‘Jeopardy!’ fans react to ‘brutal’ moment when contestant loses: ‘Absolutely tragic’

A “Jeopardy!” contestant named Sophia lost her game on Tuesday night after seemingly misunderstanding the Final Jeopardy clue.

Fans of the game show have rallied around the young woman after her loss, calling the moment “brutal” and “a painful way to lose.”

Going into the final round, Sophia was in second place with a total of $14,600. A man named Michael was in first place with $28,800, and a woman named Sharon placed third with $5,800.

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“Jeopardy!” contestant Sophia would have won her game if she had not misunderstood the Final Jeopardy clue. (Jeopardy!/Sony Pictures Television)

The category was “Landmarks,” and the Final Jeopardy clue read, “During Pope John Paul II’s 1987 visit to Los Angeles, pranksters covered up this letter in a local landmark.”

The correct answer was “L,” the clue a reference to the story in which Los Angeles’ Hollywood sign was temporarily changed to read “Holywood.” Sharon got the question correct, bringing her final winnings up to $6,800.

Sophia was next to reveal her answer, and she was visibly anxious as she revealed that she had written “The Hollywood Sign.” She appeared to look at host Ken Jennings expectantly, and many fans interpreted that she seemed to be hoping her answer would be accepted.

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When Jennings said, “You got the right landmark but didn’t tell us the letter, I’m afraid,” her shoulders sank, and she could be heard scoffing and saying “No” in a clear show of disappointment.

“Jeopardy!” contestant Sophia was visibly disappointed after failing to provide the correct answer in Final Jeopardy. (Jeopardy!/Sony Pictures Television)

She wagered nearly everything, bringing her final total down to $399.

The first place contestant, Michael, guessed “O,” and his wager of only $500 brought him down to $28,300, making him the winner of the game. Had Sophia given the correct answer, she would have been declared the winner.

She was not shown after the revelation, but “Jeopardy!” fans took to Reddit to discuss the sad turn of events.

“Oh my God nooooo Sophia,” one person wrote, adding a sad face emoji. “That was so sad, she could have won.”

Another person wrote: “Absolutely tragic FJ. Was really rooting for Sophia, what a bizarre pair of mistakes on what felt like a relatively straightforward FJ clue.”

Ken Jennings, now the sole host of “Jeopardy!,” led Sophia’s episode. (Eric McCandless/ABC via Getty Images)

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Someone replied, “Brutal watching her reaction. Ouch.”

“You could see the full pain and range of emotions in her face as she saw L be called the right answer, realize her mistake, hope they’d maybe take her answer anyway, and the realization they would not,” another user commented. “It was the hardest I’ve ever seen a contestant take a loss but I don’t blame her at all, it’s not like she had a tantrum, she tried to hide the pain and just couldn’t.”

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A person claiming to be an audience member for Sophia’s episode claimed that she was told by Ken Jennings that if she had “circled or had an arrow pointing to the L,” her answer would have been accepted. (Sony Pictures Television Jeopardy Productions)

A viewer speculated that Sophia was trying not to cry when she realized she gave the wrong answer, and another admitted they almost cried for her, saying, “She went through all 5 stages of grief in about 15 seconds.”

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The moment was referred to as “a painful way to lose,” and one Reddit user who claimed to have been in the audience for the taping of this episode asserted, “Ken said if she had circled or had an arrow pointing to the L they could have accepted it.”