first place with an aggregate total for match two of 82,414. Holzhauer and Jennings were tied at one match apiece.[64] | |
| 2.2 | 38,100† | |||
| 3.1 | January 9, 2020 | 27,200 | Aggregate total for match 3 (33,692) was less than the 67,600 points by Jennings, who won the match. Jennings led the tournament, with two matches to Holzhauer's one. | |
| 3.2 | 6,492 | |||
| 4.1 | January 14, 2020 | 34,181 | Aggregate total for match 4 (34,181) was less than the 88,600 points by Jennings, who won the match and the tournament. Holzhauer earned the runner-up prize of $250,000. | |
| 4.2 | 0 | |||
| Green background indicates a match won by Holzhauer. A † indicates Holzhauer won an individual game. | ||||
| Red background indicates matches Holzhauer lost an individual game. | ||||
Holzhauer took a two-pronged approach to play. He selected the highest-value clues first in an attempt to maximize the money he had available to wager when he hit a Daily Double.[65][66] This strategy does not always work, as a Daily Double is more likely to be behind a high-value clue, and often he hit the Daily Double before accumulating a large sum to wager. On Daily Doubles and during Final Jeopardy! clues, Holzhauer bet aggressively; his average wager on Daily Doubles was $9,000.[67]
While aggressive betting is disadvantageous if a player responds incorrectly, Holzhauer was correct on 72 of the 76 Daily Doubles he hit (94.7%). This strategy was not entirely new;Alex Jacob, also a professional gambler, used a similar strategy in his six regular-play wins in April 2015 and the 2015 Tournament of Champions, which he won.[68]
Excluding Daily Doubles and Final Jeopardy! wagers, Holzhauer's average score of $30,800 during his 32-episode winning streak (57% of the $54,000 available in each game) is higher than the $28,786 averaged by Jennings, who was far more conservative in his wagering; Holzhauer considered it more logical to make large bets that will usually pay off,[66] since, during the first 25 episodes of his winning streak, Holzhauer averaged 35.5 correct and only 1.04 wrong responses per game.[69] On the episode he lost, he did not respond to any clues incorrectly.[67] He credited reading fact books written for children, with their heavy use ofinfographics, with allowing him to learn vast amounts of information in an easily digestible manner.[70] Holzhauer took a year off from his occupation as a sports gambler to study forJeopardy!.[71]
Holzhauer's record-breaking winning streak attracted considerable reaction and media attention. When Holzhauer reached $1 million in 14 games and subsequently reaching $2 million in 27 games, both of which being the fastest milestones,[72][73][74] Craig, who held the single-game winnings record before Holzhauer, said, "To me, it's clear that he's one of the top players of all time already."[8] Jennings said he was "just gobsmacked by James", adding, "It's absolutely insane what he's doing."[75] Of Holzhauer's strategies, Jennings said, "he's got these incredibly confident wagers. He's maximizing money. He can make two or three times what any other player ever has with that same level of play, which again is top-shelf. He's as good as anybody."[75][76] Jennings adopted Holzhauer's wagering strategy in theGreatest of All Time tournament, a factor in his victory.[77] Labbett, meanwhile, recalled Holzhauer'sThe Chase appearance as "the worst beating I've ever had", adding, "I've got to giveJeopardy! immense credit, andThe Chase U.S.A. In Britain or Australia, James would not have made it onto television, because he's just too damn good. They would never have him on."[66]
Nielsen ratings forJeopardy! rose 11% nationally during the first two weeks of Holzhauer's run[78] and as much as 50% in select local markets,[79] with a continuing upward trend over the course of his streak; by the fourth week of his run, ratings were up 30% nationwide[80] and had doubled in select markets.[81] FormerGame Show Network executiveBob Boden said the ratings would help compensate for any short-term financial losses Holzhauer's run caused, and that the show's profitability up to this point (Jeopardy! and sister programWheel of Fortune combined generate approximately $125 million in profit)[82] would allow them to absorb the increased payouts.[83] It was also noted that the improved ratings would not immediately allow the show to increase advertising rates, since those are set on a season-by-season basis as part of long-term ad buys.[82]
The highest-rated episode during Holzhauer's run was his final one, which at 14.5 million same-day viewers was the highest-rated episode since Jennings's last episode in 2004, the highest-rated episode of a syndicated show that season and the third-most-watched episode of a running series in the2018–19 season (behind only theseries-ending "The Stockholm Syndrome" episode ofThe Big Bang Theory and an episode of60 Minutes that had led out of anNFL on CBS contest), not counting DVR or streaming views, the latter of whichJeopardy! does not offer.[84]
The record ratings came despite the fact that the episode had beenspoiled several hours before it aired on most affiliate stations. Production staff notified interested media organizations in advance that Holzhauer would lose on June 3, but asked them to agree to anembargo until the show aired.The New York Times then hired afreelance journalist based inMontgomery, Alabama, to watch the show's first airing on any station – at 9:30 a.m.Central Time (10:30 a.m.Eastern Time). Upon confirming Holzhauer had in fact lost, the paper immediately published its story on the result and a profile of Boettcher to some controversy, as the episode would not air in the rest of Central Time or anywhere in other time zones for at least several hours.[85]Sports Illustrated credited the spoilers with creating buzz, counteracting the conventional wisdom that people would not tune in without the element of surprise.[86] Even if the result had not been spoiled, Holzhauer was on pace to break Jennings's regular-play record that day had he won, which might also have had a part in the increased ratings.[87]
