JEOPARDY! viewers have been left in shambles after power player Hari Parameswaran lost in an upset on Tuesday's episode.
Hari - who advanced to Champions Wildcard by dominating the earlier Second Chance Tournament - only lost by making the biggest bet on the final clue.
The hardware engineer at Apple from Cupertino, California, faced Aaron Craig, an attorney from Toronto, Ontario, and Katie Hargrove, a professional organizer from Redondo Beach, California.
Katie and Aaron were invited to Champions Wildcard by being brief winners from Seasons 37 or 38, while Hari fought his way in.
He won September's Season 37 Second Chance tournament for non-winners, which opened Season 40, proving himself as one to watch with huge bets and super-champion-level play.
Going into Double Jeopardy!, it quickly became a boxing match between Hari and Aaron (who coincidentally beat Second Chancer Sam Stapleton during his initial run).
Read more on Jeopardy!
Hari got himself to $7600 when he found a Daily Double and shockingly went all-in, his first big swing-and-miss.
Under "Night At The Museum" it read: “He painted 'Night Fishing at Antibes' just before the outbreak of World War II." Hari looked destroyed as he couldn't come up with "Picasso."
He fought back, however, getting the last Daily Double for $4000, and by Final Jeopardy, Aaron had $14,000, Hari still led with $17,200, and Katie had $3,600.
Host Ken Jennings remarked: “You two were duking it out the entire round, but even with that Daily Double miss, Hari, you have the lead.”
Most read in Entertainment
'THAT'S A SHAME'
Final Jeopardy! under "Names THE SAME" read: “This first name is shared by a character introduced in 1941 & a member of royalty who is sixth in line to the British throne.”
No one came up with the correct response of “Archie," referring to the comic book Archie and Harry and Meghan’s son.
Katie didn’t finish her response; Aaron (who had around 22 correct responses) wrote “Charlotte” and dropped just $3,202 to have $10,798.
Hari (around 25 correct responses) incorrectly wrote “James” and wagered a giant $11,000 as his head slumped in disappointment and the crowd gasped.
Fans took to Reddit thread disappointed that Hari lost on a bigger bet alone.
:"Shame to see such a strong player as Hari, with a $22,800 Coryat [or score not counting wager clues] lose on a Triple Stumper," one person wrote.
Another comment read: “This episode bummed me out a little. Hari really struck me as the strongest player, but a few key things just happened to not go his way. That's just how the game works, though."
A third viewer wrote: “Yeah it’s very unfortunate that [Final Jeopardy!] wagering works like that in 2/3 of leader’s score situations; I wanted to see more of Hari, he’s a great player. Top Coryat of the tournament so far."
A fourth wrote: “I knew it was gonna be either Hari or Aaron, but what a sad way to lose."
Read More on The US Sun
Aaron wrote in the thread: "Huge respect to Hari. His top Coryat of the tournament speaks for itself, and if we play 10 games, my guess is that Hari wins 7 or 8 out of 10 (which is what I told his parents the day after we taped)."
Aaron will now advance to the tournament’s semifinals, looking stunned to be inching closer to a Tournament of Champions slot and $100,000.
ncG1vNJzZmivp6x7tbTEZqqupl6YvK57xKernqqklravucSnq2hxZGx9en6UaKGep6CWv6XFjKGYq6Fdpa6zrcyeqrCZopa7bq3Aq6anZZOnrqqzjJyfmqWgnryvv4ywoKWck5a%2FpXs%3D