JEOPARDY! contestant Ben Goldstein has won his fourth game on Wednesday's episode despite missing a Daily Double that neither he nor fans seemed sold on.
The question about Taylor Swift's sold-out Eras tour asked him to guess the phrase "Tough Ticket" - leaving some viewers wanting a refund.
The returning champ faced Lee Papa, a Bloomfield, New Jersey professor, and Nabeela Rahman, a cooperative education coordinator from Mississauga, Ontario, Canada.
Ben is a content marketing specialist from Dexter, Michigan, who remained the one to beat with a three-day total of $21,293.
During Double Jeopardy!, he led with $8,600 to Nabeela’s $2,200 and Lee’s $600 when he found the questionable Daily Double.
He wagered $1,400, and Mayim Bialik, 47, read the clue under the category “Alliteration” as it popped up next to him on-screen.
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It went: "In 2022, getting a chance to see Taylor Swift in concert was the definition of this challenging phrase.”
Ben stared and simply said, “I have no idea.”
Mayim revealed what the correct response was: “How about a ‘Tough Ticket.’”
Ben shook his head as his rivals laughed out loud, looking like they weren't buying it either.
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“What else ya got?” Ben quipped when selecting the next clue.
'THAT'S NOT A PHRASE'
In a Reddit internet thread, fans did not mince words about the correct answer being a stretch as a phrase, as was written in the clue.
One wrote: “Tough Ticket is weird phrasing, and given it barely shows up on Google... Where are the writers getting this from?”
“Yeah, that's not a thing. Weird clue," wrote another.
“I've heard the phrase 'That's the toughest ticket in town' in reference to a hot Broadway show, but it might be somewhat old-timey," wrote a third.
A fourth responded: “I’m an old timer and I can see saying something like, 'that’s a tough ticket to come by.' But I don’t think of tough ticket as a phrase.
"Tough is just the adjective there. Golden ticket, ticket to ride, ticket out of here are phrases.
The writers have been terrible lately, and I feel for the contestants this past week in particular."
A fifth wrote: “I've heard the phrase, but that was an odd choice for a Daily Double" - as the crucial three hidden clues per game entail a contestant picking what to wager and are arguably the most important.
A sixth even wrote: “I'm gonna really need the writers to speak to one (1) person before coming up with these phrases.
"I've (barely) heard of a 'hard ticket,' but a tough ticket? Really? At that point, what's stopping me from saying 'tour tensions' or 'Eras ennui' when referencing how hard it is to get Taylor Swift tickets nowadays?"
Another person commiserated: “Glad to see everyone else thought the 'tough ticket' clue was stupid as s**t.”
Final Jeopardy! under Bodies of Water read: “The Bass Strait divides Tasmania & mainland Australia & hydrographers have disputed which of these 2 larger bodies it’s part of.”
Ben and Nabeela were both correct with “Pacific and Indian Oceans” while Lee unfortunately wrote “Pacific and Atlantic” which would be tough to justify geographically.
Nonetheless, Ben won with a four-day total of $37,293 and will most likely be in the 2023 Tournament of Champions.
'WORST CATEGORY EVER?'
Ben's seemingly low total (it entails averaging less than $10,000 per win), comes as the contestants have met some inscrutable questions this week.
On Monday's episode, Mayim presented the category "Let's Make a Movie Crossover!"
One missed clue read: “You stay classy, Kali! A 2004 San Diego news anchorman '&' a 1984 Indiana Jones title structure.”
Mayim explained it was “Ron Burgundy and The Temple of Doom.”
One contestant audibly scoffed, and Mayim bluntly said: “OK.”
Another from the category read: “An Alan Rickman 'Die Hard' villain 'wants those detonators' from a title Great Dane of 2002!”
Mayim explained the clue they were looking for: “Hans Gruber and Scooby Doo.”
“No,” Ben simply said, wanting to avoid the category. “That’s bad,” another contestant audibly said out loud.
One Reddit user wrote: “I usually love wordplay and portmanteau categories, and I also love movie categories. The 'Let's Make a Movie Crossover' category was the worst thing the show has done since letting Dr. Oz guest host."
JEOPARDY! SEASON SIMMERS
Jeopardy! has just a month before the game show takes the summer off.
Ken Jennings will be returning to host episodes airing from July 3 until July 28 - at which point Jeopardy! takes its annual hiatus.
He will continue hosting the daily episodes through the Season 39 finale on July 28.
Mayim, 48, splits one of TV's most treasured roles with Ken and has hosted since early May.
She is stepping back out earlier than expected to support the WGA writers' strike and Ken is returning to wrap up the season instead.
Ken and the actress were announced last summer as the co-successors to the late, great Alex Trebek, who died from cancer at age 80 in 2020.
Someone else wondered on Reddit if the WGA strike has something to do with the writing being off-kilter lately.
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"Do we know when these games were recorded? A number of these bad clues/categories recently seem like they didn't have the final quality/clarity control pass by writers and I'm wondering if it was once they were on strike."
To which one more claimed: "I think the leftover clues from Jeopardy! Masters have been sprinkled into the regular games as of late. That's one reason why we've seen contestants win with low paydays lately."
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