In February 2023, Holzhauer appeared as a Clue Giver in the category "Taking A Gamble With James Holzhauer" during theTriple Jeopardy! on the final episode ofCelebrity Jeopardy! onABC.[88]
In January 2023, it was announced that Holzhauer would compete in theJeopardy! Masters primetime tournament onABC.[89] The program premiered on May 8, 2023.[90]
While a student at the University of Illinois at Urbana–Champaign, Holzhauer playedhearts andspades at acard club. The twice-a-week club quickly turned into a five-day-a-week homepoker game with a 10-cent ante and $2 maximum bets. The poker game is where Holzhauer began gambling but he grew hissports betting bankroll in the2006 World Baseball Classic. Believing theround-robin format of the tournament and variance in baseball had skewed the odds, Holzhauer bet heavily on each team except the US and the Dominican Republic to win the tournament. After graduating from college, he moved to Las Vegas in 2008 to bet professionally on sports. Holzhauer says he has built predictive models for baseball, NFL, and college basketball, but now focuses largely on in-game betting.[8]
Holzhauer debuted at theWorld Series of Poker in2019. In his first event, Holzhauer finished 454th out of approximately 1,800 contestants and did not win any prize money (he would have needed to finish at 281st or higher to win any prize money). His second event was a tag-team match in which he partnered withMike Sexton.[91] Holzhauer ultimately was knocked out as a solo contestant in round 17 of the tournament, with his most notable prize win being a $600 profit for finishing 92nd out of 1,867 on aNo-Limit Hold'em Super Turbo Bounty game.[92]
On September 8, 2012, Holzhauer married Melissa Sassin, a tutor fromSeattle, Washington.[30] Sassin has also been a game show contestant, appearing onWho Wants to Be a Millionaire in 2014 and winning $28,800.[30][93]
Holzhauer frequently madeinside references to important dates in his life with hisJeopardy! wagers, including family members' birthdays, his anniversary, and the date of the2017 Las Vegas shooting.[70][94]
Holzhauer is a sports fan in his personal capacity and is a fan of theVegas Golden Knights of theNational Hockey League. He has incorporated Vegas' staple "V" logo into his signature on an episode ofJeopardy and in a separate episode once proclaimed 'go Knights go' before wagering $10,617 on a daily double question, intentionally corresponding with October 6, 2017, the date of the team's first win.[95][96] On April 21, 2019, Holzhauer participated in the team's pre-game festivities before a playoff match.[96] He is also a lifelong fan of theChicago Cubs; he has said his dream job is a front-office position with the team and has actively sought employment inMajor League Baseball.[97] Holzhauer has said that he was contractually obligated to anon-compete clause in an agreement with theJeopardy! producers; it expired in January 2020.[98]
Holzhauer is a fan ofprofessional wrestling, in particularWWE, as seen in his numerous appearances forJeopardy andThe Chase. On both of those shows, he has notably used the taunts ofRandy Orton,Scott Hall,Shawn Michaels andChris Jericho. He also used a wrestling-likechampionship belt when onJeopardy! Masters, and was referred to as a "self-described game show villain". To hype upJeopardy! The Greatest of All Time in November 2019, he made a public statement identical toScott Steiner's famous"Maths" promo, replacingKurt Angle withBrad Rutter, andSamoa Joe withKen Jennings whilst stating he had a "141+2⁄3% chance of winning" the event.[99]
Holzhauer said he intended to donate some of hisJeopardy! winnings to Las Vegas children's charities.[100] On April 7, 2019, Holzhauer donated $10,000 to a Las Vegas organization for displaced teens.[101] On May 2, 2019, he was awarded a key to theLas Vegas Strip for his success onJeopardy! and for his donations to children's charity organizations and other nonprofit organizations in theLas Vegas area.[102] In mid-2019, Holzhauer donated $1,109.14 (representing his daughter's birthday) to the 2019NapervillePancreatic Cancer Reach Walk inIllinois, inAlex Trebek's name.[103] On June 24, 2019, Holzhauer began participating in World Series of Poker events in Las Vegas. He plans to donate half his winnings to the Las Vegas nonprofit Project 150, which helps homeless, displaced and disadvantaged high school students.[104][105]
On September 29, 2022, at the firstJeopardy! Honors event, Holzhauer and his wife Melissa received the inaugural Alex Trebek Person of the Year award fromAlex Trebek's widow, Jean, for their contributions to Project 150.[106] In 2020, the rock bandAVOID! sang "Song About James" in his honor. The song was featured inNASCAR Heat 5 andNASCAR Heat Ultimate Edition+.
You know what bothers me, is when I hear 'Jeopardy James,' I'm like, no, no, no, no, I'm that guy. You can't put Jeopardy in front of his name! I used to be the Jeopardy guy.
Holzhauer, 34...
His father, Juergen Holzhauer, a German immigrant who worked as an engineer for a chemical company for 32 years...
During his run on Jeopardy, where Jacob both thrilled and frustrated fans by jumping around categories looking for Daily Doubles and then betting so much money that no one could overtake him(...)
