Danger! Fans devastated as divisive champ Jake DeArruda loses to retired teacher amazingly upset ‘can’t believe’
DANGER! Contestant Jake DeArruda lost Wednesday in a twist that ends for the books.
Retired teacher Patti Palmer beat the running champion, who some viewers in Final Jeopardy called well-meaning but “irritating.”
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Jake, a delivery dispatcher from Ludlow, Vermont, has been the ongoing champion of Jeopardy! since defeating fan-favorite six-day champion Troy Meyer!
Unfortunately, his “quirky” on-stage behavior didn’t help convince skeptics while he won $86,000 — though he apparently meant well.
Jake met Aaron Bola, an emergency room physician from New York City, and Patti, a bookseller and retired teacher from Tulsa, Oklahoma.
The champion got the first daily double of the game and pumped his fist, but the gorgeous purple haired Patti put on her game face.
She bet $6,000 of her $6,600 on the last remaining daily double, got it right and a huge round of applause followed.
In Final Jeopardy, Jake had $24,800, Patti $16,200 and Aaron $7,400.
Jake had gone 0/3 on Final Jeopardy via Jeopardy.com, which was the second sign of trouble.
The third came from host Ken Jennings, 48, who warned: “Patti works in a bookstore…”
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The category for the crucial clue was “literature”.
The note read: “PD James’ last novel, ‘Death Comes to Pemberly’, published in 2011, was a sequel to this novel from 200 years earlier.”
“SHE LOOKS LIKE SHE CAN’T BELIEVE IT!”
Patti put down her stylus pretty quickly — and when it came time to reveal her answers and bets, she closed the book on Jake.
She correctly wrote, “What is Pride & Prejudice?” and Ken was stunned when she revealed that she wagered a massive $16,000.
Jake had guessed wrong: “What is Northanger Abbey?” – correct author, wrong book – and lost $7,601.
Patti was quite excitedly declared the winner with $32,200 and she just said, “Oh, wow!”
“She looks like she can’t believe it, but she’ll be here tomorrow!” Ken declared while Jake clapped respectfully.
‘GO PATTI!’
Fans couldn’t believe it either, as one on Reddit celebrated: “Come on awwwwn Patti! Loved her!!”
“Nothing against Jake but I was stoked for Patti at the end of that game!!” wrote another.
“For all the haters out there – you can see Jake clapping and smiling for Patti when she won. That showed great sportsmanship,” applauded a third.
“I cheered for Patti when she made that big bet in DD3. I hope she has a winning streak too. Apparently I’m attached to older but fearless players. Sam Buttrey, Ray Lalonde and now Patti!”
Jake then chimed in on the Reddit thread as well, writing, “Aaron and I were and still are absolutely smitten with Patti. She deserves it today, no question!”
“I wasn’t at all sure it was Austen. And when I finally wrote down what I was doing, I couldn’t think of anything else fast enough. That’s how it goes.”
CHAMP-ING AT THE BIT
Viewers have made no secret of the fact that Jake wasn’t everyone’s cup of tea, although there seemed to be no ill will on the board.
Haters accused him of being “unwatchable,” while others more kindly compared him to Mattea Roach for having just a bit of acquired taste.
When Jake found a “Daily Double,” he would often pump his chest or tickle his chin in response.
Other times he rested his head on his fist in a thoughtful pose — or spoke quickly or over host Ken.
His interview segments were often so fast that they were difficult to understand.
Taking to Twitter last night, a fan wrote: “6 minutes in and Jake is already irritating.”
Another wrote: “I think Ken is annoyed with Jake too.”
One Facebook user perhaps rightly defended himself: “Take it easy with Jake. He seems like a good guy who might be a bit quirky. But I see no arrogance.”
Another tweeted: “You guys need to exonerate Jake from #Jeopardy he’s just emotional and quirky. Seems someone with a personality is just too much for you guys. A lot of hate for an ‘intelligent’ audience.”
So far this season, four other contestants large enough to qualify for the 2023 Tournament of Champions have won.
That would be fan favorite Ray Lalonde with 13 wins, former poker ace Cris with most wins and money (21 and $748,000), five-day champion Luigi de Guzman, and four-day champion and priest David Sibley.
With four wins making a candidate a qualifier, Jake likely won’t be there.
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https://www.the-sun.com/entertainment/7285336/jeopardy-jake-dearruda-loses-patti-annoying-winner/ Danger! Fans devastated as divisive champ Jake DeArruda loses to retired teacher amazingly upset ‘can’t believe’